Quarterly Magazine of the CALIFORNIA COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
Summer, 2007, Volume 51, No. 3
Published in Braille, Large Print, Cassette, Diskette, Online, and Email
Call the CALIFORNIA CONNECTION at 800-221-6359 for an update on legislation and CCB events Monday through Friday after 4 p.m. and all day on weekends. You may listen to either English or Spanish versions.
Members are requested and nonmembers are invited to pay a yearly subscription fee of $10 toward the printing of THE BLIND CALIFORNIAN.
If you or a friend would like to remember the California Council of the Blind in your Will, you can do so by employing the following language:
"I give, devise, and bequeath unto the California Council of the Blind, a nonprofit charitable organization in California, the sum of $____ (or ____) to be used for its worthy purposes on behalf of blind persons."
If your wishes are more complex, you may have your attorney communicate with the Executive office for other suggested forms. Thank you.
In accepting material for THE BLIND CALIFORNIAN, priority will be given to articles concerning the activities and policies of the California Council of the Blind and to the experiences and concerns of blind persons. Recommended length is under three pages; if space constraints make it necessary to divide an article, every effort will be made to discuss the matter with the author before publication.
The deadline to submit material for the fall, 2007 issue of the BLIND CALIFORNIAN is September 1.
Please send all address changes to the Executive Office.
[Editor's note: This excellent article is published here in lieu of my Editor's Page as we are really short on original material.]
You will read elsewhere in this issue about the Publications Committee and the awards it bestows each year. I write as the grateful recipient of one of them this year: the beautifully designed plaque is hanging over my desk as I write this. What we all wish, though, is that there would be many more articles to consider from each of the four issues of THE BLIND CALIFORNIAN each year. The magazine belongs to CCB members; and, while reading it brings important matters to our attention often with items taken from the Internet, it should also provide us with articles by individuals telling of their personal experiences, ambitions, and reactions.
You may be saying right off: "I just have nothing to write about," but that view is really not true. Let's start with book reviews since it was a review of the marvelous biography of Louis Braille written by Michael Mellor that won for me my award.
Surveys show that blind and visually impaired people read considerably more than do average sighted persons of similar age and education. Our most popular Library Users luncheons were those at which everyone present named a favorite book and author; the BC often contained a full list so that readers could take advantage of these choices. Wouldn't it be interesting, therefore, to have enough people sending in book reviews that one could appear in each BC issue'
In a book review, you must include the title, author, and, since we now have so many different sources for reading, where the book can be read by those who are attracted by your review. You should prepare a brief summary of the book and why you found it significant; and if you can quote a passage or two, that's a good idea since it gives something of the flavor of the book.
We have other common areas of interest, too, since everyone who reads the BC is in some way connected with visual impairment. The article winning the lifestyle award this year by Sylvia Lopez is an excellent example; for every adult who experiences a major lessening of sight has a story that is unique. Readers who have had similar occurrences in their lives find encouragement and support from such articles so the writer does a real service by his/her work.
Most of the writing on vision loss is done by adults who come to know the experience all too well, but wouldn't it be interesting to hear of people who spent their childhood years with little or no sight' How did they enter into school, neighborhood, and community activities' For the many young people who never attended state schools for the blind or special day classes and were mainstreamed throughout their school life, how do they judge their experience in retrospect, and what would they recommend for parents and children just beginning their education'
Humorous incidents that occur to every blind and visually impaired individual constitute a well-known column in DIALOGUE MAGAZINE, called Abapita: Ain't Blindness a Pain in the Anatomy. We couldn't steal that clever title, but our BC editor could come up with an equally arresting one; he might even initiate a contest for such a title. These would be short articles focused on a single event that would bring a smile to the reader.
Articles dealing with an individual's concerns in some of the various areas of technology that affect our lives are popular. I'm thinking at the moment of the fact that all analog cell phones will need to be replaced by digital instruments by February of 2008. The would-be purchaser will need to know of the features that are absolutely necessary in the new phone, the initial cost of the phone related to the cost of the monthly services that are available, and the relationship between the costs of those two aspects of cell phone selection. You can mention the sources you used to arrive at your decision; your experience would be a real help to someone needing a similar device.
Articles of that kind, I feel sure, could be written by members who have purchased microwave ovens, washing machines, braille notetakers, screen-reading programs, and the rash of new digital media players.
Physical exercise is an area that probably presents more challenges for visually impaired persons than for sighted people. Letting other people know of the value you place on regular physical exercise and suggestions of ways in which readers can improve their opportunities would be valuable. You may be familiar with weight-loss programs, services offered by personal trainers who come to the home, or devices that can be purchased to strengthen various parts of the body.
Now that we've established some subjects for articles, let's discuss writing itself. The hardest thing about it is to sit down at a desk and begin. The task is certainly much easier for those with a computer and word processor, but there are also some disadvantages arising from that ease.
Most readers of the BC attended elementary school and wrote their first compositions before computers were available. We first wrote the piece completely; next read it to remove or add words or ideas; once more read it to see if upper case letters were used at the beginning of sentences and for proper names, periods at the ends of sentences, apostrophes when necessary, etc.; and then one final check to distinguish paragraphs. A paragraph should express some single aspect or thought concerning the subject, but it should not be more than 11 lines, for the reader needs a break. Too many short paragraphs aren't a good idea either, though sometimes they can't be avoided, since each personal quotation and source must be paragraphed separately.
In my many years of teaching English, I requested that students read aloud their finished compositions because the ear is so adept at discerning awkward phrases and unnecessary repetitions.
Because use of the computer is so easy, many people think they can just write on the screen and call it a day; but that approach doesn't work. The several readings and checkings are still necessary to produce an attractive and interesting piece of writing. I've seen an article, for example, having only two or three paragraphs and one interview in which the name of the person being interviewed was mentioned countless times without taking advantage of pronouns like "she" or "her" to lessen the monotony. The speed in word processors can be slowed to allow for careful listening and checking, but the writer must also have some way of taking notes on what needs to be changed. Often leaving a day between the original composition and some of the re-reading helps the author's ability to detect when changes are necessary.
I suppose that the area that causes most writers concern is punctuation, especially when we are spending so much more of our reading time listening rather than having close contact with the words and symbols used. The Hadley School has a free punctuation course consisting of only nine or ten brief lessons that quickly reminds the student of what he once learned about commas, semicolons, and the like. To contact the school, telephone: 800-323-4238; Website: www.hadley-school.org; e-mail: info@hadley-school.org.
Let's have our editor flooded with original pieces for future issues of the BC!
Return to the Table of ContentsThis has been an interesting year for the California Council of the Blind. In terms of our advocacy efforts, as you will read later in this magazine, we are as busy as ever. If this were not the case, the internal matters that I will discuss in this article wouldn't matter because working to improve opportunities for Californians who are blind or visually impaired is what this organization is all about. Budgetary issues, our website, and our office relocation, my topics for this issue, are not the ends themselves but the means toward achieving those ends. So let's look at the present state of affairs with respect to financial matters and our new office, and then gaze into the future.
By the time you receive this issue of the BC, we will be firmly ensconced in our new offices, located at 1510 J. Street, Suite 125 in Sacramento. For those who may not know, our tollfree number, 800-221-6359, is unchanged, and our new local number is 916-441- 2100. We will be only six blocks from the State Capitol and just a few blocks further from a number of important state agencies, including, beginning late this summer, the headquarters of the Department of Rehabilitation, which is moving back into the downtown Sacramento area. California's manufacturers, farmers, funeral directors, nurses, teachers, and independent living center providers, just to name a few, have one thing in common: Their advocacy offices are located in Sacramento. Now CCB is on that list.
No longer will we require our Director of Governmental Affairs to work from home. Dan Kysor, our very able occupant of that position, is incredibly excited about something that hundreds and hundreds of individuals engaged in legislative advocacy take completely for granted: he has an office. This is advantageous for many reasons, just a few of which I shall touch upon.
