[Ohio-Talk] Reminders and general information.

Mon May 23 13:12:16 UTC 2022

Greetings,

This year is moving very fast and I can not keep up with what has been a
busy few month's  for the Federation. It is so much happening across the
country and on the home front. I have hoped that we all would be attending
the National Convention in New Orleans. However, if you are on the fence,
get off and let's go! 

You will find a lot of information in this email to keep us all up to date
and on the same page. Please read the information that is below and on the
Buckeye Brief that Barbara Pierce emailed to the Ohio Talk Listserve.

As a reminder, Chapters and Divisions have been instructed to amend their
constitutions to become uniform. Most of you have either talked with me or
were at the state bboard meeting when the policy was adopted by the Ohio
Affiliate Board of Directors. Please, if you have questions, contact me or
someone in leadership off list for clarification.

Moreover, regarding the National Convention, the agenda will be forth coming
soon. As I understand it will be in June. So, please visit the convention
page to get up to date information at WWW.NFB.ORG/Convention
<http://WWW.NFB.ORG/Convention> . Also, during the festivities in New
Orleans, each state will have a caucus.  Therefore, we will have such a
meeting and when I find out more information, you will be the first to know.

The business of the Ohio Board of Directors during convention time is to
support the organizations mission.  So, the Ohio Board of Directors mailed
$400.00 to the National Office to assist with door prizes. I am requesting
that all Chapters and individuals make donations to offset this cost. Please
mail a check to Ohio state Treasurer,  Todd Elzey' address at 3779 Waterbury
Dr., Dayton, Ohio 45439 to mail a check. 

Another reminder is that the Ohio State Convention will be November 4-5-6 in
Independence Ohio. The Convention Planning Committee is already begun
working on the festivities. Our 76th Convention will be held at the
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, 6200 Quarry Ln., Independence, Ohio 44131, (216)
447-1300. You now can reserve your room for $104 per night plus tax. Call
1.855.610.8733. The Booking Link:
https://www.hilton.com/en/book/reservation/deeplink/?ctyhocn=CLEHSDT&groupCo
de=CDTFOB&arrivaldate=2022-11-03&departuredate=2022-11-06&cid=OM,WW,HILTONLI
NK,EN,DirectLink&fromId=HILTONLINKDIRECT.

Critical Convention Actions:
	Convention Registration and Hotels:
	Time is running out! Just two weeks left to register online for
convention and to book your hotel room. You can register to attend
convention in person and purchase your banquet tickets at
https://nfb.org/registration until May 31. Prices go up if you wait until
you arrive in New Orleans. And don't wait any longer to make your
reservations. Space at the Marriott has filled up but there are still rooms
available at the convention rate right across the street at the New Orleans
Sheraton. Call 888-627-7033 and ask to book a room for the "NFB Convention."
Please note that this is a different number than originally published in the
Braille Monitor. The convention rate and our room block disappear after May
31, so don't delay!

	 Honor Roll Call:
	Convention time is when affiliates and national divisions make
contributions to our four sustaining funds: Kenneth Jernigan Fund, SUN
Shares, White Cane Fund, and Jacobus tenBroek Memorial Fund. To make your
2022 contributions, please send a check payable to National Federation of
the Blind. Mail it to 200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, Maryland, 21230,
Attention: Fiscal Services - Roll Call and write "Roll Call" in the check
memo. Please send an email to rollcall at nfb.org <mailto:rollcall at nfb.org>
detailing the amount to go to each fund and the name of the organization so
that we record the contributions correctly. If your organization is making a
pledge to be paid later this year, please send an email to rollcall at nfb.org
<mailto:rollcall at nfb.org>  telling us how much is being pledged for each
fund and when we can expect the check. All pledges should be fulfilled by
August 31.

	Share Feedback-Help Track the PAC Survey:
	Whether you donate to the National Federation of the Blind through
the Pre-Authorized Contribution (PAC) Program or not, your feedback is
needed to help improve the program for the organized blind movement. Please
complete the five-minute survey and share it with members and supporters.
Take the PAC survey now online <https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/nfb-pac>  or
by phone. To complete the survey by phone, call 229-632-7878 or toll-free
833-632-7878. Please note that the phone number provides the survey in an
automated system and will require the survey to be completed in one session.
There is an option to pause the survey for five minutes and the pause can be
extended as needed. Push # for help.

