[NFBNJ] NFB President’s Notebook - week of 06/15/2020

Mon Jun 15 22:27:19 UTC 2020

Greetings to all!
I have provided several items of interest from President Riccobono???s 
Notebook for the week of June 15 for your review.
I have provided comments where needed.
Only four weeks until the national convention.
If you have not registered at no cost, the deadline is today,midnight, 
Monday, June 15.
Please visit the following,
www.nfb.org/registration
If you have a situation with registering, please contact Jane Degenshein at 
973 736 5785 or email, jdegen16 at comcast.net or Linda Melendez at 732 421 
7063 or email, lindamelendez220 at gmail.com

Special Note: Check your in box and hopefully on Thursday, June 18, we will 
distribute an email that will highlight three upcoming town hall zoom calls.
Curious? Checkyour incoming emails.

Warmly,
Joe

We care. We share. We grow. We make a difference
Joe Ruffalo, President
National Federation of the Blind of New Jersey
973 743 0075
nfbnj1 at verizon.net
www.nfbnj.org
Raising Expectations To Live The Life You Want!

Your old car keys can be keys to literacy for the blind.
Donate your unwanted vehicle to us by clicking
www.carshelpingtheblind.org
or call 855 659 9314

From: President, National Federation of the Blind
Sent: Monday, June 15, 2020 4:11 PM
Subject: NFB President???s Notebook - week of 06/15/2020

President???s Notebook
National Federation of the Blind
Mark A. Riccobono
officeofthepresident at nfb.org
410-659-9314

Dear Fellow Federationists,

Convention, convention, convention is where things are at right now. I hope 
each of you are getting geared up for our best national convention ever, and 
the first online convention in Federation history We, like we always do, are 
planning for a convention of the size and complexity that no other entity in 
the blindness field is even attempting.

We have four weeks to get everyone ready. Please start by getting as many of 
our members registered as we can.

Comments:Thanks to all members and non members that registered at no cost 
for the national convention.

Thanks to Jane Degenshein, Linda Melendez and others that assisted.

If you haven???t registered, tonight at midnight is the deadline and 
therefore, if you need assistance, contact Jane or Linda.  The contact info 
is provided in my greetings.

Next, let???s get each of our registered convention attendees familiar with 
how they will get onto Zoom. In addition, consider how you are going to 
effectively work with your delegation to keep everyone plugged in and 
engaged.

Comments:To all, we will brainstorm and keep all informed.

Consider having a lead national convention ambassador for your affiliate who 
can help share information, troubleshoot problems, and generally be 
available to members who need help. Of course in some affiliates you will 
need many people. You should consider having a lead point person who can 
help you push the right information to the people who need it. This is a 
great job to give someone who likes helping other members with technology.

Comments: The above will be addressed.

Keep all posted.

Now that you are all convention focused, remember that we would like to have 
the Access Technology Affordability Act on its way to the president???s desk 
for signature during our convention. This is the week to get us over one 
hundred cosponsors in the House of Representatives and over twenty-five in 
the Senate.

Comments: We should be receiving a legislative update in the next day or 
two.

If not, Ryan, Linda and I will locate information to distribute.

Remember, each voice needs to be heard, one voice leads to many!

Critical Actions:

FINAL DAY???Register Now for National Convention:
Register today at no cost! The 2020 NFB National Convention is going to have 
many of the same elements with new twists. Registration gives access to 
exclusive offers, convention announcements, door prizes, and other exciting 
content. The deadline to register is today, June 15. Learn more and register 
for the national convention now.

Comments: As you can see, very important as it is mentioned more than once!

Convention Related:
Veterans??? Celebration of Freedom:
Vernon Humphrey, president of the National Association of Blind Veterans, is 
reaching out to all veterans that will be taking part in the national 
convention so they can participate in the annual Celebration of Freedom. 
Please contact him at mr_president at nabv.org or 706-329-7960 if you are, or 
you know of, a military veteran that will be participating in convention 
this year.

