[il-talk] Hawk Talk April

[J Rauschenbach]

HAWK TALK

The monthly newsletter of the Blackhawk Chapter,
National Federation of the Blind of Illinois

April 3, 2013

Editor: Jean Rauschenbach

Contact info:
Lois Montgomery, President
3527 - 12th Avenue
Moline, IL 61265
(309)236-1675
Lmm3527 at aol.com


It's April and spring has sprung!  I hope you're enjoying
the warmer weather that we have been having.  Don't forget
to come to our next chapter meeting on Saturday, April
13th.  Get the date marked on your calendar and make plans
to meet with your Federation family - you'll be glad you
did!  We're all looking forward to seeing you there.


THIS MONTH'S MEETING

Our next meeting will be held on Saturday, April 13th, at
1:30 p.m., at the South Moline Township Center located at
637 - 17th Avenue in East Moline.  Our program will focus
on orientation and mobility. We will discuss how one gains
his/her independence through the use of the long white
cane or the guide dog.  After the meeting, those
interested are invited to participate in a short walk to a
nearby restaurant to practice his/her mobility skills.


LAST MONTH IN REVIEW
Twenty persons were in attendance to view the products
available through Magnified Vision.  Andreas Heim
demonstrated magnifiers (hand-held and stationary) as well
as a reader.  Chapter members were given the opportunity
for "hands on" use with each item.


MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Hello to all!  Is the warm weather finally here?  Let's
enjoy it!  With warm weather comes social events for the
Blackhawk Chapter.  Included in these are traveling "The
Loop", attending a musical at the Music Guild, and a swim
party during the summer months.  More info to come soon!

Good news!  Added to the list of restaurants with braille
menus is The Windmill in East Moline.  For your dining
pleasure check it out, compliments of the Blackhawk
Chapter!  If you frequent a restaurant and would like to
have the menu in braille, ask if that facility would be
interested in braille copies.  If so, pass along the print
copy to me and you will soon find a braille copy at your
fingertips!  Happy dining!


I will be picking up the pledge forms to begin our biggest
fund raiser of the year (Birdies for Charity) on Tuesday,
April 9th.  Help out the chapter by participating.  You
just might win the grand prize!

On Thursday, April 18th, I have been invited to an
advocacy training seminar to be held in Davenport.  As
part of the seminar, there will be a panel discussion on
which I have been asked to serve.

Although we've met twice, we continue to seek youth for
Stepping Out, a local program for junior and senior high
students.  A flyer has been completed - would you help
distribute it throughout the QC area?  If interested in
mentoring or helping in any way, please contact me.

On Thursday, May 2nd, the chapter will participate in the
2013 Senior & Low Vision Expo.  This event will take place
at the I Wireless Center located at 1201 River Drive in
Moline from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.  Volunteers are needed
to man the booth throughout the day.  If interested,
please contact me.

May 10th & 11th is the date for the Parent Teacher Seminar
to be held at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chicago
O'Hare in Rosemont, IL.  This is a great opportunity for
parents of blind children to meet and interact with
others.  For more info contact Pat Olson at 309-593-2692
or moonriver2682 at live.com.


The 2013 National NFB Convention is fast approaching!
Make plans now to attend.  It will be held July 1st - 6th
at the Rosen Center Hotel at 9840 International Drive  in
Orlando.  Reservations may be made by calling
1-800-204-7234.  The room rates are $79/night singles,
doubles, and twins; $85/ night triples and quads plus tax.
There is no charge for children under 17 with accompanying
parent as long as no additional bed is required.  If you
are planning to attend, you may want to preregister and
save!  Preregistration is available through May 31st.  The
fee to preregister online is $25, compared to $30 on-site.
Banquet tickets can be purchased online for $50, and will
be $60 on-site.  To preregister online, visit
www.nfb.org/registration.  To mail in your
preregistration, download the PDF version of the form and
mail it no later than May 31st to National Federation of
the Blind, Attn: Convention Registration, 200 East Wells
Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD 21230.
Conventions change people's lives.

The Illinois Affiliate continues to gain momentum in
preparation for the 2013 BELL (Braille Enrichment and
Literacy for Learning) program.  This is a day program
where the primary focus is on Braille. It includes
components of travel, adjustment to blindness and
fostering independence.  This program will run two weeks
from July 29th - August 9th at The Chicago Lighthouse.  It
is aimed for grades 3rd through 9th.

Mark your calendar now for the NFBI state convention to be
held October 25th - 27th at the Park Hotel and Conference
Center in Bloomington.  Room rates are $99/night plus tax
which includes continental breakfast buffet.

