[Nfbwv-talk] Meet the national representative to the 2018 NFBWV State Convention.

Wed Aug 1 12:43:38 UTC 2018

Hi Dave,

So glad you are coming to convention. Here’s wishing you a safe and uneventful trip!

Sheri

> On Jul 31, 2018, at 6:22 PM, Dave Allen via NFBWV-talk <nfbwv-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi all!
> 
> Thanks for sharing the bio. 
> 
> I also hope to attend the state convention. When a trip to WV was suggested
> to me, I was immediately excited, because I realised the time suggested
> would likely coincide with the state convention, which I have missed
> attending for many years. Happily, as things are turning out, the cards are
> lining up in favour of that happening.
> 
> In order to get there, my journey will include a stop in Houston, Texas,
> which I chose because my previous trips have forced me to enter the country
> in Los Angeles, an airport I've come to loath, though I have found that my
> meagre high school Spanish was sufficient to allow me to navigate with
> confidence when that was needed.
> 
> It will be wonderful to be able to see so many good friends during my visit
> in the handy venu.
> 
> 
> 
> Cheers,
> Dave
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NFBWV-talk [mailto:nfbwv-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Smyth,
> Charlene R via NFBWV-talk
> Sent: Wednesday, 1 August 2018 2:35 a.m.
> To: NFB of West Virginia Discussion List
> Cc: Smyth, Charlene R
> Subject: Re: [Nfbwv-talk] Meet the national representative to the 2018 NFBWV
> State Convention.
> 
> I do too, Sheri.  I think they are inspiring.
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NFBWV-talk <nfbwv-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Sheri Koch via
> NFBWV-talk
> Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2018 10:03 AM
> To: NFB of West Virginia Discussion List <nfbwv-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Sheri Koch <slk8332015 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Nfbwv-talk] Meet the national representative to the 2018 NFBWV
> State Convention.
> 
> Thanks Charlene! I love reading the stories of our national reps!  It will
> be great to meet her
> 
> Sheri
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>> On Jul 31, 2018, at 9:20 AM, Smyth, Charlene R via NFBWV-talk
> <nfbwv-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> 
>> Greetings Federation Family,
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> It is with great pleasure to announce that Norma Crosby, president of the
> Texas Affiliate and national board member, will be joining us at our state
> convention at the Holiday Inn Express in Morgantown, WV the weekend of
> September 13 - 16.  Sure do hope all of you can be there.  Below is more
> information about Norma:
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Norma Crosby, Board Member
>> 
>> NFB of Texas President
>> 
>> Mother and Businesswoman
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Norma Beathard was born on January 25, 1956, in Conroe, Texas. She was the
> first of five children born to Robbie and Joseph Beathard. Norma was born
> legally blind because her mother contracted rubella during her pregnancy;
> however, Norma's blindness remained undetected until she began walking. At
> that time, her parents began to notice that she seemed to bump into things
> that a sighted child should see, and they had her vision tested. A
> determination was made that she was blind when she was two years old. Years
> of surgery followed with no improvement.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Norma was an active child. She joined her siblings in most of the games
> they played, and her blindness was not a real obstacle when she was small.
> But she couldn't read the blackboard when she started school, and she
> experienced a number of problems related to her vision as she grew older.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Norma always attended school in rural communities, a circumstance which
> she describes as "both a blessing and a curse." Because no one in her life
> knew anything about blindness skills, she wasn't able to learn Braille or
> cane travel. She used large print books, which were bulky and heavy for a
> tiny girl. Since her vision was extremely limited, she had to read with her
> nose practically touching the pages of her books, even though the print was
> enlarged.  Despite the lack of training in blindness skills, Norma feels
> that she received a quality education because she had caring teachers who
> always found ways of making it easier for her to learn. She was fortunate to
> have the same teacher from her first-grade year through her third-grade
> year, and that teacher was determined that Norma would be included in
> everything the class did. Her name was Jean Todd, and she spent countless
> hours offering Norma one-on-one instruction. Other teachers with similar
> attitudes were a part of Norma's life throughout her K-12 experience.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Professionals in the field of work with the blind were not as helpful.
> When Norma asked for Braille training, she was told by a rehabilitation