News:
	Congratulations to the 2022 Scholarship Program Finalists!:
	Each year the National Federation of the Blind is proud to honor
blind scholars, all of whom are raising expectations and expanding
possibilities. On May 12, we announced the 2022 scholarship finalists. The
scholarship program provides financial assistance and connects students with
mentoring and other resources. Meet the finalists and learn about their
vocational goals
<https://nfb.org/about-us/press-room/celebrate-outstanding-blind-students-20
22> .

	Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act (H.R. 4853):
	Thanks to your calls and emails, we gained four new cosponsors last
week on the Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act (H.R. 4853). They are
Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-At Large), James McGovern
(MA-02), and Al Lawson (FL-05). These representatives bring our total number
of cosponsors up to 53. Well done!

	Access Technology Stories and Experiences for Congress:
	We're trying a new, more personalized, strategy in our advocacy for
the Access Technology Affordability Act (H.R. 431/S. 212). We want to gather
quotes and short stories from our members all across the country who use
access technology on a daily basis about how important it is to them.
Conversely, we are also looking for quotes and short stories which
illustrate how prohibitively expensive access technology can be. The idea is
that we can then take these stories straight to members of Congress from all
states and show them how this issue affects their constituents, and how
important it is for them to support and pass the Access Technology
Affordability Act. Please send your quotes to Jeff Kaloc at jkaloc at nfb.org
<mailto:jkaloc at nfb.org> . 

	Access Barriers in UC Berkeley's Free Online Content:
	In alignment with its 2016 Letter of Findings, the DOJ is interested
in speaking with individuals with disabilities who have experienced barriers
in accessing UC Berkeley's free online content-its YouTube channel, iTunes U
platform, and massive open online courses (MOOCs) referred to in the letter
as UC BerkeleyX. Please email UC.Berkeley at usdoj.gov
<mailto:UC.Berkeley at usdoj.gov> , with copy to legal at nfb.org
<mailto:legal at nfb.org> , to share your experience with the DOJ and request a
copy of the Letter of Findings.

	Mark Riccobono Keynote Speaker for ICT Accessibility Testing
Symposium:
	On Monday, May 16, President Riccobono was the keynote speaker for
the ICT Accessibility Testing Symposium, and he discussed the Blind Driver
Challenge-its impact on technology, accessibility, and new possibilities for
independence. Review and share the symposium keynote speech that is
available on YouTube <https://youtu.be/mEmwW5duQhs?t=1740> .

	Upcoming June Presidential Release:
	The next Presidential Release will take place Wednesday, June 1, at
8:00 p.m., eastern. The monthly Presidential Release provides important
updates and perspectives of the organized blind movement, and the live event
includes a Q&A session. Submit questions in advance to cdanielsen at nfb.org
<mailto:cdanielsen at nfb.org>  and put PR517 in the subject line, or call
410-659-9314, extension 2473. Zoom details coming soon.

	Submit an Article for the Braille Monitor-No Experience Needed:
	The National Federation of the Blind is seeking articles for the
Braille Monitor that focus on your lived experiences. Share a blind moment
or a strategy that other blind people should know about. To learn more or
submit an article, connect with Gary Wunder, Braille Monitor editor, at
gwunder at nfb.org <mailto:gwunder at nfb.org> .  

	Raffles as Fundraisers:
	We are seeing postings about raffles on some of our listservs. We
urge anyone who wants to run a raffle to first check their state and local
regulations and comply with all laws and regulations when running a raffle.
Note that some states prohibit internet gambling entirely, so we can't
advertise via the internet in those states at all. Also, many payment
processors like PayPal prohibit their use for raffle-proceed processing.
Please be aware that raffles are highly regulated. We have to figure out the
laws and should fully comply if we wish to use raffles as fundraisers.
PayPal locks accounts if they discover that the account is being used to
process raffle proceeds. For more information on PayPal policies see
https://www.paypal.com/za/smarthelp/article/what-gambling-activities-does-pa
ypal-prohibit-faq915.

Dates to Keep in Mind:
(all times eastern)
*	May 31: Convention registration
<https://nfb.org/civicrm/event/register?reset=1&id=479>  closes
*	June 1: Presidential Release
*	June 6: Resolutions are due to the committee chair
*	June 21: Convention career fair registration closes
*	July 5-10: 2022 National Convention
<https://nfb.org/get-involved/national-convention> , New Orleans

Richard Payne,  President
National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
937/829/3368
Rchpay7 at gmail.com <mailto:Rchpay7 at gmail.com> 
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.