We, as a chapter, must work together to accomplish our
goals. There's plenty for each and every one of us to do,
regardless of your interests or skills.  Help with making
reminder calls, transportation, or whatever you see that
needs attention; a few minutes of your time will go far
and would be greatly appreciated.


I look forward to working with you. Any concerns,
comments, and/or suggestions are welcome.


PEOPLE REPORT
Alma Sowers is recuperating from a recent fall at home.


BIRTHDAY CORNER
The following celebrate birthdays in April:
		  1	George Sowers


FUND RAISING
Have you purchased your 50/50 raffle ticket yet?  If not,
be sure to see Lois Montgomery for your chance to win the
pot!  $1 each or 6/$5.  The drawing will be held at the
May meeting.  Good luck!

IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN!  BIRDIES FOR CHARITY IS BACK!

Chip in for your chance to win!
Once again, the Blackhawk Chapter will participate in this
great fund raiser. Our chapter will receive every penny of
pledged donations we collect from this fund raiser -- plus
a bonus (5%) from the Birdies for Charity Fund.

HOW IT WORKS
Make a one-time flat donation, or pledge one cent or more
per birdie.  After the tournament (July 8 - 14), you'll be
mailed an invoice of your pledge amount due.


AND . . .
Guess the number of birdies made by the Tour Pros during
the tournament for your chance to win the grand prize, a
2013 Chevy Equinox!  Other contest prizes will be awarded
as well!
 
SO . . . BE A BIRD . . . CHIP IN TO WIN!
 "Birdies" forms will be available at the chapter meeting.
Those wanting additional forms to give to friends should
contact Lois Montgomery at 309-236-1675. Please talk to
your family, friends, and neighbors about "Chipping in for
your Charity!"  This is our biggest fundraiser of the
year.  Remember to fill out a pledge for yourself, too!

AND . . .
There will be a prize given to the person who collects the
highest number of pledges, and another one to the person
who collects pledges with the highest $value. 


UPCOMING EVENTS
May 2nd - Senior & Low Vision Expo at the I Wireless
Center in Moline

May 10th & 11th - Parent Teacher Seminar at the Holiday
Inn Express & Suites in Chicago

May 11th - Next chapter meeting at Bennigan's in Rock
Island

July 1st - 6th - NFB National Convention in Orlando

July 29th - August 9th - BELL program at The Chicago
Lighthouse

October 25th - 27th - NFBI State Convention at the Park
Hotel and Conference Center in Bloomington


TECH TALK
About Multitasking

The term "multitasking" has crept into our language, a
word that came out of the world of computers.  In general,
it means doing several things at the same time.  For
example, washing dishes while listening to an audio book.
Or how about talking to someone on your cell phone while
putting away those washed and dried dishes.  
On the computer, multitasking means the ability to have
various files, folders, or even several applications open
at the same time.  I'm not sure, but I believe this was
introduced by Microsoft when they introduced the Windows
operating system in the mid 90's.  The idea was you didn't
have to shut down what you were working on to start
working on something else.  

For example, suppose you are writing something in a Word
file, then want to check your E-mail.  You don't have to
shut down Word before you open Outlook Express, or
whatever you're using for your E-mail.  In that case, you
would simply open up your E-mail and leave your Word file
open.  In fact, let's say you had that Word file open,
then opened up your E-mail to see what was going on, then
went and opened your Internet to look at a webpage there.
In that case, you could still have the Word file open,
E-mail open, and be looking at that webpage.  


The beauty is you can jump back and forth between all
those, and even copy information from one to another.  The
trick is knowing how to do that with a screen reader and
the keyboard, which is a different process than a sighted
user would use with a mouse.  

It's simple.  Hold down the alt key, then hit the tab key.
As you repeatedly hit the tab key, each of your
applications will become active on your screen, and JAWS
will read what it is.  When you get to the one you want to
work on or read, let up on the alt key and the tab key.
Also remember, you can close down one or any of those open
applications by hitting alt-f4 when it's the active
application.  

If you have questions, contact me.  
Bob Gardner
rgardner4 at gmail.com
309-236-6606


BOOK REVIEW
Got a book you found rather interesting to read?  Why not
share it with others?  Contact Lois Montgomery or Jean
Rauschenbach with a short overview.

