[nabs-l] Thank you, NABS

Sun Jun 29 21:46:22 UTC 2014

Hi Darian and all,

I just want to take a moment to publicly recognize Darian for his
service to NABS over the past five years. Before Darian was elected to
the NABS board in 2009 I had only met him once when he came to speak
to my local chapter about Americorps. I thought he was a nice guy, but
had no idea what to expect from him in terms of leadership ability or
productivity. I was very pleasantly surprised and impressed with
Darian's performance on the board. Darian offered to chair the
membership committee, a position I had held before I became president.
Membership chair can often be a grueling and thankless job, especially
when the membership chair organizes conference calls that are poorly
attended as many of mine were. I recall some poorly attended
membership calls early on, and we would tease Darian about sending out
"desperation emails" to the NABS list begging people to join calls
that were already in progress. However, Darian and his committee
worked tirelessly to publicize the calls and find topics that
interested the membership, and attendance increased greatly. I also
recall watching Darian capably work with my old student division in
Arizona to guide it through a leadership change in 2010. Darian was
always very dependable and I could count on him for his loyalty and
tireless dedication to the projects under his wing. As some of you
know, I am introverted, and crowded social events are not where I
shine. Darian and his fellow committee members were always more than
happy to head up these events on my behalf. Finally, Darian took the
lead, along with Mary Fernandez and others, to organize the NABS
mentoring program at convention--a project that, frankly, intimidated
me with its complexity.
I cannot comment as much on Darian's contributions to NABS after 2011,
but I think it is apparent that Darian's work has made the division
tangibly stronger than it was before. We will miss your leadership in
NABS but we wish you all the best in your other pursuits both in and
outside the Federation.

