[Nfbv-announce] 2012 State Convention Agenda

Sat Oct 20 09:51:40 UTC 2012

54th ANNUAL CONVENTION

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND OF VIRGINIA

Voice of the Nation's Blind

Fredric Schroeder, President

November 2 - 4, 2012

Crowne Plaza Richmond Downtown 

555 East Canal Street

Richmond, Virginia 23219

(804) 788-0900 or (800) 227-6963

Hosted by the Richmond Chapter of the 

National Federation of the Blind of Virginia 

Jennifer Kennedy, President

THE FEDERATION PLEDGE

"I pledge to participate actively in the efforts of the National Federation
of the Blind to achieve equality, opportunity, and security for the blind;
to support the policies and programs of the Federation; and to abide by its
Constitution."

Convention Registration 

Convention Registration will be located in the Hilliard Board Room Foyer.
The cost of on-site registration is $20.00. Registration will be open on
Friday, November 2, from 12:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M. and on Saturday, November
3, from 8:00 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. and from 1:00 P.M. to 2:00 P.M. Door prizes
and auction items can be brought to the registration desk beginning on
Friday morning. 

Meal Functions 

Tickets for all meal functions are available at the registration desk.
Banquet and Box Lunch Tickets must be purchased by 10:00 A.M. on Saturday,
November 3. 

Banquet: banquet tickets may be purchased on-site for $35.00.

Box Lunch: Box lunch tickets may be purchased on-site for $20. Only a
limited number for Saturday noon are available for those who did not
preorder. 

Banquet Ticket Exchange

We will have reserved seating for the banquet. Those wishing to sit together
at the banquet should designate one person to collect banquet tickets from
those individuals wishing to sit together. All tickets should be brought to
the registration table no later than 2:00 P.M. on Saturday and exchanged for
tickets with a designated table number.

Note: For more information about registration, meal functions, or the
banquet ticket exchange, please contact Michael Kasey at (540) 760-3885.

Door Prizes

Door prizes will be drawn periodically throughout convention sessions on
Saturday and Sunday and at the banquet. To be eligible for door prizes, you
must be registered for the convention and present in the room when your name
is called.

Action Auction

Throughout the day on Saturday, we will be holding an Action Auction to
raise money for the affiliate. The auction will be great fun with many
valuable items up for bid. You will have a chance to preview auction items
on Friday afternoon in the exhibit area. For more information contact Jacki
Brown, Chairperson and Auctioneer.

Contact Table

If you are looking for assistance from the NFBV (such as assistance for a
blind student, pursuing vocational rehabilitation training, advocating for
yourself at work, or a legal matter), please submit your information and
request at the Contact Table. After the convention, a member of the NFBV
will contact you. In addition, if you are interested in receiving regular
updates about our programs and legislative efforts, please also visit the
Contact Table. The table will be open during the board meeting, after the
opening ceremonies on Saturday, at the end of the banquet, and all morning
Sunday. For more information, please contact Corbbmacc O'Connor at (202)
684-6130.

Youth Track

Running parallel to the convention will be the 2012 Youth Track, presented
by the NFB of Virginia Students Division. The Youth Track will: connect
students with positive role models and their peers throughout the state;
challenge students to think about themselves and their role in the civil
rights movement; introduce students to our positive NFB philosophy on
blindness; educate students about their choices for blindness skills
training; and put these new experiences to work through a travel activity
outside the convention hotel.

Child Care

Child care is available for infants through fifth graders in the Manchester
Room (1124) of the hotel on Friday evening and throughout the day on
Saturday. We will have activities and games to entertain them. For more
information contact Jennifer Kennedy, Child Care Coordinator at (330)
465-6245 or msjenniferkennedy at gmail.com.

Child care will be available at the following times:

Session 1 Friday evening 6:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.

Session 2 Saturday morning 8:45 A.M. to 12:15 P.M.

Session 3 Saturday afternoon 12:15 P.M. to 5:15 P.M.

Session 4 Saturday evening 6:45 P.M. to ½ hour after banquet adjournment

Snacks will be provided during Session 2 and Session 3. Even though child
care will be open and fully staffed during lunch on Saturday, lunch will not
be provided. Parents should either pick their child up for lunch at the end
of Session 2 or provide a lunch for their child to eat in the child care
room. Also, dinner will not be provided on Saturday evening. Parents should
feed their child dinner prior to bringing them to Session 4. The cost of
child care is $5 per family per session. 

Assistive Listening Devices

A limited number of assistive listening devices are available during all
convention sessions and at the banquet. Please contact Valerie Luthur or
Tajuan Farmer the registration desk, located in the Hilliard Board Room
Foyer, for an assistive listening device.

