[Cinci-NFB] National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter, Meeting Minutes for August 2020

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National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

Cincinnati Chapter

Meeting Minutes for August 2020

 

 

1.	The August 2020 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of
Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter was convened by President Gloria Robinson at
approximately 1:33 P.M. on Saturday August 22 2020. Members in Attendance
were: Gloria Robinson, President, Marianne Denning, Vice President, Emily
Pennington, Treasurer, Christopher Sabine, Secretary, Paul Jorden, Lisa
Hall, Dave Perry, Dale Barta, Akeelah Cade, Gary Warren, Candice Armstrong,
Walter Mitchel, Jean Selvidge, and Robert Harris. Richard Payne, President
of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Suzanne Turner, Vice
President of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, William Turner,
President of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cleveland
Chapter, and Dave Bertsch, President, National Federation of the Blind of
Ohio, Greater Akron Chapter, also attended today's meeting. Jacque Perry,
Haley Thurston, Allison Meloy, Counselor with the Southwest Field Office of
Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, and Kyle Dallman, Poll
Recruiter at the Hamilton County Board of Elections, attended today's
meeting as guests of the Chapter. Due to the current public health crisis
stemming from Covid-19, this meeting was held by telephone conference.

 

2.	Dale Barta moved to approve the July 2020 meeting minutes as
presented. Emily Pennington seconded, and the motion passed.

 

3.	Emily Pennington presented this month's Treasurer's Report. Paul
Jordan moved to approve the Treasurer's Report as presented. Dale Barta
seconded, and the motion passed. 

 

4.	Gloria Robinson and Gary Warren gave a summary of a joint Membership
/ Fundraising Committee meeting that took place by telephone conference on
August 21 2020. This report was presented to the Chapter in lieu of a
Fundraising or membership Committee Report. The following topics were
discussed and acted upon at today's meeting:

 

a.	Gary Warren expressed that he has contacted the office of Mayor John
Cranley regarding a potential fundraising event to take place in early
Spring 2021. This event would consist of an outdoor market in which vendors
could sell their items. This event would take place in an empty parking lot
that would be divided into "slots", with the Chapter selling each "slot" for
a given amount. ($50 apiece was mentioned). Since the event would take place
outdoors in a parking lot, it would conform to all guidelines to prevent the
spread of Covid-19. The Chapter could sell items at an event, but other
organizations serving the Blind community as well as local businesses,
nonprofit organizations and government agencies could also participate.
There was no further discussion regarding this event at today's meeting.

 

b.	Gloria Robinson expressed that she, Candice Armstrong and Dave Perry
are planning to organize a raffle of a 36-inch Amazon Firestick TV and
either a Google Play or Amazon Echo. The Chapter will give away the prize,
referred to as the Cincinnati Pack, one to two weeks prior to Christmas.
1,000 tickets are being printed at Staples for sale to participants at $5
apiece or 3 tickets for $10. Since the tickets and the raffle items are
being donated, no Chapter funds will need to be allocated. Richard Payne
reminded President Gloria Robinson and the Fundraising Committee that all
donations will need to go to the Ohio Affiliate as the Affiliate is the
registered nonprofit entity, not the Cincinnati Chapter. After some
additional discussion, Christopher Sabine made a motion on behalf of the
Chapter that the raffle move forward. Marianne Denning seconded, and the
motion passed. Gloria expressed that Candice Armstrong will record a voice
promo for the raffle which will be posted to the Cincinnati Chapter Facebook
page as well as the Cinci-Talk and Ohio-Talk Listservs.

 

