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Greetings, fellow federationists,<br>
I apologize for the tardiness of this email.<br>
Before this Summer, I had never heard the term “summer cold.” Not only
have I heard it now, but I have experienced two of them, and this last
came with a pretty substantial fever. If you’re battling a similar
illness, I wish you a speedy recovery.<br>
I’ve highlighted a couple of chapter picnics over the past few
newsletters, but I have to give special props to Dave Andrews and the At
Large Chapter for an incredibly clever idea. Since their chapter meets by
teleconference, this weekend saw them participating in a virtual picnic.
Participants brought recipes for favorite picnic foods to the
teleconference, and they collected those recipes to share with one
another. What a great way to build community even when separated by some
distance!<br>
<br>
<b>Walk for Opportunity<br>
</b>I encourage you to continue reaching out to friends and family to
help raise funds for this year’s walk. The contributions have already
begun coming in, and we’re off to a great start. Here in the Metro area,
door knocking has begun as well, which means are members are out in the
community in force.<br>
If you plan to attend, this is a reminder to contact Jennifer Wenzel with
your lunch order. She can be reached at
<a href="mailto:jwenzel@blindinc.org">jwenzel@blindinc.org</a>.<br>
<br>
<b>Snap, Crackle, and Pop<br>
</b>As part of its back to school program, Rice Krispies Treats is
releasing specially-packaged treats in heart-shaped wrappers that parents
and guardians can write love notes on for their children. They have also
partnered with the National Federation of the Blind and created
heart-shaped Braille stickers and recordable boxes so blind children can
enjoy the program as well. This is a really fun campaign, and I’m excited
that our two organizations are working together to share it with blind
children and their parents.<br>
To learn more, and to order your own stickers and boxes, go to
<a href="https://www.ricekrispies.com/en_US/love-notes.html">
https://www.ricekrispies.com/en_US/love-notes.html</a>.<br>
<br>
<b>Space is Available!<br>
</b>Last week, the John McCain National Defense Authorization Act was
signed into law. It contains language expanding eligibility for the Space
Available program that will allow Vietnam-era veterans who are blind or
have other disabilities to travel on military flights if space is
available. The press release is available at
<a href="https://nfb.org/military-space-available-accommodation-expanded-more-veterans-disabilities">
https://nfb.org/military-space-available-accommodation-expanded-more-veterans-disabilities</a>
.<br>
This legislation passed because of years of emails, phone calls, and
visits to our legislators. Thank you for everything you did to make it
happen. This is yet one more accomplishment we should be extremely proud
of.<br>
<br>
<b>Member Spotlight<br>
</b>This week, we get to know Cody Beardslee, an active federationist who
knows more about the Minnesota Twins than perhaps their entire batting
order combined. If you would like to be featured in an upcoming member
spotlight, please send me a brief bio or a few notes about you, and I’ll
happily publish it.<br>
Cody is a native and lifelong Minnesotan who spent his childhood in and
around the Twin Cities. During the summers, however, he lived with his
grandparents at their cabin in northern Minnesota. In addition to all the
swimming and boating one would normally expect, Cody also spent many
nights listening to Twins games on the radio. I love this mental
picture.<br>
Cody is a graduate of BLIND Inc., a former treasurer of the National
Association of Blind Students, the president of the Minnesota Association
of Blind students, and a member of our state board of directors. When
he’s not doing all that, he attends MCTC where he is working toward a
bachelor’s degree in special education with the eventual goal of becoming
a teacher of blind students, and he teaches cane travel at BLIND
Inc.<br>
In addition to his tireless pursuit of all things Minnesota Twins, Cody
also enjoys watching old TV shows. His favorites, he says, are M*A*S*H,
The Simpsons, and The X-Files.<br>
<br>
<b>Dates to Remember</b>
<ul>
<li>Aug. 25: BLIND Inc. board of directors meeting
<li>Sept. 22: Annual Walk for Opportunity
<li>Oct. 6: State board of directors meeting in Duluth.
<li>Nov. 16-18: Annual convention in St. Cloud
</ul> <br>
Keep smiling,<br>
Ryan<br>
<br>
<br>
Ryan Strunk, President<br>
<a href="mailto:president@nfbmn.org">president@nfbmn.org</a><br>
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/" eudora="autourl">www.nfb.org</a><br>
<a href="http://www.nfbmn.org">www.nfbmn.org</a><br>
(612) 872-9363<br>
Live the life you Want.</blockquote></body>
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