Inside This Issue…
President’s Message By Nancy Burns
The Development of Braille
By Dr. Dennis Kelleher
Louis Braille Commemorative Coin Act
2006 NFB Convention Wrap-up,
Sharing Experiences with a
JPL Intern By Nathanael Wales
K-NFB Reader By Robert Stigile
Freedom Parade By Juliet Cody
Federation Way By Nancy Burns
President’s Message
By NFBC President
Visiting
other NFB local chapters and state affiliates is always a pleasure. Such visits are generally informative and
filled with new and exciting ideas. It
is beneficial to mix and mingle with other Federationists and to gain insight
into various methods of organizing and running such meetings.
This
past April, Don and I had the opportunity to attend the NFB of New Mexico state
convention. The
Dr. Fred Schroeder was the National representative and delivered the banquet
address in his usual eloquent manner. He
talked about an experience he had at the last national convention in
At that moment
one of the girl’s parents tapped him on the shoulder and told him that the
young girl had been lovingly followed from a distance but that she had not
known this. Her parents had faith in
their daughter’s abilities and allowed her to gain more confidence through this
exercise. They had faith in their
daughter’s abilities because of their involvement in the NFB.
In early June,
Don and I were in
One of the
agenda items featured a mother of a fourteen-year-old; legally blind daughter
named Katy. Katy’s VI teacher was
apparently pleased with the fact that Katy read twelve words a minute in
Braille. Katy is a high functioning,
straight A student who struggles with her limited vision to read large
print. Katy’s mom is determined to find
an appropriate educational setting for Katy where she would be taught Braille
and other blindness-specific skills. The
Department of Special Education advised Katy’s mom that there were no standards
for learning Braille—that such standards did not exist. She went online and discovered the
The convention
concluded on Saturday evening with an inspirational banquet address delivered
by Gary Wunder, president of the NFB of Missouri.
On
Sunday morning, Ron and Jan Gardner took several out of town guests to hear the
Mormon Tabernacle Choir as they broadcast their weekly inspirational
program. It was a great experience!
In
February, I attended the first ever Affiliate Presidents’ training, which was
held at our national headquarters in
The
California Association of Blind Students (CABS) held a weekend seminar at the
In addition to
these out of state trips, I was able to participate in numerous local chapter
meetings and events. The Beginning Braille for Parents workshops continue to
expand. Several chapters have presented programs for seniors who are
experiencing vision loss.
The highlight
of this year has been the successful passage of AB 897, which enacted Braille
reading and math standards, effective June 1, 2006. This is the culmination of
seven years of intense legislative work.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
BRAILLE
By Dr. Dennis
Kelleher
State Vision
Consultant for the California Department of Education
Editor’s
Note: Dr. Kelleher provided
insightful guidance to the Braille Task Force committee members. He is a strong
Braille advocate and realized the importance of this project. His knowledge and
expertise are truly appreciated by this organization.
On
October 5, 2005, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 897
authored by Assembly Member Joe Coto and sponsored by the National Federation
of the Blind of California. This landmark legislation for blind students
required the State Superintendent of Public Instruction to appoint a task force
to develop Braille Reading and Mathematics Standards and the California State
Board of Education to adopt these standards by June 1, 2006.
The
Task Force was co-chaired by Nancy Burns, President of NFBC and Dr. Sharon
Sacks, Professor of Special Education at
The
National Federation of the Blind of California identified the importance of
Braille literacy and the direct positive correlation between Braille competency
and employment rates of blind people.
Recognizing the importance of establishing Braille standards in both
reading and mathematics, NFBC sponsored Assembly Bill (AB) 2326 authored by
Dario Frommer in 2002 to begin the process of establishing Braille standards.
On
February 28, 2006, the Braille task force met with State Superintendent of
Public Instruction Jack O’Connell to formally present him with their
recommendations. Superintendent
O’Connell said, “These standards will help our blind and visually impaired
students to acquire the skills they need for future education, employment, and
independent living and to become successful members of our society and I wish
to express my sincere appreciation to the task force members for their
dedication and assistance in producing these Braille standards.”
The
Braille standards are carefully aligned with the
In
adopting Braille reading and mathematics standards, the board members of the
California Department of Education reaffirmed their commitment and
understanding that Braille is essential for literacy skills among blind
students just as print is for sighted students.
