[NFBMI-Talk] Adieu, 2022...

[Amy Sabo]

hello robert,

first of all happy new year to you and, everyone in the nfb of mi affiliate.

i met you this summer at the nfb national convention in new orleans in
the exhibit hall and, you might not remember me. but, my name is amy
sabo and, i'am too a former member of the nfb of mi who moved to
colorado in 2003. but, i still do come home to mi since my dad's
family stilllives there and, i have friends there too which i go and
visit with. from 2003-2011 i had 2 homes that i lived in both here in
colorado and in michigan. but, in 2011 my parents who retired from
their jobs in michigan moved to be near to us sabo sister here in
colorado. yes, i also have a blind sister named rebecca who is also a
member of the nfb too and, also started out in the nfb of mi because
of me!

i loved reading your post and reflections on the coming year from 2022
and, it seems like the nfb of mi has done some awesome work so far
and, i look forward to hearing from you as their new president on the
upcoming year of the work in the nfb of michigan too!

again, thanks for the note and, happy new year to you too and, i also
hope that 2023 is a awesome one for you too!




sincerelyy,
amy sabos

On 12/31/22, Robert Earl Parsons via NFBMI-Talk <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Happy New Years Eve Federation Friends and Family
>
> What an encouraging, consistent year it has been. With the changes that our
> membership and leadership have experienced, it is a treasure to be providing
> the state of the affiliate address to the membership of the National
> Federation of the Blind of Michigan for 2022.
>  Our year began with the affiliate participating virtually in our 2022
> Washington Seminar, which is always a prize to take part in during the first
> week of February. During this time, over 20 Michigan affiliate members met
> with their elected representatives and their aides to discuss issues
> important to blind people and offered solutions to making their lives just a
> little easier. Our elected officials, both in the Senate and in the House of
> Representatives, are enthusiastic when we speak from experience on these
> issues each year, which is why it remains a active part of our national
> programming.
> Our return to in-person programming at both the national and state
> convention levels received a stampede of attendance. Our affiliate gathered
> in the Big Easy in July for our first in-person gathering for our national
> convention, where we were able to successfully fundraise at our Michigan
> exhibit hall table and concurrent virtual auction. In November, our
> affiliate gathered in Grand Rapids for its first in-person state convention
> since 2019.
> A highlight of 2022 for the Michigan affiliate has been our innovation and
> advocacy. Specifically in innovation, our membership has been so adept in
> creating new ways in making their meetings interesting and fresh for casual
> and dedicated members. During the latter years of the pandemic shutdown,
> virtual meetings for our affiliate's chapters were beginning to suffer,
> resulting in many chapters and divisions  no longer being active. Some
> chapters and divisions, like our seniors, found a variety of different
> discussion topics, activities and even outings at convention  that keeps the
> membership engaged without losing focus of why our organization was created.
> This is amazing work and members like state board member, Darryl Rice, and
> Pat Pile are prizes.
> Likewise, I commend our Flint-Genessee County Chapter and its president,
> Sheila Fulmore, for their dedication and innovation in membership building
> and marketing. Flint-Genessee's use of social media, radio, film and
> television to promote the positive aspects of the Federation's activities is
> a welcomed presence to media. During my acceptance speech for presidency at
> our 2022 state convention, I spoke to our membership about the need for our
> affiliate to do the work to build some bridges that may have been damaged in
> the past. Flint-Genessee's work in creating positive representations of what
> our organization does and what successful blind people look like is one
> innovative example of this. With love, hope and determination, we can
> continue the work that Flint-Genessee is doing statewide to make sure that
> blind people can be represented positively all the time.
> We all know that advocacy is a cornerstone of the National Federation of the
> Blind. With the proper information and tools, a blind person fully is
> capable of using their voice and resources to successfully make their case
> to a decision-making body. This is the massive undertaking that our Greater
> Detroit chapter took on over the past month when the Detroit Department of
> Transit (DDOT) attempted to cut paratransit service to riders in the city to
> 30% after failure to provide an adequate contract to the City Council's
> standards. Our Greater Detroit chapter has some of the most active members
> in our affiliate, engaging in life in medical, employment, family, personal
> and other everyday necessities. With the hard work and dedication of leaders
> like Richard Clay, Stephen Hanshew, Sabrina Simmons, Athere Jammoa, Mike
> Powell and John Scott, the Greater Detroit chapter co-hosted both a press
> conference and town hall in Detroit alongside Warriors on Wheels. The
> chapter contacted our state board, we then contacted our national office.
> From there, President Riccobono made a call to John Pare, who put us in
> touch with Michael El-Zein, Assistant District Attorney at the Michigan
> Department of Justice, who came and attended to town hall in person to hear
> our concerns. Live coverage of this event from local news has been included
> in the below link.
> NFB US DOJ Detroit Paratransit Town Hall:
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IG2bO1r12p0&t=122s
>
> Though these results make me smile and get our membership excited, the issue
> is not resolved and there is still much work to do with DDOT. The progress
> made thus far is commendable and the action done by the members of the
> Greater Detroit chapter is an example of how the Federation's philosophy
> works in action. Furthermore, actions of our membership are testaments of
> how the Federation can also be a family. When the news of the DDOT service
> cuts became statewide, NFB board member Richard Clay called an emergency
> statewide virtual meeting to inform the affiliate of the issues that chapter
> members were facing. Immediately, members of the Flint-Genessee chapter
> volunteered to call local senior centers to help with marketing the Greater
> Detroit chapter's upcoming press conference. Likewise, state secretary
> Rachel Newland and first vice president Jason Meddaugh virtually facilitated
> the town hall for the chapter to alleviate the leadership while they focused
> on their in-person guests, despite both of them being out-of-state. Their
> dedication to our affiliate, much like Mark Eagle's tireless work with our
> state treasury updates each month and state board meeting, are examples of
> how this board vows to continue to provide service in different ways to
> promote equality, opportunity and security for the blind in Michigan.
> So, as we end the chapter for 2022, I'd like to open 2023 with a challenge
> for our membership and any casual readers who are hanging around on this
> list: GET ACTIVATED!  Our leaders, the ones that were mentioned, and
> members, are all amazing individuals that all live lives that are worth
> getting to know. Though our Greater Detroit chapter received support, we can
> always use more. Though our seniors are active, they would always like more
> people to be active with. Though we love your suggestions, we'd love your
> presence. Please, join a statewide committee, local chapter, state division
> or our At Large chapter. The work of the Federation is never finished and we
> would love your company. It has been a wonder getting to know each of you as
> a new student transplant from the NFB of Virginia, as a member of the
> Michigan student division, as a member of the Kalamazoo chapter and now as
> your affiliate president. I only hope to continue to bring as much
> consistency to this position as I did to the ones I served in the past and
> to keep your faith. I invite you all to join board member Tara Morgan and I
> as we co-host the NFB Youth and Family Program Planning Committee on January
> 4 at 7pm EDT. Until then, adieu, 2022!!!
>
> With Love, Hope and Determination
>
> Robert Parsons, Jr., M. A., CRC, CVRT, LLPC
> President, National Federation of the Blind of Michigan
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