<div><div><div><div><div dir="auto"><div><p dir="ltr" id="m_2940805910078440785m_7789054250062367563m_-8801858905515373006m_-5860321921379161955m_-7429726158766977841docs-internal-guid-cf17b419-7fff-dd70-145a-4e93a5fc02ad" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Dear NFBNJ Family, Friends and Fellow Federationists,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">By the time you are reading this letter, I should have successfully undergone my first (and hopefully, only) surgery to  remove cancerous tissue from one of my breasts. I was lucky that this type of cancer is extremely slow-growing and that the doctors caught it at Stage One..</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I am expecting to recover at home with out-patient radiation treatment. I must focus on my own health and healing and so am temporarily stepping back from the front  line as NFBNJ President. I will be doing work from  behind the scenes and concentrating on our upcoming annual state convention in November. I hope to return in September, depending on my recovery and medical advice.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><br></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Affiliate First Vice President Lia Stone will be handling all frontline, NFBNJ, business and will be our delegate to the NFB National Convention in Houston July 1-6.  </span><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Please address all affiliate matters to Lia at </span><span style="text-decoration:underline;font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap;color:rgb(17,85,204)"><a href="mailto:evangeliastone@gmail.com" style="text-decoration:none;font-family:Arial" target="_blank">evangeliastone@gmail.com</a>.</span><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:14pt;white-space:pre-wrap"> Also, reach her by our affiliate phone number 908-590-1747.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><br></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">As this situation is new to all of us, please know that I will be unable to reply to any NFBNJ-related messages; I know you will direct them all to Lia who has my total support as well as that of our affiliate Board of Directors.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><br></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I really appreciate all your kind good wishes for my recovery and look forward to resuming our usual NFBNJ business together in September.</span></p><p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;line-height:21.6px;font-size:18px" dir="auto"><br></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Warmly,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Linda Melendez, President </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">National Federation of the Blind of New Jersey </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><br></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></p><p style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;line-height:21.6px;font-size:18px" dir="auto"><br></p></div>
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