5.	Kyle Dallman, Poll Recruiter for the Hamilton County Board of
Elections, conducted a guest presentation on accessible voting options for
the 2020 Presidential Election. This presentation was conducted at the
request of Marianne Denning and serves as this month's Legislative Committee
report. Mr. Dallman expressed that he agreed to speak at today's meeting
after a virtual meeting at the Cincinnati Association for the Blind and
Visually impaired. He began his presentation with a discussion of the three
ways voters can participate in this year's election. First, members can
request an absentee ballot by contacting the Hamilton County Board of
Elections, either by telephone at (513) 632-7000 or by visiting its web site
at  <https://votehamiltoncountyohio.gov/>
https://votehamiltoncountyohio.gov/. Absentee voting and voting by mail are
synonymous. A voter can request an absentee ballot by first completing an
absentee ballot request form, which can be completed through the Board of
Elections web site or requested by telephone. Once the Board of Elections
receives a completed absentee ballot request form, a ballot will be sent to
the voter. The absentee ballot request form cannot be completed online. A
voter can also complete an absentee ballot request form by visiting the
Hamilton County Board of Elections, located at 4700 smith Road, Norwood. The
Hamilton County Board of Elections will mail out absentee ballots on October
6. Ballots cannot be mailed earlier than this date. People with qualifying
disabilities, including Blindness, can also request a special remote marking
ballot by completing an application on the Board of Elections' web site.
This allows a qualifying person to receive a ballot by email, fill it out
using a screen reader, print it out, and mail it to the Board of Elections.
This option requires a computer, a printer, a screen reader and email
access. Second, voters can visit the offices of the Hamilton County Board of
elections for early voting beginning October 6. Specific navigational
information concerning how to reach the Hamilton County Board of Elections
offices in Norwood was provided. Early voting is available starting on
October 6 at the Bord of Elections. Voting is available from 8:00 to 5:00
P.M. for two weeks beginning on that date. To facilitate social distancing
in the wake of the Covid-19 Pandemic, early voting will occur in a separate,
6,000 square foot facility located at the same address as the main building
at 4700 Smith Road. Navigational and orientation information was provided.
There will be accessible voting machines-referred to as access
writers-available for voters with disabilities to cast their ballots,
including Blindness. A verbal orientation to using the Access Writer was
also provided at the request of President Richard Payne later in Mr.
Dallman's presentation. Finally, voters can vote in-person at their local
polling place on Election Day, Tuesday November 3. The process for in-person
voting is the same as prior to Covid-19, and Access Writers are available at
all polling stations. Questions and answers were taken from members, and
several points were clarified concerning use of the access writers and
security procedures for ballots. 

 

6.	Robert Harris gave this month's Transportation Committee Report.
Individual concerns of Chapter members were discussed regarding ACCESS, and
Robert requested that members with concerns follow up directly with Metro or
ACCESS customer service. He expressed that he is always available to reach
out to members if they receive any unsatisfactory results from calling METRO
or ACCESS. President Gloria Robinson agreed to contact SORTA to request that
a representative from ACCESS or SORTA's disabilities services staff conduct
a guest presentation at a future Chapter meeting. Robert Harris agreed to
support Gloria with this as his time permits.

 

7.	President Gloria Robinson indicated that anyone needing accessible
information on Covid-19 can call their nearest CVS Store location or (513)
921-0831, the number of the Glenway Avenue store location.

 

 

8.	President Gloria Robinson expressed that she would like to hold a
virtual event on Zoom in observance of Meet the Blind Month in October, and
Candice Armstrong and Christopher Sabine have agreed to assist with this.
Gloria would like to invite as many from the community as possible. More
information is forthcoming.

 

9.	President Gloria Robinson expressed that she received a "very, very
good" phone call from Bernie Dressell, one of the Chapter's most senior
members, expressing her need to remain involved with the Chapter and
feelings of isolation. Marianne Denning is working with Bernie to help her
participate in Chapter meetings in any way possible, given her additional
disabilities. President Gloria Robinson and Marianne Denning encouraged all
Chapter members to reach out to Bernie Dressell and other members of the
Blind Community who are feeling alone and isolated. The Chapter took no
further action on this matter as other items were discussed.

 

10.	President Gloria Robinson asked all Chapter members to register for
the 2020 Virtual Convention of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
scheduled for November 6-8 2020. She also encouraged members to attend and
participate in the Zoom calls which other chapters are organizing, such as
the weekly Happy Hours from the Cleveland Chapter.

 

11.	Allison Meloy, Rehabilitation Counselor at Opportunities for Ohioans
with Disabilities, reported that the agency is still providing services
virtually and anticipates doing so until the end of 2020. Some vendors are
serving individual consumers in person, however.

 

12.	President Gloria Robinson reported that the Center for Independent
Living Options is offering grants to people with disabilities, which she
referred to as CARES grants. These grants are available to people with
disabilities for assistive technology essential to performing daily life
functions, such as iPads or adaptive telephones. More information about this
program is available by contacting the Center for Independent Living Options
at (513) 241-2600.

 

13.	Suzanne Turner, Vice President of the National Federation of the
Blind of Ohio, discussed several items of interest to Chapter and Affiliate
members.