First, the office address itself demonstrates that we intend to be a permanent force in the advocacy arena. It shows that we have a real presence and tends to enhance our image. Will image alone win us any victories' Of course not. Only blood, sweat, and tears, to coin a phrase, will do that; but image gives you a springboard. Secondly, if I may use another cliche, this one from my beloved sports world, it gives us a home court advantage.
Governmental Affairs staff will have the opportunity to initiate the holding of meetings in a pleasant office setting. This will provide CCB with far greater opportunities for dictating the agenda on issues of concern to us. I also envision future presidents and other CCB advocates, wherever they reside, being able to take advantage of our Sacramento meeting space when an extremely important issue arises.
There are limitations, of course. Like our Hayward office, it will not be a place for large gatherings. Having said that, I firmly believe that permanent relocation in the heart of Sacramento affords us other potential opportunities for growth in areas such as fundraising and public relations; but these discussions can wait for another time. In conclusion, an office is just a place for a business. It's what we do with that space in furtherance of our mission to improve the lives of persons who are blind and visually impaired that really matters.
Let's turn now to our virtual CCB headquarters: our website ccbnet.org. For quite some time, Dan Kysor has been ably handling our website duties on a voluntary basis, and we owe him a real debt of gratitude for stepping into the breach. We are finally able to free him from this task. I am thrilled to announce that we have obtained the assistance of an extremely well-qualified individual, Joel Isaacs, to serve as our webmaster. A CCB member and a person with low vision, Joel knows what it takes to ensure that the website is usable by those of us with no or limited vision. He has the expertise to know what we need to do to make our website attractive to the fully sighted: be they family members or friends of persons who are blind or visually impaired, perspective donors to CCB, or persons in the field of blindness. Our website can provide a means to enhance fundraising, increase public awareness about blindness issues and CCB, and provide a mechanism by which information can be disseminated to blind or low vision computer users throughout the world.
Like the office, the website can provide us with a good image, and if we follow that up with a good product in the broad sense of the term, our website can pay incredible dividends. I would urge you to provide Joel with suggestions, either by calling them into the office or e-mailing him directly at ccbnet.org. Given time and effort, the Sacramento office and an excellent, innovative website can, along with the continued commitment which our members have shown for more than 70 years, continue and even enhance the accomplishments of this organizations.
Our financial situation, although certainly not dire at this point, is of concern and should be discussed. Some might think I ought to address this first and then talk about the exciting changes with respect to our office and the website. In my view, the situation is more of a challenge to be overcome than an obstacle that can hinder our future.
Last year we broke even, and we have reserves that will provide us with a couple of years' time to replace some dwindling revenue streams. However, we cannot afford to be complacent. There is much work to be done, and we must all share in that work. For those who can afford to do so, life membership, which costs only $200 and can be paid in annual installments of $40, is a great way to help the organization. It has the additional benefit of helping your chapter since no dues need be paid to the state for a life member. The Monthly Monetary Support (MMS) program provides another mechanism. Under this program from the American Council of the Blind, you can have a monthly amount of your choice deducted from your bank account, and up to one-half of this amount can be designated for CCB, thus helping both organizations.
Contributions, however, are only one way in which you can help. Provide us with fundraising ideas, give us your contacts or talk to potential donors. These are just a few of the things you can do. Perhaps your chapter has the ability to do one fundraiser a year to help the state organization. I am confident we will succeed in shoring up our fiscal situation and, in doing so, not only will we enhance our long-term financial stability, but because of our accomplishments, we will find ourselves an organization with greater unity and pride.
It is, indeed, an exciting time for CCB. The months ahead will provide us with some incredible opportunities to build membership and financial strength, raise public awareness and, most importantly, continue making important strides in our advocacy activities. Let's take full advantage of these opportunities and enjoy the ride.
Return to the Table of ContentsDear CCB members: CCB and its lawyers have contacted the Cinemark Theater chain regarding the company's failure to install descriptive video equipment in its California theaters. If you have been to a Cinemark movie theater in Northern California (which include Century theaters) and would like to be able to watch described movies there, or if you live near a Cinemark movie theater in Northern California and would attend movies there if they had video description, our lawyers, Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian, would like to speak with you. You can call them at Linda's office at 800-822-5000 or send an email to lfeingold@earthlink.net or info@gdblegal.com.
If you are not sure whether you've been to a Cinemark movie theater, please call the CCB office at 800-221-6359 for the location nearest you.
Return to the Table of ContentsFrom Marilyn Koehler: To: Jeff Thom, Board of Directors, Cathy Skivers, Ed Branch and all of my wonderful friends at CCB: As you all know, Thursday, May 31, is my last day working for CCB. But each and every one of you will hold a special place in my heart. I will miss each and every one of you. I have spent over seven wonderful years with CCB, and they were some of the most wonderful and happy years of my life, and I will cherish them a lot. My coworker, Ed Branch, is an awesome friend and coworker, and the person who takes my place in Sacramento will be very fortunate to work with him.
Leaving CCB brings tears to my eyes as I do not want to leave, but I am unable to move. I have shed many tears over the idea of having to leave such wonderful people and this organization. I also want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for the most beautiful special award plaque that was presented to me at the Banquet at the spring convention in Sacramento. What a wonderful surprise, and I will hold each and every one of you in my heart, and thank you for everything.
Please keep in touch with me, I would love to hear from you. My home email is jkelvis@sbcglobal.net, and you can call Jeff, Cathy or Ed for my home phone number if you would like it. I would love to hear from all of you. I will miss you all so very much, and you all mean so very much to me. I have a saying: "When God closes a door, He opens another for you," so I know he has a job in mind for me.
I WILL MISS YOU ALL SO MUCH! Love, Marilyn Koehler
Return to the Table of ContentsThere is something for everyone at a CCB convention, and the spring 2007 event at the Arden West Hilton Hotel in Sacramento, held April 12-15, was certainly no exception. This report is not intended as a complete summary, but only a look at some of the highlights. Remember that much of the convention is archived on the web at www.ccbnet.org and that convention tapes are available to CCB members free of charge. Contact the office at 800-221-6359. [All of the convention audio streams can also be downloaded from www.acbradio.org/archives/ccb-2007/spring.]
The week began in the most appropriate way possible, with CCB members visiting their state legislators on Thursday morning to discuss various issues of concern to the blind and visually impaired of California: including bills sponsored by CCB, such as AB238, providing for reader services under the IHSS program and SB560 that provides for a study to be conducted on services to blind and low vision residents of the State Veterans Home. To those of you who either are unable to attend conventions or who have never had the opportunity to participate in one of our Capitol days, but you are visiting Sacramento for any reason, let Dan Kysor, our Governmental Affairs Director know; and he can help you plan to visit your legislator. Nobody knows our issues like you do, and its all of you that will make sure our voices are heard. I strongly suspect that next spring, with the convention again occurring in Sacramento, we will have another Capitol Day, and I hope we have the largest group ever.
Give and take may be the motto of Thursday afternoons at CCB conventions, and this year certainly fit that mold. Seminars were conducted by CCB's Rehabilitation Services and Technology Committees. Among the highlights of the Rehabilitation Services Committee seminar was a productive exchange of information from committee members and convention attendees on improving service quality and increasing the number of persons served by the Orientation Center for the Blind. Such discussions often hold the key to beginning a positive process for the promotion of needed change.
The CCB board of directors held its meeting Thursday evening. The board took a variety of actions, including adoption of the 2007 budget. Although many people do attend these meetings, I would encourage those of you who may look at these somewhat lengthy affairs as unimportant or boring to begin attending all or part of these meetings. The best way to learn about how the important internal decisions are made that affect each of us as CCB members is to observe the board in action. Not only can you comment at the end about any matter on your mind, you can knowledgeably inform any board member about things that you think are going well and others that you think should change.
The convention really gets rolling on Friday. This spring, like others in recent years, we had a large number of exhibitors, and every year brings a few new ones. When I made a quick tour of the exhibit room on Friday and Saturday mornings it was, as always, a very popular destination.