Learning
without sight takes more time. Blind and
visually impaired children need the time to explore objects physically that
sighted children can take in at a glance.
Blind and visually impaired children will need help integrating what
they experience tactually with what they hear, smell, and taste. One-on-one time will be needed with an adult
for the blind or visually impaired child to learn the names of objects,
understand terms for movements, and acquire other labels for the world that
sighted children might acquire incidentally. Teaching mathematics and reading
using Braille is more similar than it is different to teaching these subjects
using print.
Having Braille standards will help to provide blind
students with more immersion in a “Braille rich world,” as sighted children are
immersed in a “print rich world.” The significant impact of adopting Braille
standards in
In
future years, this will be one of the great legacies established through the
efforts of the National Federation of the Blind of California.
Louis Braille Bicentennial Commemorative Coin
Act
On
July 27, 2006, President George W. Bush signed into law the Louis Braille Bicentennial—Braille
Literacy Commemorative Coin Act. This
act celebrates the 200th anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille,
who created the raised-dot system of reading and writing for the blind that
bears his name. It calls for the
Secretary of the Treasury to issue up to 400,000 silver-dollar coins
commemorating this bicentennial anniversary.
The bill is part of a larger campaign initiated by the National
Federation of the Blind (NFB) to encourage Braille literacy among blind
youth.
Under
the new legislation a $10 surcharge will be added to each coin. Money from coin sales goes to the NFB, which
will then match the proceeds dollar for dollar through other fundraising
activities. In addition to projects
submitted by NFB affiliates, the NFB will invite other organizations serving
the blind to submit Braille literacy projects to its planning committee for
possible funding. For example, the money
will support NFB-approved Braille literacy initiatives, such as the NFBs
Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest. By
offering special recognition and cash prizes for the number of pages read, this
national Braille-reading competition encourages students from kindergarten
through twelfth grade to read books in their free time. With practice in reading Braille, young
people improve their reading skills and develop a deep fondness for
reading. As a result blind youth are
better equipped for future successes in all areas of their lives.
The
coins, which go on sale in 2009, will emphasize Braille literacy by featuring Louis
Braille’s image and raised dots that spell out “Brl” the Braille contraction
for the word Braille. This will be the
first coin ever minted by the United States Treasury with a Braille symbol.
The
2006 NFB
Convention Wrap-up
By Kevin Smalley
They
say things are bigger in
The
Total
attendance at this year’s convention topped out at over 2,850 attendees. There were at least 155 Californians in the
mix.
Our
members caucused on Monday evening.
President Burns introduced our three scholarship finalists: Tim Elder, a
law student from Livermore, Anna Muaswes, a resident of
Announcements
made in
The
Board meeting of the NFB also brought many big announcements. Diane McGeorge,
Carla McQuillan, Joyce Scanlon and Charlie Brown, all hard-working, dedicated
Board members, stated that they would not be seeking re-election to their
offices for various reasons. President
Maurer thanked each for their unyielding support and dedication over the many
years they served.
Change,
it seems, is inevitable. Throughout the
years there have been many changes in leadership in the NFB. New leaders bring new ideas and renewed
passion to the membership. The
transition into new leadership is time when we celebrate the accomplishments of
former leaders and exhibit support and encouragement for the new. The announcement from our President, as well
as those from the NFB Board, is bittersweet.
It is with pride that we celebrate our accomplishments in this era, and
with high expectations and excitement that we look toward the future.
The
K-NFB Reader, it was announced, was officially on sale for the first time at
the convention. The Reader is the
long-awaited, hand-held, print to speech reading device that has been developed
through a partnership with Ray Kurzweil, the inventor of the first reading
device. A number of Federation members
from each state were brought to the national center for training on the Reader. For the first time in Federation history, all
in attendance were given only printed materials and handouts. Everyone was able to access the printed
material without sighted assistance. The Reader was for sale in the exhibit
hall for $3,195 which was a special price only offered during the convention. The Reader normally carries a price of just
over $3,400.
Mariachis
strolled into the general session Tuesday morning and opened the convention
with musical ardor. Then, as
Federationists stopped dancing and readied themselves, things got kinky—Kinky
Friedman that is! Kinky is running a
campaign for governor of
Dr.
