<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto">Hi Barbara and Aniko. Barbara, you raise a valid concern. No one should be left out due to a disability. I have a suggestion. I know that sign language interpreters can be very expensive, however, maybe we could check with. USF or other schools to see if we could get a volunteer student who needs hours or is doing a project who would be willing to help sign for eniko and others who may need it. What does everyone think? Just a thought.<br id="lineBreakAtBeginningOfSignature"><div dir="ltr"><div><span style="font-size: 13pt;">Sherri</span></div><div><br></div><div>Sent from my iPhone</div><div><br></div><div>slbrun4@gmail.com</div></div><div dir="ltr"><br><blockquote type="cite">On May 20, 2025, at 1:38\u202fPM, Ineko Gary via NFBF-Tampa <nfbf-tampa@nfbnet.org> wrote:<br><br></blockquote></div><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr">\ufeff<span>I am part of the NFB DEF LINE Division. And they always reach out to all the=</span><br><span> deaf blind members to see what kind of access we need.</span><br><span></span><br><span>I always tell them I need the sign language because my friend comes over at a=</span><br><span> certain time to do textile sign language. Meaning that handover hand.</span><br><span></span><br><span>She watches the interpreter on the screen, and then she will sign the meetin=</span><br><span>g in my hand.</span><br><span></span><br><span>That=E2=80=99s how I also do when I have doctors appointment all the interpr=</span><br><span>eters. I have no tactile, sign language handover hand. I will put my hand ov=</span><br><span>er my interpreter=E2=80=99s hand and they would sign normally. And then when=</span><br><span> it=E2=80=99s my turn to talk, I will just sign and interpreter will watch a=</span><br><span>nd tell the doctors what I=E2=80=99m saying.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Yes, there are a few reasons I stopped going. Certain members would always t=</span><br><span>ell others how much I can. I can=E2=80=99t see which is not their business. T=</span><br><span>hey don=E2=80=99t know me and my loss of vision. Because they=E2=80=99re not=</span><br><span> my doctors</span><br><span></span><br><span>And that I am also deaf in both ears, and with hearing aids, turned up to th=</span><br><span>e max I can pick up just a few words and so that=E2=80=99s how I knew when p=</span><br><span>eople would say to other people or wear a certain person would say to the on=</span><br><span>e woman that was on the bus that I could see more than what I=E2=80=99m sayi=</span><br><span>ng, which is unreal</span><br><span></span><br><span>Why I stopped going to meetings and went back to my JW For The DEAF cause th=</span><br><span>ey all do sign language. We have the fully hearing and fully decided that no=</span><br><span> sign language. We have the deaf and severely hard of hearing no sign langua=</span><br><span>ge. And I am the only deaf blind in the congregation. And they all enjoy hav=</span><br><span>ing my Guide dog Frisco.</span><br><span></span><br><span>And they do not walk up to me or judge me on what I can=E2=80=99t see. Or my=</span><br><span> hearing and my vision. Because they know that is wrong in Jehovah=E2=80=98s=</span><br><span> eyes.</span><br><span></span><br><span>Also, when I had mentioned about letting HART plus they like it is, we=E2=80=</span><br><span>=99re calling out two hours ahead me and my friend thought it was a good ide=</span><br><span>a. We wasn=E2=80=99t being smart or mean. We was just saying that if you=E2=80=</span><br><span>=99re able to ride the city bus go ahead and cancel two hours ahead of time a=</span><br><span>nd just catch the city bus. We was not being me or smart. Alec whoever told u=</span><br><span>s that yesterday.</span><br><span></span><br><span>I as a deaf blind person who is totally blind and the left eye and losing vi=</span><br><span>sion or lost a hunk of vision. We only have light shadows and the red eye. W=</span><br><span>e noticed a bunch of totally blind men and women rides the city bus. With th=</span><br><span>eir long white canes.</span><br><span></span><br><span>That=E2=80=99s why I only suggested that or no Not being a smart Alec or bei=</span><br><span>ng mean.</span><br><span></span><br><span>So that=E2=80=99s why when Miranda was president I decided to stop coming an=</span><br><span>d go back to the JW for the DEAF.