Friday, November 2, 2012

9:00 A.M. - 11:30 A.M. NFBV Board of Directors Meeting (Open to All): Junior
Ballroom 

12:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. Registration: Hilliard Board Room Foyer 

12:00 P.M. - 5:00 P.M. Exhibits: Grand Ballroom Foyer

1:00 P.M. - 2:15 P.M. Seminar 1: iOS for Dummies - Utilizing iPhone, iPad
and iTouch; Georgian/Elizabethan Rooms

Michael Fish and Corbbmacc O’Conner, Seminar Coordinators

2:30 P.M. - 3:30 P.M. Seminar 2: What's New With and How to Get the Most
from NFB Newsline; Raleigh/Drake Rooms

John Halverson and Jennifer Kennedy, Seminar Coordinators

3:45 P.M. - 4:45 P.M. Seminar 3: Chapter Fundraising - What Works Best From
Those Who Have Done It; Georgian/Elizabethan Rooms

Mark Roane and Joseph Hobson, Seminar Coordinators

5:00 P.M. - 6:00 P.M. Public Meeting on Rehabilitation Services:
Raleigh/Drake Rooms
Susan Payne, VR Director, Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision
Impaired

7:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M. Hospitality: Salon A
Hosted by the Richmond Chapter

7:00 P.M. - 8:15 P.M. Student Hospitality and Apprentice: Capitol Room

Tracy Soforenko and Briley O’Connor, Coordinators

7:00 P.M. - 8:00 P.M. Virginia Association to Promote the Use of Braille:
Raleigh/Drake Room 
Sandy Halverson, President

8:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. Resolutions Committee: Raleigh/Drake Rooms 
C. J. Fish, Chairperson

Saturday, November 3, 2012

8:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M. Registration: Hilliard Board Room Foyer

General Session: Grand Ballroom 

9:00 A.M. - 9:30 A.M. Opening Ceremonies

Call to Order: Fredric Schroeder, President, NFB of Virginia

Invocation: Briley O’Connor, President, NFBV Students Division

Pledge of Allegiance and the Federation Pledge: Sarah Patnaude, Board
Member, NFBV Richmond chapter

Special Presentation: Jamie Ebersole, Bookings Coordinator, Edgar Allen Poe
Museum

Note: Mr. Ebersole will perform as the poet, Edgar Allen Poe, who lived in
Richmond later in his life. He will be in costume and will recite three of
Poe’s works, including the infamous “The Raven.” 

Greetings from Our Host Chapter: Jennifer Kennedy, President, NFBV Richmond
Chapter

Welcome to Richmond: The Honorable Bruce Tyler, Councilman, Richmond City
Council

Convention Arrangements: Michael Kasey, Chairperson, Convention Organization
and Arrangements

9:30 A.M. - 9:35 A.M. Action Auction

9:35 A.M. - 10:15 A.M. National Report

Ever Lee Hairston, Member of the Board of Directors, National Federation of
the Blind

10:15 A.M. – 10:30 A.M. Delivering Results On Time: Working as a Project
Manager

Tracy Soforenko, Technology Project Manager, U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation

10:30 A.M. - 10:35 A.M. Action Auction

10:30 A.M. - 12:00 P.M. Youth Track: Capitol Room 

Tracy Soforenko and Briley O’Connor, Coordinators

10:35 A.M. – 10:55 A.M. Accessible Voting for the Blind

Martha B. Brissette, Esq., Policy Analyst, Virginia State Board of Elections

10:55 A.M. – 11:15 P.M. What’s New with Newsline: Emergency Information
Feature, Election Information and iPhone App

John Halverson, NFBV Newsline coordinator

11:15 A.M. - 11:20 A.M. Action Auction

11:20 A.M. – 11:40 A.M. Vocational Rehabilitation Services For The Blind In
Virginia

Raymond Hopkins, Commissioner, Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired

11:40 A.M. – 12:00 P.M. "It Takes Two to Tango!"

Melody Roane, Director, Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and
Vision Impaired

12:00 P.M. Noon Recess

12:05 P.M. – 12:15 P.M. Box Lunch Pickup: Drake/Raleigh Rooms Foyer

12:15 P.M. - 1:45 P.M. NFBV Diabetics Division Luncheon and Business
Meeting: Hilliard Board Room 

Patricia Droppers, Chairperson (Box Lunch - $20.00)

12:15 P.M. - 1:45 P.M. Virginia Association of Blind Merchants Luncheon and
Business Meeting: Raleigh Room 

John Jones, President (Box Lunch - $20.00)

12:15 P.M. - 1:45 P.M. NFBV Students Division Luncheon and Business Meeting:
Capitol Room 

Briley O’Connor, President (Box Lunch - $20.00) 

12:15 P.M. - 1:45 P.M. Virginia Parents of Blind Children Luncheon and
Business Meeting: Drake Room 

Zina Lewis, President and Sandy Halverson, NFBV Parent Liaison (Box lunch -
$20.00)

1:00 P.M. - 2:00 P.M. Registration: Hilliard Board Room Foyer

Afternoon General Session: Grand Ballroom 

2:00 P.M. - 2:20 P.M. Why I Am A Federationist

Michael Kasey, First Vice President, NFB of Virginia

2:20 P.M. - 2:55 P.M. "Lifetime Change in 6 Days: Reflections from
Virginia's 2012 McDonald Fellows and Kenneth Jernigan Convention Scholarship
Fund Winners"

