March 2008 Issue
Opportunity,
Equality, Independence
Founded
1935
1-800-255-1147
Denise Colley,
President |
Gaylen Floy,
Editor
(253) 217-9586
Federal Way,
WA
|
www.wcbinfo.org
Washington State
School for the Blind
Washington Talking
Book and Braille Library
By Denise Colley, WCB
President
Hello, WCB members and friends!
As I sit here at my computer keyboard
thinking about my very first message as your new WCB president, many thoughts
go through my head and I reflect on all that has happened in just the short
time since I took office on January 1st.
I want to start this article by thanking some
very appreciated people who have made an important difference for WCB.
Thank you to Cindy Van Winkle, Sue Ammeter
and Berl Colley for their help and encouragement during the last 3 months as we
have made the presidential transition and conducted the winter board meeting in
Everett. Their advice and willingness to step up and assist me at a moment’s
notice has really been appreciated.
I want to express a special thank you to
Peggy Shoel for her tireless work as the editor of our Newsline for the last 15
years. Under Peggy’s leadership the Newsline has become one of the most
respected affiliate magazines in the American Council of the Blind. Although
Peggy has turned the editor’s duties over to Gaylen Floy, thank you Gaylen, she
is still active within WCB. Facilitating the Diabetes support group and serving
on other committees. Peggy started editing the WCB Newsline with the first
issue of 1992.
I would also like to thank Shirley Taylor, who has headed
up our Crisis committee for most of its existence. Chris Coulter will be
serving as the new chair of that committee however; Shirley is still going to
be very active as mentor and participant. She is also serving on two other
committees and helping with a host of other things we will probably be calling
on her to do.
Finally, I want to
thank all of you for your efforts on behalf of WCB. It really makes a big difference when our
membership gets involved.
Congratulations to all of our chapters and
our special interest affiliate. All of you got your dues and membership lists
in on time and by the time you read this, you will have received your $500
chapter stipend check from our treasurer. Good job everyone!! A special thank
you goes to Janice Squires and Eric Hunter for all their hard work in updating
the membership database and keeping track of incoming chapter dues.
We held our winter board meeting at the
beginning of February, in Everett. Due
to a lot of unforeseen circumstances, board attendance was low. However, we
conducted a lot of business for WCB and had a very pleasant Friday night board
dinner and planning session. See the article on the Board meeting elsewhere in
this issue.
The legislative session is in full swing and
a lot of you have already been called upon to make phone calls to your
legislators to do what you can to ensure that the budget request for the
Washington Talking Book and Braille Library contained in the supplemental
budget of the Office of the Secretary of State and the Governor’s budget, be
included in the House and Senate budgets. You accepted the challenge and took
the time to express your wishes as library patrons and isn’t that what WCB is
all about? On another legislative note, congratulations go to David Egan and
Frank Johnson, the 2008 WCB representatives at the ACB Legislative Issues
seminar in Washington D.C., February 10-12. You can read about their
experiences in their articles later in this Newsline. They represented WCB
well.
Here are some
important dates to remember:
March 21, 2008
This is the final date for the Leadership
committee to receive requests from WCB members interested in applying to attend
the 2008 Leadership seminar in Everett. To be eligible you must have been a
member of WCB for at least six months prior to the beginning of the seminar
(since October 25, 2007). Those members interested in attending need to submit
a letter of request to Cindy Van Winkle, chair of the Leadership committee, at cindy.vw@msn.com. Letters of interest must be submitted
electronically.
April 25-27, 2008
This is the date of the Eighth Annual
Leadership Seminar and spring board meeting. This year’s Leadership Seminar
will take place April 25-26, 2008, culminating with the spring board meeting on
April 27, 2008 and will be held at the Downtown Holiday Inn, 3105 Pine Street,
Everett, WA. Room rates are $89 plus tax. Those not attending as a leadership
participant, WCB board member or chapter rep. should make their reservations by
calling the hotel directly, no later than April 7, 2008 at (425) 339-2000. For
those planning to be at the board lunch, please let me know no later than April
18, 2008 to be included in the count. You may call me at (360) 438-0072 or
e-mail me at dmc0124@comcast.net.
May 1, 2008
This is the deadline date to request consideration for the First Timer grant to attend the ACB national convention in Louisville, Kentucky, July 5-12, 2008. The following are the items to be considered for a First-Timer's award: never attended a previous national convention, be a WCB member for at least 12 months prior to the opening of the ACB convention and have no outstanding WCB loan payments in default. Your request letter should be sent to
Meka White, chair of
the First Timers committee at mekawh@gmail.com.
May 15, 2008
This is the last day to request travel
stipends to attend the ACB national convention or national convention loans.
This year’s national convention stipend will be $250 and is available to any
member planning to attend the convention that has been a member for at least 12
months prior to the opening session of the convention and has no outstanding
loan payments in default. Members who meet the same eligibility requirements
may obtain a convention loan of up to $750. The loan must be paid back to WCB
within 10 months following the convention in Louisville, KY. To request a
travel stipend or convention loan please contact me either by phone at (360)
438-0072 or by e-mail at dmc0124@comcast.net.
I want to close by thanking and
congratulating Cindy Van Winkle for her leadership of WCB for the last four
years. As the old saying goes, Cindy, you will be a hard act to follow.
By Gaylen Floy
By the time you read this, the Newsline
committee and production volunteers should be on the road to recovery. There
have been big changes behind the scenes.
Peggy
Shoel stepped down as editor after 15 years and Lorraine Pozzi stepped down as
the editorial assistant after 20 years. With fear and trepidation I agreed to
serve as editor. Andrea Park is now assisting with production. Carl Jarvis and
Rhonda Nelson are editing, assessing procedures and sorting out style
questions. Change is always hard and unsettling, but the commitment in this
organization shines through.
Special
thanks go to Denise Colley, Cindy Van Winkle, Carolyn Meyer, Viola Cruz, Bill
Hoage, Frank Cuta, Brady Layman and Tim Schneebek for all their efforts and
support during the production transition.
Newsline is your voice and record. It is also
a great education and marketing tool. Our committee will be developing a policy
and procedure handbook to post online. If you have any questions or a story
idea, please call or drop us a line.
go to Washington D.C.
By Frank Johnson,
member, King County Chapter
David
and I spent one-and-a-half packed days at the Legislative Seminar preceding our
visits to the offices of four of our legislators. It seemed that we had barely
left Seattle for the nonstop flight to the “other Washington” before we were
driving over black ice to the airport for our return trip.
At the seminar, ACB had narrowed a number of
possible matters into three Legislative Imperatives, which were presented to us
to assist in preparing us for our visits to the Hill.
Many of the participants, from a number of
states, had attended previous Seminars. At least one person was returning for
their 18th year. Thus, they were familiar with the process, familiar with the
Capitol layout, and had experience in locating Congressional offices. As one of
the very few first-timers, I recognized the enormity of the process and did not
feel as prepared as I might have preferred.
Tuesday we sought out our Legislator’s
offices armed with folders describing the ACB priority concerns for action in
2008. These three issues were telecommunications and information, web site
accessibility and quiet vehicles. We summarized these to the Legislative staff,
asking that Congress persons consider sponsoring or introducing proposals as
prospective laws.
In my judgment, it is crucial that Congress
be as informed as possible in order to provide meaningful legislative support
to the issues facing persons with disabilities.
I believe future delegates could be better
oriented and prepared for the experience. Having visited the Capitol many years
ago was of some help to me, although I was not prepared for the presence of
uniformed security stationed at every turn.
Because of the help willingly given by staff
of the Congressional offices, we were aided in negotiating the Capitol warren.
Finally, both David and I were, if overwhelmed, nonetheless proud to have this
experience and to participate in the legislative process.
By David Egan, Chair,
Environmental Access
Committee
Frank Johnson and I were selected to participate
in the ACB Legislative Seminar in Washington D.C. this year. We were there for
nearly three days. The first day-and-a-half was spent in sessions learning
about the selected three Legislative Imperatives. During this time there were
several guest speakers describing the issues. Our third day was spent on
Capital Hill visiting the offices of four of our legislators.
Setting up appointments with our
Representatives and Senators or their designees turned out to be one of the
most challenging aspects of our experience. Being patient and persistent works
and we were able to schedule several meetings.
