[Nfb-new-hampshire] nh board

[Ed Meskys]

Perhaps I over-reacted, but I was in a real panic and felt I HAD to do 
something.

For months I had been hearing that the state affiliate was dieing, and 
yesterday's conversation threw me into a real panic. I wanted to shake up 
the members in NH, and get advice from chapter presidents in other states. 
It looked that our affiliate would be gone in May with the state 
"convention." Well, people ARE talking now, tho I do not see any comments 
and suggestions of value from our long-time members in all this.

Marie, as state president, has to appoint a nominating committee, which has 
to phone potential candidates and present a slate at the convention. Our 
elections are always open, and we always call three times for other 
candidates. It is vital that as many people come to our state convention and 
participate in the election as possible.

Everyone can speak at the board meeting Saturday, but only the actual board 
members physically present can vote. At our state convention can vote, as 
long as they are members. To be a voting member of the state affiliate you 
have to be a dues-paying member of a chapter (Monodnock, Student, Lakes 
Region, and North Country) or an at large member. To be an at-large member 
you should pay state dues of $3/year some time between our last state 
convention and this one. (I do not have treasurer Marie Jenkins' address but 
will post it later today.) Chapter and state treasurers ought to prepare 
lists of eligible voters which should be available at the convention in case 
of challenges. Also everyone should register for the convention. I suggest 
that at large members be allowed to pay their state dues at the convention, 
but this requires permission from Marie. What do you think?

I fervently wish that at least some existing board members and other workers 
of long standing would take an interest. I want to see at least some 
continuity in our organization. We have a long and proud history, and I do 
not want to lose it.

And we should have, as previously voted, at least two program, aside from 
internal business, to be an attraction to the general public. I do not know 
what to do to keep people coming to the convention. Three years ago Marie 
and Gil worked very hard to set up a convention with the theme of 
transportation, a vital blindness issue in a rural state. No one, except the 
usual board-meeting attendees, came to the con to join in the conversation. 
Even the state officials Marie and Gil had brought in left immediately after 
their presentations, and did not join in the conversation. I totally 
understand Marie's frustration with getting interest in our organization. 
She puts in terrific work preparing excellent state conventions and nobody 
comes. Last year and this year e are all so discouraged that virtually no 
program has been prepared. I feel we should have two items during the day, 
to show we have not given up. I suggest we have the lady from the state 
Independent Living Council give one of her excellent legislative reports. 
Can anyone suggest one other speaker? It could be on a serious or 
entertaining subject. We must have a convention which is a real one.

>From a flurry of phone calls, I have a feeling there will be some 
controversy in our elections. I want fair elections, with no one railroaded 
thru. Everyone who comes should have an opportunity to vote. When I first 
joined we had two ballot boxes. Voting tokens were handed out for each 
contested vote. Back then they were pieces of cardboard. One was a circle, 
the other a square. If there were three candidates, the third was a 
parallelogram. Two Tellers walked down the rows of seats with separate 
boxes. The first was the actual ballot box, and the second was for the 
return of unused tokens. Eddie Vachon used to keep the boxes and tokens, but 
only one box survives, which Carol Holmes uses as Madam Doorprize. Since I 
am opening my big mouth, I volunteer to prepare ballots and boxes. With 
Marie's permission, I will use two paper or cloth bags as boxes, and hand 
out dines, nickels, and the gold presidential "silver" dollars as ballots. I 
will provide these, and take them back at the end of the election. I am not 
dumping another responsibility on Marie but volunteering to take it on 
myself, with Marie's permission.

We got no useful suggestions from the national chapter presidents list, so I 
am only writing people in NH. Anyhow, we are the ones who must solve our own 
problems.

Please come, discuss, and vote!!

I am sorry about the length of my ramblings, and will leave to later 
postings thoughts about committees.

Ed Meskys