By Judy Sanders, Secretary

This year's semiannual convention on April 21, 2007 was hosted by our Metro Chapter and held at our building in Minneapolis.  Thanks to Al Spooner and his crew for rearranging the furniture to make room for the crowd.

The day began with registration, rolls and coffee.  Registration is important for two reasons; first, the registration fee helps defray convention costs.  Second, those who register become eligible for fun and valuable door prizes.  Thanks to Amy Baron, Trudy Barrett and others for coordinating the door prize effort.

A spirited welcome from Jennifer Dunnam, president of the host Metro chapter, included the singing of NFB songs.  The crowd sounded ready for action on a Saturday morning.

Joyce Scanlan, president of the NFB of Minnesota, began her report to the convention with a review of the role we played in solving a transportation issue for dog guide users in the metro area.  The Metropolitan Airports Commission held a hearing to discuss the refusal of some cab drivers to transport passengers, including users of dog guides.  To make amends, the drivers offered free rides to blind passengers to our state convention.  Most of us took buses to arrive at the convention and all of us agreed that free rides were not our objective; we simply want the drivers to obey the law and provide transit to their paying blind passengers.  The NFB has offered to provide in-service training to cab drivers to break down the misconceptions that they may have about the capabilities of blind individuals.

Tom Scanlan, our treasurer, reported that for the last fiscal year, from April 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007, our treasury operated in the black.  This is primarily due to some generous bequests.

 

"Where is SSB Headed?" was the next topic.  This was handled by Richard Strong, director of the Communication Center and the Senior Services Unit of State Services for the Blind (SSB.)  He began by crediting many members of the NFB who have worked to make SSB a better agency.  That included thanks for our support of the SSB initiative at the legislature to increase their annual appropriation by one million dollars—$900,000 of which will go to the Communication Center allowing the same amount to be transferred back to the Vocational Rehabilitation program and $100,000 to serve as a match for federal funds.  The rest of Mr. Strong's report covered the following areas:  SSB goals and priorities for the coming year in the vocational rehabilitation program; an update on the 21st Century Plan for the Radio Talking Book and the Legislative Audit completed on that project; the Senior Services Unit activities and the possible relocation of SSB's St. Paul headquarters. 

Goals and priorities:  SSB's goals and priorities for the coming fiscal year were developed by the Minnesota State Rehabilitation Council for the Blind, and can be found on SSB's website, www.mnssb.org.

The 21st Century Plan is SSB's conversion of the Radio Talking Book service to a digital transmission with portable receivers that will bring this service into the modern age.  Because of delays in the implementation of the plan, a Legislative audit was completed.  The results show that the delay is not due to any negligence on the part of SSB; the delays are connected to the unavailability of needed equipment.

All of Mr. Strong's remarks are found previously in this issue.

The latest from a national perspective of the NFB was brought to us directly from Marc Maurer, president of the National Federation of the Blind with his most recent presidential release.  Many changes are coming to the NFB. 

First, we were given the sad news that Betsy Zaborowski has retinoblastoma and must take some time from work to deal with her treatment.  In the fall, she will leave her post as director of the Jernigan Institute to work on new initiatives to be established by the NFB.  She will be able to help with a smooth transition with the new head of the Jernigan Institute, Mark Riccobono.  Mark has been coordinating our educational programs.

The next change to come to the NFB is that James Gashel, head of strategic initiatives for the NFB will be leaving after the national convention to join a new company that has been formed to promote the Kurzweil National Federation of the Blind Reader.  Mr. Gashel will serve as vice president in charge of marketing.  Jim Gashel has worked for the NFB since 1974 primarily in the area of governmental affairs.  It is impossible to know how many blind people have received assistance in advocacy from Jim over the years—whether with appeals with Social Security cases, vocational rehabilitation dilemmas or any other government agency.  Although not as an employee, Jim will always be an active part of the Federation.

