[Cinci-NFB] National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter, Meeting Minutes for September 2021

Wed Oct 13 14:27:34 UTC 2021

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
Cincinnati Chapter
Meeting Minutes for September 2021

  1.  The September 2021 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter was convened by President Gloria Robinson at approximately 1:45 P.m. on Saturday September 25 2021. This meeting was held by telephone conference due to the ongoing public health crisis resulting from the Covid-19 Pandemic. In Attendance were: President Gloria Robinson, Marianne Denning, Christopher Sabine, Emily Pennington, Gary Warren, Lisa Hall, Deanna Lewis, Candice Armstrong and Frank Bragassa.

  1.  Marianne Denning moved to accept the August minutes as emailed. Emily Pennington seconded, and the motion passed.

  1.  Emily Pennington presented this month's Treasurer's Report. Marianne Denning moved to accept the Treasurer's Report as presented. Christopher Sabine seconded, and the motion passed.

  1.  Gary Warren presented the report from the Fundraising Committee for this month. He indicated that preparations for the Chapter's next fundraiser, a drawing for an Amazon Smart Oven, are still ongoing and expressed that there may be another prize offered. As in the previous campaign, tickets will be sold for $5 apiece or 3 for $12. Gary indicated that he is scheduling a meeting for Wednesday September 29 at 7:30 P.M. to further discuss the fundraising campaign.

  1.  Christopher Sabine gave a report from the Membership Committee. He expressed that the Committee is still not holding regular meetings due to the Pandemic, but recruitment efforts are still ongoing. President Gloria Robinson expressed that she would like to align the Membership Committee more closely with Fundraising.

  1.  Christopher Sabine gave an update from the Transportation Committee. As current chair of the Committee, Christopher indicated that he will be working with Robert Harris, who serves on the Board of directors of the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority (SORTA), to address a number of serious concerns regarding service to Blind passengers, including lack of information regarding the layout of key transfer sites such as the Northside Transit Center and Government Square, drivers' failing to announce bus stops, and lack of input into the implementation of key enhancements to fair collection, such as new fair validators now being installed on buses. These validators enable passengers paying for rides using the Transit App on an IOS or Android Smartphone to scan their ticket without having to show it to the driver. Christopher expressed that he will involve President Gloria Robinson and other Chapter members in meetings with SORTA representatives as they wish. President Gloria Robinson expressed that she has concerns about drivers failing to announce routes and stops. She also expressed that when she took a trip Downtown on a Metro bus on a recent morning, she observed that Metro staff were catering to the needs of sighted passengers, particularly students, but not the need for Blind passengers to find their way to the correct bus. She raised particular concerns about Blind students at Cincinnati Public Schools who currently need to use METRO due to the elimination of services for students at the beginning of the school year. Other members, particularly Frank Bragassa, raised concerns about being able to locate and use the fair validators and the potential need for drivers to touch their smartphones during the Pandemic. After further discussion, it was agreed that Christopher will organize a meeting between Robert Harris, his contact at SORTA, and President Gloria Robinson to discuss Chapter members' concerns. Chapter members also agreed to conduct rides on Metro buses to share their experiences with SORTA. President Gloria Robinson agreed to reach out to contacts at Cincinnati Public Schools to determine the needs and concerns of Blind students regarding transportation to school on Metro.

  1.  Marianne Denning gave a report from the Legislative Committee. She reminded Chapter members of a post on the Ohio-Talk listserv from Eric Duffy, Chair of the Ohio Affiliate Legislative Committee, asking all Affiliate members to email Sen. Rob Portman's Office to request that he co-sponsor the Accessible Technology Affordability Act, S. 212. This bill has 27 Cosponsors, including Ohio Sen. Sherod Brown, according to the legislative team at the National Organization. Marianne also expressed that the Ohio General Assembly heard sponsor testimony on H. 352, the Ohio Affiliate's parental rights bill, on Thursday September 23. A link to the recording of the hearing and further information was posted to the Ohio-Talk Internet Listserv.

  1.  President Gloria Robinson reported that she plans to run for President of the Cincinnati Chapter at next month's biennial elections. She expressed that she would like to work with representatives of local churches, particularly the Rev. Damon Lynch, III from New Jerusalem Baptist Church, who is aware of some Blind members of his congregation who could be potential Chapter members.

  1.  President Gloria Robinson reminded all Chapter members who would like their accomplishments or participation in the community (inside or outside the Federation) recognized for this year's Gavel Awards to reach out to Christopher Sabine, who is compiling the Cincinnati Chapter's gavel Report for the Ohio Affiliate. Christopher expressed that he would like entries for the report to him by Wednesday September 29. The Gavel Awards were established by the Ohio Affiliate to recognize the accomplishments and contributions of Chapters, Divisions, and individual members of the Affiliate to the national Federation of the blind and the broader community.

  1.  Marianne Denning presented two items for consideration, the rescheduling of the November meeting on the third Saturday to accommodate the Thanksgiving Day Holiday and a potential dinner outing during the Affiliate's virtual banquet on November 6. Both were tabled until the October meeting. Plans for a virtual event with the Akron Chapter to celebrate Blind Equality Achievement Month, formerly Meet the Blind month, were also discussed but not acted upon at today's meeting.

  1.  Christopher Sabine expressed that he and Deborah Kendrick, former President of the Cincinnati Chapter, will be conducting a presentation on access to health care during the Friday General Session at State Convention on November 5. Deborah Kendrick's book, "Navigating Health Care When All They Can See Is that You Can't", was published in 2020 and available from National Braille Press.

  1.  The September 2021 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter was adjourned at approximately 2:28 P.M. on Saturday September 25 2021.

  1.  The October 2021 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio Cincinnati Chapter is scheduled for Saturday October 23 2021 at 1:30 P.M. by telephone conference.

Respectfully Submitted
Christopher Sabine
Secretary
National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
Cincinnati Chapter

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