The three main issues identified by ACB for
2008 were as follows:
1) Telecommunications and information, 2) Web
Site Accessibility associated with ADA law, and 3) Quiet Cars. Our job was to
present these concerns to Legislative staff, and to request that Congressional
law makers consider sponsoring or co-sponsoring our proposed legislation.
The three legislative proposals come with
suggested actions to be championed by our Legislators. Each proposal comes with
a great deal of background information in alternative formats.
1) Telecommunication and Electronic
Information
On December 21, 2007, Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), along
with the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, publicly released the
Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act discussion
draft. This draft Legislation was made a reality by the active participation of
ACB through its steering committee membership in the Coalition of Organizations
for Accessible Technology (COAT). ACB is encouraging Congress to formally
introduce legislation.
ACB strongly urges the House of
Representatives to formally introduce the
Twenty-first Century Communications and Video
Accessibility Act discussion draft.
2) ADA
and the Internet
Rationale: Although the ADA requires public accommodations to provide effective
communication to people with disabilities to afford them the full enjoyment of
goods and services and other opportunities offered, there is no consistent and
authoritative definition of this requirement in federal law.
The proposed language clarifies that, when
public accommodations provide alternative means to access their goods and
services (presumably because the common means of accessing them is inaccessible
to people with disabilities), the alternative means must not provide
second-class access. This language is based on the U.S. Department of
Education's Office of Civil Rights test to determine the effectiveness of communication,
as well as the Help America Vote Act’s standard of privacy and independence.
This clarification to ADA Title III would unambiguously establish a clear and
consistent federal test of effectiveness and yield more consistent results.
ACB strongly urges the House of
Representatives and Senate to formally introduce the above language as
stand-alone legislation.
3) Quiet vehicles:
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the House
of Representatives and the Senate, that it is the sense of the Congress that:
1. The U.S. Department of Transportation or other
appropriate federal agencies should receive funding to for allow a blind or
visually impaired pedestrian to independently identify vehicles while
traversing streets or vehicular ways;
2. That the department should provide a
report to Congress that would detail its findings as well as a proposed time
line for their implementation by manufacturers of automobiles, buses, trucks
and other motorized vehicles; and
3. That the department shall have the
authority to implement its recommendations regarding standards for vehicle
manufacture two years after the passage of this act.
There are often glitches associated with
travel to unfamiliar places, and we certainly had our share, but that’s simply
part of the adventure. Through it all I’ve come to realize how important our
work with this organization really is. The enormity of the Capital grounds and
buildings is staggering. It was tempting to stop or at least slow down enough
to soak it all in, but our schedules wouldn’t permit as we had to make a flight
back to Seattle and the weather was against us. This was our first time at
this, yet I found each spokesperson to be quite interesting, conversational and
helpful. It is obvious that our voice is being heard. The agenda this year was
of interest to me because of the Environmental Access work we do here at the
State level. I realize too that there is still a lot to learn, yet it is an
honor to have been chosen to participate this year.
By Berl Colley,
Chair, History Committee
July-December, 1990
The second half of 1990 had an active start with the new organization’s second board meeting, held at the Library
for
the Blind, in Seattle, on July 20, 1990.
Ken Hopkins was approved as the WCB attorney.
He was charged with doing the legal work to dissolve the previous organizations
and reincorporate the new WCB. Sue Ammeter was charged with finding an
accountant to help with 1989 accounting records and to bring the organizations
past due filings current with the Secretary of State. A tradition was started
when the board agreed to pay for the Washington delegation breakfast which was
scheduled during the national convention in Denver.
Establishing a WCB student group was
discussed and Frank Cuta, Maida Pojtinger, Linda Wickersham, Stuart Russell and
Jim Eccles expressed interest in working toward this goal. This would be the
first of several efforts to form a student group over the coming years.
Convention plans were discussed and Dan Tonge
was appointed as the chair of resolutions. Another WCB tradition was started at
the July 1990 board meeting where it approved paying for two free rooms, one
for men and one for women, at the fall convention at the Holiday Inn in
Issaquah.
In addition to the student group, there was
interest in starting a group at Washington State University and a chapter in
the state’s capitol, Olympia. Nothing came of the student group or the group at
WSU, but after President Ammeter made several visits to Olympia, a chapter was
formed. Terry Atwater, the elected President of the Capital City Council of the
Blind, submitted the group’s constitution and members list and dues to the
board at the fall convention in Issaquah. CCCB was accepted as WCB’s 12th
chapter.
Another
tradition was established when the board voted to give $500 to the new
chapter’s treasury. At the October board meeting President Ammeter announced
that she had hired Jack Faulkner and Linda Davidson to work on the WCB
accounting paperwork. The board voted to use the Vantage group for the 1991
fund raiser.
One of the items of business at the Sunday
morning business meeting on October 7, 1990 was not to renew WCB’s membership
in the Washington Assembly of Citizens with Disabilities, because they would
not provide information in an alternative format. Josette Kernaghan reported
that the Guide Dog group was looking at Hawaii’s quarantine policy and would be
raising their dues to $10 per person.
An advocacy issue was discussed and the WCB
President was instructed to write a letter to the University of Washington
explaining to them that language in a recent Disabled Students Services letter,
saying that disabled students couldn’t be relied on for information, was not
appropriate.
The board was given the final decision on
whether to have the 1991 state convention in the Tri-Cities or Tacoma. The top
three people in the election of the delegate and alternate delegate to the 1991
national convention in Tampa, Florida were: Sue Ammeter, delegate; Marilyn
Donnelly, alternate delegate; and Peggy Shoel as substitute alternate. The
convention asked the board to have a better selection process in place for
choosing the delegate to the national convention in 1991. The last item of
business was to provide up to $150 to each member in good standing who is going
to the Tampa convention.
The national representative to the Issaquah
convention was Steve Spieker. He was also the banquet speaker. Chris Gray was
the banquet MC. Joan Ladeburg won the pre-registration breakfasts and the
organization awarded nine people a total of $7,900 in scholarships.
Now the new organization had the experience
of 1990 under its belt and WCB members looked forward to 1991 with confidence
and positive expectations.
By Carl Jarvis,
Chair,
Aging and Blindness
Committee
Over the years I was absolutely certain that
somewhere, somehow, there existed the right approach for teaching spatial
awareness to blind people. My wife and fellow rehab teacher had never shared my
belief. Despite discussing and debating this issue many times, my mind was made
up. I simply could not accept that there are some skills that cannot be taught.
Finally the light clicked on when Cathy,
trying to illustrate her point, said, “You know, Carl, you have no sense of
rhythm. Despite all these years of trying, you still can't follow the beat. You
sing just fine but you’re totally lost in the song, which is better, and safer,
than turning you loose on the dance floor.” This brought to mind my mother. She
was tone deaf. We always said that mother sang the tune the old cow died on.
She had about three notes, and yet she loved music. I loved music, too. How was
it that mother and I could be serious music lovers but not be able to hum or
dance to the tune? Of course the answer is that humming and dancing are not
central to music appreciation.
And then it hit me. I was focused on the
wrong goal. Regardless of whether it could be taught or not, Spatial Awareness
is not central to leading a successful, independent life. Not only was I busy
trying to teach people to develop a skill which they did not possess, but worse
yet, I was implying that without this skill they could not be successful,
independent people. Just because a kangaroo can hop doesn't mean I can teach
him to fly, nor does he need to fly to reach his goal. Just because a blind
person can get from point A to point B does not mean that I can teach him
spatial awareness. Some of our brains are simply not set up to work that way.
This was a hard concept for me to wrap my
mind around. Over the years I watched many blind people travel about and arrive
at their destination. Some did it with ease, while others did it by trial and
error. I figured that the trial and error folks just needed to practice harder
and pay closer attention to what they were doing. It never occurred to me that
just getting there was a major success for the Spatially Challenged. The truth
is I had no clue as to what these folks were struggling with.
Think of trying to teach a blind man to see.
We could put him through the same drills that we use for all sighted folks.
Over and over we could force him to peer and strain, finally giving up in
frustration. We might feel that we had not pushed him hard enough. He would be
left with the feeling that he was incompetent. In the end, we had programmed
him for a life of failure. However of course, we know that a blind man cannot
be taught to see; even if his eyes move and he blinks and sheds tears. He is
missing something that cannot be taught. This absence must be accommodated if
he is to function independently in life.