Maurer’s presidential report summarized a year of milestones. He stressed the impact that the new Jernigan
Institute has already made on the lives of blind people and its far-reaching
influence. He was proud to share with us
these big numbers that summarize some of our accomplishments:
· Our buildings now contain
over 350,000 feet of floor space.
· The International Braille
and Technology Center (IBTC) responded to over 2,500 phone calls and over 4,000
emails from the public this year.
· Over 4,900 visitors have
come to the
· Over 400 seniors attended
the Possibilities Fair.
· Over 50 blind students
attended a Career Day event.
· Newsline is now providing
telephone access to newspapers and periodicals in 40 states.
· Newsline now has 51,000
registered users.
· There are 225 newspapers
provided through Newsline and 92 percent of the
· Registered users of Newsline
have access to over 2.1 million minutes of news per month.
· Over 250 Federationists from
every affiliate attended seminars including the Presidents’ Seminars, the TOPS
Seminars, and others.
· “Voice of the Diabetic” is
distributed to over 350,000 individuals each quarter.
· The
· The 30th Kernel
Book is being released.
· The Braille Monitor has a
circulation of 35,000 per month.
· Future Reflections is
distributed to over 10,000 people each quarter.
Dr.
Maurer’s report also summarized the amount of work that is yet to be done. Blind people are still facing discrimination
in the workplace. New technologies,
especially the widespread installation of non-audible digital equipment and
appliances are creating obstacles for the visually impaired. The public still holds many age-old myths
about blindness as truth. Dr. Maurer
stated that we are undertaking new efforts this year to inform the public about
blindness and about the services and accomplishments of the NFB.
Stuart
Wittenstein, Superintendent of the
As
always, NFB conventions are not entirely business. A healthy amount of entertainment and social
gatherings are interwoven with the lectures and meetings. The
The
NFB continues to work to improve the lives of the blind. The Jernigan Institute blazes trails into the
future of technology. Our leaders, both
nationally and locally, continue to inspire, dream, and work diligently to
create a world where blind people are judged not by their level of eyesight,
but by their true levels of worth and character. If you have never attended a national convention
of the National Federation of the Blind, plan now to make the trip to
The 2006
Annual Convention of the NFBC
By Kevin Smalley
“The Road to
The
convention will be held at the Crowne Plaza Irvine, October 12 – 15, 2006. The hotel is located at
There
will be several new and important seminars this year. The Chapter on Aging will hold a special
Seniors Seminar on Thursday. Our senior
population is growing quickly as Americans live longer and healthier
lives. However, aging poses challenges
and more people than ever before are facing vision loss during their otherwise
healthy, “golden years.” The San
Francisco Chapter is hosting an Employment Seminar Friday evening to address
employment issues which continue to be a major obstacle for people who are
blind. And Friday afternoon, a special
Technology Seminar for educators and parents of blind children will be held. Also new this year will be a special Awards
Breakfast on Sunday morning. Everyone
who pre-registers for the convention will receive a free ticket for this meal
event. Another change this year will be
that our exhibit hall will be open on Thursday afternoon as well as all day
Friday.
We
are very honored to have Dr. Maurer as our National representative at this
year’s convention. Pre-registration
forms have been distributed and are also available online at www.NFBcal.org.
Click on Current Events and follow the links to download the form. Don’t miss the excitement in
Sharing Experiences with a
JPL Intern
By Nathanael Wales
Last
summer and this summer our National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute
and NASA sponsored an innovative internship program—called Excellence through
Challenging Exploration and Leadership (EXCEL)—for incoming and first year
college students who are blind. These
students interned for several weeks at NASA centers throughout the country and
participated in our weeklong National Convention. As readers of the “Journal” know, last summer
three students interned at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in
Affiliate members’ welcome began on Memorial Day, two days
after Kelly arrived from a week of orientation and training at our Jernigan
Institute in
Of
course, Therese and I were interested to learn from Kelly about what he would
be doing at JPL during the summer, and Kelly asked us many good questions about
southern
I
look forward to working with Kelly as a fellow officer in our national Science
and Engineering Division in the coming years, continuing the networking,
sharing, and mentoring so fundamental to the work of the National Federation of
the Blind.
KNFB
READER
By
Robert Stigile
During the month of March, I
attended the CSUN conference on technology, which houses hundreds of different
vendors. Some of these vendors provide
brochures in Braille, but many do not.