Under the indefatigable Gene Lozano, the Convention Committee has been working to provide us with the best possible agenda items. Nowhere was this more evident than with the presentations at our convention by the U.S. Access Board. Beginning with a joint workshop by the California Council of Citizens with Low Vision and the Committee on Access and Transportation, continuing during Friday evening's general session via telephone hook-up with Washington, D.C., and finally on Saturday morning, a wide variety of issues were discussed: from access to technology and the built environment to pedestrian safety. The information provided by Scot Windley during the weekend, and the input he received from convention attendees, made it a tremendously worthwhile experience.
The first General Session held Friday afternoon proved to be a great kickoff to the rest of the weekend. We were treated to a very enlightening panel discussion on the implementation of AB422, under which books must be provided in accessible formats by post-secondary institutions. In a continuing effort to provide you with the topics about which you are most interested, we again heard from someone in the medical field: this time Dr. John Keltner, an eminent eye researcher at the University of California, Davis. He summarized progress on many eye disease research projects; and at least from my perspective, he provided us with such an overwhelming amount of fascinating information that I was beginning to short-circuit.
Friday evening's session began with a tribute, presented by Cathie Skivers, to a recently deceased member of the CCB Hall of Fame: a great braille transcriber, and a truly beautiful person, Norma Schecter. The session also included reports on state and federal legislation, without which no convention would be complete. The highlight of the evening was an inspirational address to CCB by Chris Gray in his capacity of president of the American Council of the Blind. As his term will be ending in July, this will be the last time he appears before us in this capacity; but since we have nabbed him as our Treasurer, he won't be able to avoid future appearances.
I am not going into detail about Sunday's business meeting, although at least with respect to the resolutions adopted by the convention, you will be able to obtain more information in upcoming issues of the BC. However, I would like to say that the importance of our business meeting activities cannot be overstated, and I encourage attendees to do everything they can to stay for the entire morning. Whether it's learning about our finances from the Treasurer, determining whether to amend our constitution or acting on resolutions that determine the issues for which we will be advocating, this session is really the most important time of our convention.
We are already engaged in planning this fall's convention to be held at the LAX Four Points Sheraton Hotel; 9750 Airport Blvd; Los Angeles, CA 90045; Reservations: 310-645- 4600. Not only do we hope to see you there, but remember that the quality of conventions is largely dependent upon your ideas for convention topics and on how we can improve.
Return to the Table of Contents[from the May, 2007, SVCB in Touch newsletter]
Hello: I am an intern with the American Foundation for the Blind, and am working on a project related to cell phone accessibility. I have begun, and would like to continue, to compile a list of persons with vision loss who have had difficulty with obtaining and using their past, and/or current, cell phone.
Some of the problems I have found are the lack of knowledge of store employees about which phones are the most accessible, and how to obtain them. Some other problems are phones that have buttons that are hard to distinguish by touch, lack of documentation in accessible format, and difficulty in accessing on-screen information such as caller ID and phonebook.
Another finding was that there are few phones that have off the shelf accessibility features, and many that did proved to be only partially accessible. Lastly, the phones that could run accessibility software programs, such as Talks and Mobile Speak, were a small number and quite expensive.
Due to the large number of dissatisfied people, AFB is considering filing a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about lack of upholding Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act, which requires that cell phone manufacturers and service providers do all that is readily achievable to make each product or service accessible.
If you would like to voice your input, I would love to hear your concerns and ideas. Please call me at 888-824-2184, or e-mail me at tannis@afb.org.
Thank you; Tara Annis; American Foundation for the Blind; 888-824-2184; www.afb.org.
Return to the Table of ContentsMany of us feel that one of the highlights of the CCB spring convention is the presentation of awards and the induction of some people into our Hall of Fame.
It is my pleasure to be Chair of the Awards and History Committee. The members of this committee are outstanding and enjoy reviewing the nominations for award candidates as much as I do. The members of my committee are Roger Petersen, Gussie Morgan, Bernice Kandarian, Chris Gray, Al Gil, Don Queen and Joe Smith. Because I was banquet MC this time, we decided to have committee members introduce some of the awardees.
Roger Petersen presented the Distinguished Service award to Anita Aaron. She is Executive Director of the San Francisco Lighthouse for the Blind, and is well known for having helped that organization become an outstanding part of the community. The Lighthouse has many classes and meetings, and has responsibility for the Enchanted Hills Camp as well. But this was not why Anita was honored this time. San Francisco has been in the process of identifying some possible sites for pedestrian signals, and Anita has done a terrific job helping to ensure that those signals can be safely used by blind and visually impaired people. San Francisco is very lucky to have this lady who does such outstanding work for the blind, and it was our pleasure to give this award to her. She was very surprised and seemed quite pleased.
Chris Gray presented our next awards. Barbara Rhodes is a member of the Silicon Valley Council of the Blind which, of course, is a chapter of CCB. She has been known for years for her advocacy on many issues including transportation, accessible medical services and documentation of all kinds. She has been working very hard for some time to persuade the Kaiser Permanente system to provide patients with medicine bottles that would talk. This finally happened, and they are now carried by Kaiser throughout California. Barbara had nominated the leading pharmacist at the Santa Clara Kaiser facility and Kaiser Hospital for awards. The Committee felt it was only appropriate that the person who started it all have the award. Barbara was told to be sure to be on hand at the banquet so she could take some awards back to Kaiser in her area. Imagine her surprise when Chris presented her with the Community Service award! She was very pleased. Chris then had the Humanitarian Service award read for Gregory A. Smith, the pharmacist Barbara had nominated. Regrettably, no one from Kaiser was able to attend. So she willingly accepted the award for Mr. Smith. The Humanitarian Award was also presented to Kaiser Permanente for their leadership for providing this much-needed service.
Ida Johnson is a member of the Bay View Chapter. We were unable to persuade her to come to Sacramento, where she had earned the Merit Award. Members in attendance from the Bay Area were urged not to mention it to her, and the award was presented to Ida at the Bay View meeting the Saturday following our convention. Ida has driven countless miles and read literally thousands of things to blind and visually impaired people in the Bay Area. She has also served as Treasurer of several organizations in the Oakland and Berkeley areas. The members at the Bay View chapter meeting really enjoyed and appreciated Ida's having received this very much deserved award.
Because of the move of the office from Hayward to Sacramento, Marilyn Koehler will no longer be employed by CCB. She was presented an award for her dedication and assistance to all of us. She was very surprised and appreciates it very much.
Four people will be inducted into the CCB Hall Of Fame in 2007. Two of them were on hand at the convention, but the other two come from Southern California; and because they could not be with us, they will receive their awards in Los Angeles in October. You all had better be there, especially if you have done a lot of work for CCB, because we are not saying who gets those two awards until that time.
It was my pleasure to present the Hall of Fame plaques and name those who were with us at the banquet. Elmer Chapson, a dedicated member of CCB for decades, was quite surprised to find himself inducted into the Hall of Fame. For those of you who may not know him, he was employed as a counselor for the Dept. of Rehabilitation for 35 years. He speaks Spanish as well as English and so was able to assist many, many people. He was especially helpful and concerned about the needs of deaf-blind persons. He has served in many capacities in many chapters of CCB and is a member of the Silicon Valley chapter. I had a hard time trying to identify all the areas in which he has been such a friend to so many blind people. Frank Silva is a member of the Alameda County Chapter, and he was the next to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He joined CCB in 1938 and was on hand at this banquet. He will be 90 next year and has been in the California Council for 79 years. He was president of the Alameda county chapter several times and has served that chapter in other capacities. He was instrumental in helping establish the East Bay Center for the Blind, currently located in Berkeley. For someone who has been in the Council for 69 years, we are not going to have enough space to enumerate all of his great works. Frank's comment when he was inducted into the hall of fame may have been the most profound words we heard during the convention. He said, "I guess this shows, if you live long enough, youre going to win something."
The audience was very receptive when introduced to the award winners and hall of famers and greeted them with lots of applause and laughter and maybe a few tears, too. The awards committee urges you to start thinking about who you would like to see nominated for next year's awards. We are asking that you write a letter with your nomination, setting forth the reasons why you think your candidate is deserving of an award. It was decided by the committee that just submitting a name and leaving it to us to do the research is not what is needed.