This is exactly the same course of action
needed for the Spatially Challenged. Trying to teach them techniques that work
for the Spatially Aware will only frustrate them. What is needed is a set of
alternative techniques that will assist them in accommodating their different
approach to space.
Whether we are blind or sighted, I believe
that there are great differences in how our brains process spatial information.
Sighted people accommodate this difference, unaware that it even exists.
However, without sight, this difference becomes a major problem for the
Spatially Challenged. It is essential that we develop positive alternative
techniques, which will enable people to function successfully in their environment,
allowing them to fulfill their goal to live a productive, independent life.
By Patt Copeland
Every organization has a beginning and USABA
was started by a team of All Stars! After a recent vision loss, I joined United
Blind of Seattle, which is our local chapter of the American Council of the
Blind. One day I was chatting with a friend, Telea Noriega, and he mentioned
how he loved to play goal ball and recounted their team’s success in playing at
Nationals. He was talking about USABA and suddenly I was transported back to a
memory of my dad, Arthur Copeland, and my step mom, Helen Copeland, working
around our kitchen table in Beach Haven Park, N.J.
I can still picture my dad at the table,
talking on the phone and making notes with Braille slate and stylus. He had a
box of index cards with names and addresses – this was the first membership
list. He and Helen worked with an ancient manual typewriter responding to mail
that eventually came in from all over the world.
They, along with an All Star team, made USABA
a real success in a very short period of time. They gathered support and
started local USABA chapters all around the country. Initially they had minimal
funding, no paid staff and no official office space. USABA would have to be put
away at night so we could have dinner. However, after the dishes were done they
would return to work. They worked with the determination of an athlete and
that, of course, is the point of the whole story.
USABA began in the summer of 1976 when a team
representing the Blind Athletes of the United States was sent to compete in the
Olympics for the Disabled held in Toronto, Canada.
At the Games, an important meeting involving Arthur Copeland, Dr. Charles Buelle, Judy Whyte and Lou
Moneymaker took place. The energy of this
group was the catalyst that sparked the creation of USABA. They recruited more
allies and formed a core group that would also include Oral Miller, David
Beaver, Arlene Walkowski, Deke Edwards, Dr. Mae Davidow and Joe Dominguez. Helen
Copeland acted as the unofficial USABA secretary until the first part-time
executive secretary was hired. USABA was officially formed in November of 1976
in St. Louis where this group created by-laws and set USABA into motion.
It was an era of great change within the
blind community. The traditional role of the blind school was being challenged.
Mainstreaming the blind student into local public schools was being emphasized
as a more modern approach to Special Education. The team shared the concern that
there was a real danger that the specialized coaching techniques and training
of the blind athlete could be abandoned. The fear was that the athletic talent
of visually impaired children would go unrecognized and that this could have a
major impact on the leadership potential and training of the next generation.
The team went to work, empowered by their own
personal success stories. They knew how to strategize and win. My dad, acting
as coach, kept them all working together and fairly unified. They were a force
to be reckoned with and they shared a common dream to protect and promote
sports education within the blind community.
It is now the autumn of 2006 and USABA has
served athletes with visual impairments for thirty years. It has grown and
prospered with many new sports. The kitchen table has given way to a Colorado
office. Index cards are now digital and communication is by email. What has
endured and what matters is that USABA continues to serve blind and visually
impaired athletes and is led by dedicated people who are determined to promote
sports education. I know that my parents would want to say thanks and urge you
all to continue the dream of the original team!
Note:
This article first appeared in “Insight,” the winter edition 2006-2007, to
commemorate the 30th Anniversary of USABA. (United States Association of Blind
Athletes). Reprinted with permission.
By Cindy Van Winkle
One of the most precious moments of the 2007
school year happened for me on the second to the last day and it's all thanks
to Jacob.
In the preschool where I was working, there’s
a battery operated duck game which causes little ducks to move around the pond
in a circle. This is a color recognition activity with one of four colors on
the bottom of each duck.
This day, I sat down with Jacob to play the
game. He'd pick up a duck, showed me the bottom and told me the color. I’d
reinforce this activity by telling him what a good job he was doing.
Jacob then lifted a duck and asked me “What
color is this?” I said, “You tell me what color it is.” and so he did. However,
that only worked a few times.
Then Jacob asked me again, “What color is
this?” and when I said “No, you tell me,” he said, “No, you tell me.”
I then said, “Jacob, I can’t tell what color
it is, because my eyes don't work.”
Jacob didn’t say anything and went about
playing by himself. Figuring he didn’t understand, I stepped away for a bit,
not feeling the need to explain anything more.
However, little did I know for when I came
near him again, Jacob said, “Play Cindy.”
So I got on the floor and Jacob began doing
the most amazing thing. He’d show me a duck and say, “What color is duck red?”
I’d say, “Red!” and Jacob would enthusiastically tell me, “Great job!” Then
he’d say, “What color is duck yellow?” and I’d say, “Yellow!” And he’d again
say, “Great job!” And so this went with duck blue and duck green, and each time
I’d repeat the color back to him. At the end, he was so proud of the both of us
that he told me, “Give me five!”
We ended up playing this game through two
rounds and had gotten the attention of other staff as they happened to be
passing by. He brought smiles to all of our faces and joyful tears to my eyes.
My little friend, Jacob, not only understood
that my eyes don’t work, but thought about it, and figured out, on his own, how
Teacher Cindy could play this color recognition game without being able to see
the colors.
What a precious moment indeed. And all thanks
to a sweet little 4-year-old with Autism, who truly has no idea of the gift he
gave to me – a colorful gift of love.
By Rhonda Nelson,
member, King County Chapter
Due to the birth of a grandchild, illnesses
and other absences, the February 2, 2008 meeting in Everett of the Washington
Council of the Blind Board of Directors had fewer attendees than usual.
However, those who were present enthusiastically set the wheels in motion for a
very positive 2008. We heard reports from our newly elected president and from
several WCB committees.
Denise Colley said she is very much looking forward to
serving as president, with the board continuing to work as a united team and
with a strong and active membership. There are various committee changes this
year, including new chairs in some instances.
Here is a summary of our very full calendar
of activities for 2008. Please refer to articles elsewhere in this Newsline for
further details. By the time you read this, two of our members will have
attended the American Council of the Blind legislative seminar February 10
through 12, 2008 in Washington, D.C. WCB will return to Everett the weekend of
April 25 through 27, 2008 for our leadership seminar. The Guide Dog Users of
Washington State spring fling will be the 26th and the spring board meeting the
27th. The cutoff date to apply for the leadership seminar is March 21, 2008.
The ACB national convention will cause several of us to head to Louisville,
Kentucky July 5 through 12, 2008.
Applications to be WCB’s first timer attendee
need to be submitted by May 1, 2008 and requests for a convention stipend of
$250 or loan of up to $750 must be received by May 15, 2008. WCB's summer
retreat and board meeting will be August 1 and 2, 2008 in Vancouver. That will
also be the location of our annual convention, October 23 through 25, 2008. If
you have suggestions for convention program content, please contact a member of
the convention committee. The cutoff date for convention registration and hotel
reservations will be October 1, 2008.
Support for funding of the Washington Talking
Book and Braille Library continues at the forefront of WCB's legislative
efforts. While we are encouraged because the Governor's supplemental budget
included the funding increase and provision for staff positions essential to
maintain our current level of library service, we need to ensure that this also
gets into the budgets of the House and Senate. WCB members have done targeted
letter writing and phone calling and more action will be needed. Speaking of
legislative activity, WCB's legislative committee is planning to put together
our own statewide legislative seminar in January of 2009.
WCB’s advocacy committee was able to assist a
gentleman in a successful employment discrimination lawsuit against a fitness
club. Our environmental access position paper on roundabouts has been widely
distributed. That committee is looking at other pedestrian safety concerns, as
well as issues with paratransit and cell phone access. There is a lot of
information, including audio from our 2007 state convention, on our website:
www.wcbinfo.org. Chapter presidents are reminded to contact webmaster Viola
Cruz at firekat72@gmail.com with updated contact and meeting location information.
By now some of you may be saying, okay that's
good organizational information, but who has a new grandbaby? You can find that
and other congratulations, in “Hats Off to You” in this Newsline.
(Editor’s note: Since this board meeting,
WTBBL funding was included in the state budget.)
