[Nfb-editors] NFBA President's november Monthly Message

Thu Nov 15 16:14:31 UTC 2012

(Here is Bob Kresmer, president NFBA, and his monthly newsletter)

November 4, 2012 

Hello fellow Federationists, 

I have attached the October 2012 NFBA roster in both MS Word format and in
text format.  If your information is not correct, or if you know of new
members who are not on the roster, please call with information! 

* November 6 election day voter hotline

* NFBA affiliate quarterly board meeting by teleconference Saturday,
November 10 at 10:00 a.m. 

* First NFBA At Large chapter meeting by teleconference Sunday, November 18
at 7:00 p.m. 

* November 30 (Visual rehabilitation and technology expo)

* The Arizona Diabetes Action Network holding a holiday raffle

* Social Security reports the changes in the cost of living for the upcoming
year

* Hadley just released a new business module, "Selling on EBay".

* Louisiana Tech University offering scholarships to future teachers of
blind children and adults

* A kernel book selection "Cutting the cake or copping out" by Brooke Sexton

* The Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requires that every polling place have at
least one accessible voting machine available for every federal election so
voters with disabilities can cast a private and independent ballot. To help
ensure that blind and visually impaired voters are not denied this right,
the National Federation of the Blind will host an Election Day hotline that
blind and visually impaired voters, poll workers, and voting rights
advocates can call when problems with accessible voting technology or other
barriers are preventing a blind voter from casting a private and independent
ballot. The hotline will be available on November 6, 2012, by calling

1-877-632-1940 from 7 a.m. EST to 7 p.m. PST. Individuals who have
experience in the operation of accessible voting technology will be manning
the hotline to provide assistance to blind voters, election officials, and
voting rights advocates. 

Following the November 6th elections, the NFB will conduct an online survey
to determine the experience of blind voters. A link to the online survey
will be available from the NFB home page following the election.

Questions about the blind voter hotline or the blind voter survey may be
directed to Lou Ann Blake, HAVA project manager, by e-mail at lblake at nfb.org
or by telephone at 410-659-9314, extension 2221. 

Be sure to make your voice heard by exercising your right to vote!

* Our November 10, 2012 quarterly NFBA board meeting will take place by
teleconference on Saturday the 10th, beginning at 10:00 a.m. and should be
finished by approximately noon.  All are welcome to participate by phone.

You can call in to the conference by phoning (218) 844-3388 and using the
pin number 6322# 

Sorry, refreshments will not be available at this board meeting! 

* We will be holding our first meeting of the newly authorized NFBA At Large
chapter by teleconference on Sunday, November 18 at 7:00 p.m.  We are
seeking to bring in members who live outside of the major metropolitan
centers, and believe this will aid in furthering new chapter development!

If you wish to participate (as a new member or as an experienced member to
share your knowledge) you may call our teleconference number - 

1 218 844-3388 and use the pin number 6322# to enter the conversation.  I
expect our first meeting may take two hours.  

If you know a blind person who lives outside a chapter's geographic area,
you may wish him or her to join into the at large chapter teleconference! 

* The NFBA will be staffing a booth at the annual VRATE expo on Friday,
November 30 at the Shriners Auditorium.  This is a free conference, and you
can obtain all the relevant details by going to 

www.vrate.org 

If you wish to volunteer to staff our table for an hour, pleas call or email
me at 

krezguy at cox.net

1 888 899-6322 

* the diabetes action network is having a holiday dinner raffle starting the
first week in October and the drawing will be at the phoenix chapter
Christmas party so come one come all and buy lot of tickets from the
diabetes members

* From Dick Davis -

Cost of living adjustments for 2013 just came out from Social Security.

There are several things that will affect blind people:

The first is a raise in SSI to $710 a month for an individual and $1,066 for
a married couple.

The second is a raise in Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) for the blind to

$1,740 a month, or $20,880 a year.  That means an individual will be able to
work 40 hours a week at $10 an hour and not lose SSDI benefits.

Since many entry level jobs pay less than that, it is an important incentive
for blind people on SSDI to go to work.

The third is an increase in the SSI Student Earned Income Exclusion amount
to $1,730 a month, or $6,960 per year.  Those earnings are not counted
against a student's SSI.  An individual who is a high school, college, or
voc tech school student can qualify.  This little known exclusion is a
powerful incentive for blind and disabled students to work.

**  Selling on eBay is a good opportunity for someone interested in running
a business. This module introduces students to eBay by identifying how  it
works, how to register, and how to set up a seller account, as well as how
to purchase an item off eBay. It also explains how to set up a  PayPal
account. The module goes on to explore the costs involved with listing and
selling items on eBay.

It also discusses the basics steps for managing sales and listings on eBay,
including the post-sale notifications. The goal is to help students identify
the basic information they need to set up an eBay  seller's account and to
recognize the value of eBay as a tool for starting up and running a
business. Note: This module is recommended for people with strong access
technology skills. Applications like eBay change frequently. This module
provides you with a general overview of the application as it stands at the
time of module activation.

 For more information and to enroll, visit:

http://hadley.edu/ShowCourseDetail.asp?courseid=FCE-250

* FROM DR. EDWARD BELL - EARN A COLLEGE DEGREE 

The Institute on Blindness is looking for individuals who are seeking a
meaningful and rewarding career in the field of blindness! We are offering
scholarships on a limited basis to qualified applicants for the Master of
Arts in Industrial/Organizational Psychology with concentration in
Orientation and Mobility (O&M), the Master of Arts in Teaching Blind
Students (TBS), and the Master of Education in Teaching Blind Students. 