Comments: I will contact the President of the National Association of Blind 
Veterans for additional information and procedure to participate during the 
veterans ceremonies.

Stay tuned!

Message from Sharon Maneki, NFB Resolutions Committee Chair:

Do you think we should change a government policy, take a stand concerning 
an agency for the blind, or create new regulations? If you do, consider 
writing a resolution. At the 2020 National Convention, the Resolutions 
Committee meeting will be held on Wednesday, July 15. The committee will 
debate and discuss resolutions on a wide variety of subjects If passed by 
the convention, these resolutions will become the policy statements of the 
organization. To ensure that your resolution will be considered by the 
committee, please send it to Sharon Maneki (nfbmd at earthlink.net) or to me by 
June 30, two weeks before the committee meeting. Since things are always 
busy leading up to the convention, sending them earlier will be appreciated. 
If you email a resolution to Sharon and do not receive an acknowledgement 
email in two or three days, please send it again.

If you miss the deadline, you must get three members of the committee to 
sponsor your resolution and then get it to Sharon before the meeting begins.

Comments: Resolutions are the policy statements of the National Federation 
of the Blind.

News:
New Resource for Children: Access Pinna, On-Demand Audio Service:
The National Federation of the Blind is proud to partner with Pinna, an 
on-demand audio streaming service providing hundreds of hours of content to 
children across the country. From science and fantasy to interactive game 
shows and mysteries, Pinna has hundreds of hours of audio programming 
including podcasts, audiobooks, and music including Opal Watson Private Eye, 
a Pinna original podcast of an eleven-year-old blind girl. Pinna is 
currently providing sixty days free with the promo code NFBGET60. To take 
advantage of the sixty-day free listening promotion, create a new account 
via the website at https://pinna.fm/?promo=1

Comments: If you know of someone that can use, please forward.

NFB BELL?????Space Still Available for July 27???August 7 In-Home Edition:

Enhance Braille literacy for blind and low-vision children, ages four 
through twelve, with NFB BELL! Registration is open for one more opportunity 
of the in-home, two-week-long sessions of NFB BELL Academy scheduled for 
July 27 through August 7, 2020. Each registered student will receive the 
materials to complete all lessons alongside their parent/guardian via mail. 
Space is limited, so register today for NFB BELL.

Comments: I am proud to announce, as of this writing, the NFBNJ BELL Academy 
for 2020 have a commitment of ten students.  The largest number for the 
program in New Jersey.

Virtual State Convention Assistance:
The NFB of Missouri recently held a successful convention virtually. 
Afterwards they held a Zoom call to review what helped them be successful. 
The call was recorded and can be accessed at 
https://www.dropbox.com/s/wu1m78xvifdwy7q/LearningFromNFBMOVirtualConvention2020-0611.mp3?dl=0 
.

Comments: As of this writing, we are planning to conduct a in person state 
convention.

If we need to provide virtual, we will do so however, plans are to be 
together at the Delta Hotel in Woodbridge from November 5 through November 
8.

Requesting Information Regarding National Telecommuting Institute:

If you have recently applied for or tried to apply for positions with 
National Telecommuting Institute (NTI), please contact Valerie Yingling at 
vyingling at nfb.org or 410-659-9314, extension 2440.

Dates to Keep in Mind:
  a.. June 22-July 3: NFB BELL?? In-Home Edition
  b.. July 27-August 7: NFB BELL?? In-Home Edition
  a.. July 14-18: NFB National Convention, Everywhere
  a.. February 8, 2021: Washington Seminar Great Gathering-In

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the 
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the 
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles 
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want; 
blindness is not what holds you back.

Mark A. Riccobono, President

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230

(410) 659-9314 | officeofthepresident at nfb.org

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends 
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation???s blind. Every day we work 
together to help blind people live the lives they want.

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