When I approached a specific vendor who said, "I apologize, but I
do not have any information in Braille," it was nice to say, "That is
okay, I will take the print version."
I knew that I could take it to my room and read it there independently.
Some of you might be wondering
how this could be done. It was accomplished with the use of the Kurzweil
National Federation of the Blind Reader (K-NFB Reader). What is this device?
The K-NFB Reader is the first
hand-held personal reader that houses a state-of-the-art digital camera and a
powerful personal data assistant together in a custom-designed case. The Reader uses character recognition
software combined with text-to-speech technology to enable a user to access
most print documents independently with the push of a button.
So now that you know how I was
able to read many of the documents that I picked up at the CSUN conference, you
might be wondering how this works, and why I was able to have it before it was
on the market for purchase.
The Kurzweil National
Federation of the Blind Reader, is a device that consists of two pieces. They are a digital camera and a PDA (personal
Data Assistant.) they are connected by a USB cable so that when you take a
picture, the camera will send the image to the PDA, and then it is turned into
text so that the PDA will start reading within a matter of a few seconds.
You probably are wondering
what can this reader do, well, there are many items that it can and cannot read
at this time. Some of the items that it
can read, are black text on a white background, a word document on a computer
screen, and much more. It cannot read
digital printouts, LED screens, white text on a black background, money and
many other items.
So now that you know a little
about the reader, I will tell you how I came about working with this reader,
and its status today.
At the National Federation of the Blind convention in
2004, Dr. Maurer asked each state president to select a person to be the state
ambassador and find fifteen or so people who would like to be beta
testers. Since I am involved in
technology, Nancy Burns asked me to be the Ambassador, and many people signed
up to be testers. At the convention in
The session was held over the
second weekend of March at the
In April, ten people from
If you would like to purchase
a reader you may call toll-free 877-****. The wonderful package includes the
KNFB Reader, Braille and print manuals as well as a manual on CD. You will also receive free software upgrades
for one year.
The greatest benefit to me
personally has been the ability to read mail independently.
By Juliet Cody
It
was not just the beautiful Rocky Mountains, the gorgeous large trees and
evergreens, the clean fresh air, or the exciting storms that pleasantly
surprised me in the evenings that made me fall in love with
There
is no doubt that it was a lot of hard work yet working with Federationists,
following the National Federation of the Blind philosophy, made the hard work
worth it. In our program, counselors and students alike were able to obtain
personal growth in the areas of independence, equality and love for one
another. This is what made my summer one I will never forget.
When
I was hired to work as a summer counselor at the CCB, I was honored, excited
and prepared to do a good job. At this time in my life, I was in the middle of
my spring semester. Therefore, I made arrangements for Marly (my guide dog) and
me to fly to
The
plane landed in
The
very next day we went to work. My students and I organized a weekly menu and a
grocery list. We made a phone call to the counselor and students that lived
below us, and started exploring
As
the weeks passed, many wonderful experiences happened. From Monday to Friday, we would travel to the
Center. We would start with the bus that stopped right in front of our
apartments. This bus would take us to Mineral Station where we got on a train
that would take us to downtown
The family life in our apartment involved some
hard work, some bonding and a lot of fun.
The hard work took place when we all took turns with the household
chores. During some of the cleaning and
cooking sessions we experienced a lot of frustration and many challenges, but
enough successes to keep us proud of ourselves. For example, one of my students,
a fifteen-year-old girl who was scared to cook at first, made a pizza all by
herself for our dinner. She was so proud and excited that we had to call her
parents in
Now,
let me tell you about the fun part! Since we scheduled our bedtime for ten
o’clock, we would start getting ready for bed at nine o’clock, and would
finally get to sleep by midnight---or so.
Every night it was different, because every day it was either a new
adventure or drama at the Center. Trust me, I am telling you there was too much
to discuss, too much to plan and too many episodes that could make us laugh all
night long. This is how it would begin. First we would just talk about
something weird or funny that had happened.
Then someone else would say something that would make all of us start
giggling. Then I would say, “OK! That’s enough! Let’s go to sleep!” This must have been the cue for the roaring
laughter to start. Because now we had tears rolling down our cheeks, we were
screaming loudly and we were all gasping for air. Marly would just stand up and
shake her head, and, of course, this only made it worse. Finally, we would make
it to our beds, and settle down just long enough to catch our breath, wipe our
tears and stop our stomachs from hurting.
