[NFBA-Phoenix] Fwd: [Nfbaz-news] Are you ready for state convention?

[Brad Kuhn]

Sent from my iPhone

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Tarik Williams via Nfbaz-news <nfbaz-news at az.nfb.org>
> Date: August 18, 2019 at 10:39:37 PM MST
> To: "nfbaz-news at az.nfb.org" <nfbaz-news at az.nfb.org>
> Cc: Tarik Williams <TWilliams at saavi.us>
> Subject: [Nfbaz-news] Are you ready for state convention?
> Reply-To: webmaster at az.nfb.org
> 
>  
> Are you getting excited about our upcoming state convention? I know we are! First things first, make sure you pre-register at http://www.az.nfb.org/2019reg!  If you haven’t gotten the convention fire yet, we will be posting some convention stories throughout the coming days to fuel your fire! The hashtag for this convention is #nfbaz2019 make sure you use it in all of your post on Facebook and Twitter so that our state convention fills the net! If you would like to share your story please contact PR chair, Tarik Williams at williams.tarik20 at gmail.com.
>  
> Our first post is from our state secretary and education committee chair, Colin Song Wong.
>  
> It was September of 2017 and my first day at SAAVI Services for the Blind. They told me my first day of work was to work at the National Federation of the Blind of Arizona State Convention. I was ready to bring everything that I learned in Louisiana to make Arizona my new home.
>  
> I remember sitting vividly in philosophy at the Louisiana Center for the blind listening to Louisiana President Pam Allen inform everyone that we will be attending the Louisiana State Convention in a couple weeks. I was a Graduate Student at the time working on becoming a Cane Travel Instructor. My first thought was that this had nothing to do with me. I should be practicing cane travel or teaching students. That was what I was here for. That was what I signed up for. Once President Allen talked about all the benefits of the State Convention, I was highly skeptical of the benefits the Convention could provide and I could not have been more wrong.
>  
> During the course of the weekend, the amount of things I learned and the people I met was indescribable. I learned positive philosophy while I was going through Graduate School but this convention was the first place I learned what the National Federation of the Blind truly was.
>  
> My most memorable experience was when a family of a blind child asked me if I could teach them how to use a cane so they could help their daughter. I learned they were not from Louisiana but they came to Louisiana as a place of refuge because they lost all hope in their school system. In other words, their daughter was not getting the help she rightfully deserved and they had to seek out assistance from the NFB. This story was too common. I often reflect on this story when leading the Education Committee for the NFB of Arizona.
>  
> During general session, the portions of convention where business is handled and where speakers, public interest groups, and representatives of other organizations who have been asked to speak are given the opportunity. A speech that resonates with me was regarding a student who flew across the country to attend the Louisiana Center for the Blind. She described the lack of services in her area and how grateful she was for the National Federation of the Blind and what LCB provided her. I could feel the passion in her voice and when she explained the frustration of what she had to deal with growing up in order to be where she is today. I could not have been more moved by the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind. She said that the NFB brought hope to the hopeless and that was what ignited my passion to do all that I can for the NFB.
>  
> Louisiana was where my passion was formed but Arizona was where my passion started to shine. I came in and saw hundreds of strangers and this is where my first misconception was. The thing about the National Federation of the Blind is that no person in the organization is a stranger. The National Federation of the Blind calls itself a family and its conventions are family reunions. Despite not knowing anyone and feeling slightly overwhelmed, people that I knew came and started introducing me to new people. It is an amazing feeling when you can step into a new area and find family in unfamiliar places.
>  
> The first seminar that I recall attending was the blindness professionals meeting. I am a cane travel instructor. This was a very important meeting for me because I need to know who had the same thoughts and ideas as me within the blindness profession within Arizona. Just like with any meeting that you go towards in the convention, there were people who supported the same ideas that I did, there were people who were opposed to my ideas, but the most important feeling was that my ideas could be heard and respected. That was what the NFB was to me. It was bringing like-minded people together but providing room for people to share their own ideas. It was place of respect, understanding, and personal blindness development.
>  
> Every convention, I feel I have learned all I can. I can finally be a role model to people and I have nothing left to learn. The truth is, people never stop learning and I have learned that at these conventions. From every parent’s stories about raising a child, to every advocate fighting for blind rights, and to everyone in the Students’ Division pursuing higher education; I have learned so much from the stories and experiences of people. That is what makes the NFB special to me. Everyone is an expert and when you are at a convention, you are with every expert, living everyday lives, and making independence work for them and their families. The NFB was my family and the convention was my home, my school, and my spark to rejuvenate me for the rest of the year. As a blind man it is not easy being judged for your actions, confused at what opportunities are out there, and find people who understand what blindness independence truly means. I was forced to go to my first State Convention and it was the greatest experience that President Allen could have provided me. She opened the doors and Arizona President Donald Porterfield kept it opened.
>  
> State conventions are one of the most important events that the National Federation of the Blind puts up. The National Convention is the greatest blindness convention that exists where all people dealing with blindness around the world are welcome. In such a diverse environment, often times individual issues are not addressed for larger issues that affect more people. However, the National Federation of the Blind understands that issues regardless of how big or small are important to address and the State Convention are where localized issues can be resolved, where you can meet like-minded people in your area, and where you can start making a difference within the organization. The NFB is a grassroots organization and the efforts on the State Level are what affect the blind in your area. The NFB promotes security, opportunity, and equality for the blind and this was accomplished in every State Convention that I have been a part of. My voice and the issues that I have faced have never been heard more than within the NFB and I highly recommend it to every blind person who wants to live the lives they want instead of the life they are given.
>  
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