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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>May 17, 2017 <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Memo To: Executive Officers, Board Members, Chapter & Division Presidents & Others<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>From: Frank Coppel, President<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Positive Note 1605<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Greetings Fellow Federationists: <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> Congratulations to Bob Parsons, member of the Sumter chapter, who was selected to receive a Kenneth Jernigan Scholarship which will allow him to attend this year’s national convention in Orlando. The Kenneth Jernigan Scholarship is designed to financially assist individuals to attend a national convention for the first time. I remember attending my first national convention in 1977 in New Orleans, and how that experience made a great difference in my life as a federationist. I am certain Mr. Parsons will take full advantage of this wonderful opportunity and I am confident he will return to South Carolina filled with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm for the federation. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> If you have not done so already please make your hotel reservations for the 2017 NFB of SC State Convention which will be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Greenville, SC August 18-20. Room rates are very affordable. Rates for this year’s convention are $99 per night for up to four in a room. In addition to the room rates there will be a tax, which at present is 12 percent. There will also be a limited number of rooms available for the $99 rate Thursday, August 17, for those individuals wanting to arrive at the hotel a day prior to the official start of the convention. The deadline to make reservations will be July 27, 2017. If you pay in advance, your reservation will be guaranteed; however, you will not have to pay as long as you arrive by 6:00 p.m. Any amount you pay, of course, will be applied toward your bill. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> You can make your room reservations by calling the Hyatt Regency reservation telephone number 402-592-6434 and inform the reservationist you are reserving a room for the National Federation of the Blind of South Carolina state convention. The Hyatt Regency hotel has also made available a dedicated website to book your hotel rooms online. Reservations can be made starting immediately at this web address: <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>https://aws.passkey.com/go/natfedblind.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> We are now accepting your $80 preregistration fee for this year’s State Convention. Please send your $80 preregistration fee to the Federation Center of the Blind, 119 S. Kilbourne Rd. Columbia, SC 29205. This year the NFB of SC board of directors voted to offer a discount for families with children regarding the preregistration fee. Parents will pay the $80 preregistration fee and each child eight teen years of age and younger will pay $20. All preregistration fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable. As in past years, the $80 preregistration fee will cover the reception on Friday evening, continental breakfast Saturday morning, the luncheon, banquet, and a continental breakfast Sunday morning. The deadline to accept your $80 preregistration fee is August 9. If you wait until after the deadline of August 9, the registration will increase to $100. Save $20 and preregister early! <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I am also in the process of starting to plan the program for the convention. If you have any suggestions for agenda items you would like to see covered, please feel free to contact me at (803) 796-8662 or you can email me at, Frankcoppel@att.net.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> We have a request from Carry Burriss, a longtime member of our Anderson chapter. Kerry Burris is looking for a Braille and Speak. He is also looking for someone who repairs Braille watches. Kerry can be reached at 864-225-2065. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> 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. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> It seems in recent weeks we have had a number of deaths involving both blind and sighted individuals associated with the federation. I was especially saddened over the death of my lifelong friend Tommy Ingle as reported in last week’s Positive Note. Phil Marett of Anderson and a member of the RBRCCB Advisory Board, faithfully reads the Positive Note. Occasionally he will comment on a particular issue which gets his attention. Lasst week Phil wrote the following, “Tommy was always at the blind fishing event and he even went to the North Carolina Outer Banks tournament twice. He was a remarkable man as well as a God fearing, God loving person and told everyone he came in contact with about his love for Christ.”<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal> Three or four days ago our very good friend and longtime worker for the blind, Marshall Ticker, notified us about the death of Maxine Sullivan. Maxine-84-died on Thursday, May 11, the date the Columbia Chapter held its meeting. Maxine was a longtime member of the Telephone Pioneers. The Telephone Pioneers wee noted for repairing talking book machines and they were also noted for raising funds by selling Pioneer cookbooks. Maxine Sullivan was involved in one of the two groups of Telephone Pioneers who provided monthly meals for the Columbia Chapter meetings each month for several years. She also worked on the quarterly free BINGO for Columbia Chapter members and labeled the original BINGO cards used by the chapter in braille. She was also active in the Florence Chapter of the NFB of SC as Maxine was originally from Turbeville. An active but quiet person, she assisted many blind persons with reading, transportation and even took them to lunch from time to time. On at least one occasion Maxine invited Betty and me to dinner at her residence which was a very pleasant experience. She assisted people like Padgett and Emily McKenzie, Hilda Graham and several others but preferred not to seek any attention for doing so. To all who knew her, she will be well remembered. She was a member of the Washington Street United Methodist Church in Columbia. We wish to express our appreciation to Marshall Tucker for his help in providing information for this issue of the Positive Note.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Final Thought: Raising Expectations: It is much better to aim high and catch a butterfly than to aim low and get the caterpillar.<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>