<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"><head><meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"><meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)"><style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
span.EmailStyle17
{mso-style-type:personal-compose;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
@page WordSection1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Hey NFB Family and Friends,<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>It’s Black History Month and our Black Empowerment Committee will be letting us know about an influential African American each day this month. Read on and enjoy! <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Members of the Affiliate, <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>An African American historian by the name of Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History announced in 1926, that the second week of February would be known as "Negro History Week". This week was chosen because it occurred around the birthdays of Fredrick Douglas and Abraham Lincoln, as a way of remembering important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>What began as a week has turned into an entire month. Black History Month (also known as African American History Month) is celebrated in the United States and Canada in February and in Ireland, United Kingdom and the Netherlands in October. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Each day, members of the Black Empowerment Committee will share the names of famous people who are of African decent that you may not be familiar with. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Join us while we travel backwards and forwards in time as we take a look at some of the accomplishments that have shaped the world we live in today<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Let's begin. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>In April of 1776, John Martin, also known as Keto, a slave from Delaware, was recruited by Captain of the Marines Miles Pennington of the Continental brig USS Reprisal. In recruiting Martin, he became the first African American to serve in a Marine role. Despite not having permission from his owner to join, Private Martin went on to participate in a cruise that resulted in the capture of five British merchantmen. However, he died in October of 1777, along with all but one of his shipmates, when Reprisal foundered in a gale. While he was not in the Marines long, he paved the way for others to join. Tune in tomorrow for another bit of history.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Andre Hill<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Chairperson<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Black Empowerment Committee <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#222222'><br>Peace,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='color:#222222'>Jacki Bruce<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='color:#222222'>Corresponding Secretary, National Federation of the Blind of Virginia<br><a href="mailto:jackibruce6@gmail.com" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>mailto:jackibruce6@gmail.com</span></a></span><span style='color:black'><br></span><span style='color:#222222'><a href="tel:(757)291-1789" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>tel:(757)291-1789</span></a></span><span style='color:black'><br></span><span style='color:#222222'><a href="http://www.nfb.org/" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>www.nfb.org</span></a></span><span style='color:black'><br></span><span style='color:#222222'><a href="http://www.nfbv.org/" target="_blank"><span style='color:blue'>www.nfbv.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='color:#222222'>Follow us on Twitter @NFBVirginia<br>Find us on Facebook @NationalFederationoftheBlindofVirginia<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><span style='color:#222222'>Live the life you want.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#222222'>The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation’s blind. Every day we work together to help blind people live the lives they want<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>