[HIABS] HIABS Meeting Minutes

Sat Feb 3 21:19:25 UTC 2018

Aloha kakou,

Thank you to those who attended our conference call this morning. I am excited about all of the great work we are doing and the progress which we have the potential to make in our state legislature.

I have attached a copy of our minutes from today's meeting. I have also pasted them below my signature.

Since Scott asked for a link to where we can read the NFB Pledge, here it is: https://nfb.org/Images/nfb/Publications/bm/bm98/bm980115.htm. When I teach people how to memorize it, I break it up into five parts:

I pledge to participate actively
in the effort of the National Federation of the Blind
to achieve equality, opportunity, and security for the blind
to support the policies and programs of the Federation
and to abide by its constitution

One more trick, equality, opportunity, and security are in alphabetical order.

Based on our discussion and our upcoming hearings on Tuesday, I will be sending out template testimony very soon, which will be in a bigger email to more people.

If we can each get 10 people to submit testimony on each of these three bills, we can make a major impact.

Mahalo and aloha,

Justin

Justin M. Salisbury, MA, NOMC, NCRTB, NCUEB
President
Hawaii Association of Blind Students and Recent Graduates
A Division of the National Federation of the Blind of Hawaii
Phone: 808.797.8606
Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu<mailto:President at Alumni.ECU.edu>
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-salisbury

"Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore."

Cesar Chavez

HIABS Meeting Minutes
Saturday, February 3, 2018
9:00 AM

Conference Line: 888-482-3560
Access Code: 668 2802

Call to Order at 9:03 AM

Roll Call
Shannon Cantan
Scott Tokunaga
Gloria Tuuao
Justin Salisbury

NFB Pledge

Scott asked that Justin send out a link to the NFB pledge.

Justin gave the Secretary's Report in Jove Watson's absence. These minutes were distributed via email on Sunday, January 07, 2018, based on the meeting held at the Wisp Lounge on Friday, January 05, 2018.
Shannon motioned to approve the Secretary's Report as read.
Scott seconded.
The Secretary's Report was approved.

Treasurer's Report
Current Balance: $676.90
We contributed $100 to the NABS activities at Washington Seminar.
For NABS, much more money than $100 was raised because of our capital investments.

Since the last report, we made a $100 withdrawal and earned $0.12 interest.

Scott asked if there was any record of who bought the Hawaii baskets at the NABS Cafe. He proposed sending a thank-you letter to those who purchased our baskets.
Shannon will check with Kathryn Webster to ensure that it wouldn't step on the toes of any NABS efforts to reach out to these contributors.

Gloria asked if we were able to include the funds raised from the Wisp Lounge fundraiser. Since those have not yet been received, they cannot be factored into the treasurer's report.

Scott move to approve the Treasurer's Report.
Gloria seconded.
The Treasurer's Report was approved.

Wisp Lounge fundraiser

Justin will write to Jon Ichyama. We must explain that our member who was coordinating the fundraiser had a family emergency and had to run off-island. We still haven't heard from him. We would like to receive the funds that we raised on Friday, January 05, if possible. We also want to make sure that we maintain a positive relationship with the Wisp Lounge so that we may receive future opportunities.

Gloria explained that, in the future, more people need to be involved in planning an event so that, if the primary coordinator becomes incapacitated like this, there are still other people on the inside who know what's going on and can pinch-hit more effectively.

Justin will draft a letter to send to the hotel to send to HIABS board for feedback before sending it to the hotel.

Interview Day

When the Rotary Club comes back to us looking for a date, we can tell them that April is ideal because it's in a nice little lull within people's schedules.

We should make it open to everyone who is blind. our goal is to improve the lives of blind people.

Shannon can reach out to VR counselors and universities to find people.
We can also distribute announcements through our local chapters and affiliate leadership.

We could put NFB of Hawaii at the top and "Coordinated by the Hawaii Association of Blind Students and Recent Graduates" at the bottom. Depending on how they want it, we should also mention the Rotary Club as a partner.

Legislative Action

There are three public hearings on Tuesday, February 06, 2018: one for our right to parent, and two more to discuss the end of subminimum wages. If we do not get our bills passed through the committees, then they will die. We need to outnumber the opposition.

We have template testimony for each hearing, and we need to get as many people as possible to submit written testimony, as well as show up to the face-to-face public hearings. We have set a goal as a student division to each get 10 testimonies for each of the three hearings, which means 30 each. If we don't have time to do the work of adding people's names to the documents or getting them to do so, we can forward their names and addresses to Justin Salisbury to be added by him.

We will also make Facebook events for public hearings. In the posts where we share them, we will explain that written testimony must be submitted by the end of the day on Sunday, February 04.

Scott motioned to adjourn.
Gloria seconded.

The meeting adjourned at 10:13 AM.

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