</span><br><span></span><br><span>When I was there, I was just there like what=E2=80=99s going on in a meeting=</span><br><span>. I will purposely record the meeting and then send a recording to my sister=</span><br><span> and then she would text me to let me know what was being said. Or I would d=</span><br><span>o the recording When someone was free. Let them hear it and then they would t=</span><br><span>ext me on what was being said.=20</span><br><span></span><br><span>That took too much time and too long.</span><br><span></span><br><span></span><br><span>Again, I am part of the deaf blind, Division and the president over there se=</span><br><span>nt out a group email on who needs sign language, who needs close caption. An=</span><br><span>d who needs a transcript. I explain to the president, even though I cannot s=</span><br><span>ee the screen and the person signing. Sometimes my friend would come over an=</span><br><span>d tactile the meeting. I told her the president that she just volunteers her=</span><br><span> time to come to my house and copy the interpreters on the screen since she n=</span><br><span>o sign language even though she=E2=80=99s not an interpreter she does know s=</span><br><span>ign language because she=E2=80=99s a coda so she learned through me how to d=</span><br><span>o tactile sign language and she only does it for me.</span><br><span></span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>On May 20, 2025, at 12:45=E2=80=AFPM, Barbara Gaw via NFBF-Tampa <nfbf-tam=</span><br></blockquote><span>pa@nfbnet.org> wrote:</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=EF=BB=BF Good afternoon,</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>I=E2=80=99m sending this email to everyone because I think we should all b=</span><br></blockquote><span>e part of this conversation.</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Ineko, I apologize for not ever, bothering to ask why you had quit coming t=</span><br></blockquote><span>o the meetings. Maybe you told others, or maybe you kept it to yourself. Sti=</span><br><span>ll, I should have reached out to you. I had wondered why we didn=E2=80=99t s=</span><br><span>ee you at the meetings, but I=E2=80=99m sorry I never asked.</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Now I would like to ask the leaders of our NFB chapter if what Ineko=E2=80=</span><br></blockquote><span>=99s friend has told her is true. I am aware that there is a deaf, blind div=</span><br><span>ision as a part of the NFB, but that doesn=E2=80=99t solve the problem of ho=</span><br><span>w we can have people who are deaf, blind attend our meeting and be able to p=</span><br><span>articipate in person. Is it true that we can=E2=80=99t afford an interpreter=</span><br><span> for the two hours that we meet once a month? How can we feel comfortable ha=</span><br><span>ving social outings if we exclude people due to accessibility issues? Has an=</span><br><span>ybody ever bothered to find out how much that would cost?</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>The bottom line to be is, if we say the pledge every week about how we wan=</span><br></blockquote><span>t to advance and raise up our lives to be what we want them to be. How can w=</span><br><span>e exclude other members of our group for lack of accessibility?</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span> If we are truly to be stronger together, then that means everybody.</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Barbara Gaw</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>=20</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>Sent from AOL Mobile Mail</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>_______________________________________________</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>NFBF-Tampa mailing list</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>NFBF-Tampa@nfbnet.org</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-tampa_nfbnet.org</span><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><span>To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NFBF-=</span><br></blockquote><span>Tampa:</span><br><blockquote type="cite"><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-tampa_nfbnet.org/rubiigary%40gmail.=</span><br></blockquote><span>com</span><br><span></span><br><span>_______________________________________________</span><br><span>NFBF-Tampa mailing list</span><br><span>NFBF-Tampa@nfbnet.org</span><br><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbf-tampa_nfbnet.org</span><br><span>To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NFBF-Tampa:</span><br><span>http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbf-tampa_nfbnet.org/slbrun4%40gmail.com</span><br></div></blockquote></body></html>