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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Good Evening Federation Family:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>We had a fantastic turnout for the first ever live presidential release tonight with over 800 people in attendance. That release number 493 should be posted soon for those who missed it. In response to that, I have some very important updates regarding Federation activities and our response to Covid-19.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>First, I have been in communication with President Riccobono regarding our go forward plans for the month of April since the current suspension on in-person meetings was to expire on April 12<sup>th</sup>. I let him know of the Governor’s extension of her disaster proclamations through April 30<sup>th</sup> at her press conference today. The national board will be meeting this weekend to discuss the situation, and action will likely be taken nationwide. In the meantime, as president of the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa, and in coordination with our national president, I am hereby extending the suspension of in-person federation gatherings through April 30, 2020. The Board of Directors of the National Federation of the Blind will likely follow suit and may suspend gatherings longer than that, and if it is longer, we will follow that directive accordingly.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>This leads into a discussion of what happens next. As many of you know, our At Large chapter meets every third Thursday virtually at 7pm, and all of you will be invited to that meeting. In addition, I will be working with chapter leadership to see if it would be feasible to hold other chapter meetings virtually as well. The affiliate will be transitioning to the popular Zoom platform for our virtual events, and more details on how to join various meetings by internet or phone will be communicated later once all of the logistics have been worked out in the coming days, so stay tuned! If you have an event you would like to see happen, please let me know, and I’ll see what we can do about it.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Now on to national convention. There will be an annual gathering in some form, and the plan is still to have national convention in Houston, Texas from July 14-19, but alternative plans are also in the works, and more information will be communicated through various channels in the not too distant future if needed. I’m looking forward to Houston, and I know many of you are too. Hopefully plans don’t change, but if they do, we’ll still be together as one big Federation family!<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I now have a few action items for folks to get involved with, First, if you or someone you know is having issues with distance learning at any level, please let me know and I can help give some guidance and direct you to resources that can help. Second, if you have, or know of anyone who has had issues getting Covid-19 testing, please get in touch with me so that I can get the information documented and passed on. This should not be happening, and we will not stand for it! Third, watch your email, social media, and NFB Newsline for upcoming virtual events that others are doing and get involved. There are a lot of great things happening all across the country, and I’d hate for people to miss out! Other information regarding Covid-19 is also available on NFB Newsline and at <a href="http://www.nfb.org/covid19">www.nfb.org/covid19</a>. Finally, if you can help check on those in our affiliate who may need a little extra guidance during this pandemic, please feel free to reach out and help in whatever way you can. One thing Federationists do really well is help each other out through the most challenging of circumstances.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I look forward to connecting with all of you soon, and I can’t wait to see how much better we as individuals and as the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa will bee once this pandemic is all over. In the meantime, let’s go build the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa, and the National Federation of the Blind!<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Scott Van Gorp, President<br>National Federation of the Blind of Iowa<br>Phone: 515-720-5282<br></span><a href="mailto:svangorp@nfbi.org"><span style='color:#0563C1'>Email</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://www.nfbi.org/"><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#0563C1'>Website</span></i></a><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> <br></span></i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/National-Federation-Of-the-Blind-Of-Iowa-372681823082570/posts"><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#0563C1'>Facebook</span></i></a><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> <br></span></i><a href="https://twitter.com/nfb_iowa"><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#0563C1'>Twitter</span></i></a><i><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> <br>Live the life you want.<br></span></i><br>The National Federation of the Blind of Iowa is a community of members and friends who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation’s blind. Every day we work together to help blind people live the lives they want.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>