 

a.	Sarah Kelly, Program Manager at Opportunities for Ohioans with
Disabilities, is leaving her position effective Friday August 29 to take a
position with the Ohio Department of Aging. Sarah Kelly has participated in
a number of events organized by the Chapter and the Affiliate, including the
2019 Cincinnati Vision Fair. Suzanne asked all Chapter members to email her
and wish her farewell.

 

b.	Suzanne encouraged all Chapter members to register for the National
Federation of the Blind of Ohio Virtual Convention and expressed that the
affiliates, web site,  <http://www.nfbohio.org> http://www.nfbohio.org, has
been significantly updated. Anyone interested in a table at Exhibit Hall
must complete the form on the Affiliate's web site and return it to Suzanne.
The Affiliate is also seeking door prizes from chapters and individual
members. Finally, Suzanne encouraged all members with suggestions for
activities that they would like to see included in this year's virtual
convention to reach out to her. She also encouraged members to attend other
state conventions that are being held virtually for ideas of convention
activities. Suzanne reported that she will speak at the South Carolina,
Louisiana, New Mexico, and Florida State Conventions. All except the
Louisiana Convention are free to register; the cost of registration for the
Louisiana Convention is $30. Later in her presentation, Suzanne encouraged
all Chapter members to solicit donations from organizations and companies
and spread the word about State Convention to prospective vendors.

 

c.	Suzanne encouraged all members of the Blind community ages 50 and
older to join the National Federation of the blind of Ohio Senior Division.
All meetings of the Senior Division are currently being held virtually. The
Senior Division is also holding a drawing for a $200 cash prize which will
be awarded at the State Convention Banquet on November 7 2020. The cost of
entry is $10 for one entry, $20 for 2 entries or $50 for 5 entries. It is
not necessary to be a member of the Senior Division to take part in the
drawing. Dues and payments for entry to the drawing should be directed to
Gloria Conway, Treasurer of the Ohio Senior Division, through Bill Pay at
any bank. Members can also pay Suzanne Turner through PayPal or the Cash
App, and she will forward the payment to Gloria Conway. Checks can also be
mailed directly, and the address is on the Ohio-Talk Listserv. 

 

d.	Suzanne Turner indicated that the Cleveland Chapter is conducting
daily wellness calls at 10:30 A.M. on the Ohio Affiliate conference line,
(712) 775-7031, Access Code 240281423#. This information has also been
posted to the Ohio-Talk listserv. The Cleveland Chapter is also hosting a
weekly "Happy Hour" each Thursday at 7:00 P.M. on Zoom. The access
information is also available on the Ohio-Talk Listserv. The topic for the
next "Happy Hour" event is Disco. 

 

e.	Suzanne reported on two ongoing fundraisers that the Ohio Affiliate
is conducting. First, tickets are still being sold online for the Piggest
Raffle Ever discussed in previous Chapter meetings. Tickets are available
for $5 at  <http://www.piggestraffle.com> http://www.piggestraffle.com, with
proceeds going to the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio. Second, the
Ohio Affiliate is asking for donations of $48, the cost of a virtual case of
M & M's. Donations can be made by visiting the Affiliate's web site,
<http://www.nfbohio.org> http://www.nfbohio.org and clicking or activating
the "Donate" button. The Ohio Affiliate is known for selling M & M's as
fundraisers-particularly at exhibit hall at national conventions. 

 

14.	At the request of Gloria Robinson, Robert Harris moved that the
Chapter allocate $50 to the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio to
cover the cost of State Convention. Christopher Sabine seconded, and the
motion passed.

 

15.	At the request of President Gloria Robinson, Robert Harris made a
motion that the Cincinnati Chapter allocate $10 per month to the National
Federation of the Blind's Preauthorized Contribution (PAC) plan, which funds
all advocacy efforts on behalf of the national organization as well as the
free white cane program. Dale Barta seconded. After very intense and
vigorous discussion, Emily Pennington made a friendly amendment that the
Chapter make a $5 contribution to PAC. The motion ultimately passed with the
friendly amendment intact. After the motion passed, Robert Harris expressed
that he will make a $60 to cover the cost of the Chapter's contribution to
the PAC plan.

 

16.	The August 2020 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of
Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter, was adjourned at approximately 3:29 P.M. on August
22 2020. 

 

17.	The September 2020 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind
of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter will be held on Saturday September 26 2020 from
1:30 to 3:30 P.M. by telephone conference.

 

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Christopher Sabine

Secretary

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

Cincinnati Chapter

 

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