Louisiana Tech University offers the only programs in the country that are
founded with a philosophy of personal empowerment from the perspective of
individuals who are blind.

We invite all qualified individuals who have positive attitudes about
blindness and who would like to teach cane travel or Braille to blind
children or adults to apply for our programs. We are also interested in
speaking with anyone who may want to pursue a career teaching in the field
of blindness in any capacity. The Institute on Blindness does not
discriminate against any applicants and actively recruits people who are
blind, sighted, and of diverse backgrounds.

Contact us today to find out more about earning your Master's Degree!

Professional Development and Research

Institute on Blindness

(318) 257-4554   

ebell at latech.edu

www.pdrib.com

Office: 318.257.4554

Fax: 318.257.2259 (Fax)

Skype: edwardbell2010

ebell at latech.edu

www.latech.edu/instituteonblindness

You can change what it means to be blind!

A member of the University of Louisiana System. An equal opportunity
educator and employer.

** A selection from the Kernel book "Freedom" - 

Cutting the cake or copping out 

Brook Sexton is a young leader in the National Federation of the Blind. With
candor and unflinching self-honesty she shares her journey to belief. Here
is what she has to say:

"What can I do to help?" I asked with the intention to do whatever needed to
be done to set up for the annual teacher appreciation dinner put on by the
youth of my church. I was unprepared for the answer.

"Well, here's a knife. Will you cut the cake?"

Often in these situations I am asked to fill the water pitchers, carry a
loaf of bread to the serving table, or set out the paper plates and napkins.

Or I am told that everything is under control and here's a chair; sit until
dinner starts.

A thousand thoughts rushed through my mind: Who me-the blind lady? Sure, I
can cut a cake, but not here! Wow, this is what I had wanted all my life,
but... You don't ask me to do anything for nine months, and now you want me
to... No, I can't. What if I make a mess of it? What should I do? Why that
task? Can I?... Can I?... 

"No, I really don't think I can do that," I replied. Immediately I was
ashamed and disappointed in myself. Here I was saying no, when I constantly
go around telling everyone that I can do anything a sighted person can do.

But, when put to the test, I crumbled and confirmed their misconceptions
about blind people.

I don't know who eventually cut the cake, but that night I realized I had to
start believing myself those words that I kept telling people. I had to get
out of my comfort zone and participate. After all, I wanted to be treated
like one of the leaders-not one of the kids.

So, six months later when the same lady asked me to take the lead in making
reindeer for a service project I said yes. I had to gather the materials,
demonstrate how to fold the washcloth around the bar of soap, explain how to
make the antlers, and where to glue the eyes and nose onto the completed
reindeer. This was just as intimidating as cutting that cake, because I had
never used a hot glue gun before, let alone in front of ten eager teenage
girls. I debated whether or not I should get out of this project by being
sick the night of the activity or asking someone else to teach the girls how
to make the project. But at the same time, that cake still plagued me.

A couple of days before the event, I found myself sitting on the kitchen
floor making reindeer. Throughout the evening, I had an ongoing debate with
myself about the reasons I was not going to flake out of this
responsibility. As I successfully made the project in the privacy of my
home, the negative, poor helpless blind person lost the debate, and I knew I
would follow through with the assignment.

Not surprisingly, the activity was a success. The girls understood the steps
(which were not difficult at all), and everyone socialized as we made 100
reindeer. We giggled and told stories about past Christmases; we had a great
time. No one knew that part of the reason I was so happy was that I had
finally stepped out of that comfort zone.

When my sister Amber got married, it was my responsibility to help clean up
after the wedding. Those helping with the cleanup were members of my church
and have known me all of my life. They knew me when I didn't use a cane,
when I let people sit me in a chair instead of helping with chores or
projects, and they knew me when I didn't believe in myself. I had not been
around those people since I was young, and I wanted them to learn that blind
people could compete. Therefore, instead of asking timidly, "What can I do
to help?" I asked, "What needs to be done?" Among the many things, we needed
to vacuum the hall where the reception had been held.

Though I asked where to find the vacuum and set out to accomplish this task,
I wasn't sure where to begin. Again, this was not a difficult task, yet I
felt some trepidation. However, the difference was that I did not let this
fear overpower me. I didn't allow the negative, poor, helpless blind person
to participate in the debate. I vacuumed that room and realized my comfort
zone was expanding.

Whether it is a cake to cut, a project to demonstrate, or a hall to vacuum I
have learned that it is not enough just to say I can do something or even to
believe I can do it. It's essential that I demonstrate through my actions-to
myself as well as to others-that I can compete with my sighted peers. 

I have learned that the little things that occur each day can build or
destroy my own confidence. And the little things that we do each day
slowly-but surely-change society's perceptions of the capabilities of blind
people.

If you have news to share, please send it to me so we can share it, 

Bob Kresmer, president NFBA

Toll free 1 888 899-6322 

Robert Leslie Newman

Personal Website-

Adjustment To Blindness And Visual impairment

http//www.thoughtprovoker.info

NFB Writers' Division, president

http://www.nfb-writers-division.net 

Chair of the NFB Communications Committee   