[NFBofSC] Positive Note 1908

[Marty McKenzie]

March 6, 2023
Memo To:  Executive Officers, Board Members, Chapter & Division Presidents & Others
From:  Marty R. McKenzie, President
Positive Note 1908
843-939-8091  marty2music at outlook.com

Dear Federation Family,

Saturday was a beautiful day in Hampton, South Carolina, where the newly revitalized Hampton Chapter met at Coconut's Deli.  This was the first time the chapter met in many years! There were 12 individuals present including state board representatives, new chapter members and children of those present. The enthusiasm in the room was so positive and people enjoyed the fellowship of being together. Chapter dues were collected. Officers were elected, and the chapter approved their constitution. It will  now be sent to the state board for review and approval. Congratulations to Gregg Jones who was elected by acclamation as the chapter's new president. Congratulations to Christine (Chrissy) Terry who was elected as vice president. Finally, congratulations to India Curry who was elected secretary/treasurer. A huge thank you to Second vice President Debra Canty who traveled to Hampton to assist with the chapter's reorganization! If you are in the Hampton area, there is no better food than what can be provided by Coconut's Deli!

Sonia Timmons is working diligently on the reorganization of the SC Parents of Blind Children's division. She is reaching out to chapter and division presidents in an effort to identify parents of blind children and connect them with the work she is doing. She only needs five minutes on your agenda if a virtual option is available. I appreciate your assistance to her as we move toward the August convention.

Thanks to everyone who participated in Palmetto Connects on Tuesday night, February 28, 2023! It was a great recap of events and activities for the past month. We also express our deep gratitude to Derique Simon for his comments around Black History Month and the events that the SC Association of Black Leaders put on during February.

Important Things to Remember:

  *   Annual Vision Summit on March 17, 2023
  *   Statewide Leadership Seminar on March 25, 2023
  *   Rocky Bottom ticket sales (Drawing on March 25, 2023)
  *   SCPOBC on April 13, 2023
  *   Lions Vision Services Fishing trip on April 21-22, 2023
  *   Houston ticket sales drawing on May 30, 2023

If you need additional information about any of the items above, please contact David Houck at the Federation Center at 803-254-3777. You can also contact me as shown above.

Here is David Houck's Federation Fun Fact for this week! Let's continue to read and learn together about our rich history in South Carolina.

Lessons Learned: Once a bill is passed, it is important to make certain it does not get overturned.

The Randolph Shephard Act of 1936 was passed by Congress to open up vending facilities on federal properties to employ the blind. The same is true in South Carolina for state owned properties:
1.      1958 -  Concurrent Resolution expressing the sense that blind priority in vending stand operations in state supported buildings is mandatory rather than permissive, thus the, Little Randolph Sheppard Act.

In order for blind licensed vendors to keep their net earnings, as lower profitable stands would lose their profitability, set-aside fees were abolished.
6.      1964 - Act #896 provides for abolishment of the practice of withholding a percentage of the earnings of blind vending stand operators, known as the bill abolishing "set-aside" fees.

Although this law was passed, it has come up time and again in the General Assembly to bring back set-aside fees upon licensed blind vendors:

30.    1999 - Halted legislative proviso to re-instate "Set-Aside" provisions abolished 35 years earlier in 1964.
41. 2006 - S.965 Commission for the Blind directed to refund set-aside fees collected from blind vendors and to repeal the set-aside bill passed in 2004.
42. 2006 - S.1123 Defeated bill excluding vending facilities on Department of Corrections property. Successfully sued the state for refund of attorney's fees.

As you can see, one cannot rest upon the past. Vigilance is essential to the maintenance of our hard won rights.

One more thing: The importance of expanding vending stand locations.
18.    1978 - Bill S59 an act providing for the operation of vending facilities in public buildings and other property, known as "The Right To Work" bill.


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