[IL-Talk] Chicago Chapter Minutes, May 10, 2025, with 1 Correction

[Deborah Kent Stein]

NFBI CHICAGO CHAPTER

May 10, 2025

CALL TO ORDER

NFBI Chicago Chapter President Denise Avant called the meeting to order at
1:02 PM. Persons in attendance on Zoom were Alicia Green, Jean Johnson, Steve Hastalis, Bob Lee, Bob Widman, Chris Millsap, Sabiha Vohra, Crystal Smith, and Dan Tevelde. In person were Michelle Ault, Pam Gillmore, David Meyer, Mary Grunwald, Debbie Stein, Sara Luna, Ericka Randolph, Murthi Conda, Francisco Chang, Patti Chang, Eileen Truschke, Ken Schad, first-timer Darlene Huston, Gary Jones, Paul Shepherdson, Glenn Moore, Jemal Powell, Bruce Paul, Rachel Ng, Ken Borst, Edward Ocampo, Dustin Cather, Melissa Fuller, and Marco Giannotti. 

The meeting began with everyone reciting the NFB pledge. Denise announced that we had a successful Games Day and urged participants to pay the entrance fee if they have not yet done so.

PROGRAM

Murthi Conda spoke about his experiences as a blind chemical engineer at Honeywell. Murthi has been connected with the NFB for several years and said he appreciated the opportunity to speak about his experiences. He said he would like to see more blind people enter the field of engineering.
Engineering is involved in nearly every aspect of our lives. Blind people are naturally good at problem solving, and problem solving is the basis of engineering. Gasoline, plastic, drinking water, and nearly everything else we use in our daily lives derives from chemical processes. When he started to use JAWS he became far more productive. JAWS PictureSmart gives him access to graphics. He can listen to JAWS with one ear and hear his colleagues with the other. He emphasized that no one else can tell us what we can or cannot do. When he met inspiring mentors at his first NFB of Illinois convention it changed his life. 

STATE REPORT

Denise reminded everyone that National Convention will take place in New Orleans July 8-13. Pre-registration closes on May 31. To pre-register, go to nfb.org/convention. Our main hotel is the New Orleans Marriott, and the overflow hotel is the Sheraton across the street. 

Debbie Stein reported that Illinois will host two BELL Academies this summer to strengthen the Braille skills of blind students. Chicago BELL will run from July 21 through August 1. Springfield BELL will run from August 4 through 8. Please contact her if you would like to volunteer. Volunteers need to submit references, undergo criminal background checks, and do Code of Conduct training. Bridget Hickey and Carson Cross will run our Chicago BELL program, and Carson and Abbu Elfaki will run the program in Springfield. We need volunteers for both programs. 

We are also doing a one-day STEM 2U program in Naperville on August 23. To sign up as a volunteer contact Debbie Stein at 773-203-1394. 

NFBI BOARD MEETING AND CONVENTION

Patti Chang said the NFBI Convention will take place in Naperville October 17-19. Our face-to-face board meeting will be held on August 24 at the Naperville Marriott, the day after STEM 2 U.

PRESIDENTIAL RELEASE

NFB President Mark Riccobono recorded Presidential Release 549 on May 30. He urged everyone to pre-register for the NFB National Convention by May 31. It will also be possible to register at convention in person, at a higher cost.
Convention will take place at the New Orleans  Marriott Hotel, with the Sheraton across the street as the overflow hotel. If you can't make it to New Orleans, sign up for our virtual convention on Zoom.

Much of our policy in the Federation begins at the local and state levels.
Members can submit resolutions that direct our national policies.
Resolutions must be submitted to resolutions at nfb.org <mailto:resolutions at nfb.org>  by June 8. At the present moment many of the laws we have relied upon are threatened by changes in national policy.
Through our discussions at the local level we can build toward effective national action. 

This year we launch our Give Twenty-five Campaign to support the work of the NFB. You can donate by calling 410-659-9314, Extension 2430. By giving in increments of $25 members will put their names into a drawing for tickets to Convention 26. The first hundred people who contribute $100 or more will receive a pair of Aftershocks headphones. If you're not at convention in person, they will be sent to you. We have a $25,000 matching grant from an anonymous donor.

SECRETARY's MINUTES

Ken Borst moved and Jemal seconded approval of the secretary's minutes for April 2025. The minutes were approved.

TREASURY

Treasurer Kira O'Bradovitch was not in attendance, so Denise gave a brief summary. She reported that our treasury is in good order. We had a successful Games Day on May 3. We have about $5800 in our treasury, but we are starting to pay our convention donations. We need to keep up our fundraising, as we will have Washington Seminar and several other expenses by the end of the year. Dave Meyer thanked everyone who attended Games Day.
We will have a mini auction at the June meeting. In August we will have a bowling fundraiser, the date yet to be determined. 

OLD BUSINESS

Denise again reminded everyone to pay their $40 for Games Day, by check, cash, or Zell. 

We will caucus at national convention, and have not yet planned any social events.

NEW BUSINESS

Jemal asked whether we will hold a chapter picnic this summer. Denise said we will discuss it at the June meeting. We will not hold a chapter meeting in July.

Denise announced that our meeting space is less than ideal for several reasons. She asked for everyone's patience and understanding. She also urged all of us to be respectful when people ask questions. Check on ILTalk for the announcement of our next chapter board meeting.

ADJOURNMENT

Mary moved and Dustin seconded adjournment. The meeting adjourned at 2:33 PM.

 

Respectfully  submitted,

Debbie Stein, Secretary

 

 



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