Corbbmacc O'Connor, Chairperson, McDonald Fellowship Committee and NFBV
Liaison, Kenneth Jernigan Convention Scholarship Fund Committee

Cynthia Davis and Lynn Lesko, McDonald Fellows and Denice Wilkins, Kenneth
Jernigan Scholarship Fund Winner

2:55 P.M. - 3:00 P.M. Action Auction

3:00 P.M. – 4:30 P.M. Youth Track: Capitol Room 

Tracy Soforenko and Briley O’Connor, Coordinators

3:00 P.M. - 3:15 P.M. Update from the Hadley School for the Blind

Julie Lee Kay, Instructor, Hadley School for the Blind

3:15 P.M. - 3:45 P.M. BELL: Early Literacy, A Lifetime of Possibilities
Sandy Halverson, BELL Program. Coordinator; C. J. Fish, Richmond BELL
Program Coordinator; Theresa Willis, Virginia Beach BELL Program.
Coordinator

3:45 P.M. - 3:50 P.M. Action Auction

3:50 P.M. – 4:00 P.M. Funding our Movement: Virginia Pre-Authorized Draft
(VPAD) Program.

Mark Roane, VPAD Chairperson

4:00 P.M. – 4:10 P.M. Federationist On The Move In The District Of Columbia

Shawn Callaway, President, NFB of the District of Columbia

4:10 P.M. – 4:25 P.M. Challenge Recreation: The Difference It Makes

Maureen Nietfeld, Home Management Instructor and Ann Cunningham., Art
Instructor and Bolatan award winner, Colorado Center for the Blind

4:25 P.M. - 4:30 P.M. Action Auction

4:30 P.M. - 5:00 P.M. Presidential Report
Fredric Schroeder, President, NFB of Virginia

5:00 P.M. Adjourn Afternoon General Session

5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. At-Large Chapter Reception: Capitol Room

Rick Holly, At-Large Coordinator

6:15 P.M. - 6:45 P.M. Pre-Banquet Reception (Cash Bar): Grand Ballroom Foyer

7:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M. 2012 Convention Banquet: Gran Ballroom 

Banquet Program

Master of Ceremonies: Charles Brown, Immediate Past President, NFB of
Virginia

Invocation: Brian J. Barton, Sr., Executive Director, Braille Circulating
Library

2012 James F. Nelson Scholarship Awards Presentation: Jennifer Kennedy,
Chairperson, Scholarship Committee

Banquet Address: Ever Lee Hairston, Member of the Board of Directors,
National Federation of the Blind

Action Auction: Jacki Brown, Chairperson and Auctioneer

Sunday, November 4, 2011

8:00 A.M. - 8:50 A.M. Devotions: Capitol Room

Lead by: OnNet Williams, Secretary, NFBV Richmond chapter and Anna
Arrington, Board Member, NFBV Richmond chapter

9:00 A.M. - 11:30 A.M. Youth Track: Capitol Room 

Tracy Soforenko and Briley O’Connor, Coordinators

General Session: Salon B 

9:00 A.M. - 9:05 A.M. Invocation

Buffa Hanse, Second Vice President, NFBV Richmond Chapter

9:05 A.M. – 9:25 A.M. Who Wants To Be A One In A Million Federationist?

Jennifer Kennedy, President, NFBV Richmond Chapter; Corbbmacc O’Connor,
Board Member, NFBV Potomac Chapter and Secretary, NFBV Fairfax Chapter; and
Jessica Reed, Vice Presidend, NFBV Fredericksburg chapter

9:25 A.M. - 9:30 A.M. Action Auction

9:30 A.M. - 11:30 A.M. Business Session

Audit Committee Report: Michael Kasey, Chairperson

Treasurer's Report: Mark Roane, Treasurer

Fundraising Committee Report: Mary Durbin, Chairperson

SUN Committee Report: Sandy Halverson, Chairperson

Affiliate Communications: Corbbmacc O’Connor, Coordinator

2013 Richmond Seminar: Michael Kasey and Tracy Soforenko; January 21 and 22,
2013; Crowne Plaza Richmond Downtown 

2013 National Convention: July 1-6, 2013; Rosen Center Hotel, Orlando,
Florida

2013 NFBV convention: October 25-27, 2013; Fredericksburg Hospitality House
& Conference Center

Resolutions: C. J. Fish, Chairperson

Nominating Committee Report: Charles Brown, Chairperson

Elections

Old and New Business

11:30 A.M. – 11:50 A.M. Report of Youth Track Activities

Tracy Soforenko and Briley O’Connor, Coordinators

11:50 P.M. – 12:00 P.M Closing Remarks

Fredric Schroeder, President, NFB of Virginia

12:00 P.M. Adjourn

Thank you to our Richmond Chapter for hosting the 2012 NFBV State
Convention. Your hard work and hospitality made this year's convention one
of the best ever.