[Nfbwv-talk] President Riccobono's Notebook for April 17, 2017

[Smyth, Charlene R]

April 17, 2017
President's Notebook
National Federation of the Blind
Mark A. Riccobono
officeofthepresident at nfb.org<mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>
(410) 659-9314

Dear Fellow Federationists,
I hope that everyone has had some degree of spring break. The holiday weekend provided great weather here in Baltimore for opening up the house and cleaning off the deck for the summer. You can really feel things coming to life. When I woke up early this morning, I listened to the sound of a lone oriole outside our window. After some time, a number of other birds joined in the chorus. The symbol of the moment made me reflect on what a joy it is to join in with each of you in our work to raise expectations for blind people every day. Often we get into something new because one Federationist calls out and we all come join in.

We are in the thick of planning for the national convention now-in three months the convention will be done. There have been a number of great spring Federation conventions to get us geared up for our national gathering. I had the opportunity to attend the Wisconsin convention where growth and innovation is in evidence. In Missouri, we have elected a new president, Sheila Wright, and we have celebrated the dedicated work of Gary Wunder who served for many decades as president in Missouri. In true Federation tradition, Gary has not gone away. He is doing whatever is needed in Missouri but he is also continuing to edit our Braille Monitor. If you wish for Gary not to get bored, I recommend flooding him with great Monitor articles to occupy his time. Thanks to Gary for his decades of leadership and congratulations to Sheila as she gets settled in the chair.



News:

Do You Dream in Color?:
We are working with the filmmakers to host screenings of Do You Dream in Color? across the country. For more information about the film, go to http://www.doyoudreamincolor.com/.




Seeking Information Involving Epic EHR Software:
The National Federation of the Blind is assisting Manuel G. Morse in a lawsuit against Epic Systems Corporation and others because the inaccessibility of Epic's software has made it impossible for Mr. Morse to perform his job as a hospital dispatcher. You can read the full press release about the litigation at https://nfb.org/national-federation-blind-supports-blind-healthcare-workers-discrimination-claim<https://nfborg/national-federation-blind-supports-blind-healthcare-workers-discrimination-claim>
Have you had an experience similar to that of Mr. Morse? If so, we need to hear from you. Please contact Valerie Yingling, legal program coordinator at the NFB Jernigan Institute, at (410) 659-9314, extension 2440, or vyingling at nfb.org<mailto:vyingling at nfb.org>.
Items from the Independence Market:
We recently discovered some vintage NFB music boxes with the Security/Equality/Opportunity logo that play "Glory, Glory Federation." We are making them available for $5.00 each, plus shipping and handling, while supplies last. Please note that these music boxes must be shipped via UPS. If you are feeling nostalgic, you might like to add an NFB stoneware mug to your order. These handsome mugs with NFB in raised Braille, which are now $5.00 each, show the older side of the NFB headquarters building and feature the same triangle logo as the music box.

And speaking of mugs, we just have a few of the seventy-fifth anniversary Irish coffee glass mugs left for $7.50 each. Don't miss out on any of these NFB memorabilia-supplies are limited! To order, call the Independence Market at (410) 659-9314, extension 2216.

NFB NEWSLINE (r) Update:
We have added four more publications: New York Times Online, International Business Times, McClatchy DC, and Rome News-Tribune (Rome, Georgia).



Dates to Keep in Mind:

  *   Spring conventions<http://nfb.org/state-conventions>
  *   May 1, 2017: Deadline for Distinguished Educator of Blind Students Award<https://nfb.org/images/nfb/documents/pdf/distinguished-educator-of-blind-students-award-form-fillable.pdf> nominations
  *   May 1, 2017: Deadline for Blind Educator of the Year Award<https://nfb.org/sites/all/modules/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=8025&qid=1760005> nominations
  *   June 4, 2017: 6K Dot Dash<https://nfb.org/dot-dash>
  *   July 10-15, 2017: National Convention, Rosen Shingle Creek Resort, Orlando, Florida<https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/bm/bm16/bm1611/bm161101.htm>
  *   July 23-29, 2017: Youth Slam<http://www.blindscience.org/nfb-youth-slam>, Towson University
  *   September 12-17, 2017: BLAST<http://blindmerchants.org/blast-2017/>, Nashville, Tennessee

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.

Mark A. Riccobono
President
200 East Wells Street
Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314
officeofthepresident at nfb.org<mailto:officeofthepresident at nfb.org>





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