Warmly,
Arielle

On 6/29/14, Darian Smith via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Dear Nabs,
>   I feel like I’ve started off quite a few e-mails addressed in some similar
> yet creative fashion to this list and the various folks who have subscribed
> to it.
>  In 2009 I joined the National Association of Blind Students Boar of
> directors as a board member. to some I was a relative unknown, and really I
> couldn’t blame them for thinking so.
>    in Truth I had come to find out about the Federation via word of mouth
> (isn’t it always how it starts?) I didn’t think much of it at the time until
> I attended the summer youth program at the Colorado Center for the blind in
> 2001.
>  That convention started to get me to re-think what i thought I knew about
> blindness, but it wasn’t until  Graduating the Independence Training Program
> in 2004 that I felt like I was equipped  with the tools, but more so the
> confidence to take on what challenges i might have desired to  face.
>  My involvement in the   Federation tapered off  once I got home. I didn’t
> have the support system of the Federation I enjoyed in Denver, but what i
> eventually found was friends who connected with me personally and   invited
> me to become a part of my local chapter and student division.
>   One  particular federationest;my  affiliate first-vice president  took me
> under his wing in the spring of 2008 and told me that I had the ability and
> the opportunity to help build the movement. He saw that I was invited to the
> state leadership seminar in the fall, and though I was set to start my
> AmeriCorps  service term  he encouraged me to stay involved  as soon as I
> came back.  in 2009, at the national Convention I was approached by a mentor
> and past-board member of NABS who encouraged me to run for a board position.
> That year I was Honored and humbled by the membership to be  elected as a
> board member. From that moment, I worked collaboratively and
> enthusiastically, cared deeply,    supported passionately and stayed devoted
> to our membership, our federation, and my fellow board members. i felt that
> this was the way that i could show   each person over the years that
> believed in me that I truly appreciated   them.
>  Karen  was one of the first people to make me  feel welcome, while  Arielle
> was the first to ease some of my  nerves and concerns about joining a board
> of people I didn’t know.  She came to believe in me, and i hope I  did well
> in  rewarding that belief.
>  Sean and  i worked on drafting the first (and only) constitutional
> amendment under Arielle’s administration which had to do with the number of
> officers elected at one time. it was the first time I had worked on anything
> like that, and i am still grateful to Sean for allowing me the chance to
> work with him.
>  I’ve had the opportunity to work with  many wonderful folks on the board
> such as Cindy Bennett, Bre Brown,Gabe Cazares, Justin Salisbury, Janice
> Jang, Nijat Worley, Dominic Lawless, Meghan Whalen, Briley O’conner (Pollard
> at the time), Cody Bair, Candice Chapmen,Isaiah Wilcox, (if I’m forgetting
> anyone here I’m  truly sorry).
> I’ve had the  opportunity to serve as  a NABS rep at a few conventions and
> have met many fine folks that I  consider friends, mentors and  family in
> the Federation, and would not  have the same appreciation and love for what
> we do   without their influence.
>  i’ve stuck with one region (southwest region) of state student divisions
> with a great  group of leaders and even still a great group of people.
> These are folks  that have done great work for our movement, and I know will
> continue to do so no matter where they land and what they do.
>  I’ve had occasion to work with Many National Leaders  in many a capacity
> who have been great role models, of what leadership is and what the
> federation is all about, and I am  appreciative to say that i enjoy good
> working relationships with all of them  and good personal relationships with
> many of them.
>  Sean might say  that I’ve been the man about membership , Arielle might
> simply say that I’ve chaired our membership committee. That committee has
> been an absolute joy to work with, but what has made it so is the fantastic
> cast of folks who have served on it , most of them having gone on to serve
> on the NABS board. Antonio, Liz,Bre, Candice, Janice, Cody, Cindy, and a
> cast that might fill out a world cup roster are where the kudos should go to
> for making that committee happen.
>  I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Mary Fernandez   and  the great  work
> she’s done with regards to the mentoring program that has typically fallen
> under membership .
>  Since Arielle asked me to in  2010, I have coordinated convention
> volunteer recruitment. When Sean took over the presidency I continued as the
> volunteer “guru” for every year but last year, when Cindy took the task and
> added the Bennett     seal of  excellence.
> Now here I am this year, bugging you guys again.
>    Normally you might get  the “vote for me”part of the e-mail, but in this
> case I want to thank you all for voting for me over the years.  This means
> so much to  me because it shows that  you believe in me.
>  I’ve reflected upon this a bit and came to realize that for every year I’ve
> been on the board I’ve either ran for a position or ran to keep  the
> position I held.  This speaks powerfully to the confidence you have placed
> in me    over the years, hopefully I did something right by this membership.
> over that time.
>   To   Everything comes a season, as new leaders come along with the
> willingness to step up, others  must step aside.
>
>  But, i am always in forever a member of nabs in my heart  even if one day
> the student status isn’t a part of my identity.
>  NABs has always been a place for students to connect, gain tips, tricks and
> insights. But it’s also a proving ground for leadership. I think I’ve done
> the leadership thing as well as I can, and now I think it’s time for my role
> within NABS to  evolve, as well as my role  in the Larger movement.
>  for one thing, the formation of the community service division of the NFB
> is something I’ve been working hard on, and I hope that this is yet another
> lace where all of you, my friends and family within NABs can find a space
> just for you.
>  I plan to be of assistance to NABS in whatever Capacity I might be asked
> to serve, and I hope that the community service division finds a few ways to
> connect with NABS.
>  So, thank you for giving me a place to be, a way to learn, an opportunity
> to give  and reasons to challenge myself. Thank you to those I’ve worked
> with and worked for. Thanks to you I’ve found a home in the federation, and
> all I can do is work to be sure that we all find the moment where we find
> the Federation as our home.
>   So..  with that said;  let’s go to Orlando! Let’s love each other in the
> Federation  and live the lives we want!
>  Gratefully yours in the movement,
>  Darian Smith
>
>
>
>
>
> Darian Smith
> 2nd Vice President, National Association of Blind Students
> (415) 215-9809
> dsmithnfb at gmail.com.
> twitter: @goldengateace
>
> www.nabslink.org
> Follow the National Association of Blind Students on twitter: @nabslink.
> “ A good Head and a good heart are always a formidable combination”
>  - Nelson Mandela.
>>
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