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<div align="center">National Federation of the Blind of Maryland<br><br>
Minute Messages from the Movement <br><br>
Melissa Riccobono, President<br><br>
<a href="mailto:President@nfbmd.org">President@nfbmd.org</a><br><br>
Phone number 410-235-3073<br><br>
<a href="http://www.nfbmd.org/" eudora="autourl">www.nfbmd.org<br><br>
</a>Follow us on Twitter @NFBMD<br><br>
Like us on Facebook<br><br>
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<br><br>
Note from the President<br><br>
<br><br>
If the email Gods will cooperate, I will once again be able to bring you
Minute Messages From the Movement on a regular basis! So sorry for such a
long delay; I still have not figured out exactly why the last message I
wrote did not go through, but I am going to get back on the horse and see
if this one will work. Let’s hope for the best!<br><br>
<div align="center">Messages<br><br>
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· Highlights from the
NFBMD Board Meeting: The Central MD chapter did a fantastic job hosting
the NFBMD board and other affiliate members on April fifth. This was a
wonderful board meeting; we were able to get a lot accomplished. Here are
some highlights.<br>
· Sharon Maneki made the
following announcements at our board meeting: We were very successful in
the Maryland General Assembly this year. We achieved our three
objectives. As you will remember, our first objective was to keep the
$250,000 in the Governor’s budget for the Center of Excellence in
Nonvisual Access to Commerce, Public Information and Education (CENA).
The General Assembly passed HB396/SB446, bills that instruct the Maryland
Department of Disabilities in partnership with the National Federation of
the Blind to conduct a study on how Maryland colleges teach accessibility
concepts in their various computer science and information systems
curricula. The MD General Assembly also passed HB1242/SB419, bills that
will provide consistent funding for LBPH. These bills will be signed by
the governor on either May 5 or May 15. We will let you know which day as
soon as we know. Many thanks to all who wrote letters, sent emails,
attended hearings, made phone calls, and came to Annapolis to visit with
Delegates and Senators. We were successful because of each of you and our
high level of participation. Congratulations to NFBMD on three important
victories that will have long term benefits for blind citizens in
Maryland!<br>
· Sharon also reported on
our progress with our agenda from Washington Seminar: Congressman Van
Hollen is now a cosponsor on HR831, the Fair Wages for Workers with
Disabilities Act, and on HR 3505, the Technology, Education, and
Accessibility in College and Higher Education Act. This came about as a
result of our visit with him during the seminar. Congressman Cummings is
now a cosponsor of HR164, the Equal Access to Air Travel for
Service-Disabled Veterans Act. He is also a cosponsor for HR831.
Congresswoman Donna Edwards became a cosponsor of HR831 after members of
the National Harbor chapter attended a coffee discussion with her in
February. Let’s keep the momentum going! Watch your email for details on
Twitter Tuesday, Call Wednesday, and Email Thursday, which will occur
next week. These days have been set aside for us to concentrate on HR
831, so let’s try to convince our representatives not all ready signed on
to this important legislation to join us!<br>
· Melissa Lomax shared
the following announcement at our board meeting: Share your story and
change a life! NFBMD is currently seeking story submissions from
blind individuals who wish to share successes, obstacles they have
overcome, or efforts that they have made to improve their attitude
towards blindness. If you would like to share your experiences,
please write your story in a Word document and submit it to Melissa Lomax
at
<a href="mailto:melissalomax1@gmail.com">melissalomax1@gmail.com</a>
. If you have a story but are not quite sure how to put it
together, call Melissa at<br>
· The board decided the
NFBMD will once again have a table in the exhibit hall at National
Convention. Along with our Instant Lottery ticketsa staple at our table
for many yearswe are planning to sell Braille versions of card games not
readily available in Braille. We are all excited about this new fund
raising project. Thanks to Melissa Lomax, who came up with the idea and
is heading up the committee in order to purchase and Braille games.
Please contact Melissa at melissalomax1@gmail.com if you would like to
help with this project. Also, we will need workers at our table! Darlene
Barrett is in charge of scheduling table workers, exhibit set up, etc. If
you are attending convention and want to help in the exhibit hall, please
contact Darlene at 410-997-9664. Working in the exhibit hall is a fun way
to meet people from all around the country, and is a major way you can
help the NFBMD raise funds for our affiliate. (Much more was discussed at
our board meeting; please consider attending our next meeting so you can
be in on the dialogue.)<br>
· Speaking of National
Convention… Have you made your reservations yet? Have you registered?
National Convention is truly a one of a kind experience you don’t want to
miss. Please consider joining members of your Federation family in
Orlando this year. For convention information, visit
<a href="https://nfb.org/convention">https://nfb.org/convention</a> <br>
· NFB BELL is ringing in
Maryland! The NFB BELL Program will once again take place in Baltimore
and Glendale, Maryland. This two week summer program, which will run this
year from July 28-August 8, is for blind and visually impaired elementary
school children (ages 4-12) who are just learning Braille, have had no
exposure to Braille, or need to work on reading speed and fluency.