Capital City Council
of the Blind
Greater Everett Area
Council of the Blind
Peninsula Council of the Blind
South King Council of
the Blind
United Blind of the
Tri-Cities
United Blind of
Whatcom County
By Berl Colley,
President
Each December, we have our community
Christmas party for blind and visually impaired people who live in the area.
Over 30 people came to this year’s party to eat and exchange gifts. The party
was held at the Chambers restaurant, located in Panorama City. After good food
and a lot of gift opening, steeling and teasing, we went home feeling like 2007
was successfully closed.
At our January 2008 meeting we had a speaker,
Jean Gallow, who is the head of DSB’s BEP program. She talked to us about the
Business Enterprises program and what potential there is for blind and visually
impaired people in Washington State to earn a good living. Vice President,
Gloria Walling gave CCCB members a very ambitious social schedule that goes
through the summer. It includes such things as a pizza party, a bowling night,
a wine tasting function, combining with the Lacey Lions for a pancake feed,
participating in the Lacey Fun Fair and joining with them and other
organizations in the Cancer walk in June 2008.
CCCB did not conduct a fund raiser in 2007
and will be focusing on finding one or more in 2008. To this end, we had an
executive committee meeting and two fund raising committee meetings so far this
year.
We want to welcome two new members to our
club. They both joined in January. They are Michael Cunningham and Jamie Bates.
We haven’t had our February meeting as of
this writing.
By Chris Coulter,
member
Welcome to the new and improved Greater
Everett Area Council of the Blind. We have a new meeting day, time and place
and we have improved energy. We’re all ready to welcome all those new people
who are just itching to walk through our door.
So, where is this place that the new people
should come to? It’s called Patty’s Egg Nest, located at 6720 Evergreen Way in
Everett. When will we be there? The second Saturday of each month at 2 PM; we
take a break in July and August to enjoy what sunshine comes our way then.
We began meeting for late brunch at Patty's
Egg Nest in January, when we had our first business meeting of the New Year and
talked about how we each spent the holidays.
Carolyn Meyer gave a presentation about the
Louis Braille School at our February meeting. She talked about the auction
which will be coming up in May and she told us about the myriad educational
opportunities of which she and the school are a part.
In March we plan on having our usual business
meeting with surprises to follow. I’m not even quite sure what they are. If you
have an inquiring mind and you want to know, please call our president. John
Common at 425-335-4031 to reserve a place at our table on March 8th.
By Joleen Ferguson,
member
The big news is our 5th annual Spring Fling
again in conjunction with the WCB leadership training and board meeting. The
hotel contract has been signed and the menu chosen. Our committee is working on
a theme and on the program. Currently, a suggestion from one of our members is
our plan. We hope to have information about the history and development of
guide dog harnesses. You won't want to miss this. Be watching for registration
details and mark April 26 as the date to be at the Holiday Inn Downtown
Everett, 425 339-2000. Be sure to tell them that your room is with the WCB
block.
Debby Phillips has found it necessary to
resign as our secretary and we thank her for her service. Our board has elected Randy Tedrow to
complete her term. His director vacancy has been filled by election of Gina
Allen who will complete his unexpired term.
Three of us are known to have recently
trained with new guides: Carla Dawson with Sequoia, Kevin Frankeberger with
Tomasso, and Darlene Hilling with Swanson.
We are currently 47 members strong with our
total decreased this year by about six names. If you haven’t renewed or if you
have never joined, any time is good and now is great. E-mail your contact information
to Janice Squires at janicesqu@verizon.net.
Send a $15 check made out to GDUWS, to
Byron Kaczmarski, Treasurer
P.O. Box 194
Dayton, WA 99328-0194
By Carl Jarvis,
Secretary
We are already up to our eyebrows in
activities this year, working hard for WCB and making our presence known in our
community.
At the state level, two of our members
serve on the WCB board: Sue Ammeter, who chairs the Advocacy committee, and
Carl Jarvis, chair of Aging and Blindness. Our members’ involvement in issues
such as the recent push to pass the WTBBL budget has made us known to our state
representatives and senator.
Locally, Lynn Gressley and Sue Ammeter
serve on the DASH board. That’s Disability Awareness Starts Here. This year
several of our members will again involve themselves in Disability Awareness
Day. The focus will be on emergency preparedness.
On February 7, the Governor’s
Committee on Disability Issues and Employment met in Port Townsend. Lynn Gressley, John and Sue Ammeter attended.
A gathering of over one hundred citizens discussed a number of issues affecting
disabled people. However, the central focus was the message they brought to
postal authorities--find a solution to disability-access issues at the historic
Port Townsend post office, instead of selling the building or moving the
service out of the downtown core.
Although it would be a bit crowded,
you are all welcome to join us each fourth Friday of the month at noon at the
Fiesta Jalisco restaurant in Port Hadlock. At our February 22nd meeting we
welcomed guest speaker Harry Whiting, Vocational Rehab Counselor from the
Department of Services for the Blind.
Our officers are:
Sue Ammeter, President
Lynn Gressley, Vice-President
Cathy Jarvis, Treasurer
and yours truly, Carl Jarvis,
Secretary
By Marilyn Donnelly,
Treasurer
Spring has sprung and the crocuses are in
bloom. Can pussywillows and forsythia be far behind?
Two members from the King County Chapter
represented WCB at the American Council of the Blind legislative seminar held
recently in Washington, D.C. Frank
Johnson and David Egan spent a day and a half being informed about legislation
and another day visiting Congressional offices from this state to share
information about issues of importance to blind and visually impaired
Americans.
Shirley Taylor spoke to us at our January
meeting about her work with the Youth Awareness Disability Assemblies (YADA).
Shirley brings a variety of adaptive aids for the blind so that the elementary
school children can have hands on experiences. These assemblies include many
other disability groups. Rhonda Nelson talked briefly about her new cell phone
and the discount currently available from AT&T on screen reading software for
their phones. Marilyn Donnelly discussed her plans to attend her local caucus
and encouraged others to do the same. We also had open forum to discuss
speakers for future meetings. Identity theft and scams seemed to be at the top
of the list.
We want to thank Peggy Shoel for her many
years as editor of the Newsline. She did a great job! Marilyn especially
appreciated all the times Peggy gave her a few more days to finish her
articles.
Congratulations to member Mary Sue Lonnevik
for passing the many exams required to become a financial advisor. We wish her
success in this new endeavor.
The King County Chapter meets every fourth
Saturday at the Northgate Marie Callender’s restaurant and anyone is welcome to
come.
By Karen Kay
Lewis-Keverline, member
This month found our thoughtful, hard working
President, Linda Jacques, filling a "spot" on the local KEDO
"Live" radio show. She says she had a great time. Linda is full of
creative ideas for reaching the local blind and the interested public.
Linda also wanted to share that we have three
new members. We are meeting in a local retirement facility which gives us many
interested residents that want to check us out. We are pleased and the facility
is lovely!
Our long-time member, Ginger McCallum, has
recently moved to a local complex. It has been a great help in seeing to
Ginger's needs and has helped her make new friends. She is truly enjoying her
new home at New West Side Terrace.
Tom Barackman has moved into new housing in
another part of town. He is close to shopping which he finds a big help.
Our chapter will have a booth at the March
Expo-Center event. Linda, our President, is very excited about this opportunity
following our positive experience at the Cowlitz County Fair last summer. We
feel the more we can educate the general public, the better off everyone will
be. We are planning another interactive exhibit. Who knows – if we help even
one person, it is greatly worth the effort and time.
Bill Keverline, our Vice-President, was able
to fill in for our President at the state-wide President's Meeting held (this
time) in Everett. He had much to report to our group about the adventure and
meeting. Mainly, he was able to report information concerning the workings of
our state leadership. They are a wonderful resource for all of us. Bill enjoyed
his time at the meeting. He met people new to him and enjoyed getting
acquainted, as well as renewing old friendships. He found the meeting
interesting, people friendly and the exchange of ideas stimulating.
By Eric Hunter,
President
PCB had a very active winter with many
activities, including several socials at area restaurants and monthly meetings
at the Hunter house to exchange ideas and impressions; occasional gripes and
some plaudits.
One of our special occasions was a
"getting out of the navy" party for Jeff Schweizer at the Silverdale
Azteca, attended by over 40 of us. Jeff did eight years in the Navy. He and
Sarah, having three very young children, decided that he wanted to be a
full-time dad, which was impossible as an active-duty sailor. He found himself
a good job in Auburn, and commutes, as he and Sarah don't want to leave Kitsap
County.