As
the program continued, so did the progress. Not just for the students, but also
for myself. I taught in areas such as: travel, organizational skills, home
management, computer skills and Braille. Each day was a teaching and learning
experience for all of us. I polished up my existing skills and learned a few
new ones. Because of our hard work, dedication, determination and
accomplishments, there was also a tremendous amount of bonding. For me these
bonding experiences have become everlasting friendships.
Many
challenges helped to strengthen my confidence that summer in
Rock
climbing was next on the agenda. We were all going to
The next day everyone got in the buses and off we went.
The bus ride was cheerful, and it seemed to me that everyone had gotten over
his or her fears with a good night’s sleep---except for me. I was still SCARED!
When we finally got there, we had lunch. Then we got settled in the cutest
cabins I have ever seen, and the mountains, trees, rocks and fresh air were
stimulating. By now, I just wanted to get the rock climbing over with, so I
could start having fun. After all, Marly
was already having a blast, but she did not have to climb the biggest rock in
the world, and she was used to being in a harness. On the other hand, for me it
was annoying because I was sure that rock climbing was not for me. Well, I was
convinced I could not do it until I finally did do it. Once again, I found
myself on top of another one of
At
the
Freedom Parade
By Juliet Cody
This
year many of the Beach Cities Chapter members were not able to make it to
National Convention. For some of us it was the first time in a long time since
we had the opportunity to celebrate Independence Day with our family
in
our hometown. This was very nice, of course, yet there was a feeling of
bittersweet emotions. As Federationist we plan all year to celebrate our
Nation’s
independence together with our own. Therefore, those of us staying behind felt
an urgency to be a standard bearer at the home front to carry out
the
message of independence for the blind. This is why we decided to get involved
with the Oceanside Fourth of July parade.
At
the chapter meeting in April, the members who were not going to the convention
voted to participate in the parade. So, we filled out the paper work and
started to make plans. The Beach Cities Chapter has never lacked enthusiasm,
creativity, nor have we ever missed the opportunity to exhibit our independence
in the community. What better time than
Independence Day!
During
the next two months we were busy preparing the members who were going to
convention by collecting door prizes and getting things ready for the big fund
raiser that the Beach Cities Chapter was putting on at the National Convention.
At this time the parade had been put on the back burner without much thought.
As we were saying
good-bye to our conventioneers, in our minds we immediately switched gears. We
began to refocus on our commitment and went to work. There were ten of us
representing the National Federation of the Blind, (NFB) and we decided to wear
NFB t-shirts from previous conventions and events, such as: the Peachy King
from Georgia, Bet Your Blue Grass from Kentucky, Celebrate Life from California
and from New Mexico a clever crashed U F O with a blind space alien holding a
long white cane. Along with our whimsical t-shirts, we wore bright red, white
and blue Uncle Sam hats. Because this was the “FREEDOM PARADE”, many of us
brought along the
As
we marched by the stands with our canes and guide dogs, the introduction was
announced: “The Beach Cities Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of
California, is an organization that manifests respectability, security,
equality and opportunity. It is here to contribute to the beach communities.”
What followed next was a lot of loud clapping and cheering from the crowd and a
warm acceptance from our community!
The
By Nancy Burns, President,
NFBC
Editor’s
note: This address was delivered during the June 11, 2006 CABS Seminar.
In
1999, a resolution was passed during the NFBC convention that would have a huge
impact on the education of blind and visually impaired students. This resolution urged the
The
passage of this landmark legislation is yet another accomplishment of this
great organization, which was founded by a young blind visionary. In 1940, a
forward-thinking, blind attorney, Dr. Jacobus tenBroek, realized the importance
of blind people speaking with a united voice.
At that time people who were blind were considered to be either
indigents or paupers and had few, if any rights. With Dr. tenBroek’s leadership a handful of
blind people from seven states, including
As
students, it is good for you to be aware of the significant impact this
organization has had on your lives. As a
result of the NFB you may now take civil service exams. This was not always the case. You may now become a teacher. In the 1960s the NFB of California fought to
have the vision requirement removed from the qualifications for a
schoolteacher. You may now become an
attorney or work for the U. S. Department of State or the U. S. Department of
Justice. Some of you know a young blind
attorney, Ollie Cantos, who has just been appointed the Associate Director on
Disabilities of the White House Domestic Policy Council. He will serve as the White House point person
on disability-related policy coordination, which at times means he will brief
the President on disability issues.