The Help
by Kathryn Stockett 


Historical FictionBestsellersJackson, Mississippi;
1962-1964. College grad and fledgling writer Eugenia
"Skeeter" Phelan searches for a book-worthy project. At
the urging of an editor, Skeeter interviews African
American maids Aibileen and Minny about their
relationships with their employers. Violating integration
laws, the three women question their lives. Some strong
language. Bestseller. 2009.  - BARD annotation


RECIPE CORNER
Help!  We need your favorite recipe to share with other
chapter members.  Bring it to a chapter meeting, email it
to Jean Rauschenbach at rauschjc at gmail.com or send it by
snail mail to 3527 - 12th Avenue, Moline, IL 61265.
Thanks!  We can't wait to test our taste buds!

This month's recipe comes from Lois' friend, Jane
Casanova.    It sounds delicious, quick and easy!

ANGEL HAIR PASTA SALAD

Ingredients:
1 lb. angel hair pasta
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons lemon seasoned salt
1 ½ tablespoons Accent

1.	Cook pasta for 6 minutes, then drain.
2.	Mix oil, juice, salt, and Accent well.
3.	Pour over cooked pasta.
4.	Refrigerate overnight in airtight container.  Do
not stir.
5.	The next day combine
1 green pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped
1 small can sliced black olives
1 cup Hellman's (small jar)
6.	Mix with pasta and serve.

Enjoy!


MEMBERSHIP PROFILE
LOIS MONTGOMERY

Lois is definitely not new to the NFB - she's been around
for quite some time and is deeply involved in its
philosophy.  She has served at both chapter and state
level.  She and husband, Russ, are charter members of the
Blackhawk Chapter; in fact, they were an important factor
to its inception and have been active since.  "It's (the
NFB) in my blood and a part of who I am today."

Born with congenital glaucoma, Lois can relate to others
when they approach her to ask questions about blindness.
"I know nothing else . . . I've always had poor vision and
didn't accept my blindness until I joined the NFB in my
late 30's."

Lois has served as chapter president, vice president, and
treasurer. Once again she is serving as chapter president.
At the state level she has held the position of board
member, first vice president, and president.


Lois is kept busy serving on multiple committees, some of
which include advocacy, braille literacy, legislation,
Newsline, and renewal.  "Advocacy and braille literacy are
extremely important to me . . . There was a time in my
life when I was unable to read print and didn't know
Braille . . .   I'll do whatever I can to prevent this
from happening to others."

Lois is a die-hard Midwesterner.  She has lived in this
area all her life.  Reared and educated in Orion, she
attended public schools with ". . . absolutely no
assistive technology, no braille, no NOTHING! . . . " Upon
graduation from high school she attended Black Hawk
College where she received an associate's degree in
psychology, again receiving no accommodations.  She later
returned to Black Hawk where she received a certificate in
medical transcription.  It was at this time she received
accommodations such as JAWS, magnification, and her
textbooks on tape.  "This is when I returned as a blind
student, not trying to hide my blindness. . . What a
difference it made!  I was accepted as just another
student . . . I enjoyed this time in school much more than
in my earlier days. . . " She was inducted into Phi Theta
Kappa in March 1998.

Lois has worked as a medical transcriptionist, community
advocate, and contract management specialist.  In 2008 she
was nominated and inducted into Who's Who of Professional
Women in America.  Currently she serves as a braille
instructor for a visually impaired student at a local high
school.  She is well-known throughout the Quad-City area
through her advocacy on blindness at schools and other
local organizations.


When time allows she enjoys Nascar, reading, swimming,
walks along the river, advocacy work, and traveling.  "I
really enjoy helping other blind individuals gain
independence.  Braille literacy and advocacy are my
passion.  I want to see each blind individual, whether it
be child or adult, reach his/her highest potential.  If I
help just one person, I feel I have made a contribution to
society."

Travels have taken Lois to Canada, Mexico, and Hawaii as
well as many of the 48 continental states.  She has
attended multiple Washington Seminars and national NFB
conventions as well as state conventions.  

Lois uses the long white cane and Braille on a daily basis
.  Other adaptive technology includes the Pac Mate, JAWS,
Magic, Kurzweil reader, Duxbury and braille embosser,
CCTV, Victor Stream, and audio books.  "I just LOVE
Newsline! . . . And Braille, it opened a whole new world
for me!  There was a time when I couldn't see print and I
didn't know Braille.  When given the opportunity, I ran
with it!"

When asked what advice she would pass along to other blind
individuals, her response came quickly:  "Take advantage
of each opportunity presented to you.  Don't be
embarrassed of your blindness like I was and try to hide
it.  Be proud of who you are.  We, as blind individuals,
can be just as productive as our sighted peers in today's
society.  Take one day at a time and focus on the positive
. . . "



Print edition of this newsletter compliments of
Van Hoe Funeral Home, Ltd.
1500 - 6th Street
East Moline, IL 61244
(309)755-1414


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