We lost a lovely lady, Dorothy Hull, late last
year. She was a long-time member and had just celebrated her 90th birthday.
Joanne and I had visited her just a week or so before her death and she had
been very sprightly. It was a great shock to hear of her sudden death.
At our January meeting we elected a new
Secretary, Meka White and a new Treasurer, Jeff Schweizer, as well as
re-electing Director Gary Beck. The chapter’s profound thanks go to Mike
Denzer, who did a superlative job as our Treasurer for seven years and to our
former Secretary, Michelle Denzer. Mike is going to remain in charge of our
Assisted Listening Devices and Microphones, for which we are grateful.
Several of our members were appointed to WCB
committees: Cindy, Meka and Eric are chairs, as well as members in other
committees and Joanne is a member of one. Thanks to the cooperation of our
friends in South Kitsap Council of the Blind, we had a successful sale of the
Kitsap Cards, generating over $400 income.
We are already making plans for the garage
sale next June, at which we should have lots of junk...er...stuff, as well as
our famous Jackburgers and Jackdogs, cooked by our own chef Jack Piggott and
his wife Frances. The only problem I have with the garage sale is that I gain
forty pounds. We expect to have our picnic at Evergreen Park on the waterfront
in Bremerton.
We are all excited about this year, and the
lovely late winter sunshine reminds me of Richard Armours little poem.
Winter is gone, its Death Knell rung
Spring, the weeds and my back have sprung.
By Mildred L.
Johnson, Secretary
Greetings from PCAB and a Happy New Year.
This past year has been very good to us. We
moved to a new location and changed our meeting date and time, which proved a
good move as we gained five new members. They are Debbie Peterson, Kate Dolose,
Cory O'Connor, Sarah Edick and Ken Buchanan.
We now meet at the Tacoma Area Coalition for
Individuals with Disabilities (TACID) the 4th
Saturday of every month from eleven to one. TACID is located at 6315 S 19th Street.
We held elections and the new officers are:
President, Lori Allison; Vice President, David Edick; Secretary, Mildred L.
Johnson; Treasurer, Arnold Kammeyer.
We have three new fund raisers selling candy,
PCAB T-shirts and pizza cards. All have been real successful. We still have our
ongoing fund raiser in the summer time at my home.
We had six members go to the Spokane WCB
Convention.
We tried something new for us in November and
December. We held our meeting at a pizza place making for a short meeting, but
very enjoyable social time and we are getting acquainted with new members.
We are working on several projects for 2008,
like the descriptive video library. We’ve been trying to contact some of the
children in the schools who are blind. Also, we are looking for a way to make
the public more aware of the white cane and its purpose; so many have no
respect for a person with a white cane. Again we helped Pierce College and the
University of Washington at Tacoma with equipment for students that are blind.
By Maida Pojtinger,
Vice-President
After two months of cold weather, it is so
nice to have some sunshine and new growth in the yard. The continued growth of
the membership in our chapter is also nice to see.
At the February 9th meeting, we welcomed
three new members. Rhonda Nelson joined us, although her primary chapter is the
King County chapter. Rhonda has been a member of WCB for a long time and we
appreciate that she has been a former Board member. She now serves on three WCB
committees. Shirley Soper moved from Tenino to Kent. She worked for IBM and
moved around with her job. Lauren Schaeppli works at the Lighthouse for the
Blind and lives in Federal Way. He loves to spend time fishing for salmon or
steelhead. Welcome to all three.
Since it is too cold to have a car wash, our
chapter sponsored a wine-tasting party on February 16th. Those folks who
attended enjoyed the samples of wine and we are happy to add more money to our
treasury.
On Friday, Feb. 29th, Nhi Duong, Bill Wippel and Gaylen Floy were interviewed
by the Trinity Broadcast Network (TBN). Nhi and Gaylen talked about the
challenges of vision loss and resources for support and training.
The new slate of officers for SKB is as
follows: Telea Noriega, President; Maida Pojtinger, Vice-President; Gaylen
Floy, Secretary; Nhi Duong, Treasurer.
Back to Table of
Contents
By Ursula Culala,
member
Happy New Year to you all!
Our chapter started 2008 with a big bang!!!
With our holiday gathering last December 8,
2007, Julie Brannon gave us a thought for our New Year’s resolution, which was
to lose weight. We can make our chapter lean with muscles. She encouraged each
member to be involved with our chapter committees and with the state
committees.
Here are the chairs for our committees this
2008:
Kathe O’Neil, Membership Committee
Patt Copeland, Activity Committee
Ann Yskanin, Outreach Committee
These committee chairs started January with a
momentous event, UBS sponsored a Martin Luther King event last January 19, in
conjunction with the Seattle Public Library afternoon birthday celebration.
Despite the rainy afternoon, 120 folks attended and celebrated his birthday.
Quincy Daniels, UBS Board Director, Jan
White, UBS member and Jennie Jacobs, member of the King County chapter,
facilitated with Cleo Brooks, Seattle Public Library’s LEAP Program
Coordinator. They invited two wonderful speakers and two very good musicians to
provide a power-house birthday celebration. Kathe O’Neil organized and assisted
Cleo Brooks with the set-up and refreshments.
The most unforgettable segments of the
celebration were the speeches. Julie Brannon, President of UBS, recalled the
vision of the forefathers of ACB. “One day, we disabled folks will be equal
with the rest of human race.” She put it out there that the vision of Martin
Luther King is similar to the vision of ACB founders. The second speaker told
us that she was twelve when her father took her along to the march in 1963 at
the capital building to hear Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. That
day, the civil rights movements began.
Each of us who attended the MLK celebration
was impacted. How can we, members of UBS and other chapters, reach out to
others, so we may continue and contribute to the vision/dream of Martin Luther
King and ACB founders?
Our monthly meeting will still be at the
usual place, as the new location is not ready for us. We will be at the new location by March.
Our February meeting was facilitated by Clint
Reiding, Vice-President, as Julie was out of town to take advantage of the
three-day weekend, visiting family. There were 25 members in attendance. Our
50/50 raffle took place and Steve Barnett won the raffle. Shirley Taylor gave
us a report on the Entertainment books sale. We sold a total of 216 books this
year, which is better than our sale last year of 149 books. Karen
Johnson-Hildie presented a motion that UBS donate $250 to the Louis Braille
School for their annual auction to be held on May.
Lastly, Lori Allison, the newly-elected
President of Pierce County Council, was our guest speaker. She talked about
recent changes they have with their chapter. Their membership increased to 30
from 12 members. Lori also shared how she got involved with the blind
community, particularly WCB.
The Activity Committee and Outreach Committee
started their Braille program this January 2008. Every Friday afternoon,
visually impaired and blind folks could come to the Washington Talking Book and
Braille Library to learn and practice their Braille. Volunteer members of our
chapter that serve as instructors among them are Al and Connie Gil, Ann Yskanin
and Melissa Hudson. This is an excellent out-reach to folks who have started to
lose vision and want to learn Braille.
Also, the Activity Committee has lined-up
social activities such as a ferry ride to the casino and an audio-described
musical.
This is all for now, folks; I will see you in
the next Newsline.
By Janice Squires,
member
Well, the baton has been passed from 2007 UBTC President, Margie Kickert to newly elected 2008 President. Bill Hoage and we are off and running with a new year. Also, the transition of treasurer has been made to Brenda
Vinther, who is more than just our treasurer
– she is a helper in the first degree.
Our membership has reached 48 members and we
have only begun to attain our highest membership goals ever. We have
extraordinary members such as Margie Kickert, 2007 WCB membership rep; Marlene
Vandecar, 2008 WCB membership rep; Evelyn Crouse, UBTC first vice president;
Diana Softich, Irene Nielsen and Carmen Walker to thank for our membership
growth. These ladies have encouraged so many people to join our organization
and their efforts have been so appreciated.
Membership development begins with a
committee that in my opinion is the most important one in the organization, the
calling committee. Marlene Vandecar is in charge of this job and she does it
extremely well. People are notified of meetings and UBTC special events. A
phone call from Marlene makes each and every member feel special and wanted.
We want to welcome our newest UBTC members
and want each of them to know this is their organization and without them we
would be nowhere: Catherine Golding, Byron and Holly Kaczmarski, Dixie and
Shannon McDaniels, Dorothy and Pete Petersen, Joanne Riccobuono, Grace Spice,
Kathie Zaloudek and Myra Wood.