The new director of strategic initiatives will be John Paré.  John has been instrumental in helping our NFB-NEWSLINE® program grow to several magazines and over 250 newspapers on the system.  He now directs our public relations efforts.  All these changes brought to mind how lucky we are in the NFB to have such a wealth of talent to lead our efforts.

This year the NFB will be holding our first March for Independence in Atlanta at our national convention.  It will take place on Tuesday, July 3 at 6:30 a.m.  It is both a fundraiser for the Jernigan Institute and a declaration that blind people are in control of their own lives and the Federation is stronger than ever.  Judy Sanders explained the mechanics of how to participate in it.  We can go to the NFB website and register which means we accept the responsibility of raising $250 for the march.  Teams can work together to make it easier to raise the money.  Minnesota hopes to have a large delegation on the streets of Atlanta.

Lunch not only gave us nourishment, but it served as a fundraiser for our Minnesota Association of Blind Students (MABS).  They assembled and sold "academic lunches" that included a sandwich, apple, chips, cookie and a drink.  Everyone came out of that fundraiser a winner.

Our afternoon session began with hearing from the students who fed us.  Jeff Thompson, president of MABS, introduced a panel of students.  First was Lori Brown, vice president of MABS.  She compared the division to a NASCAR race.  The officers are the drivers and the members are the pit crew.  They not only raise money, but go out to colleges and staff tables to meet other blind students.  David Starnes talked about the trip that some students took to our Jernigan Institute for a leadership seminar.  It was a perfect way for them to learn about the organized blind movement.  Ellen Bielawski talked about being a student at Purdue until two years ago when she became blind.  She now helps with teen night sponsored by our students and parents. 

Our election for a delegate and alternate delegate to the national convention brought the following results:  Joyce Scanlan will be the delegate with Jennifer Dunnam serving as our alternate.

Joyce reported to us that there is a crisis in the request for funding from Congress for the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped and their transition to digital talking books.  This change is urgent because the parts for our cassette machines are no longer being manufactured.  We must help Congress understand why commercial recordings will not meet our needs.  We were all urged to contact our Congressional delegation to let them know how important this program is to us. 

A panel entitled "Was Our Voice Heard at the Capitol?" began with Jennifer Dunnam reporting on our efforts to help our Minnesota Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped come up to full staff.  When they are fully staffed, they have eleven people; they currently have eight employees.  We raised questions with the legislature asking them to inquire why the Department of Education was not filling those positions.  Our efforts have raised visibility for the library and awareness about their needs.

Steve Jacobson gave us a progress report on accessible voting.  We now have equal access in state and federal elections.  Steve asked for a cheer from those who voted with an accessible machine for the first time in the last election.  There was a resounding cheer of satisfied voters.  We are still negotiating with township officials and legislators about the best way to handle voting in those small communities.  It is hoped that we can find state funding to help finance programming the machines for these small township elections.  We will continue to work with them until a satisfactory solution is reached.  These efforts include help from the Secretary of State's office.

The NFB of Minnesota is supporting full funding for public transit.  Judy Sanders reported that the governor plans to veto the transportation bill that is currently in the legislature.  We were urged to call the governor's office to let him know how important public transit is to us.  Judy closed by saying that whenever she sees blind people at the capitol they are members of the National Federation of the Blind.  We are the ones who make a difference.

A lengthy discussion ensued about membership which delved into the following topics:  transportation to chapter meetings; retaining members; pressing issues for chapters; and brainstorming about new chapter projects.  The key question that was discussed was how do we raise expectations among blind people, which is the main purpose of the Federation.  Our membership committee consists of Joyce Scanlan, Pat Barrett, Charlene Childrey and Jeff Thompson. 

Every year Federationists pledge donations to the Jacobus tenBroek fund; this fund owns our National Center for the Blind building which houses the Jernigan Institute and other Federation offices.   Our state treasury then matches the amount donated by our members.  This year's contribution will be approximately two thousand dollars.

