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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoPlainText>Please join us for Richmond Seminar to ensure our voice is heard in the Virginia General Assembly.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Whether you have attended many Richmond Seminars, or this will be your first one, we strongly encourage you to attend and participate in representative democracy in action. We are planning for an in-person Richmond Seminar in January 2022 because we are hearing that the Virginia General Assembly will be mostly allowing in-person appointments. For legislators unable to see constituents in person, we will create a virtual team to accommodate Federationists who want to participate in our legislative action but who may not be able to travel to Richmond.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><h1>When: <o:p></o:p></h1><p class=MsoPlainText>Monday, January 17, Martin Luther King Day. We will hold an important NFBV Board Meeting to discuss legislative issues and get organized. On Tuesday, January 18, we will meet with our Senators and Delegates.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><h1>How it Works: <o:p></o:p></h1><p class=MsoPlainText>Please attend the NFBV Board Meeting on Monday to learn about the issues. Plan to stay overnight at the Delta Marriott Richmond on Monday night and enjoy an evening of conviviality with your NFBV family. You will be assigned a team to meet with legislators on Tuesday, sharing our issues and answering the questions of legislators and their staff. The affiliate will reimburse transportation and hotel expenses. The National Federation of the Blind of Virginia can reimburse these expenses through the generosity of the many donors to the Charlie brown Memorial Fund. We are grateful for these contributions which honor Charlie’s commitment to ensuring we all have a voice in advocacy for the rights of blind people in Virginia.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><h1>Where it All Happens: <o:p></o:p></h1><p class=MsoPlainText>Our board meeting is scheduled for 1:00 PM Monday afternoon, January 17 at the Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired Campus, 395 Azalea Avenue, Richmond. We will meet in the Library & Resource Center (LRC). At this writing, it is not certain if lunch will be available through the cafeteria on the premises prior to the meeting so plan accordingly. On Monday night, we will stay at the Delta Hotel by Marriott, 555 East Canal Street, Richmond, VA 23219.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>On Tuesday morning, we will be going to the offices of the General Assembly in the Pocahontas Building. Our meetings are typically between 8:00 AM and 11:30 AM. Your team will likely have 10 appointments during this brief time window. Your team leader will facilitate the process, but everyone will play a role on the team. By Noon, we are gathering back up to return home. It is quick, exciting, and the legislators and their staff are happy we came to speak with them. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>We look forward to finally reconnecting in person while being mindful of and compliant with all visiting requirements observed at Marriott properties, the DBVI campus, and the capitol.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><h1>The Issues:<o:p></o:p></h1><p class=MsoPlainText>The issues we will bring to Richmond are still under consideration but will most likely include:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>- Improving the accessibility of education technology used by K-12 students<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>- Expanding resources for the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>- creating a hiring preference for people with disabilities in local government jobs. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>We will present the final list of issues and fact sheets at the board meeting on Monday, January 17. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><h1>What You Need to Do:<o:p></o:p></h1><p class=MsoPlainText> We have bills being drafted that will need co-sponsors. Chapter Presidents should contact their General Assembly members in their local offices before the end of the year. All Chapter members are encouraged to participate in these meetings. A meeting with our elected legislators in their home districts will go a long way in establishing the recognition that is needed for our visit to Richmond. If you need assistance identifying your delegate, need help in setting up a meeting, or do secure a meeting, please contact Bonnie O'Day (my contact information is below.).<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Let your chapter president know you will be attending, but also copy Stewart Prost. Your chapter president will be helping with transportation. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Stewart Prost is collecting all the RSVPs for Richmond Seminar and helping to ensure we match participants with legislators. When you tell Stewart, he will really need your mailing address to confirm your legislators.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Stewart can be reached at <a href="mailto:sprost82@gmail.com">sprost82@gmail.com</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Or on his mobile at (757)572-6891.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Chapter presidents will arrange cost effective transportation for their chapter members. Individuals are expected to share hotel rooms and must obtain hotel reservations themselves at the NFB of Virginia rate, which is $142 per night plus taxes. We reimburse based on having two people share a room, so we ask you to plan for a roommate. If you need assistance finding a roommate, please call Domonique Lawless: (615) 904-4225, no later than Friday, December 31 to allow matches to make their reservation by the hotel deadline of January 3. You may choose to reserve a room by yourself, but as has always been the case, the affiliate will reimburse only 50% of the room reservation. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Please make your own reservation on-line at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Richmond Downtown at <a href="https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?id=1637267574074&key=GRP&app=resvlink">https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?id=1637267574074&key=GRP&app=resvlink</a>. You may make your reservations at any time, but they must be made by January 3. If you have problems making reservations or have any other issues with the hotel, please contact our Operations Coordinator, Joe Orozco via email at <a href="mailto:jsorozco@gmail.com">jsorozco@gmail.com</a>. A form requesting reimbursement for transportation and your hotel stay is attached to this email.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText>Chapter presidents must provide an initial list of the names of the individuals planning to attend from their chapter to Bonnie O'Day by Monday January 3 at 5 PM and additional names as they are known so we can establish and update teams in advance.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Finally, if you are interested in being a team leader, please reach out to Bonnie O'Day directly and provide your full name, city or county of residence, email address, and phone number. If you have any questions, please contact Bonnie O'Day at 703 965-2501 or email her at <a href="mailto:bonnoday@gmail.com">bonnoday@gmail.com</a>.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Tracy Soforenko<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>President, National Federation of the Blind of Virginia<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>202 285-4595<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="mailto:Tracy.soforenko@gmail.com"><span style='color:#0563C1'>Tracy.soforenko@gmail.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://www.nfb.org"><span style='color:#0563C1'>www.nfb.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><a href="http://www.nfbv.org"><span style='color:#0563C1'>www.nfbv.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>National Federation of the Blind. Live the Life You Want<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>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></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>