Our organization would not be what it is
without our many outside activities, of which are so enjoyable and so exciting
for our members. Our chapter meetings are going to be moved to the third
Saturday of the month, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Edith Bishel Center for the
Blind. Coffee and donuts will be served and a fifty / fifty raffle will help
offset the cost of the treats, plus one of our members will go home just a
little bit richer!
New member, Catharine Golding was our January
speaker and she explained her job with The Washington State School for the
Blind. We learned so much about the school itself and how it operates. In
February, Crystal Knight, exercise and yoga instructor for the Kennewick Senior
Center spoke on the importance of physical activity as we grow older.
Marlene Vandecar is now in charge of our ever
so successful card group. Our lunches are being set up each month by a
different member. New member, Grace Spice will set up a lunch in Richland in
March and Carmen Walker will do it in Pasco in April. Bill Hoage set up a pizza
lunch in January. Can you believe we had 24 members stuffing their faces with
delicious pizza? In February, we went to a delicious Chinese luncheon and
another 25 of us were there to enjoy the meal. Does it look like this chapter
loves to eat?
The book group, organized by myself, has 10
members. This year we read the following books: “For One More Day,” “Ninety
Minutes in Heaven” and “The Bridges of Madison County.” Our Richland play group
met on January 25 to enjoy the very comical play, “George Washington Slept
Here” and 11 of us were there to enjoy the evening out.
We are also very proud of our members who
stepped up to the plate with leadership roles on many WCB state committees:
Aging and Blindness, Bill Hoage and Holly Kaczmarski; Crisis, Carmen Walker;
WCB Convention, Frank Cuta and Janice Squires; Membership, Marlene Vandecar and
Janice Squires, who is the membership data base chair. Frank Cuta not only
serves on the WCB board of directors, but is also the chair of the WCB
constitution and by-laws committee.
We are all very happy to see this very icy
and snowy winter come to an end. Now we are all patiently waiting for the
blossoms to appear and the sun to shine brightly.
By Vivian Conger,
Secretary
It is hard to believe that February is coming
to a close. UBWW submitted its membership list and dues to WCB on time and has
received WCB’s $500 stipend.
In January, our speaker was Paul Woldheuter
of Eschenbach Optik. He demonstrated many different types of magnifiers.
Several of our members tried these items out.
We now hold our monthly meetings on the
fourth Monday of the month at 2 p.m. in the Odd Fellows Fireside Room.
Spring is just around the corner. Many of us
are looking forward to better weather, so we can be out and about, enjoying our
walks and gardening.
By Betty Sikkema,
President
As I’m writing this, it’s a beautiful sunny
day.
Ron Bradchaw, Bruce Radtki and Rosalee
Radonski are all doing fine. Ron came home at the end of January and is now undergoing
therapy.
Our Christmas party in December went over
with flying colors. We had it at Ankar Drive in the Club house which had all
the facilities we needed. It was on level ground, so we didn’t have to worry
about steps. Ron was able to attend the party using the wheelchair.
We enjoyed good food prepared by our members.
After we all had our fill, Betty played her Q
Chord (a digital song card guitar), and we had a Christmas carol sing along.
Everyone sang from memory!
Then, we did something different, instead of
passing out gifts to everyone; we all got in a circle and played the number
game. Everyone got a number and when your number was called, you could get a
package or steal from someone who already opened one. The gift could only be
stolen twice. It was lots of fun!
We do have some sad news to report. Some of
you may already know from the WCB list. Shirley Steward passed away at her home on January 14. She was a long
time member of UBWC and the second Vice President. A number of us attended her
memorial and it was comforting to hear the words the minister spoke. There was
also time to share our memories about Shirley. After the celebration of life,
there was a reception for fellowship and food.
Shirley got her wish by living her last days
at home. She is now with her Heavenly Father and she doesn’t have to battle her
Diabetes anymore. We do miss Shirley! Her family donated some items to UBWC
which will be given to those who would like it. Any item unspoken for will go
to PAC kits project. These Personal Assistance Kits help senior citizens
adjusting to vision loss.
We now have our office space to house our PAK
kits and other items related to UBWC. We are very happy with this.
UBWC has another member, Hope Nightingale.
Congratulations! We are happy you joined us! We hope all of you have a
wonderful end of winter and spring. Till next time.
By Mark Adreon,
Communication &
Employer Consultant
I want to congratulate Peggy Schoel on her
years of dedication and work on the WCB Newsline and the new committee that
will be taking her place. See, Peggy, it takes a committee to fill your shoes.
(Smile)
In this world of multi-media barrage, a world
of the internet, hundreds of cable channels, MP3’s, I-pods and more, it is
challenging to create and deploy affective ways of communicating with the
public. That is, communicating in a way that people understand who DSB is and
what we provide for services to people impacted by low vision and blindness. We
are continually trying to reach people who need our services at the time when
vision challenges may be new to them and early connection to resources is
critical to their positive adjustment to this life change.
The new agency DVD is being created and
produced to reach people with the message of what DSB provides to people who
are blind and low-vision, to let the employer community know what blind people
do for work and how they do it, as well as educate the general public on some
simple blind awareness issues.
DSB has contracted with ProMotion Arts to
produce our agency outreach video/DVD.
Meetings are underway and story boards and
scripts are being developed.
This exciting project will be in three
segments, each nine minutes long, and will address some of the following
questions:
·
Who is DSB and what
kind of services do we provide?
·
Why are these
services needed?
·
How does DSB partner
with people for Independence?
·
What kind of work do
people that are blind do?
·
How do blind employees
do their work?
·
What are some of
those employer questions that they are afraid to ask?
·
How to ask if someone
needs assistance and how to assist them.
We
have already filmed the Braille Challenge that was held at the Seattle Public
Library earlier this month. Nothing says enthusiasm about Braille like these
elementary through high school kids being taken through their paces.
We want the second segment, “What People that
are Blind do for Work,” to show various people that are blind telling the
camera who they are and what they do. The message of the abilities of blind
people can be best told by blind people.
So we would like to ask for your
help—especially those WCB chapters in Pierce, King and Snohomish counties. We
would like to schedule a day in March or early April where we could film people
telling us what they do for work. We can schedule this on a Saturday and would
need at least six people who could meet for this filming date.
Ask around your chapters and see if you have
six people that want to share their employment success with the world. If you
do, give Mark Adreon a call at 206.721.6410 or e-mail him at maradreon@dsb.wa.gov, so he can schedule
a day where a camera crew can set up for an hour or two to get everyone on
tape. The plan is to set up a filming day in Tacoma and Everett areas and
Seattle or South King County.
We are looking forward to releasing our
agency DVD in early July of this year and there is a lot to do before then. You
will also be able to find each of these segments on our web site, once the DVD
is completed and released. The advantage of this is that anyone can then point
an employer to our web site to find out what blind people do for work or share
a link to a video brochure on DSB services to a person who is experiencing
vision loss and doesn’t know where to turn for services.
This outreach project has great possibilities
and with YOU and your assistance, the message will surely “hit home” to real
people in real time.
By Carolyn Meyer,
Director
You Are Invited.
The Louis Braille School has two special
events coming up this spring, a lecture and book signing in April and an auction
in May. You are cordially invited to attend. For more information about either
event, please contact the school at 425-778-2384 or email
janie@louisbrailleschool.org.
“Louis Braille: A Touch of Genius”
The Louis Braille School is pleased to host
an event featuring C. Michael Mellor, author of “Louis Braille: A Touch of
Genius.” Published in 2006 by National Braille Press, “A Touch of Genius” is a
meticulously researched, well-documented biography that includes many
illustrations and previously unpublished letters written by Louis Braille. The
illustrations are exquisitely described in the Braille edition.
Mr. Mellor will describe the unusual
circumstances that led to this book. He will discuss the humble origins of
Louis Braille, his family, the historical context of Louis Braille's short life
and the difficult circumstances under which he invented his code at the age of
fifteen. The presentation will be done in a light, entertaining and absorbing
manner. The author will answer questions and engage in discussions with the
audience.
Books in print and Braille will be available
at a discount for purchase and signing at the end of the presentation.
Mellor, born in Leeds, England, holds an MA
in the History of Science from the University of Leeds. He has long had a
fascination for Braille and was editor of the Matilda Ziegler Magazine for the
Blind for eighteen years. He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, where he
enjoys being an urban farmer.