"Ringing the Freedom Bell for Success" was a panel made up of four current students from Blindness: Learning in New Dimensions (BLIND).  David Starnes began with an explanation of how he came to the Federation.  David says that he drove to the Federation; his career as a sighted person was as a truck driver.  His optic nerves were severely damaged through strokes and the Mayo Clinic could do nothing.  Wending his way through various bureaucracies, he met Jan Bailey who became his counselor at SSB.  As a student at BLIND, he attended an NFB convention and is ready to work hard in the movement.

Bryce Samuelson now knows that as a college student he need not depend on the office for students with disabilities.  Among his many accomplishments in his training, he is now reading 70 words a minute in Braille. 

John Horna already has his college degree.  However, he realized that he needed help with living skills if he is to be successful in life.  His primary emphasis is in cane travel, home management and industrial arts.  He was amazed to find that his travel instructor was blind. 

The last panel member, Lori Brown, talked about straddling a fence between the sighted world and the blind one.  She is a single mom and she has learned how important it is for her to function independently and have her children respect her.  She is breaking down the fence and she knows that she is headed in the right direction.

A testimony to the progress we are making for the next generation of blind Americans was evidenced in Jennifer Dunnam's presentation regarding NFB's Youth SLAM.  Expectations and opportunities have never been higher.  Two hundred blind high-school students from across this country will gather at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.  The students are attending the "STEM Academy."  STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.  These are all subjects that were avoided by blind children until the work of the Jernigan Institute gave them their proper attention.  We now know that four Minnesotans will be participating in Youth Slam occurring from July 30-August 4, 2007.  For more information, go to www.blindscience.org

Plans were made for Minnesotans to attend the upcoming national convention in Atlanta.  People discussed how to get the lowest airfares.  One hundred dollars was voted as door prizes donated from the NFB of Minnesota.  For more in-depth details about what to expect at the convention we were referred to the April issue of the Braille Monitor.

"As We Begin the Third Decade: A Report from the BLIND, Incorporated Executive Director" was presented by Shawn Mayo.  She began her remarks with a tribute to Toni Koehler, a member of BLIND's board of directors, who recently passed away.  Toni was a graduate of the program and served as the president of the NFB of North Dakota.  Her dedication and spirit will long be remembered and admired.

Three new representatives were elected to the BLIND board.  They are Michael Brands, Mike Sahyun and Kotumu Kamara.

The strong tie between the Federation and BLIND was emphasized by Shawn's request for volunteer mentors for blind youth and children who will be a part of the program during the summer.  BLIND is also reinstituting its older blind classes under the sponsorship of State Services for the Blind.  Joyce Scanlan was coaxed out of retirement to teach these classes. 

BLIND is exploring starting English Language Learner classes.  Blind people who come to this country not only need to learn about adjusting to their blindness; they must break down language barriers. 

We were pleased to welcome Steve Decker to Minnesota.  He is the new technology instructor and comes to us from Iowa.

Shawn discussed three components that set BLIND’s training apart from a traditional model.  The first is control; students learn to problem solve on their own with minimal guidance from instructors.  The second is mentoring; the instructors recognize that the student's day does not end at 4:30.  Life goes on and students should be encouraged to live it to the fullest.  The last component is advocacy; students learn their responsibility to help other blind people as they have been helped.  This is why the NFB and BLIND are so closely united.

We can look forward to a huge twentieth anniversary celebration and many more years of effective training for blind citizens.

Joyce directed us to the May issue of the Braille Monitor to see the recipe section contributed by Minnesotans.  We had sixteen recipes showing our culinary expertise. 

Sheila Koenig reminded us that applications are still being accepted for Minnesota scholarships.  June 1, 2007 is the deadline.  One $2,000 scholarship will be awarded.

The convention closed with a variety of announcements about upcoming chapter events and individual member activities.  Everyone is looking forward to the annual convention to be held in the metro area this fall.