Bernice Kandarian, publications chair, presented two awards from her committee, and these will appear elsewhere in these pages. There was also a presentation by Ardis Bazyn, chair of the Membership Committee, to a chapter winner, on which she will be reporting elsewhere in this issue.
Please get started on those award nominations, which are due by February 15, 2008, to our committee. That date will be here before you know it.
Return to the Table of ContentsWhen I was young, around sixteen and very needy, I was lucky enough to meet a very special person. Her name was Marie, and for several years she provided me with many things I needed. She gave me money and a place to stay when I needed one; but most important of all she gave me her friendship and was a caring person for the angry street urchin I was then. It was from her that I learned lots of things: about having fun, chasing men and partying; but the most important things I learned from her was how to survive as a blind person.
One of the first things I learned about Marie was that she was very involved with the active blind of California and the nation. It was with her that I went to my first convention of blind people and, though there was a lot of partying, having fun and all that aforementioned stuff, there was fund-raising, fighting for legislation, learning about my rights and just the learning in general that went on there.
As our friendship grew throughout the years, she became even more interested in helping blind people. Her first job--well at least one of her first jobs--in that field was at the Stanford Research Institute as a subject for research into blindness. She later held jobs at OCB as a dorm counselor, at CSB in some capacity or other, a counselor/teacher for Rehab, an employee of the Lighthouse for the Blind in San Bernardino, a braille teacher, and finally as a braille teacher at OCB.
Shortly after the new millennium began, her teaching career came to an end due to an illness that is hereditary. I don't know how many of you know about Huntington's disease. It is a disease that gets into families and is passed from one generation to the next. Formerly referred to as Saint Vitus dance because of the involuntary movements made by a body afflicted with this disease, it is in reality a total degeneration of the brain. The loss of brain function affects all areas: physical, emotional and mental. I have watched my friend go from an active and confident woman to a woman who just isn't able to participate in the things she used to love and to which she devoted her life. Since she can no longer travel alone due to her disorientation, and since she no longer feels comfortable around a lot of people, her participation in the conventions is a heartbreaking experience for her, not the happy and informative one it used to be.
A couple of years ago, Marie approached me and asked if I'd do something about writing an article for her and getting her some recognition. What she really wanted from me was to provide her with a way of saying goodbye to CCB and an explanation of why she could no longer be the active participant that she had been. I felt flattered but very shy and unable to do what she wanted, at the time she asked me so I told her that I couldn't do it because I didn't know how. She accepted that and there things were left until after we had attended this spring convention. She says she will never attend another one because she just saw that things had moved on and she was no longer a part of them.
Of course she is right, life does go on and none of us can, or would want to, stop, that movement: certainly not Marie. In the course of the continuation of the things we do, the living, we should never forget to stop and say "thank you" to someone who has given as much of herself to others as Marie has done. I am sharing this with all who will read this as my personal way of saying thank you from one of many who benefited so much from her giving. Marie Misao Hatanaka, I salute you and I love you. You have been one of the few role models in my life. I owe you and want to give you anything I have.
Return to the Table of ContentsDear California Council of the Blind First Timer Committee Members:
It was so nice meeting everyone and going to all the seminars, general sessions, lunches and dinners. I cannot tell you how much I learned and how interesting everything was.
The first day I was lucky enough to attend Capitol Day and observe how things ran and who to meet and talk to, and to know that I can make a difference.
I met so many people who, just through listening and observing, taught me so much. The speakers in all the meetings and seminars were so helpful and knowledgeable. I learned about the Guide Dog program and all that is involved. I learned about all the volunteers and how, without them, it would be all but impossible to get things done. I also learned about all the things your groups do to help others and all the many hats that some of you wear.
I was lucky enough to attend the banquet where, after all the wonderful awards were passed out, you had the most wonderful speaker. Not that everyone wasn't motivational, but he certainly was!
So now that my head is filled with all the wonderful experiences that I had, I know that there is so much more to do; and I will try; so I thank you so very much for the experience of a lifetime; and my groups will get an earful.
Yours Truly, Janet Farrar, your First Timer scholarship recipient
Return to the Table of ContentsEach year the Publications Committee recognizes excellence in writing by presenting two awards, one for a "lifestyle" article and one for an "issue-oriented" article. While the rules don't require that these be articles in the Blind Californian, so far they always have been. This year is no exception.
The best issue-oriented article of 2006 was Winifred Downing's "Review of Louis Braille: A Touch of Genius," about the new biography of the inventor of braille.
The best lifestyle article of 2006 was "My Unfinished Story" by Sylvia Lopez, an autobiographical piece about how she has faced the challenges that have arisen in her life.
The Publications Committee wishes to congratulate this year's two winning authors and urge members to submit material for future issues of the Blind Californian.
Return to the Table of ContentsHow do persons seeking employment learn of available jobs' How do employers today obtain applications from job seekers' What resources are available to help identify job openings and submit employment applications'
In my previous article in the spring 2007 issue of The BLIND CALIFORNIAN, I discussed expectations that employers have of job seekers and employees in today's labor market. In this article, I will touch on strategies for learning about potential openings, how today's employers acquire applications from job seekers and some resources for them.
Today, there are many more ways of learning about job openings than there were in the past. Traditionally, these openings were listed in "want" ads in the daily or weekly newspapers. They are still posted this way, but studies show that only a small percentage of employees actually find work through newspaper ads. Generally, positions listed in news papers are those which the employer is having great difficulty filling and often are part-time or lower salaried jobs. Newspaper ads should not be ignored, but other job- seeking strategies should be used concurrently.
Federal, State, or local governments can be a significant source of employment. At the Federal level, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is heading a national campaign to recruit persons with disabilities. The Department of Homeland Security has been seeking employees with disabilities since its creation. The Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration have a long history of hiring and accommodating persons who are blind or have low vision. The Schedule A hiring authority, which has been in place for years, can offer qualified disabled job seekers an opportunity to be selected for a time-limited appointment for which they meet the job qualifications regardless of where they are placed on the selection list. If the person successfully meets the work demands, this temporary appointment can be converted into a full-time, permanent one. Governors in several states are making the recruitment and accommodations of persons with disabilities a priority; and in several states, an employment coordinator has been designated. In addition, some counties and cities have focused efforts to recruit persons with disabilities.
Civil service job openings are usually posted on government personnel web sites. Hard copy announcements may also be available at government offices. A job seeker must carefully read job descriptions and qualification requirements to determine the details of the position as the job titles that are used are often so general that it is difficult to determine whether the position meets an individual's qualifications and interests.
Many employers now post job openings electronically on national websites such as careerbuilder.com, monster.com, jobsonline.net and others. Applicants can also post resumes on these sites and complete and submit applications. Of course, the Department of Rehabilitation can provide some assistance in the job search process and help to configure and adapt a workstation with the appropriate accommodations.
According to several studies, most people still find employment through connections with others. Networking takes effort, thought, persistence, tact, and skill; but is the proven best method for learning about jobs, even before they are posted. Family members, friends, acquaintances, and even people you meet casually while conducting ordinary business, may know of potential leads and the "right" person to contact. They may allow you to use their name to help introduce yourself; and in some cases, speak to the decision-maker on your behalf, thereby opening doors. It requires that the job seeker tactfully mention to anyone and everyone that he/she is looking for work. The more specific a person can be about the kind of job that is of interest, the better.
There are a number of online resources that might be helpful. I have included only a few.
The American Foundation for the Blind has extensive information and over 1000 employed blind or visually impaired persons who can help guide you in the selection of a career and in the job seeking process itself. You can go to www.afb.org and select the employment or the careerconnect link. The AFB website also has an extensive database of access technology equipment and software. The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) can assist the job seeker or prospective employer in selecting the most appropriate accommodations to make a workstation accessible. You can find a wide range of information at www.jan.wvu.edu. The Employer Assistance & Recruiting Network, EARN (www.earnworks.com), posts job openings from interested employers as well as resumes from job seekers.
