[NFBofSC] Positive Note 1720

Wed Jul 31 13:33:17 UTC 2019

Can you post the agenda for the Convention Weekend?
Melanie

Sent from Melanie's i phone

> On Jul 31, 2019, at 8:28 AM, David Houck via NFBofSC <nfbofsc at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
>  
> uly 31, 2019
> Memo To:  Executive Officers, Board Members, Chapter & Division Presidents & Others
> From:  Frank Coppel, President
> Positive Note 1720
> Greetings Fellow Federationists:
>  
>               Here are a few friendly reminders regarding this year’s state convention which is only nine days away. 
> 1.           Please do not forget to come and participate in the NFB of SC Board of Directors meeting which will be held on Friday afternoon, August 9, from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in Capital IV.
> 2.             Lenora Robertson of Rock Hill is the Chairperson of the Door Prize Committee.  All door prizes ($5 or more) should be given to Lenora soon after you arrive at the State Convention. 
> 3.           Please continue to consider how much you and your chapter would like to financially give to the banquet fundraiser Saturday evening which will greatly help to strengthen the NFB of SC. 
> 4.           I have again asked Dorothy Barksdale to be responsible for the Memorial service which is usually held on Sunday morning at the convention.  Please send Dorothy the names of those members who passed away since last year’s state convention.  Dorothy can be reached at (803) 765-1622 or you can email her at dcbarksdale at bellsouth.net
> 5.           The deadline to pay your $80 preregistration fee is August 2, which is only a couple of days away.  Please mail your $80 preregistration fee for this year’s State Convention to the Federation Center of the Blind, 119 S. Kilbourne Rd. Columbia, SC 29205.  All preregistration fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable.  If you wait until after the deadline of August 2, the registration will increase to $100. 
> 6.           This year, the exhibit area will again be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Friday, August 9.  Please make an effort to visit the exhibit area and let the exhibitors know you appreciate their participation in our convention. 
>               During the third quarter meeting of the RBRCCB Board of Directors, which was held this past Saturday morning, the board discussed plans for the 2019 Fun Day Festival during the Labor Day weekend (August 30-September 1).  Four meals will be served including three on Saturday, August 31, and breakfast on Sunday morning, September 1.  The board voted again to charge $30 for adults and $15 for children under twelve years of age to cover all four meals including the lunch on Saturday.  Those individuals who are only attending the Fun Day Festival Saturday will need to pay Valerie and Larry Warrington $10 for lunch.  Room reservations for the weekend are taken on a first-come, first-served basis.  If you need to make a reservation for the Fun Day weekend, you can call the Federation Center (8-03) 254-3777 or call me (803) 796-8662 no later than August 26.  I hope that you are selling your $5 Fun Day tickets as this contributes to the profits.  Remember, the winning ticket drawn will yield $50 to the seller and $500 to the buyer or $550 if you bought your own ticket.  The chapter selling the most tickets will receive $300 for its treasury!  We need to bring new items for the auction which will take place on Saturday afternoon August 31, at 12:00 noon.  Let’s have a great turnout for the Fun Day Festival as Rocky Bottom very much needs our financial support. 
>               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.  Joining me for comments in this Positive Note is the President Emeritus of the NFB of SC.  Here is Dr. Capps. 
>               Since the 75th anniversary of the NFB of SC will be the highlight of next week’s convention, it seems in order for me to share some thoughts at this time.  First, let me thank President Coppel, David Houck and others at the state office for the assistance which they have been involved for some time to make this 75th anniversary convention the best ever.  Our first NFB convention was held in 1956 in San Francisco followed by a week-long seminar which was conducted by the late Dr. Jacobus tenBroek, NFB founder.  The seminar concentrated on investigating programs for the blind in different states.  I was virtually shocked to see the inadequacies of programs for the blind in 1956.  At that time all state programs were housed in the Division for the Blind which was a part of the SC Department of Public Welfare.  Upon our return to Columbia we found evidence of serious wrongdoing.  Upon investigation we learned that the Department of Public Welfare under the leadership of the late Arthur Rivers had used funds for the blind for salary increases for his regular employees.  Gene Rogers was our attorney for all these years and we appreciate it.  Dr. Samuel Lawton, the founder of the NFB of SC, frequently accompanied me to meet persons who worked under Mr. Rivers.  Mrs. Lawton also accompanied Dr. Lawton on these visits.  On one occasion Mr. Rivers referred to Mrs. Lawton as Mrs. Lawson.  This infuriated Mrs. Lawton who told Mr. Rivers that “my husband’s name is Lawton and I’m married to him and that makes my name Lawton.”  Regarding the issue of funds earmarked for the blind, I contacted the most powerful Senator in the State Senate, Senator Edgar Brown to discuss these issues of funds for the blind going to the blind and not to staff salaries.  Senator Brown arranged a meeting with his committee and it went something like this:  Senator Brown stated, “Young man would you please tell the committee the damage inflicted by Mr. Rivers in his Department.”  After reporting on the misused funds, Senator Brown asked Mr. Rivers if this was correct and Mr. Rivers, while not saying that it was, he did say he was going to use his office to have these funds reissued to the blind.  Senator Brown was indignant and replied, “No, you are not going to do so in the Division for the Blind as I’m going to have the General Assembly order the correction by changing the law.”  Because I had invested 3,000 miles into the NFB convention, it resulted in some 1,800 blind South Carolinians receiving what they were intended to receive.  Let me close by making it clear that I’ve had many opportunities as state President to meet with many officials in work with the blind and I have found them to be reliable.
>              
> Final Thought:   “Transforming our Dreams into Reality takes Imagination, persistence, perseverance, and trust.” - Debasish Mridha
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