[IABS-Talk] June 12 Corrected Minutes

[davant1958 at gmail.com]

Hello ALL:

The corrections to the June 12 Chicago chapter minutes have been made.

Please see below.

 

NFBI Chicago Chapter Meeting

June 12, 2021 at 1pm CST

 

Chapter President Denise began the meeting at 1pm sharp by welcoming
everyone and letting everyone know they are currently unmuted to introduce
themselves but then will be muted following. She welcomed any news to share.

 

 

I.                    Introductions

 

Denise Avant, Chapter President

Steve Hastalis - On Monday morning he will go to hospital due to his erratic
pulse rate and to check for blood clots with an ultrasound camera and may do
an electric shock to stabilize his pulse rate as well as a discussion of
medications. Denise mentioned we'd all be thinking of him and are here for
anything he needs.

Patti Chang, 1st Vice President - Good news, the bar association of Illinois
has finally selected someone with a disability to get their diversity award
and this year it is Patti. It's taken them 20 years to realize disability is
part of diversity.

Eileen Truschke - She saw her cousins that she hasn't seen in about 20 years
and had a nice time.

Diana Hoffman - New kid on the block, she has just completed her first year
of graduate school, she is on a brief break but will begin classes at
ICRY-Wood soon for computer and zoom training. Denise welcomed her and said
we looked forward to having her present at future meetings.

Ken Borst, Board Member

Ken Chad - Noted that they are doing pretty good, they are opening up more
where he is.

Jemal Powell, 2nd Vice President - Good to be here, for some news on May
20th he went to Walmart in Olympia Fields, Illinois and received his J&J
vaccine, so this Thursday he will be fully vaccinated. He was a bit nervous
at first but he's glad he did get vaccinated. He encourages everyone who
hasn't gotten vaccinated to do so.

Dan TeVelde - Next week some of his family members will come to visit for
his birthday and he got his birthday present from Chris early, Apple Airpods
Max. He noted this has been the year of both of them spending money.

Mary Lou Grunwald - She thinks she is happy today, nothing exciting but she
is doing all her usual walking and exploring/re-exploring places she hasn't
been in awhile and physical workplaces. 

Kim Liddell - She is back in touch, and Denise welcomed her. She said she is
fully vaccinated and is enjoying her plants, it is very humid out there
today but 20 minutes at the farmers market was enough. 

Pam Gillmore - She says hello to all and said all is ok, she's fully
vaccinated and at the condo her pool opened today so she was in the pool
this morning and is still in her bathing suit.

Kira O'Bradovich - All is well, settling into her new place, also it's
Marilyn Green's Birthday today.

Greg Rosenburg - He is back to work, well wishes given to him for that,
several compromises and a breach this week happened so he was handed off
several projects from the FBI to work on, customers need help for at least
several hundred hours of work over the next month or two.

Alicia Green - Juliette Walker invited her and this is her first time at the
meeting. Denise welcomed her. She is newly visually impaired, she was a
nurse for 26 years, this would have been her 29th year if she was still
working. Going to school at ICRY-Wood currently, learning new technology. 

Dustin Cather, Board Member - No new news, getting a haircut after this.

Ed Birmingham - He noted his daughter, son-in-law, and grandkids have moved
in with them as they are moving up from Florida to a new house 20 minutes
away, so his life has been turned upside down and he's very happy about
that.

Marilyn Green, Board Member - Holds many hats including State president

Sara Luna, 1st Vice-President of IABS - She graduated this spring from North
Park University with a bachelor's degree in history and Communication

Elizabeth Sprecher

Ellen Bartlett- President of IABS and is in the process of applying to do
student teaching for her final semester and that is the last thing needed to
graduate.

Nicole Gleason - Doesn't have any news to report, is just glad to be here.

Pam Provost - Been in the chapter for over 20 years.  She lost her brother
on May 9 and it's been a rocky road for her as she was very close to him. He
had serious health concerns but was still unexpected. She appreciates all
the notes and emails and will try to get back to doing formal thank you's as
soon as she can. Denise noted we are glad she is back and that we are all
sorry for the loss of her brother. We are thinking about her and wishing her
the best.

Teresa Fabre - Good news is that she just graduated from ICRY-Wood and will
return to school in August.

David Meyer- He and Theresa took their first road trip since COVID last
week. 

George Villa - Good to be back.

Bill Reif

 

 

II.                  Program Item: Upcoming National Convention by State
Chapter President, Marilyn Green

 

Denise said Happy Birthday to Marilyn and Marilyn said she hoped everyone is
registered for the National convention. It is not too late, you are just too
late to be able to vote at the convention or to win door prizes which is the
fun thing to win. If there is anyone not registered please go online and do
so at www.nfb.org/convention <http://www.nfb.org/convention> . You will get
updates to let you know when things are happening, the agenda will be live
next week. Leadership can help you register if you need help or have
questions about the agenda. The agenda will be full including committee and
division meetings, general sessions, honor roll call, honoring of the
veterans will take place. Spread the word about registering, it is free,
donations are welcome and greatly appreciated since there is a lot that goes
into planning. You can call her at (312) 343-8396.

