[Ohio-talk] Buckeye Update

Sun Apr 9 23:19:15 UTC 2017

Buckeye Update

April 9, 2017

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.

We are less than a month       from our April 22, 2017, Board of Directors
meeting in Columbus.  I can now tell you that we will meet at the North
Community Lutheran Church, located at 114 Morse Road Columbus Ohio 43214.
The meeting will begin at 10:00 A.M.  We will order pizza for lunch, so
please bring cash to contribute. 

I had the pleasure to attend the Columbus, Cincinnati and Cleveland chapter
meetings recently and can tell you that these chapters are growing in
numbers and the NFB spirit is quite evident.   I also attended an
informational seminar sponsored by the Greater Butler Chapter on March 25th
2017.  this event was well organized and attended.  This is another example
of the good work that our chapters are doing.

There was a Parent's meeting on March 12th 2017 in Columbus.  Heather
continues to demonstrate her abilities in developing partnerships by working
very hard to reorganize the Parent's Division.  I think very soon we will
have this Division reorganized and running efficiently.

This year's Bell Academy will start on June 25th through to the 30th of
2017.  Volunteers are needed to assist with one of the most important events
that the Ohio Affiliate does every year.  Please consider giving your time,
expertise and consideration for our blind children.  Chapter presidents and
leaders, you should strongly consider volunteering.  This program cannot be
what we know it should be unless we lend our talents to others.  We also
need you to assist with sponsoring this endeavor. Please send all money to
Sherry Ruth to help with the cost.  Last year several chapters did just that
and I appreciate the support.

The Ohio Affiliate legislative    committee has begun working on several
issues in the state.  We have submitted comments and are making plans to
testify about the lack of funding in the Governor's budget; that will
negatively impact the public transit in Ohio.  I went to Columbus to join
Sherri, Mike and Jordy at the State Capital and was pleased by the
collective abilities of this team.  We need all Chapters to contact your
local law makers to assist with this issue.  Please reach out to Sherri when
you contact your state reps with information.  We are organizing a Columbus
seminar; and want chapters to start planning to attend.  The gathering is on
May 9, 2017.   I am excited about NFB of Ohio working together to make a
significant impact on issues in Ohio.

As you should already know, we again will be taking part in the Flying Pig
Event.  Sherri and Annette have been sending information to our list serve.
So, please buy your tickets online and if you can take part in our
respective booth on May 7, 2017, then please do just that.

  Mike and I have been taking part in several calls that surround forming a
state Rehabilitation Council in Ohio.  I am confident that we will get this
done some time this year.  We also talked to Director Miller about this and
our concerns on the fact that there is no active commission for the blind.

Rachel will be leaving the state to go to one of our training centers for
the next few weeks.  I know she will return with additional talents and
ready to take on the world.    

We still have some of the Kenneth Jernigan fund tickets.  So, if you would
like to win a free trip to the national convention next year please send a
check to Sherry Ruth for 10 dollars and I will get them to you.  I will have
the rest of the tickets at the state board meeting. 

While I could write more   I know that several meetings are in the making
with so much to share.  Let's keep building the federation and always
advocate for the rights of all.

Bboard of Directors Meeting 

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

January 23, 2017

            1. The teleconference meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.
by president Richard Payne. Number (712) 775-7031 access code 240281423# was
used.

            2. All board members were present, although some arrived after
the roll call. A few others were also present on the call. 

            3. Sherry Ruth moved that the minutes from the November 2016
meeting be approved as circulated. The motion was seconded by Cheryl Fields.
It passed. 

            4. Shelbi Hindel read the financial report for the last quarter
of 2016. Sheri Albers moved this report be accepted as read. Barbara Pierce
seconded the motion. Sherry R. commented on the report and answered
questions. The motion passed. Barbara expressed great concern for the very
high amount of the hotel bill for the state convention. She encouraged
careful and wise decision making concerning expenditures. Colleen Roth
stated that she had been taught to be frugal with money and not put on a
show. Sheri A. made a valiant attempt to justify the expenditures that are
of concern to Barbara and others. 

            5. Shelbi reported that the Constitution Committee had reviewed
the constitution for the newly formed chapter of the NFB-OH. The committee
did make a few minor changes. She moved  that the constitution of the NFB of
the Greater Butler County Chapter be accepted as changed and that this
chapter be accepted as a fully functioning chapter of the affiliate. Carolyn
Peters seconded the motion. It passed. A copy of the constitution needs to
be sent to the library at the national center. 

            6. The event with Race Penguin that was originally scheduled for
October 2016 needs someone to take the leading role for coordination. This
would be best if that person was from the Columbus area as there is a lot of
detailed work involved. If this is not possible it would be best to take a
loss on the money already paid to the company as that money is not
refundable. There was a significant amount of discussion with the conclusion
that this activity should just go quietly to sleep.

            7. Chapter presidents and committee chairs were given an
opportunity to present a brief report.

            A. Dr. Carolyn Peters is the newly elected president of the
Miami Valley chapter. Her goal is to increase their membership. 