All employers are experiencing difficulty in finding qualified employees, and that will only increase because of the massive retirement of baby-boomers in the next five to ten years. As I indicated in my previous Career Connection article, job seekers must understand the expectations that employers in all sectors have. Also, because of globalization, resulting in offshoring and outsourcing, jobs today require greater technical skills, interpersonal (also called "soft") skills, and the ability to multitask. Opportunities are expanding and a number of resources are available. Job-seeking is fulltime work, and securing the job you want rests with you.
Return to the Table of Contents[from the May, 2007, SVCB In Touch newsletter]
Menus That Talk (TM)--Restaurant Menus Get Table Smarts: Miami company introduces portable electronic menus that speak; uniquely serves the special needs of the visually impaired, elderly and non-English speaking guests
MIAMI, April 18 /PR Newswire--Taylannas Inc. announces the launch of an electronic restaurant menu system, Menus That Talk (TM), a portable, compact device, approximately the size of a DVD case, that speaks to restaurant guests, describing selected food items from the hand-held unit's illuminated buttons.
A lighted array of buttons displays major menu categories like DRINKS, APPETIZERS and SEAFOOD. Guests simply press a button corresponding to a category and hear brief descriptions of cuisine, wine suggestions, sides and prices. At the touch of a button, Menus That Talk describes what's for dinner.
No habla ingles' No problem: Just press the language button for Spanish or another language. No more squinting in dim light or turning page after page of complex printed menus. No more awkward conferences with busy waiters.
Ready to order: A Service button pages your waiter. For the visually disabled, the buttons are also imprinted in braille. Guests who can't see the button names and don't use braille can browse the menu simply by tapping buttons to hear categories. Another tap brings up the details.
In noisy restaurants or for the hearing-impaired, Menus That Talk features a detachable hand-held earphone. The earphone also interfaces with Tele-coil equipped hearing aids.
Menus That Talk (TM) serves the needs and comforts of all restaurant patrons with its simple layout, ease of use and ability to deliver voice anywhere in the restaurant. Benefits for the restaurants include streamlining menu selections, reducing server assistance time and bringing the menu to a larger, appreciative audience.
"Menus should be able to communicate without being a challenge," said President and CEO Susan Perry. "We're making a restaurant's entire menu available to all its customers, and we're making it a pleasurable experience."
The idea originated in an Olive Garden restaurant where Ms. Perry was having lunch with her niece Jessica, a pretty 24-year-old with advanced macular degeneration who cannot read a menu from any distance. Jessica asked her aunt to please read the menu to her. Susan had forgotten to bring her reading glasses. They laughed about it, but Susan thought, "Why shouldn't menus be able to talk'"
Menus That Talk (TM) premieres to the public at the National Restaurant Association show in Chicago, May 19-22, 2007.
More: www.menusthattalk.com. Contacts: Susan Perry, President, CEO: susan.perry@menusthattalk.com, 305-255-9600; Richard Herbst, VP Marketing: richard.herbst@menusthattalk.com, cell: 786-449-9351. Source: Taylannas Inc.
[Editor's note: I inquired how restaurant owners will use the service. This is the response from Richard Herbst:
Restaurants will be supplied directly with units. We also provide a scripting service for transcribing their in-house menus to voice. An on-line authoring service permits them to create menus literally from scratch, beginning with selecting names for each of the buttons, followed by descriptions of the cuisine along with prices. Restaurants can use this service to create their own talking menus or they can ask us to provide this service for them. Services also include translation to foreign languages and updates to menu content.]
Return to the Table of ContentsAs I write this article, my thoughts go back to when I arrived in California from Texas in 1967. I met Jewel McGinnis in 1968. She impacted my life in various ways including my first mobility lesson pertaining to traveling in San Francisco.
I was pleased when Jewel asked me to serve on the California Employment Assistance committee, which she served as its president. We also worked on the Para-transit Coordinating Council Executive Committee for San Francisco Para-transit, and I was proud to be on the board of directors of the Blind San Franciscans Inc. at her recommendation.
Jewel and her husband Jim founded Blind San Franciscans, which granted no-interest loan requests to qualified blind and visually impaired persons to purchase needed equipment to improve the quality of their lives. She was also instrumental in starting Broadcast Services for the Blind, where volunteers read such things as ads for Walgreens, news articles, job listings, and other items of information.
Jewel was not the only advocate for the blind; but from what I have observed, she was the best. She often expressed concern that the blind should have the best: be it education, technology or anything else to be gainfully employed and independent. To quote a friend: "She was fearless." She was often the first to step up to speak out for the rights of the disabled. I admired her for the courage and willingness to help others whenever she could.
Thank you Cathie Skivers for acknowledging my friendship with Jewel and offering me the privilege to reflect on her life and all the good that she has done for all of us.
Return to the Table of ContentsCongratulations to the Braille Revival League of California for winning the Spring Membership Incentive Award! This award is presented at every CCB spring convention to the chapter or affiliate having the highest membership-increase between the two spring conventions. The BRLC affiliate jumped from 29 members last year to 47 members this year. We want to remind all of you that the Fall Membership Incentive Award will be presented to a chapter or affiliate with the largest increase in membership between the 2007 spring and fall conventions.
The Chapter of the Year Award is generally presented by the CCB Membership Committee at the spring convention to a chapter that conducts a group effort to make a significant difference in the life of an individual or the community. This award is given to the chapter with the best overall chapter project for the previous year. We are accepting letters for projects developed and completed in 2006 or 2007. Please submit letters to the executive office by February 15, 2008. In the letter, explain the group chapter project, its time-line, and the year completed. We would like to be able to present awards for both years provided we receive enough letters from chapters.
At this spring's CCB Membership Seminar meeting, we discussed having the Membership Seminar as a breakfast meeting on Saturday morning at 7 a.m. Most participants felt a joint membership and public-relations focus would be beneficial since both relate to outreach. The Public Relations Committee later agreed that this would be a good idea. There will be more information about this later this year.
Increasing membership among seniors was another topic at the seminar. People over the age of 55 are the fastest growing population of blind persons, and most agreed that personal contact was the best way to reach this group. It was suggested that chapters should consider calling local senior centers and inquiring if they could hold an event there to meet seniors who are undergoing vision loss.
Perhaps a state plan or list of how-to topics could be developed to assist chapters. Possible items to include might be: using the CCB video, the senior brochure, CCB speakers, and a focus on multiple meetings. The multiple meeting strategy would also work for students since, if you had a second meeting in a month or a complete focus on seniors or students, you might get more interest from these groups. For a meeting planned for students, a student panel or employment workshop could be presented. For a senior focus, a panel about specific low- and high-tech assistive aids could be planned. Other topics might be transportation, housing and others relating to these groups.
Another suggestion to increase chapter membership was for members to describe to their doctors the support CCB gives to those losing their sight. Chapters could also attend networking and resource fairs to pass out pamphlets and provide resource lists to the community. Even if one or two members in a chapter could visit local senior centers, it could generate more interest in CCB.
Most seminar members thought a membership email listserv would be a way for chapters to stay connected between conventions and talk about membership ideas and each chapter would have a membership chair or designee participate. Please let Ardis know who that person is for your chapter or affiliate.
Why don't you start earlier this fall collecting dues for next year' Your chapter could hold a contest for those paying early. You can put the names of all who have paid by January 1 into a container and choose one for a free lunch at the next meeting or another prize. It's never too early to start thinking now how to build your chapter.
Return to the Table of ContentsHave you tried the Health Library at Vista Center' Our services are FREE for anyone in the blind/visually impaired community, including family, friends and rehab personnel.
Our volunteer staff of blind/VIP RN's and a professor offer individual Internet searches for health questions. The results are sent to you in your choice of large print, floppy, cassette, braille, e-mail or CD. We also run three e-mail research lists, on diabetes, glaucoma and AMD/Retina. Our menu of available items includes packs of information on the leading eye conditions in English and Spanish. We just launched the 2007 version of the BIRD--Blind Interest Resource Directory.
