[Ohio-Talk] Convention thoughts and thanks

[Annette Lutz]

Hello NFB of Ohio,

 

I didn't know that it was possible to be so energized, and yet so exhausted
at the same time, but that is exactly how I am feeling now after our 73rd
NFB of Ohio Convention.  It was a great weekend, and I am looking forward to
the upcoming year to continue the work of the Federation.

 

I did want to take the time to thank a few people who helped me and my
chapter as the host chapter make everything that we did possible.

 

First of all, I would be remiss if I didn't thank our President, Richard
Payne and our Vice President Sheri Albers and the members of the convention
planning committee for putting together the entire weekend.  I know that
there is a lot of details that need to be sorted out for a convention such
as this to appear to be held smoothely and without complications, but I
understand that behind the scenes it is always not the case, and I know that
this is a challenge to deal with.

 

As the host chapter, we were responsible for various aspects of the
convention, and I want to thank the members of my chapter who helped out
with various tasks, but especially Eric Duffy for organizing the hospitality
room, and Ruth Boggs for assisting with everything that needed to be done to
make everything hospitality run smoothely.  

 

I want to also thank the members of the Greater Akron chapter for manning
the registration tables, so that our small chapter could focus on other
tasks.  I know that it is traditional for the host chapter to do this as
well, but we are grateful that you were able and willing to pitch in and
help with this.

 

I want to thank Eric and Shelly Duffy for doing the pre-convention training
for the hotel staff.  They were not the original ones who were supposed to
do this, but due to scheduling diffaculties, they agreed to step in at the
last minute.

Over the past few years now, I have been pleased to take care of the door
prizes and auction items.  This is a fun assignment that I enjoy quite a
bit, but I couldn't pull it off on my own, so I would like to thank a few
people for their help.

 

For the door prizes, I would like to thank Jim Sheets for his help all
weekend in making sure that everyone got their winnings delivered to them,
and for always bringing me back the microphone.  

 

I would also like to thank Misty Hatcher for her help in organizing
everything that came in, and just being my right hand girl.  

 

As for the auction, I could have not pulled it off without Eric Duffy for
taking notes of everything that sold and to whom it went and for how much,
and to Bret Cassy for manning the credit card app to collect payments.  

 

Lastly, and probably most importantly, I want to thank all of the chapters,
divisions, and individuals who donated items for both the auction and the
door prizes.  We had a lot of really cool stuff this year, and I believe
that everyone was pleased.

 

When you take on an endeavor like trying to thank everyone for their help,
you undoubtly forget someone that should have been mentioned, so if you
helped me and I did not mention you, please forgive me and know that your
assistance was still very much appreciated.

 

Now for a couple of thoughts.

 

Like I said, I believe that it was a great weekend, but there was a couple
of things that caught my attention that I wanted the group to know about,
and hope to improve on in the future.

 

First of all, I was very disappointed that when Representative Croley spoke
that she said that she had only received 5 written testimonies for our
Parental Rights bill.  We had over 130 people registered for convention, and
to know that such a small number had taken the time to submit a few words in
support of this vital legislation was disappointing.

 

Second, I wanted to share a story with you.  I didn't stay at the hotel
overnight since I live so close, so I didn't join everybody at breakfast.
>From what I understand, it was pretty crazy.  I had one of our members (I
didn't catch his name) come into the prize room where I was and tell me that
he had left the breakfast because it was so crowded.  He then told me that
he had overheard one of the servers make the statement that "these people
should have brought someone to help them."  This comment has been bothering
me all weekend for many reasons.  First of all, this means that some of our
members were probably relying a little too much on the wait staff to help
with the buffet, instead of relying on their own skills or those of other
Federationists to help them.  But even more than that, in a roomful of
capable and independent blind people, a sighted person still believed that
we were incapable of helping ourselves and that we should have brought
someone in essence to take care of us.  This just tells me that, even though
we have come a long way, the Federation still has a long way to go, and a
lot of work to do to show people what we are truly capable of.  

 

So, enough of my negative comments.

 

Lastly, I want to thank the NFB of Ohio for electing me to serve once again
on our Board of Directors.  I am looking forward to the next two years to
continue to grow the Federation and do the vital work on our behalf.

 

I pray that all of you made it home safely, and I am looking forward to
seeing all of you at convention in 2020!

 

Let's go build the Federation!

 

Annette Lutz

President

Capital Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

614-288-4323

annettelutz at att.net

 

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future.  Everyday, we raise the
expectations of blind people because we know that low expectations are
obstacles between blind people and our dreams.  You can live the life you
want, blindness is not what holds you back.