Ollie served as president of this very student organization. A blind person, with the proper training,
education, and attitude, can pursue just about any vocational career. There is no longer that list of a handful of
jobs which was, at one time, considered to be the only jobs appropriate for
blind people. This has happened
primarily due to the efforts of the NFB.
This
is an organization that believes in blind people. This is an organization that believes in you
and in your abilities. We confirm this
belief every year with our state and national scholarship programs. We confirm this each year with seminars such
as this. We confirm this belief every
day by sharing our experiences and expertise with students and others who are
blind. It is an ongoing process.
When
I was a student, a resource teacher who happened to be blind gave me a
wonderful gift. She introduced me to the
NFB. This woman had much more faith in
me than I had in myself at the time. It
is now my turn to give each of you this wonderful gift. It is a gift that will mentor you, support
you, encourage you and advocate for you when necessary. It will someday be your turn to support,
encourage and advocate for other students who are blind. That is the way this organization works. It has become a wonderful and on-going process—a
process based around love and caring for our brothers and sisters who are
blind.
Some
time ago, I received a call from a dad.
I get a lot of calls from parents, mostly parents of blind kids. This particular dad had heard about an
upcoming convention and wanted some additional information. On Friday of the convention in question, we
were presenting one of our Beginning Braille for Parents workshops. I encouraged him to attend, as he is the
father of two young blind boys. Later in
the convention he handed me a note that he had written with his newly acquired
Braille skills. He told me how excited
his older son was to receive a message in Braille from his dad that he could
read on his own. Such are the rewards of
working in the NFB.
I
received another call from a parent of a blind child. This time, the parent was in
One
of our earliest fundraising projects, after I became president, was Celebrate Life, a live gala event in
Hollywood featuring a silent auction and live performances. It also showcased successful blind adults who
credited the NFB with their positive attitudes about blindness. At the conclusion of this event a parent of
one of the young performers came to me and shared her thoughts. This mom explained that her daughter had
lived with reduced vision, which had initially been diagnosed as stable. A more recent development indicated that her
visual acuity might indeed worsen with time.
The mother now believed that her daughter’s future success and happiness
were not dependent upon the quality of her vision. That’s the Federation way.
This
past April, Don and I had the opportunity to attend the NFB of New Mexico state
convention. Dr. Fred Schroeder was the
National Rep and delivered the banquet address in his usual eloquent manner. He talked about an experience he had at the
last national convention in Louisville.
A ten-year old blind girl had come up to him and had asked him for some
directions. Her parents had given her
money and had asked her to go to the other hotel tower and buy her own
breakfast. She had accomplished this and
was working her way back across the breezeway to her hotel room. Dr. Schroeder walked with her and stopped
occasionally to point out sounds that she could use for landmarks. They both arrived at the bank of elevators
and she pressed the button. Dr.
Schroeder asked her if she was okay finding her room and she assured him that
she was and she disappeared behind the closing elevator doors.
At
that moment one of the girl’s parents tapped him on the shoulder and told him
that the young girl had been lovingly followed from a distance but that she had
not known this. Her parents had faith in
their daughter’s abilities and allowed her to gain more confidence through this
exercise. They had faith in their
daughter’s abilities because of their involvement in the NFB. That’s the Federation way.
Annee
Hartzell is a teacher of blind and visually impaired students. Annie is blind and serves as secretary of the
NFBC Board of Directors. Before Annee
took over her classroom in the Santa Ana school district, her elementary school
age students were mostly dependent upon others to guide them around. They had received minimal training with their
white canes and had little confidence in using them. She had gently pushed them out of their
comfort zones and had challenged them not only in their academics but in their
mobility skills as well.
Annee
has facilitated several of our Beginning Braille for Parents workshops. During one of these workshops Don was mixing
and mingling with her students while their parents were learning the Braille
alphabet. They wanted him to join them
on the swings in the play yard. We have
a great picture of Don in a swing being pushed by a little girl with a white
cane. The NFB cares about each of
you. The NFB has faith in you as blind
students. The fact that these, and
hundreds of thousands of other success stories echo throughout our history,
proves the point.