 

This will be Marilyn's first state convention as our state's president, so
she has a bit less time to talk so if possible instead of calling you can
text her or email her at president at nfbofillinois.org
<mailto:president at nfbofillinois.org> . President Riccobono has chosen
Marilyn to serve on the Jernigan Committee, he believed in bringing everyone
to conventions and each year money is raised in order to bring people to the
national convention. You can donate to that fund directly and there is a
raffle for every $20 donated to any national funds including Jernigan: first
time national convention goers, White Cane Fund: provides free white canes
to people upon request, tenBroek fund: National Office in Maryland to manage
the property, the SUN Fund is our rainy-day fund/general donation fund.
Raffle is for a free trip to 2022 National Convention in New Orleans or take
the prize in cash, which she believes is $2,000. National Convention is a
great opportunity to network with other blind people across the country as
well as training and support including a job fair. It is a premier event
related to blindness. We have the Rookie service for first timers, which is
a concierge service that can be accessed by either emailing Rookie at nfb.org
<mailto:Rookie at nfb.org>  or calling (410) 659-9314 extension 2020 to be
connected with a mentor from one of the affiliates across the country.
Marilyn then asked if anyone had any questions on what she's mentioned so
far. 

 

Patti asked if she wanted to talk about the caucus and Marilyn said she
would. Dave asked if you are helping someone to register for convention,
where would the form be emailed to. Marilyn did not remember the email off
the top of her head but will email it out after this meeting. Dan T. asked
about crowd compass, Marilyn said that it's an app you can download, it was
used last year. Patti supervised someone who works on that system and said
that you'll get a specific crowd compass app for NFB, so do not download the
general one yet. Ours will actually be branded to our convention and the
information will come in an email. 

 

Marilyn has not yet received any information about the caucus, but she
shared that each state conducts a caucus to come together to talk about one
of the biggest items discussed at the state level, Resolutions. They are a
key component of the National Federation of the Blind since it is the
supreme body. If you registered by May 31st and are dues paying member who
submitted their phone number you will be able to vote on resolutions and for
national board members. The caucus gives us the opportunity to talk about
any resolutions that might be controversial. If the voting is too close to
call, they take a roll call of each state so Marilyn will be voting on
behalf of our affiliate if that is needed. She is awaiting a timeframe for
the caucus and will post on IL-Talk and IABS-Talk and work to get it on
Newsline. Denise noted there has been a change in the resolutions process,
for those with access to the website the proposed resolutions will be up
prior to the committee meeting since the deadline for submitting resolutions
has passed so you can get a look and know what is being proposed in advance.
They will probably also be on Newsline. Denise also noted that she believes
in the April Monitor, the resolutions process was outlined. 

 

Marilyn stated that that she'd like us to have at least one Illinois social
which will be in the zoom platform, bring your beverage, snack, your music,
and we can hang out and have some fun.  Many affiliates will also hold happy
hours so be on the lookout to meeting others across the country. She also
spoke about Rookie Roundup. We were all rookies to a virtual convention last
year. Those who are first timers are invited to the Rookie Roundup on June
29th at 7:30pm CST. Ellen mentioned they will be giving out door prizes.
President Riccobono will be there to give out information and Pam Allen
spearheads it. Great opportunity to share what is in store for you at the
convention. Patti shared two invites, the Maryland Affiliate is hosting a
pre-auditioned, comedy night on July 5th at 7:30pm EST/6:30pm CST. On July
6th, there will be a fundraising concert, also auditioned, the concert is
$20 per household/zoom link. All of this can be accessed from the webpage
Marilyn mentioned, nfb.org/convention. Denise noted that Leslie Hamric will
be around for the concert since she is a very talented musician and most
likely will be participating. Marilyn then mentioned the Presidential Suite,
a great opportunity for networking with other federationists to schedule a
meeting with President Riccobono who enjoys talking to everyone. Information
on how to enter and schedule an appointment will be forthcoming. Marilyn had
a great time the first time she participated and met Mrs. Riccobono, it may
have seemed intimidating, but she felt very welcomed with refreshments. 

 

Black leaders serving for advancement plans to have an open house and all
are welcome. Shawn Calloway, the chair, plans to ensure it is posted as one
of the diversity related events happening pre-convention. Plus, there will
be a pre-convention seminar, date TBD but may be July 6th and there will be
many other diversity related events so please attend all that you are
interested in. All support is welcome and they hope we will come around and
take advantage of some of the diversity events. 

 

Ellen then mentioned there will be many student events and business meetings
going on during national convention as well. To register for the student
meetings by June 21st at nabslink.org and to vote pay dues by June 21st as
well and will run until January. (Formerly June to June, now January to
January.)