The event will take place on Saturday, April 5, 2008,
from 1 to 3 pm at the University Presbyterian Church, 4540 15th Ave. NE,
Seattle. Hosts will greet you at the door and will be available to meet your
bus if you let us know in advance. We encourage advance registration for the
event to help us in our planning. Last minute walk-ins, however, will be warmly
welcomed.
Second Annual Benefit Auction
You are cordially invited to join us on
Saturday, May 17, 2008, for the Louis Braille School second annual benefit
auction. The gala event will be from 1 to 4 in the afternoon at the Edmonds
Conference Center.
The purpose of the auction is to raise
critical funding for our unique educational program for children who are blind
or visually impaired. We provide a quality education for each child who comes
to us, regardless of the family’s ability to pay the tuition. Your support will
directly benefit the children and the school.
Our auction is more than just an auction. It
is an afternoon of people of diverse ages and interests coming together to
share, learn, have fun, and purchase quality items to support the school.
Expect to see Guide Dogs for the Blind puppies in training and their trainers
among the guests.
Emcee Paul Rucker, Director of Alumni
Relations, University of Washington Alumni Association and auctioneer Doug
Hildie, President, Diana’s Fund and Past President, United Blind of Seattle,
will be with us again this year to impart their friendly banter as they guide
guests through the live and silent auctions and assure a pleasant afternoon for
all.
Also returning will be our popular hands-on
exhibits where guests may learn to write their name in Braille, meet a guide
dog, use a talking calculator or tell time with a Braille watch. Karen Johnson
will again host a table where guests may try on goggles that simulate different
vision conditions and then attempt to do simple tasks while wearing the
goggles. Last year many people told us how much they appreciated this
experience because for the first time they better understood what their spouse,
friend or parent actually sees.
Imagine Children’s Museum of Everett will
again provide the table centerpieces. Last year’s pots of “hand tulips” made by
the Museum’s young visitors were popular items when offered for bid at the end
of the day. The Museum children promise something “bigger and better” for our
2008 auction.
A frequent comment after last year's auction
was, "You guys had good stuff." This is because of wonderful
donations of items donated by people like you. If you wish to donate an item
this year, please email janie@louisbrailleschool.org or call 425-778-2384 to
request a procurement form. We hope to see you there.
By Dr. Dean O.
Stenehjem, Superintendent
As you may or may not know, WSSB was granted
funding through the legislature to build a new Physical Education Building on
our campus. Construction on the new building started in January of this year
and was moving along at a fast pace. However, it was recently brought to our
attention that we have some soil related issues on the site where the new
building will be located, which will result in a substantial increase in the
cost of footings and slab. We have been working with the structural engineer,
architect and two different soil and structural testing companies to reach a
resolution to this problem in a timely manner. Each day that we are not moving
forward with the project is costing WSSB dollars in delay.
Note:
The cost for the new P.E. Building came in higher than anticipated and we were
able to make the bid, but this left very little in the contingency fund which
has caused problems when running into soil related problems at the beginning of
this project. After examining all the issues and trying to evaluate where and
how we could save money to keep the project moving forward, we came up with the
following:
Over excavation of the site is needed in
order to reach solid sub soils that will guarantee for a structurally sound
slab and footings.
How do we pay for this?
Options:
·
Pull funds from
WSSB’s budget.
·
Pull resources from a
small contingency fund, realizing that WSSB really needs to leave funds in this
area during the entire construction project to combat unforeseen issues.
·
Request the
legislature for authorization to move funding from campus preservation to the
P.E. project, which will result in a delay of some preservation work that will
not compromise safety and/or the condition of facilities.
Delays: Roof rejuvenation and/or replacement. We had a company come in and
evaluate the roofs and they informed us that we are still good for a number of
years.
Delays: Paving, sidewalk replacement, lighting, fencing, irrigation and well
related work, etc.
Demolition of the Kennedy Building at the
beginning of the project rather than the end will result in a substantial
savings, plus a reduction in operating costs. (This also will remove all
students and staff from having to cross through the construction site, which
with the amount of earth having to be moved could be an issue.)
We
have discussed this with the P.E. Teacher and Principal and they are devising a
plan to keep programs moving forward, which will need to be in place through
January of 2009. The last day of classes in the Kennedy Building will be March
14, 2008.
Jim Eccles, WSSB Alumni President will be
getting the word out to the former student’s organization. A decommissioning of
the building, tour, etc. for those who are interested will be offered.
WSSB will also save approximately 200 bricks
from the Kennedy building that will be cleaned and offered to former students
at the next alumni conference (summer of 2009).
The above action will cause some disruptions
in how we would proceed with programs in the Kennedy building, but we believe
that through creative use of space and collaborations with others, we can
continue to provide high quality services for students and maintain a safe and
positive environment. Also, thank goodness that usually getting into
April–October, we can make great use of the outdoors and the new track that was
constructed a few years ago.
If you have any questions or concerns, please
give me a call at 360-696-6321, extension 130 or via e-mail at dean.stenehjem@wssb.wa.gov.
By Gloria J. Leonard,
Director
A heartfelt “thank you” for your recent
support of FY’09 sustained funding for WTBBL. You have heard that sentiment
before, but today, it is extra special because it’s one of the best examples of
how alliances and a common message can yield some great results for everyone!
Credit is due to a lot of folks at the state and city
levels including the WTBBL staff and volunteers, the Washington State Library‘s
State Librarian, Jan Walsh and Cathy Turk, WTBBL Transition Coordinator.
However, I want to single out two folks for special credit, Tom Gillespie and
Sue Ammeter. Through Tom’s efforts, a coalition of organization partners,
including PAC, WCB and NFB met with the Governor’s representatives and made the
case for adequate funding for WTBBL. Sue Ammeter is credited for her unwavering
efforts to make sure everyone remembered the lessons learned from last year’s
experiences. One of Sue’s refrains to all of us was to keep a “common message” to
the legislature in 2008: adequate funding for the Library on July 1, (the
effective date of the change in administration of the Seattle-based operation.)
In addition to Sue and Tom, there were many
other hard working Patron Advisory Council Advocacy Committee members that
helped out during this latest advocacy campaign including Terry Atwater,
Lynette Romero, Richard (Dick) Deming and Signe Rose, Chair. Thanks goes out to
the PAC Executive Board: Maria Edelen (Vice Chair); Margaret Blomberg, Outreach
Chair; Sandra Driscoll and Lynette Romero, co-Secretaries, who played a key
role in helping to develop combined collaborative public awareness and lobbying
strategies. In addition, the leadership of NFB of Washington, Mike Freeman,
President and WCB President, Denise Colley provided valuable assistance as
well.
Also, working on this combined effort are a
host of patrons, volunteers and friends like you, including Alene Cisney. Alene
recently traveled to Olympia for Library Legislative Day to network with other
WTBBL lovers and lobby the legislature on our behalf. While the quest for
funding is not over, we want to thank you for your efforts thus far. The staff
and I really appreciate your support.
In addition to the budget update, there is
more to share: as you now know, the House of Representatives supported the
Governor’s FY’09 Supplemental Budget which includes $341,000 and over 21 FTE
that will maintain the current level of staff in services for WTBBL, if
confirmed by the Senate. We are nearly there! Thank you again.
Year-end figures reveal that for the fifth
consecutive year, circulation and patron readership rates continue to be strong
–16,000 registered readers and over half-a-million items loaned. In addition,
21,500 service hours were contributed by more than 400 volunteers – the
equivalent of more than 10 full-time equivalent staff.
Recently, staff measured the use of the
Evergreen Radio Reading Service via a computer over the Internet. There are 212
people signed up for the Service. Patron demographics include: of the
listeners, 52 percent are men; the average age of men who listen is 53 years
and the average age for women is 64 years; 83 percent of listeners live in
Western Washington.
Noteworthy preferences include: the preferred time of day to listen is in the
evenings; 81 percent of those surveyed indicated that they had no sound quality
or technical problem since the new login system was installed approximately one
month prior to the survey (November, 2007); the top five favorite programs are
Weekly Talk Show, Seattle P.I. and Seattle Times, Grocery Cart, Radio
Entertainment Network and a two-way tie between the Seattle Weekly and Time
Magazine. Seventy-two patrons who signed up for web streaming have never used
it.