            B. Colleen Roth, president of the At-Large chapter reports that
there are more people participating in the teleconference calls that are
held each month. The chapter wants to donate games to BELL, such as cards.
She is hopeful that the excitement that the members have shown regarding
this project will have them more actively involved in activities of the
federation.

            C. Elif Emir Oksuz, president of the student division reported
the conference calls that they have held. It has been a challenge to get
things back in to place and up and running but progress is being made. She
encouraged people to like their Facebook page. She has a list of
universities in Ohio that she is willing to share. 

            D. William H. Turner said that three members of the Cleveland
chapter will be attending the Washington Seminar. The chapter is looking in
to chartering a bus to transport people to the state convention that will be
held in Columbus this year. 

            E. Sherry R. reported that Lorain County chapter received two
proclamations for Braille literacy in January, Louis Braille's birthday
month. The chapter is working on an information seminar to be held in May.

            F. Shawn Martin said that Cuyahoga County is promoting Braille
instruction and opportunities to learn. 

            G. Rachel Kuntz said that the newly formed Greater Butler County
chapter held their first meeting in January. This chapter is working toward
holding a low vision fair in March. 

            H. Jordy Stringer gave the report for Capital Chapter. This
chapter is going to hold a seminar for scholarship information in March. The
chapter is continuing to grow in numbers and increased activities. We are
planning to be very active with the state convention that will be held in
our city later this year. 

            I. Sheri A. informed us that Deborah Kendrick, president of
Cincinnati, had a bad fall and is in Florida recovering. Lisa Hall, chapter
vice president, has stepped up to take the leading role of this chapter. 

            J. Debbie Baker said that Springfield is struggling to have
enough members in attendance at meetings to meet a quorum. Without a quorum
business can not be transacted. Their quorum is ten. The chapter is
considering putting together a cookbook as a fundraiser. The president of
the chapter, Susan Day, recently had back surgery. 

            8. The Buckeye Bulletin is nearing completion. Barbara is in
need of brief announcements for this issue. Please send these to her.

            9. Several people stated that they were interested in obtaining
a leadership list in Braille. Shelbi needs chapter membership lists in order
to put said list together. Please send these to her. This is in compliance
with the state constitution. 

            10. Melina Zavoli reported that sales from the Malley's
Chocolate campaigns have been dropping off. She has looked in to another
company that is located in North Canton, Wagners Chocolates. A memo was
sent, by Melina, to the board of directors and the members of the
fundraising committee. Barbara moved that we try selling chocolates from
Wagners for the upcoming Easter season. The motion was seconded by Sherry R.
It passed. Melina will take care of the details and post information on
OhioTalk when it is available. The company does have a website and there are
order forms available. 

            11. Shelbi reminded everyone of the ongoing fundraisers that the
state has. These are NFB Scrip Ohio and the NFB insulated tumblers. There
are 146 tumblers remaining to sell. 

            12. Walter Mitchell encouraged chapter presidents  to support
and encourage people to sign up for and use NEWSLINER services. He is
willing to attend chapter meeting to present the service if requested to do
so. 

            13. We are planning to hold a legislative day in Columbus. To do
this successfully there are three steps that need to be followed. These are
A. have an agenda; B. write fact sheets; and C. plan the details of the
trip. Representatives should be invited to chapter meetings so that we can
present our issues to them. If you are able to schedule a representative to
attend a meeting please let Richard and Sheri A. know. They would like to
either attend the meeting or call in to the meeting. Ideally we would like
to have a sponsor for each of our bills who is on the appropriate committee.
Our three issues are rights of blind parents, model for service animals, and
conditions of Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD). Barbara has
a cleaned up version of the rights of parents bill that she is able to email
to people upon request. It is thought that Marianne Denning has a version of
the Service Animal bill. 

            14. The next state board meeting will be held in person, on
Saturday, April 22, in Columbus. Shelbi will work to find an accessible
church for holding the meeting. It will start at 10:00 a.m.

            15. Joe Magers reported on the Seneca County fair minimum wage
law suit. The settlement was mostly successful. Unfortunately we were not
granted attorney fees. 

            16. The meeting adjourned promptly at 9:00 p.m. 

Respectfully,

Shelbi Hindel                 

I received this information below and thought it would be of interest to
some of you.  This is due by April 14, 2017.

Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) is accepting comments about its
plans of transportation throughout Ohio.  ODOT's Statewide Transportation
Improvement Program
http://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Planning/STIP/Pages/default.aspx Was
developed in consultation with Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO) and
Rural Transportation Planning Organizations around the state. 

Notable sections in the plan include:

Air Quality Conformity; Public Involvement; Projects & Programs; Transit;
Operations & Maintenance; Performance Measures; and Finance.

You may offer your thoughts by attending regional public meetings in
locations in the 12 ODOT regions. See meeting schedule here:
http://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Planning/STIP/Pages/STIP2018-2021Public
InvMeeting.aspx

You may also email written comments Natasha.Turner at dot.ohio.gov
<mailto:Natasha.Turner at dot.ohio.gov>  <mailto:Natasha.Turner at dot.ohio.gov> 

Or submit here:
http://www.dot.state.oh.us/Divisions/Planning/STIP/Pages/2018-2021-Draft-STI
P.aspx 

Richard Payne, president NFB of Ohio