 

Denise then also offered help for registration, all are welcome to email
davant1958 at gmail.com <mailto:davant1958 at gmail.com>  or (773) 991-8050. Her
contact information is also on our webpage underneath the chapter section at
nfbofillinois.org. 

 

III.                Presidential Release

 

IV.                State Report: Marilyn Green, State President

 

Deadline to register for convention to vote and win prizes has expired but
you can still go online and register or if needed reach out to Marilyn Green
or other leaders in the affiliate. The next state board meeting will be held
on Thursday, June 17th at 7pm and she believes she has sent out Zoom
information but she will send tomorrow along with the Agenda. The board
meeting is an excellent opportunity to find out what we are doing at the
state level, about our programs, different legislative priorities, etc. It
will be held on the exact same line with the same ID and Passcode as this
current meeting.

 

State Convention is coming up on Friday, October 22 at 4pm.-Sunday, October
24th at noon. We begin with resolutions and then Friday night student event.

Saturday is general and break out session as well as a student luncheon and
awards presentation Saturday night we have our banquet, announce the
scholarship finalists, and present awards. Sunday will be the business
meetings, chapter report, and will have someone from the NABS division and a
national representative from the national office who will be present. On
Sunday we will also have Braille is Beautiful. If you have any program
items, break-out sessions, convention theme items please email to Marilyn,
it is not too early as it is now June. Email Marilyn Green at
president at nfb@illinois.org <mailto:president at nfb@illinois.org>  or call/text
her at (312) 343-8396.

 

Marilyn also mentioned that our Bell Program is again an in-home edition so
if you know any blind students, our Bell coordinator is Debbie Stein,
dkent5817 at att.net <mailto:dkent5817 at att.net> , please reach out for more
information. 

 

Denise noted that there are now 86 co-sponsors, 12 from the state of
Illinois including Senator Duckworth for 212 and we are looking to add
hopefully soon Rep. Bill Foster and Rep. Cherri Bustos. We will also work
with Senator Durbin. We are still waiting for Rep. Danny K. Davis and have
not yet been able to get in touch with Rep. Mary Miller. 

 

The NFBI COVID Financial relief program is still open, the first round of
applications has been received but second rounds are now welcome. If you or
someone you know who is blind has faced undue hardship due to COVID 19
please go online to www.nfbofillinois.org <http://www.nfbofillinois.org>
where there is a tab for COVID relief where you can find an application in
an accessible format. Please do not save it as a different type, it needs to
be kept in the same format to continue to be accessible. If someone needs
help in applying you can speak to Marilyn Green (312) 843-8396. Application
can be submitted to president at nfbofillinois.org
<mailto:president at nfbofillinois.org> . 

 

V.                  Chicago Chapter News

Minutes have been sent out for the May 2021 and a motion was requested to
approve the minutes. Motion was made to approve.

Dave pointed out Kira spelled Schmidt incorrectly and Denise noted that she
will correct it. Minutes were then approved.

 

Denise asked Steve to present on the status of finances. 

Steve Hastalis, Treasurer, noted that in the bank we currently have $3,117
and expect to have a check from NFB of IL for read-a-thon contributions in
the amount of $695. We are therefore on the way to $4,000 and Denise will
report on additional expenditures coming up. 

 

Denise noted that the board met this morning and stated that $150 will be
given to tenBroek, $150 to Jernigan, and $300 to the White Cane fund for a
total of $600. Motion was requested that the entire chapter approve these
contributions to national funds. Eileen moved, Dave raised his hand and
seconded, and the motion was approved. Denise noted that she will take care
of making the donations happen.

 

Denise then announced some good news, that the board voted to approve in
person hybrid meetings at Exchequer for our Chapter meetings beginning in
August 2021. She called for a motion for the chapter to pass, Mary moved,
Michal seconded, and the motion was approved. Therefore the next Chapter
meeting will take place on the Second Saturday in August on zoom and in
person at the Exchequer Pub, 226 E. Wabash, Chicago, IL.

 

Denise then asked Dave to discuss fundraising and he note that we are
looking into the idea of Beggar's Pizza fundraiser in the fall. The phone
number to reach them has been discontinued so an in person visit to arrange
may be needed. The board approved the fundraiser if we can arrange the
fundraiser. Motion was request, Mary moved, Dave seconded, and the motion
was approved. 

 

New Business was requested, Kira noted that Tuesday, June 15, at 7pm the
Chicago Chapter Legislative Committee will be meeting on zoom at this same
number.

Bill Reif asked if a chapter picnic would be scheduled but due to COVID,
Denise mentioned we hadn't planned on one for this year unless someone wants
to put it together 

 

Denise asked for a motion to adjourn, Patti moved, it was seconded, motion
approved and meeting was adjourned at 2:54pm with a welcome to see all in
person in August. 

 

 

Signed and Submitted by, 

Kira O'Bradovich

Secretary

Chicago Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of Illinois 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Denise Avant, ESQ

1st Vice President

National Federation of the Blind of Illinois

For more information about NFBI,

Go to www.nfbofillinois.org