[MN-at-Large] Summer Update

Mon Aug 1 23:35:34 UTC 2022

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>Hi Everyone,
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>
>It seems impossible that it could already be 
>August 1. July was certainly a busy month, 
>especially because of our national convention. 
>Over 100 of us attended in person or virtually. 
>An event like a national convention can't happen 
>without help from a lot of different people. 
>Thank you to those of you who helped in many 
>different ways. More about this will be in the 
>next issue of our Minnesota Bulletin, so please 
>look for that when it is published. For now, 
>thanks to many of you who went well beyond the 
>call of duty to make the national convention a 
>success.  Your efforts are truly appreciated.
>
>
>
>So, with the convention behind us, what's next? Please read on.
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>Minnesota Bulletin
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>Please note that the deadline to submit articles 
>for the next Minnesota Bulletin is today. Get 
>that article you are working on finished up and 
>send it to Jennifer Dunnam 
><mailto:jennifer.dunnam1829 at gmail.com>jennifer.dunnam1829 at gmail.com 
>who is one of our hard working Minnesota 
>Bulletin editorial team.  If you have not had a 
>chance to read the most recent issue, be sure to 
>check it out.  There are some very interesting 
>articles about blind parents as told both by 
>parents and their kids. You can also read the 
>winning entry in the Metro Chapter Essay Contest 
>by Matt Langland which is both enlightening and 
>moving. If you have not received your copy yet, 
>you can read it at 
><https://nfbmn.org/minnesota-bulletin/spring-2022>Minnesota 
>Bulletin Spring 2022
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>Important Changes of Dates
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>Please note that a couple of activities have 
>been moved on our calendar. First, the Chapter 
>Leadership Check-in meeting has been moved from 
>tonight, August 1, to next Monday, August 8. In 
>addition, this month's meeting of the State 
>Rehabilitation Council – Blind meeting that was 
>scheduled for this Thursday, August 4 has been moved to August 11.
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>Next State Board Meeting
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>The next state meeting of the Board of Directors 
>is scheduled for August 10. Those who can come 
>together in person will meet at our building, 
>but there will be a virtual component as well. 
>There will be more details to follow.
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>
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>Walk for Opportunity
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>Please save the date, Saturday, September 10, 
>for our annual Walk for Opportunity. This is our 
>largest state fundraiser thanks to your efforts. 
>More details will follow, but it is not too 
>early to start collecting pledges and mentioning this event on social media.
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>What's Happening with Legislation
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>We are continuing to prepare for our legislative 
>efforts next year. There are a number of Child 
>Protection Legislative Task Force meetings that 
>are open to the public. Some of our Legislative 
>and Policy Committee will be attending some of 
>these meetings to learn how some proposed 
>changes might aid our efforts to add more protection for blind parents.
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>Remember to Vote
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>The primary election is coming on August 9. As 
>you may have read from my earlier message on 
>this topic, you might still be able to request 
>an accessible absentee ballot but you need to do 
>that right away. In addition, you can go to 
>certain locations and use an accessible voting 
>machines during certain hours between now and 
>the primary. A number of counties, including 
>Hennepin County, are now using a new accessible 
>voting machine called the Democracy Live 
>OmniBallot Tablet. Some of us used this machine 
>last fall. If you used the AutoMark before, you 
>will probably have no problems using this new 
>machine, but it does work a little differently. 
>For one thing, an election judge has to initiate 
>the process for each voter. Please watch for 
>continuing updates on accessible election voting 
>procedures, and report to us any problems you encounter.
>
>
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>National Convention Highlights Available
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>
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>Highlights of our national convention are 
>already available on our convention page at 
><http://www.nfb.org/convention>http://www.nfb.org/convention. 
>If you move down the page past the convention 
>date and location announcement, you will find 
>the Presidential Report, the banquet address, 
>resolutions, and a Youtube play list of general sessions.
>
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>Hosting a live Presidential Release
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>At the Open Board Meeting at our national 
>convention, it was announced that affiliates or 
>chapters can host the October Presidential 
>Release. Here is the announcement from President Riccobono.
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>
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>By chapter, affiliate, or even region, we are 
>asking you to submit a brief proposal to have 
>the October Presidential Release LIVE in your 
>area. We will come to you! Please email 
><mailto:membership at nfb.org>membership at nfb.org 
>your pitch on what the release setup would be 
>and any details that would help us determine 
>that your chapter is the right host for this 
>opportunity. Why should we come to you? Be 
>creative and share stories on how it will help 
>your chapter build the Federation. Ideally the 
>release would take place on September 30, 
>October 1, or October 2, 2022. Deadline to 
>submit your proposal is Sunday, August 28, and 
>we will announce the accepted proposal on the September release.
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>July Braille Monitor
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>The July Braille Monitor is available now. Read 
>about the coverage on the “We’re With U!” 
>concert, discussion on chapter chatter, stories 
>from members, and more. You can find it at 
><https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/bm/bm22/bm2207/bm2207tc.htm>Access 
>the Braille 
>Monitor<https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/bm/bm22/bm2207/bm2207tc.htm> 
>now.
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>Thank you for Donating
>
>
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>With the help of Netflix, we succeeded in 
>reaching our national goal of $50,000 in 
>donations which were then matched by HumanWare. 
>Part of that accomplishment was due to our 
>efforts here in Minnesota where your donation 
>was actually tripled because our state affiliate 
>also matched your donation. Our treasurer, 
>Jennifer Dunnam, posted our state matching 
>results here some time ago. Thank you for your efforts.
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>Dates to Keep in Mind
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>    * August 2, 7:00 PM – Next Presidential Release (Not August 1)
>    * August 6 – Metro Chapter Picnic
>    * August 8 7:00 PM – Chapter Leadership Check-in Meeting
>    * August 9 – Minnesota Primary Elections
>    * August 10 6:00 PM – State Board of Directors Meeting
>    * August 11 5:30 PM – State Rehabilitation 
> Council for the Blind Meeting, with those who 
> can attend in person meeting at 2200 University West
>    * August 11 7:00 PM – RiverBend Chapter Meeting
>    * August 20 10:00 AM – Virtual Metro Chapter Meeting
>    * August 21 – At Large Chapter Meeting
>    * September 10 – Walk for Opportunity
>    * September 23 – begin voting early or by mail for general election
>    * November 4-6 – NFB of Minnesota State Convention
>
>·         November 8 – General Election
>
>
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>Best regards,
>
>
>
>Steve Jacobson, President
>
>National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota
>
><http://www.nfbmn.org/>www.nfbmn.org
>
>(612) 872-9363
>
>www.nfb.org
>
>Live the life you Want.
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