To make a request call us at 650-858-0202; from the 408 area: 800-660-2009; from the 831 area: 800-705-2970. Use mailbox #132 in all cases. You can also e-mail us at thl@vistacenter.org or go to www.vistacenter.org. Our postal address is: The Health Library, Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired; 2470 El Camino Real, Suite 107; Palo Alto CA 94306.
In your correspondence, include your name, phone number (with area code), request, and postal or e-mail address. We are in the office on Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Return to the Table of ContentsMany members ask what CCB has done in regard to voting issues in California. In this article, I will describe what has been done in the last few years and our continuing efforts in this area. A number of CCB members have participated in local advisory boards, in state hearings, and in certification open houses: where invited guests are asked to test new or updated voting equipment and give recommendations and/or comments. I urge you to continue or start participating whenever you have the opportunity to do so. While much has been accomplished, there is more work to be completed in the accessible-voting arena.
The disability and minority communities have often worked together, since both organizations represent populations that generally have fewer opportunities to have a private and independent vote. As a representative of CCB, I have participated in several press conferences, both in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Many issues have emerged regarding accessibility and security. Some advocates of security have constantly hounded officials about protecting the vote. Even advocates stressing accessibility have advocated strongly for security, but we have often felt others have not even considered solutions to both problems.
In 2003, Secretary of State Shelley appointed me to be a member of the Help America Vote Act Advisory Committee. I was given this responsibility since I had been a voting advocate for CCB in CA since 2000, particularly in the Los Angeles area. As an advocate, I had participated in the Los Angeles voter community outreach meetings and as a member of the California Voter Empowerment Circle.
The main task of this SOS Advisory Committee was to provide input to the Secretary of State for the California state plan in initiating the Help America Vote Act. In this legislation, there was a regulation that each state must write a state HAVA plan in order to receive federal funds for voting.
In this advisory committee, there were about twenty members who read drafts of material submitted by Secretary Shelley, his staff, advocates, and comments from the public. Hearings were held throughout the state and as many advisory committee members as possible attended them. They were held in Sacramento, Fresno, San Francisco, East Los Angeles, and San Diego. Besides providing general input, I focused most of my attention on accessibility issues, particularly those of interest to CCB.
Since several funding areas were specifically identified in the legislation, it was necessary to have some guidelines for each one. These included: voting systems certification, poll worker training, polling place accessibility, and voting standards. In each area, disability advocates added as many accessibility standards as possible by making sure that the words "private and independent" were stressed as in the original HAVA bill.
Of course, disability advocates had more stringent thoughts about the definitions than others on the committee. One substantial difference of opinion within the committee was the advocates stressing security and those for accessibility. While many thought both were important, some felt that security should top accessibility in all instances.
Once the initial plan was written, subcommittees were formed to develop spending guidance and directives for counties to carry the plan forward. I was appointed by Shelley to two subcommittees: funding requirements for accessible polling places and a more general voting accessibility advisory committee (VAAC). I helped develop the guidelines for counties applying for accessibility funding. Each county could request funding based on its size as long as it used the funds for accessibility needs. We did not think funding was appropriate for making facilities ADA compliant as that was already the law. Likewise, specific requests for one-time transportation costs or vehicle rentals were not considered. This committee was a temporary one to define these procedures for ongoing funding. The VAC stood until Secretary Shelley resigned his office.
Before the 2004 election, many new security measures were developed to protect the security of the vote; and each county had to follow these new guidelines in order to use electronic voting systems. Fortunately, most counties were able to comply.
When Secretary of State Bruce McPherson was appointed, he created a new Voter Accessibility Advisory Committee (VAAC) in the fall of 2005. I was asked to serve on this committee. It had bimonthly meetings, alternating in Sacramento and Los Angeles. My participation on the Los Angeles County Voters with Specific Needs Committee gave me an opportunity to keep in touch with many members of the disability community. It has been an advantage for me to relay testimony from CCB members and also others with a wide range of disabilities as we know many blind and visually impaired persons also have other limitations.
Examples of our SOS Voter Accessibility Advisory Committee efforts include: insuring information is available in accessible formats through websites or materials; pushing to get counties to recognize the viability of signature stamps for signatures both on absentee ballots and in person at the polls; insuring that privacy sleeves are available at the polls and used in a way to make all votes private; providing input into poll worker training documents; giving feedback to counties on problems committee members have identified and making sure counties address them; and commenting on various voting systems so systems without complete access are not certified too quickly. As one of my responsibilities, I have passed on comments from CCB members after each election to both the county and to the SOS committee.
Many problems still exist. Most are in the area of training for poll workers and ongoing communication with the disability community. Many persons with disabilities still are not aware of the various ways they can vote in their county. For example, In Los Angeles last November, a new audio system was available in each polling site, but many blind and visually impaired people were not aware of this option, even when they went to the polls. We must continue to share the information with all members of the blind and visually impaired community and stress more outreach in the counties where they live.
On March 8th, several members of the prior S.O.S. VAAC committee and other disability advocates met with the new Secretary of State, Deborah Bowen. We talked to her about our concerns regarding voting. I asked,
"Are you planning to make any changes in the way voting systems are certified' If so, would some of the current systems be in jeopardy of being decertified'' Would these systems be ready for an earlier primary' Also, could CA testing include some usability aspects as well as accessibility testing'"
She responded by explaining that she thought more testing of systems was necessary to make sure all systems were accessible and useable by all persons with disability. Other questions and comments were discussed regarding her views on the systems which do not currently have an accessible paper trail, our concerns about mail only ballots, continuation of an advisory committee, the SOS website and inaccessible or invisible forms, and ongoing issues regarding accessible polling places and poll worker training. She said she is interested in hearing from the disability community, as a whole and individually, but did not commit to a new accessibility advisory committee. However, we were pleased that she met with us and we will follow-up with our recommendations for future meetings and consultations.
CCB has been a plaintiff in two different lawsuits regarding voting access issues. The first one was in 2004 when CCB was concerned that electronic voting systems would be decertified and we would not have access. The current one is about the lack of accessibility of some voting systems used in some counties.
CCB will continue to participate in all hearings, outreach opportunities, and other venues to make sure all of us have the privilege of voting privately and independently. I urge all of you to keep informed about what is happening in your county, participate in your county's accessibility committee or start one if none is currently available. If you have questions or concerns regarding voting in your county, please pass them along to me personally or to the CCB office, so they can be addressed in the near future. My email address is abazyn@bazyncommunications.com.
Return to the Table of ContentsBefore I lost my sight and even though I'd been a volunteer with the Braille Institute Outreach Program in San Clemente for twelve years, I really was unaware that even simple routine actions might present problems to people who are visually impaired or blind.
I am legally blind due to macular degeneration, which means I have some peripheral vision but have lost my central vision. Many times people do not realize I am visually impaired and say "You don't look blind," and I often wonder what they think a blind person should look like. I carry a white cane, which should give them a clue inasmuch as only people who are visually impaired can legally carry such a cane. I've often said, "If Dennis the Menace were your child, you would not think his actions are funny." It is only in retrospect that you see the humorous aspect. So, here is a little collection of incidents: frustrating, disconcerting, anything but funny when they happened; but now I can laugh about them.
I cannot see to put toothpaste on my toothbrush. So, I squeeze some paste from the tube onto my left index finger and transfer it from my finger to the toothbrush. I keep my toothbrush and the tube of toothpaste in the upper right drawer of the vanity. One day, I picked up the red and white tube, squeezed about a half inch on my finger, transferred it to the toothbrush, put the cap back on the tube, and began brushing my teeth. Instead of the familiar mint flavor of my toothpaste, there was a horrible slimy taste in my mouth. I rinsed and brushed repeatedly before getting rid of that taste. I looked at the tube and realized I'd used DESITIN OINTMENT. Don't do it, it tastes awful.
While making fruit salad, I diced the banana and apple, added some grapes, and thought a can of pineapple chunks would be nice. I took the can with the bright yellow picture on the label, opened it, drained it and dumped niblet corn in the bowl of fruit salad.
