[Ohio-talk] Volunteer Appreciation

[Rachel Kuntz]

Thank you to all of the people who gave of their time and energy to work at
the Ohio Exhibit Table during national convention this past week. It was an
action packed few days. I'd like all to know just how much each and every
volunteer gave of their time and talent. 

 

Lisa Hall created Braille price lists and Braille product descriptions for
our table. These important touches made a real difference for all those
interested in being an informed buyer.

 

We took credit cards for the first time at this convention. This would not
have been possible without an insider tip made by Macy McClain to purchase a
four pin adaptor. Our credit card sales came off without any trouble thanks
to her advice. I could not say the same for a number of other exhibit tables
who found out that voice over would not work when they plugged in the square
reader without the adaptor. 

 

Thank you to all the Braille readers in our group like Lillie and Emily
Pennington, Marianne Denning, Paul Jordan, Barbara Pierce, Alexis Tyson,
Gloria Robinson, Deborah Kendrick, and Mary Pohl. Your steadfast hands
ensured that snack meat and candy buyers were always given the right
products. 

 

Deborah and Barbara also made sure that our snack meats and granola bars
were properly labeled. Thanks for being able and willing to make Braille
notes for me on the fly. Your contributions kept us organized.

 

Heather Leiterman, Bob Pierce, Macy McClain, Joy Mistovich, Alan Lemly, and
Mary Weldon made sure everyone visiting our table was greeted with a warm
smile and enthusiasm.

 

Carol Akers kept our supply of M&Ms refreshed all week long. 

 

Gloria's large list of friends and expert sales technique really got our NFB
tumbler sales going. She is a shrewd negotiator and I made note of several
of her techniques for boosting sales. 

 

Karen Warner jumped at the chance to do whatever was asked of her. Her shift
happened to be a rare moment of slow traffic in the exhibit hall so she took
a large bag of M&Ms out to sell in the halls of the hotel. She returned a
couple of hours later having sold all of them. Her extra work kept business
alive. 

 

Suzanne Turner's voice brought people to our table and her expert sales
skills increased our jewelry sales significantly. She has a career in sales
should she ever need to look again.

 

Jordy Stringer used the power behind his voice to drive traffic to our
table. It was a relief to have his help since my voice was beginning to fade
from two days of trying to talk over the crowd. 

 

The Cincinnati chapter owes a debt of appreciation to Heather Lieterman and
her son Alex for spending time with me refreshing our lucky Lolli pop game.
Alex also helped me behind the scenes in a variety of ways. I am truly
grateful that I had a reliable young man to call upon for what seemed to be
a never ending amount of tasks.

 

Paul Jordan literally kept Sheri Albers and me alive by going out of his way
to get lunch for us every day. Those who attended convention know that this
was no easy task. He navigated the chaotic and loud crowds in and around the
exhibit hall to bring us a boxed lunch every day. This extremely thoughtful
commitment to a couple of hungry friends will not soon be forgotten. 

 

Thank you to our President, Richard Payne, for stopping by each day to check
on things and to lend us your voice to get more attention for our table.
Affiliate Presidents are pulled in a lot of directions during convention so
it meant a lot to me that you fit work at the affiliate table in to your
extremely busy schedule. Your generous support made a big difference.

 

Last but certainly not least, thank you to Sheri Albers for dedicating your
entire convention week to working at the affiliate table. Your grace and
positive attitude under pressure kept me energized. I don't know how I would
have made it through the week without you. At the moment when I felt the
most overwhelmed I would hear Sheri's laughter and know that things were
going to work out great. Thank you for your leadership.

 

Each of you are a gift to me and I consider you a valuable member of team
Ohio.

 

Appreciatively yours,

 

Rachel R. Kuntz

Board Member

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

937.245.0547 cell

 <mailto:rachelrkuntz at gmail.com> rachelrkuntz at gmail.com 

 <http://www.nfbohio.org/> www.nfbohio.org

Live the life you want. Blindness is not what holds you back.