For the past six months, a Committee
comprised of WTBBL staff, Marlaina Lieberg, Sue Ammeter, Cindy Van Winkle and
incoming WCB President, Denise Colley, are reviewing the findings. One of the
next steps will be to come back together and discuss next steps. Staffers are
following up with those who signed on for web streaming, but have never used
it.
Effective in January, 2008 the Library launched the
Birthday Card Project. All WTBBL children and teen patrons with January
birthdays now receive a congratulatory card from the Library. It is important
that the reading level that's on file is appropriate – not too high or low.
Otherwise, your child will not receive the books or other materials he/she
likes to read and enjoy. Help us to better serve you and your child. Call us and let us know if there are changes.
By Cindy Van Winkle
The goods and services listed here are
offered for the interest and benefit of our readers and should not be
considered as endorsed by WCB.
·
Books of the Western
Canon: National Braille Press (NBP) has available Richard Seltzer's, Books of
the Western Canon, containing 797 books in ASCII text format on one CD-ROM.
This collection provides the full text of many classics from the Theocratic,
Democratic and Aristocratic ages -- basically, from the dawn of civilization
through World War I. A quick sampling of authors: Homer, Ovid, Leonardo da
Vinci, Edward Gibbon, Moliere, Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Zola, Wordsworth, Byron,
Tennyson, Oscar Wilde, Tolstoy, Emerson, Hawthorne, Henry James. Many of these books would be
difficult to find and costly to purchase, but you'll get them all for $29!
The full Table of Contents - 797 books – is
listed at http://www.nbp.org/ic/nbp/WESTERN.html
To order this item, send payment to: NBP, 88 St. Stephen Street, Boston, MA 02115-4302 or, call and charge it: toll-free (800) 548-7323 or (617) 266-6160 ext.
20 or e-mail your
order to orders@nbp.org.
·
Essay contest: The
American Printing House for the Blind is sponsoring an essay contest in honor
of our 150th birthday this year. The contest is open to blind students in
grades 3-12, blind adult consumers of our products, and professionals working
with individuals who are blind and visually impaired.
Essays are to tell
how APH products have made an impact on our customer’s lives. Prizes for adults
and students in grades 9-12 are the Braille Plus Mobile Manager or $1,000 APH
Gift Certificate. For children in grades
3-8, the prizes are the Manual Perkins Braillewriter or $750 APH Gift
Certificate.
The deadline for
entering this contest is April 1. For entry forms and additional information,
read the news release by going to www.aph.org/essay.html. If you have any
difficulties or questions, please contact us, Phone 502/899-2320 or 895-2405
Ex.320.
·
TV converter box
discount: Telephone 1 888 388 2009 (1 888 D-T-V 2009) to request a coupon from
the federal government to cover part of the purchase cost of a converter box
that will be needed to receive digital television signals over the air starting
early in 2009.
·
Investment Workshop:
Mary Sue Lonnevik, financial advisor, is planning an investment workshop geared
to people who are low-vision and blind. If you have questions about investing
or long-term insurance, give her a call at (206) 854-3911.
By Gaylen Floy
Mary Sue Lonnevik, member, King County chapter, for passing five exams required to become a financial
·
advisor. The last
exam for the federal government took 16 hours, over two days. Mary Sue is now a
licensed stock broker for Waddell and Reed, Inc.
·
Dorothy Lacey,
member, UBTC, celebrated her 92nd birthday on January 10th.
·
Millie Lind, member,
UBTC, celebrated her 97th birthday on February 17th.
·
Dan Tonge, member,
King County chapter, on his recent marriage to Bonnie Eelkema. They live in Mt.
Vernon. Dan said the wedding on
Valentine’s Day went off very well.
·
Amelia Wearstler,
member, PCB, on the birth of her daughter, Molly Mae Dillon. Born on February 2, 2008 at 11:38 am, she
weighed in at 6 pounds, 11 ounces and was 19.3 inches long. Amelia says that
Molly is just perfect and mother and child are both doing fine.
·
Cindy and Tim Van
Winkle, WCB Immediate Past President and member, PCB, respectively, on the
birth of their first grandchild. According to these doting grandparents, Molly
Mae is everything her mommy says and more.
·
Joanne Hunter,
member, PCB, on her new job with Olympic ESD #114 as Secretary to the Early
Childhood Education program. Joanne says she's enjoying her new job very much.
·
Steve and Marlene
Vandecar, members, UBTC, celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.
·
GDUWS members with
new guide dogs: Carla Dawson with
Sequoia, Kevin Frankeberger with Tomasso and Darlene Hilling with Swanson.
Editor’s
note: Events appropriate for mention in this column are as follows: the birth
of a child or grandchild, a marriage, a new job or important job promotion,
retirement, graduation from school, appointment to an agency or community board
or council, awards or scholarships and birthdays--starting with the 75th and in
five-year increments. After 90, every birthday should be submitted. Weddings
anniversaries, starting with the 25th and in five-year increments deserve
recognition.
Advocacy Committee
Chair: Sue Ammeter
(360) 437-7916
Aging and Blindness
Committee
Chair: Carl Jarvis
(360) 765-4239
Awards Committee
Chair: Julie Brannon
(206) 547-7444
Constitution &
Bylaws Committee
Chair: Frank Cuta
(509) 967-2658
Convention Committee
Chair: Cindy Van
Winkle
(360) 698-0827
Crisis Committee
Chair: Chris Coulter
(425) 775-1305
forestelf1@comcast.net
Environmental Access
Committee
Chair: David Egan
(425) 681-6873
Families with Blind
Children
Chair: Vivian Conger
(509) 526-4967
Finance Committee
Chair: Berl Colley
(360) 438-0072
First Timers
Committee
Chair: Meka White
(360) 405-4337
History Committee
Chair: Berl Colley
(360) 438-0072
Investment Committee
Chair: Eric Hunter
(360) 377-9917
Leadership
Committee
Chair: Cindy Van
Winkle
(360) 698-0827
Legislative Committee
Chair: Denise Colley
(360) 438-0072
Listserv Committee
Chair: Randy Tedrow
(425) 254-3931
Membership Committee
Chair: Marlaina
Lieberg
(206) 243-1716
Newsline Committee
Chair/Editor: Gaylen
Floy
(253) 217-9586
Scholarship Committee
Chair: Alan Bentson
(206) 819-9283
Mar 14-15 WSSB
Board of Trustees meeting, Tacoma
Mar 21 Deadline
for request to attend WCB leadership training
Apr 25-26 WCB
Leadership Training, GDUWS Spring Fling
Apr 27 WCB
Spring Board Meeting, Everett
May 1 Deadline
to apply for the first timers scholarship to the ACB convention
May 15 Deadline
to request travel stipend or loan for the ACB convention
May 17 Louis
Braille School Auction
May 31 Deadline
for the June Newsline
June 7 DSB
State Rehabilitation Council Meeting, Spokane
June 12 WSSB
Picnic/Awards/Open House, Vancouver
June 13 WSSB
Commencement
June 13 WSSB
Board of Trustees Meeting, Vancouver
June 30 Deadline
for WCB scholarship applications
July 5-12 ACB
National Convention, Louisville, Kentucky
Aug 1 WCB
Summer Retreat and Seminar, Vancouver
Aug 2 WCB
Summer Board Meeting, Vancouver
Aug. 30 Deadline
for the September Newsline
Aug 31 Deadline
for WCB award nominations
Sep 6 DSB
State Rehabilitation Council Meeting, Seattle
Oct 23-25 WCB
Annual Convention, Vancouver
Nov 29 Deadline
for the December Newsline
Dec 6 DSB
State Rehabilitation Council Meeting, Seattle
Article Deadline: To be considered for inclusion in the next issue,
article submissions and other information for publication must be received by
May 31, 2008. Articles may be edited for clarity and space considerations.
Publication Policy: to ensure accuracy, we require submissions be e-mailed
to wcbnewsline@hotmail.com with a cc: floydom@comcast.net. Articles should be
no longer than 750 words.
In the December 2007 Newsline, the byline for
the GDUWS update cited Vivian Conger. The byline should have cited Joleen
Ferguson as the writer.
Also, in “Thanks,” credit was given to Brady
and Sherrill for the December 2007 issue, but Judy Cuta actually read the
material for the cassette version of the Newsline.
Thanks to everyone who wrote articles and made deadline!
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