I knew I would do a lot of walking and decided to wear the shoes with the Velcro tabs. I bought them in the boys' shoe department because I could not find the style I wanted in the ladies' section. They had very round toes. I put them on and wore them all day, but when I stepped out of them that evening and saw them side-by-side, I knew I'd worn them on the wrong feet.
I think even sighted people sometime wear socks of two different colors. I did this recently, wearing one navy blue sock and one black one with black shoes and black pants. No one else noticed it, nor did I until I took my socks off at my podiatrist's office and sat holding them in my hand while waiting. The difference in color seemed so obvious then. I couldn't put them back on afterward, but stuffed them in my jacket pocket instead. Later I asked my daughter-in-law to go through the dozens of socks in the sock drawer and pair them up. She had about a dozen left over for which there was no match. I wonder if the washing machine or the dryer ate these socks!
Sitting in class at the Braille Institute, I smoothed the leg of the pants I wore that day; I didn't feel the stitched crease down the front; I'd put them on backwards.
One day I was waiting outside Von's market to board the bus to the senior center. When a Leisure World bus pulled up, and since I could not see the number, I asked the driver: "Do you go to the senior center'" He did not answer. I repeated my question, speaking a little more loudly. Still no answer. I asked, almost in a shout: "Do you go to the senior center'" This time the driver responded: "Can't you see me nodding my head, yes'" I brandished my white cane. "No, I cannot see you nodding your head. Can't you see I'm blind'"
Lest you think that I am just a klutz, here are some things my friends have done. I hope to be able to write a book, a collection similar to "Chicken Soup for the Soul"; and I hope all my friends will contribute to it.
John prepared his breakfast. He reached into the cupboard and took out a glass for his orange juice. Not until the juice ran over his hand did he realize he had the glass upside down.
Kay was preparing dinner for guests. She steamed some fresh cauliflower and thought it would be nice to sprinkle some peas on top. She opened the freezer door and found the box showing little round "peas" on the front, opened it and dumped frozen blueberries on top of the cauliflower.
I think every visually impaired or blind person has blundered into the wrong restroom at one time or other. For me, the correct thing to say under such circumstance is "Sorry, I am in the wrong place, but don't be embarrassed, I'm blind and can't see you."
[Editor's note: Cecile wants you to know that her book "Reluctant Pioneer," memoirs of her family life in Alaska, is available on a CD for visually impaired and blind people and that Zoom Text or JAWS can be used to read the book aloud. The cost is $5 including shipping and handling. Her address is Cecile Betts; 952 Avenida Carmel #A; Laguna Woods, CA 92637.]
Return to the Table of ContentsAdvocacy on the Move!
When I last reported to you, my wife and I had moved to downtown Sacramento where we
are three blocks from the State Capitol; and just when you think you won't have to move
again, a new chapter in CCB history begins as our executive office also relocates to
downtown Sacramento. For the first time in years, our advocacy office will be located
inside CCB headquarters, and you will now be able to reach me on our toll-free line: 800-
221-6359. So as of this writing, I am packing yet again!
Our legislative agenda is moving along very nicely as the various bills move from one house to the other. As of this writing, our bill to add reader services to the in-home supportive service program (IHSS) is headed to the Senate.
AB 238 by San Jose Assemblymember Jim Beall (D) will allow blind or visually impaired recipients to utilize their IHSS workers to read non-literary materials.
AB 959, Soto, is now headed to the Senate after clearing the Assembly. This legislation enhances an earlier bill we sponsored relating to the creation of a revolving loan account for at-risk blind vendors in the Business Enterprise Program, BEP. The bill has support from the Department of Rehabilitation and blind vendors, and has been a great example of collaboration by all parties.
AB 1399, Richardson (D) Long Beach, is a bill requiring audible access to prescription drug labeling. Both of the major blindness organizations in California are playing a vital role in the ongoing discussions relating to how the legislation will describe this access. Currently, the bill isn't expected to be heard until January 2008. We expect the bill to require HMO and medi-cal coverage for audible access to prescription labels.
Assembly Joint Resolution 17 by Ted Lieu (D) Torrance has passed both houses and will go into effect without the governor's signature. This resolution will send a message to the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the President asking them to withdraw the appeal in U.S. District Court relating to the production of accessible currency, identifiable by blind and visually impaired individuals.
SB 560, Wiggins Santa Rosa (D), calls for a study of the adequacy of services for blind and visually impaired residents of California Veterans Homes. This legislation has moved to the Assembly and awaits committee assignment.
Other bills of interest to CCB:
SB 472, Corbett (D) San Leandro, establishes a panel to develop large print prescription-
labeling standards. This bill won't be heard until January 2008.
AB 23, Ma (D) San Francisco, requires that accessible pedestrian signals be installed wherever there are count-down signals on state highways in the city and county of San Francisco. This bill is also delayed until January 2008.
AB 18, Blakeslee (R) San Luis Obispo, would have required many government agencies and the banking and real estate industries to adopt the legal usage of signature stamps by persons with disabilities. However, the bill was amended to include only voting. It is now under fiscal review in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 489, Calderon, increases wages for many social workers, psychologists and rehabilitation counselors working in state service. It is also awaiting fiscal review in Assembly Appropriations.
AB 1113, Brownley, would permanently lift the sunset for the 250% working disabled eligibility provisions for Medi-Cal beneficiaries. This bill is also in fiscal review in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 1634, Levine, requires that all dogs in the state be spayed by four months, unless the owner obtains a special permit. We were successful in obtaining an exemption for assistive [including service] dogs.
Finally, the governor's May Revise proposed budget, based on April's tax receipts, does not include the promised January 3.7% SSI/SSP cost of living adjustment. The only increase is the federal 1.2% increase. The governor has also frozen wages for in-home supportive service workers. There should be a pretty big fight on this by advocates and the legislature.
Please keep up to date on legislative current affairs by listening to the Capitol Report and the California Connection on our website and tollfree line.
Return to the Table of ContentsFirst annual 2007 Youth Summit brings together motivated teens and talented staff for three-days of career preparation. On Friday, April 13th, 18 blind and visually impaired high school-aged young adults from throughout northern California gathered at Enchanted Hills Camp in Napa for an intensive three-day career exploration Youth Summit. Service providers serving blind persons--including the Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco, Society for the Blind in Sacramento, Palo Alto's Vista Center for the Blind, the California School for the Blind and representatives from Blind Field Services--had been planning this "Success In Transition" themed weekend for nearly three months. With intentions of providing a weekend of shared resources, mentor networking opportunities, workshops centered on employment preparation for transition-aged youth and some fun mixed in for balance, a staff of six labored intensively to make this a meaningful retreat.
Starting at 4 p.m. Friday afternoon, event expectations were detailed and the weekend goals and schedule were reviewed. Over the span of the next 48 hours, the 18 students participated in challenging group activities that drew upon creativity, entrepreneurial characteristics, a crash course in resume writing, job interview scenarios, self advocacy and more. To balance out the weekend, there was knowledge-sharing of the realities of the working world and we squeezed in some meaningful fun group activity as well. Day one was rounded out with a camp fire, complete with story telling and s'mores: roasted marshmallows and squares of chocolate between graham crackers. Later in the weekend, along with playing accessible card games such as Uno and 21, a camp wide scavenger hunt was held, where the winners scored Starbucks coffee gift certificates and talking watches.
Like any successful retreat, ample networking opportunities forged new friendships and resource sharing throughout the event. Students who had access to adaptive technology, such as Braille Notes and GPS, gracefully demonstrated the power of their devices to others who had never seen such adaptive equipment, thereby inspiring them to consider the possibility of attaining equipment of their own. Not only did the weekend retreat offer an introduction to career opportunities and skill sets to work toward, it also fostered independence. One thing was apparent above all else that staff witnessed in each student: although shy at first, each participant wanted to be there, thus demonstrating the desire and curiosity to learn about what the next steps are in the transition planning process.
Reviewing our evaluations, we found that not one student regretted attending nor said that he/she hadn't derived anything useful out of the weekend. Overall, participants were happy that they decided to attend and were grateful for their learned knowledge.