During the past weekend, Don and I were in Salt Lake City, UT, attending the NFB of Utah state convention. We had been asked by President Ron Gardner to come and speak on the successful legislation, which enacted Braille reading and math standards. One of the agenda items featured a mother of a fourteen-year-old; legally blind daughter named Katy. Katy’s VI teacher was apparently pleased with the fact that Katy read twelve words a minute in Braille. Katy is a high-functioning, straight A student but struggles with her limited vision to read large print. Katy’s mom is determined to find an appropriate educational setting for Katy where she would be taught Braille and other blindness-specific skills. The Department of Special Education advised Katy’s mom that there were no standards for learning Braille—that such standards did not exist. She went online and discovered the California laws, which created Braille reading and math standards. She was excited over this discovery and was even contemplating moving to this state.
I
share all of this with you so that you will understand the impact that this
organization has on the lives of blind people throughout this nation. These things were not accomplished by just
the NFBC president, or a handful of others.
It takes a united NFB membership effort, from the local chapters up; to
bring issues to the U.S. congress and to create Braille reading and math
standards. As students, you are the
future leaders of this NFB affiliate. It
will soon be your responsibility to initiate, plan, and execute these kinds of
powerful projects. The future of this
organization is in your hands. I know
you are up to this challenge. When the
stylus meets the paper and the cane tip meets the ground I know you’ll be there
to carry on—that’s the Federation way.
Shannon
Dillon
510-524-6016
401
Cornell Ave. #6
Albany,
CA 94706
ShannonLDillon@hotmail.com
Meeting:
Second Saturday, 1 p.m.
Juliet
Cody
(760)
480-1265
1105
North Ave.
Escondido,
CA 92026
julietcody@cox.net
Meeting:
Second Saturday, 2–4 p.m.
California Association of
Blind
Students (CABS)
B.J.
Sexton
(925)
209-8595
8698
Galindo Court
Dublin,
CA 94568
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
California
Association of Guide Dog Users (CAGDU)
760
480-1265
1105
North Ave.
Escondido,
CA 92026
julietcody@cox.net
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
(805)
640-8973
402
San Antonio St.
Ojai,
CA 93023
Meeting: Third Sunday, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Jim
Willows
925-462-8575
3934
Kern Court
Pleasanton,
CA 94588
JWillows@ap.net
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
Joy
Stigile
(818)
996-6621
19535
Welby Way
Reseda,
CA 91335
Jstigile@earthlink.net
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
Maurine
Barcelo
(626)
305-3001
2254
Goodall Ave
Duarte,
CA 91010
Meeting:
Third Saturday, 11 a.m.–1 p.m.
Geraldine
Croom
(323)
418-7211
9431
South Vermont Ave.
Los
Angeles, CA 90044
Meeting:
First Friday, 10 a.m.–noon
Esther
Merrill
(831)
657-0255
604
Acorn Court
Pacific
Grove, CA 93950
Meeting:
Third Saturday, 10:30 a.m.
Mark
Pighin
(925)
372-7637
4033
Camino Vinedo
Martinez,
CA 94553
mark.p@sbcglobal.net
Meeting:
Third Saturday, 11 a.m.
George
Blackstock
(707)
224-4400
2965
Jefferson St.
Napa, CA 94559
Meeting:
Fourth Monday, 1 p.m.
Dave
Faiman
715
N. Broadway Apt. #90
Escondido,
CA 92025
760-432-6429
Meeting:
Third Saturday
Shelly
Alongi
(714)
525-9632
2404
E. Nutwood Ave., G-10
Fullerton,
CA 92831
qobells@adelphia.net
Meeting:
Second Saturday, 11:30 a.m.
Orientation
Center for the Blind (OCB) Alumni Association, Inc.
Jim
Willows
(925)
462-8575
3934
Kern Court
Pleasanton,
CA 94588-4428
jwillows@ap.net
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
Parents of
Blind Children (POBC)
Barbara
Mathews
(310)
396-2798
2504
Beverly Ave.
Santa
Monica, CA 90405
barbara.mathews@sce.com
Meeting:
Annual State Convention
Ethell
Brandon
(310)
515-0246
247
East 138th Street
Los
Angeles, CA 90061
Meeting:
Third Thursday, 10 a.m.
Nathanael
Wales
(530)
219-2573