Children participate in fun and engaging Braille lessons, meet and
interact with positive blind adults, go on field trips, complete craft
and cooking projects, make new friends, and acquire literacy skills. On
the last day of the program, August 8, all BELL participants will come
together for a fun activity in Baltimore. Parents of BELL participants
will also come together in Baltimore for an informative seminar. To apply
for the program visit
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/bell">http://www.nfb.org/bell</a><br>
· It’s a Crab Feast! Join
the NFBMD National Harbor Chapter, and the NFBDC affiliate, and
enjoy a wonderful pastime. <br>
· When: Saturday, June
14, 1-5 PM.<br>
· Where: Bladensburg
Waterfront Park Pavilion; 4601 Annapolis Road; Bladensburg, MD
20710.<br>
· Food Includes: Crabs,
fried and Bar-B-Cued chicken, baked beans, potato salad, fresh
salad, corn, hot dogs, soda, water, and watermelon.<br>
· Cost: Adults: $55,
children under 12, $25.<br>
· For tickets or
questions, contact Michelle Clark at 301 583-8585 or email at
<a href="mailto:mcikeyc@aol.com">mcikeyc@aol.com</a><br>
· The National Harbor
Chapter has generously agreed to give a portion of the proceeds from this
event to the Maryland NFB BELL Programs!<br>
· Join Team NFBMD and
Become an Imaginator!: (My Aunt Mary has donated to our cause. Why?
Because it is a worthy cause, of course, but mostly because I asked.)
Uncle Whozit is still counting on you! The National Federation of the
Blind has a goal to raise $300000 for the Imagination Fund by May 31,
2014. The Imagination Fund not only supports NFB Jernigan Institute
programs, it also helps fund special programs and projects in state
affiliates. Raising money for the Imagination Fund means finding other
peoples’ money! If you want to support the NFB personally, please
consider joining the PAC Plan (More about the PAC Plan later in these
messages.) If you want to be an Imaginator and raise money for the
Imagination Fund as part of Team NFBMD, , please reach out to your
family, friends, business contacts, etc. and tell them why the National
Federation of the Blind is important to you. Please ask them for a
donation. <br>
· How do they donate?
People can make a donation to Team NFBMD by visiting
<a href="https://app.mobilecause.com/public/social/9716">
https://app.mobilecause.com/public/social/9716</a> As a member of Team
NFBMD, please feel free to visit this page yourself and use the links
provided to ask for donations from your Facebook friends and Twitter
followers. You can also send a customized email to your contacts directly
from this page and encourage them to donate. If you are asking someone
for a donation in person, you can have him or her text the word Maryland
to 71777. Or, donors can send a check made out to NFB with Imagination
Fund Maryland in the memo line to 200 East Wells St.; Baltimore, MD
21230. The NFBMD has a goal to raise $7500 in commemoration of the
upcoming 75<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the national Federation of the
Blind. This seems like a large number, but I know we will be able to
achieve this goal if we all participate as one team and reach out to
those we know to ask them for their help. We are counting on you; we
still have a long way to go to reach our goal. <br><br>
· If you would like to
have the NFB Jernigan Institute create a personal Imaginator page for
you, please send an email to imaginationfund@nfb.org <br>
<br>
Coming Next Week:<br>
· Reports on Chemestry
Day at the NFB, and the end of our spring raffle.<br>
· Information on the
MDPOBC Bowlathon!<br>
· A report on bill
signings.<br>
<br>
Dates to Remember<br>
<br>
· May 7, Envelope
stuffing event; 200 East Wells St.; Baltimore. Come and lend a hand! This
event will begin at 8 AM, and an evening shift will start after 5
PM.<br>
· June 4: Diabetes
Seminar: Contact Debbie Brown at 301-881-1892 for more information <br>
· June 8, 2014:
TENTATIVE--NFB 6 Dot DashA 6K Race to Advance Braille Literacy
(Baltimore, Maryland)<br>
· June 14, NFBMD National
Harbor Chapter & NFBDC Crab Feast: Bladensburg Waterfront Park
Pavilion; 4601 Annapolis Road; Bladensburg, MD 2071021. Contact Michelle
Clark at 301-583-8585 to purchase tickets.<br>
· June 21, MDPOBC
Bowlathon: More details coming soon; contact Trudy Pickrel (301-501-1818)
for more information.<br>
· July 1-6, 2014:
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/national-convention">NFB National Convention
(Orlando, Florida)</a><br>
· July 28-August 8:
National Federation of the Blind Braille Enrichment for Literacy and
Learning (BELL) Programs; visit
<a href="http://www.nfb.org/bell">http://www.nfb.org/bell</a> for more
information and to apply<br>
· August 1, 2014: 7:00 PM
NFBMD Crab Feast (Baltimore, Maryland)<br>
· September 9:
<a href="http://nfb.org/web-accessibility-day">Web Accessibility Day at
NFB Jernigan Institute</a><br>
· October 15-17:
<a href="http://www.NFB.org/training-the-trainers">NFB Technology Train
the Trainers</a><br><br>
· November 14-16, 2014:
NFB of Maryland Annual Convention (Towson, Maryland)<br><br>
<br><br>
Please consider <a href="http://www.nfbmd.org/donate.html">making a
donation</a> today to help us build a future full of opportunities. You
can also <a href="http://www.carshelpingtheblind.org">donate your
vehicle</a> or support us by <a href="http://www.nfbpickup.org">giving
your old household goods to our GreenDrop program</a>.<br><br>
<br><br>
To submit items for possible inclusion in this weekly email, please send
suggestions to
<a href="mailto:President@nfbmd.org">President@nfbmd.org</a> Be
sure to include any related URLs that might provide further
information.<br>
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