> professional that she was wasting his time, and she was made to feel guilty
> because, according to him, she was depriving a "real" blind person of the
> opportunity to learn by making this frivolous request. Eventually, she was
> able to convince him that he should provide her with training, and he
> traveled to her small town and spent two hours with her.  This was woefully
> inadequate, but it did allow her to learn the alphabet, Braille numbers, and
> some punctuation symbols. Her experience with inadequate Braille training
> has made Norma a strong advocate for providing Braille education to children
> with low vision.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> After completing her education, Norma found herself living in a small
> community with no opportunities for a blind person. She knew she had to
> leave her rural home if she was to become successful. Her father was opposed
> to her leaving, but her mother understood that a different environment would
> provide Norma with a better chance of living the life she wanted to live.
> So, she took the unusual step of going against the wishes of Norma's father;
> drove Norma to the bus station in Lufkin, Texas, and purchased a ticket to a
> better life for her daughter. Norma traveled to Austin that day, and
> although she had no idea what she would do to become successful, she was
> confident that she would be able to make a life for herself.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Norma began her working life as an employee at the Travis Association for
> the Blind. That employment did not last long because Norma found that she
> couldn't live on the $1.05 an hour that the sheltered workshop was paying
> its trainees, and her questions about how to make a higher wage went
> unanswered. In fact, it became clear that she was unlikely to be paid the
> federal minimum wage anytime soon, so Norma began to look for other work.
> She also married during this time and began a family. Her first son was born
> on March 10, 1976, and her second son was born on March 10, 1978. Once her
> children were out of diapers, Norma started work at the Texas School for the
> Blind. She worked as a dorm parent at the school from 1979 to 1982.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> After a divorce, Norma found the National Federation of the Blind and
> became an active member in 1983. By 1985 she was living in Houston, and she
> was an important part of the National Federation of the Blind of Texas
> leadership. She didn't hold elective office in the Federation, but she
> worked hard to help the affiliate president and other leaders to carry out
> the organization's mission. She became president of the Houston Chapter in
> 1989, and she continued in that role for eight years.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> When Norma joined the Federation, she met Glenn Crosby. Glenn was serving
> as president of the National Federation of the Blind of Texas, and as the
> two worked closely together, a personal relationship developed. They were
> married on April 15, 1989. Each of them had two children, and the two
> families have blended into a harmonious group. Glenn and Norma are now the
> proud grandparents of seven grandchildren, ranging in age from four to
> twenty-one.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Four years before they married, Glenn asked Norma to begin managing the
> office for his food service business, and they became professional partners.
> The Crosbys owned five food service locations during the late 1980s and
> early 1990s, but they sold all but two of the locations and were operating
> those two locations when they retired in 2013.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Though both Norma and Glenn grew up in Texas, they decided they wanted a
> change in 2001, and they spent about a year in South Dakota. Then they spent
> several months in Ajijic, Mexico. Ajijic is near Guadalajara, and, while
> they enjoyed their time there, they needed to be closer to home for business
> reasons. So, in 2005, they moved to Ruston, Louisiana. Shortly after
> arriving in Ruston, Norma was elected to serve as president of the North
> Central Chapter of the NFB of Louisiana. She remained in that position until
> January of 2009, when she and Glenn made the decision to move back to their
> native Texas. They now live in Alvin, near Houston, on four acres of land
> and have a few cows.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> In 2012, Norma was chosen to serve as the first president of the Lone Star
> Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of Texas. Then, at the
> affiliate's 2014 convention, she was elected to serve as the state
> president.  While Norma believes strongly that it is not necessary to hold
> an office in order to be an effective leader, she is honored to serve as
> both the president of the NFB of Texas and, since her election at the 2015
> National Convention, as a member of the organization's national board of
> directors.
>> 
>> 
>> 
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> 
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