[Mn-at-large] Fwd: NFB President’s Notebook - week of 08/ 07/2017

Tue Aug 8 02:24:54 UTC 2017

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>President's Notebook
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>National Federation of the Blind
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>Mark A. Riccobono
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><mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>officeofthepresident at nfb.org
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>(410) 659-9314
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>Dear Fellow Federationists,
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>Have a great week!
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>Critical Actions This Week:
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>Fall Affiliate Conventions:
>Each affiliate should be sure that it is 
>promoting its website for upcoming affiliate 
>conventions. We have noticed that a number of 
>affiliates with fall conventions have outdated 
>information—sometimes more than a yearr old. We 
>will not link to convention information on 
>affiliate websites that is not up to date. 
>Please be sure that the affiliate website 
>reflects the most current information for our members and potential members.
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>News:
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>Presidential Release:
>The August Presidential Release is now available 
>on 
><https://nfb.org/images/nfb/audio/podcast/presidential-releases-en/PR463.mp3>our 
>website.
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>Cardtronics Testing:
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>Thank you to those of you who participated in 
>the Cardtronics testing call last week. As a 
>reminder, and to those that weren't able to join 
>the call, affiliates are invited to participate 
>in Cardtronics ATM testing this fall, and each 
>affiliate will have the opportunity to test at 
>least eleven ATMs. In order for your affiliate 
>to participate, by August 15 please send the 
>names, email addresses, phone numbers, and 
>preferred zip codes of your affiliateâ€™s 
>testers to Valerie Yingling 
>(<mailto:vyingling at nfb.org>vyingling at nfb.org). 
>Testers will need to be able to read Braille 
>instructions and should be comfortable using an 
>ATM and completing an online survey. Testers 
>will be asked to confirm that voice guidance 
>software and other accessibility features have 
>been added to specific, assigned Cardtronics 
>ATMs; testers may need to withdraw a minimum 
>amount of money from their accounts to fully 
>assess the transaction. Please contact Valerie 
>Yingling 
>(<mailto:vyingling at nfb.org>vyingling at nfb.org) 
>with any questions about the testing process.
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>Rideshare Testing:
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>The NFBâ€™s rideshare testing program will 
>continue for at least two and a half more years. 
>Please circulate the following message 
>throughout your network and continue to promote the testing among members.
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>Recruiting Feedback from Individuals with 
>Service Animals Who Travel via Lyft or Uber:
>As you travel with your service animal via Lyft 
>or Uber, please make sure to record your 
>experience in the NFBâ€™s rideshare testing 
>online questionnaire: 
><https://nfb.org/rideshare-test>https://nfb.org/rideshare-test. 
>As a part of the NFBâ€™s settlement agreements 
>with Uber and Lyft, the NFB is 
><https://nfb.org/rideshare>conducting testing to 
>assess how successfully both companies are 
>implementing new policies and procedures 
>regarding driversâ€™ obligations to transport 
>riders with service animals. We are seeking 
>feedback regarding positive and negative 
>rideshare experiences; please take time to 
><https://nfb.org/rideshare-test>report your experience.
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>Contributions to the Braille Book Fair:
>Each spring a call goes out for gently used 
>Braille books that might be given away at our 
>Braille Book Fair at national convention. 
>Contributions to the cause are appreciated 
>throughout the year. However, not all titles are 
>likely to be popular, definitions of "gently 
>used" vary, and curating donations is a 
>time-consuming process. If you plan to send us 
>more than a box or two of Braille, please send a 
>list to <mailto:parenting at nfb.org>Melissa 
>Riccobono to let us know what you are willing to 
>donate. We can advise you which titles are worth 
>your effort to box up and ship to the Jernigan 
>Institute for next yearâ€™s Braille Book Fair. 
>Please spread this message to all individuals 
>and organizations that might be considering a large contribution of books.
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>Reminders:
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>Affiliate Pledges:
>Affiliates that made pledges during the honor 
>roll call at our national convention should make 
>plans to fulfill your commitment in the next 
>couple of months. If we do not hear from you, 
>Patti Chang will be following up.
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>Dates to Keep in Mind:
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>Â·        <https://nfb.org/state-conventions>Fall Conventions
>Â·        September 12-17, 2017: 
><http://blindmerchants.org/blast-2017/>BLAST, Nashville, Tennessee
>Â·        November 6-8, 2017: 
><https://nfb.org/dare-be-remarkable-call-presentations>Dare 
>to Be Remarkable Conference, Baltimore, Maryland
>Â·        January 29, 2018: Great Gathering In, 
>Washington, District of Columbia
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>The National Federation of the Blind knows that 
>blindness is not the characteristic that defines 
>you or your future. Every day we raise the 
>expectations of blind people, because low 
>expectations create obstacles between blind 
>people and our dreams. You can live the life you 
>want; blindness is not what holds you back.
>
>Mark A. Riccobono
>President
>200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
>(410) 659-9314 | 
><mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>officeofthepresident at nfb.org
>
>
><https://nfb.org/>
>National Federation of the Blind
>
>
> 
><http://www.facebook.com/nationalfederationoftheblind>
>Facebook
>     <https://twitter.com/NFB_Voice>
>Twitter
>     <https://www.youtube.com/NationsBlind>
>Youtube
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>
>The National Federation of the Blind is a 
>community of members and friends who believe in 
>the hopes and dreams of the nationâ€™s blind. 
>Every day we work together to help blind people live the lives they want.
>
>
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