The 2007 Youth Summit was the first of what will likely be more of these career-oriented retreat workshops for transition-aged youth. Generously sponsored by our community partners and Blind Field Services, such collaborations like these demonstrate that we are all working in tandem toward successful employment opportunities.
Richard Rueda is the Youth Employment Transition Coordinator for the Dept. of Rehabilitation's Blind Field Services. He can be reached as follows: Richard Rueda, Youth Employment Transition Coordinator/Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (SVRC), Dept. of Rehabilitation: Blind Field Services; 510-622-3083 (Oakland office); 1515 Clay Street #117; Oakland, CA 94612. Out-stationed contact: California School for the Blind (CSB); 510-794-3800 x330; 500 Walnut Ave; Fremont, CA 94536. Web Resources: Dept. of Rehabilitation: www.dor.ca.gov; Transition to Employment: www.transition2employment.com.
Return to the Table of ContentsThe Resolutions Committee worked on 16 resolutions; Resolutions 2007A-15 and 2007A- 16 expressed appreciation to the volunteers and to the hotel, and Resolution 2007A-3 concerning quiet cars was referred to the CAT Committee. Resolutions Committee members present were Gabe Griffith, chair; Winifred Downing; Eugene Lozano, Jr.; Ken Metz; Dirk Neyhart; Linda Porelle; Mitch Pomerantz; and Robert Windt.
Resolution 2007A-1 calls upon the California Council of the Blind (CCB) to seek legislation which will delete the terms "minimal protection dogs" and "rescue dogs" from the California Code of Regulations section 54A III (e). "Minimal protection dogs" are trained to protect persons who have become incapacitated by their disability; and "rescue dogs" are involved in search and rescue operation, neither of which description accords with the access rights of guide, signal, and service dogs. Failure to make these distinctions clear is confusing "to operators of public conveyances and proprietors of commercial establishments, not to mention the general public."
Resolution 2007A-2 gives to the CCB the obligation of urging all chapters and affiliates "to work with their local government entities to make it possible for all those who depend on public transportation or paratransit to exercise their rights to attend these public meetings. It is through public comment at such meetings that citizens are provided with opportunities to air their grievances and affect decisions in the communities in which they live.
Resolution 2007A-4 requires the CCB to urge "GW Micro to develop and produce accessible audible tutorials on tape and/or CD" for its recent 6.0 release so that blind and visually impaired users can "become familiar with the program and learn about new features" available in this and future releases. This resolution will be forwarded to the American Council of the Blind (ACB) for consideration at its convention in July, 2007.
Resolution 2007A-5: The Department of Rehabilitation distributes more than $3 million of Title VII funds to non-profit organizations which offer specialized services to adults who suffer severe vision loss. Many of the agencies which provide these services are in areas that are also served by Independent Living Centers, and the Blind Advisory Committee of the Department of Rehabilitation has recommended that "rehabilitation counselors in Blind Field Services refer clients to agencies which provide specialized services to the blind and visually impaired instead of Independent Living Centers where both types of agencies are in the same area." The resolution urges the "Department of Rehabilitation to implement the recommendation of the Blind Advisory Committee's recommendation as policy to be followed by Blind Field Services to ensure that clients receive specialized services which better facilitate their successful adaptation to visual impairment."
Resolution 2007A-6 expresses gratitude to Dr. Richard Mander, Humanware CEO; Mr. Phil Rance, President of Humanware; and the entire Humanware team for their demonstrated commitment toward implementing CCB's request for "improvements in product quality and customer support." A copy of this resolution will be sent to the Department of Rehabilitation.
Resolution 2007A-7 strongly recommends that CCB "actively participate in discussions with legislators and administrators concerning the establishment of a paperless health care record system so as to ensure that its design will enable blind and visually impaired consumers [to] have equal access to the system." This resolution will be forwarded to the ACB for consideration at its convention in July, 2007.
Resolution 2007A-8: The Department of Rehabilitation contracts with agencies and individuals for services to blind and visually impaired persons but does so at rates less than the cost of similar services provided by the agencies or individual vendors, and in March, 2007, the contract rates were frozen. CCB is required to urge the Department of Rehabilitation to increase the rates for service contracts to "more accurately reflect actual provider costs." Should the Department be unwilling to make this effort, CCB will "seek legislative redress to resolve this inequity."
Resolution 2007A-9 instructs the CCB president to report on all resolutions passed by the convention in either an article in THE BLIND CALIFORNIAN or the President's Report at the next convention.
Resolution 2007A-10: Los Angeles County Access Services has been offering to eligible blind and visually impaired individuals a steady ride at the same time and place for one or more days a week, allowing two hours for cancellation of the ride if some problem develops but has recently changed the cancellation time to 10 p.m. on the previous evening. This change in policy is causing great inconvenience to riders who may become ill or experience some other unforeseen problem during the night. Failure to abide by the new policy may cause temporary cessation of services. The resolution calls upon CCB to write a letter to Access Services explaining the problem and ask that the policy be rescinded or modified. Copies of the letter will be sent to four other agencies concerned with the welfare of blind and visually impaired persons.
Resolution 2007A-11 calls upon the CCB to urge the Department of Rehabilitation to create a permanent position for an analyst who will devote efforts to developing locations for licensed Randolph Sheppard vendors. Lack of attention to this matter has caused a 50% decrease in the number of locations for these small businesses, further exacerbating the unemployment rate for blind and visually impaired persons.
Resolution 2007A-12 requires the CCB to urge the Deputy Director, Blind Field Services, to request the State Personnel Board to authorize a recruitment strategy to fill the BEP Program Manager position. The Randolph Sheppard Executive Committee and the California Vendors Policy Committee should be included in the selection process. The program to place blind and visually impaired persons in appropriate vending facilities has been stagnant, and the current Program Manager is expected to retire. The replacement individual must have specialized skills to rebuild this important program.
Resolution 2007A-13 directs the CCB president "to contact the State Department of Health Services to urge that the Advocate Glucose meter and its associated test strips be covered under Medi-Cal's formulary." This is the only talking glucose monitor being sold now, is less expensive than the one previously approved, and is covered by Medicare's formulary.
Resolution 2007A-14 instructs CCB to forward a letter in support of AB 489 to Assembly member Calderon, who authored the bill, and to see that the Director of Governmental Affairs attends hearings to offer support for this legislation. The bill addresses the problem faced by state workers, many of whom are blind: they are now paid less for their services than are persons employed in similar work in the private for-profit and federal sectors. The bill is supported by the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees, Local 2620.
Return to the Table of ContentsPre-convention Board Minutes, October 26, 2006
President Jeff Thom called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. and Gene Lozano was
absent when Rhonda King called roll. Jeff read the agenda, and Cathie Skivers requested
the CCB history be added. Jeff then informed the board that Al Biegler had submitted his
resignation due to health issues.
Rhonda King, Secretary read the board minutes for June 7, and September 6, 2006; both passed. Various announcements and introductions followed.
Peter Pardini gave a brief treasurer's report: total assets amounted to $1,606,229. A motion was made and passed to accept the report and submit it for audit. Peter said the 2003 audit was received, and the 2004 audit was being worked on and scheduled for completion by December 31, 2006. CCB hopes to have both the 2005 and 2006 audits completed by the end of 2007.
Rhonda reported on the fall, 2006 fund raising activities. A motion was made and passed to implement Jeff's idea that if auto dealerships advertise the CCB vehicle donation program, each dealership may receive $50 for each vehicle they refer for donation.
Bernice Kandarian and Mike Keithley reported on the different activities the Publication Committee is working on. Jeff said the emergency preparedness program was not in place yet and would not be presented at this convention. Cathie reported on the Newel Perry and Ellen Murphy funds.
Jerry Arakawa spoke about the First-Timers Fund that is aimed at increasing membership by bringing new people into the organization. Fund raising activities will be held to acquire funding and applicants must be current CCB members.
Richard Rueda reported on the CTEVH conference being held in Los Angeles in March 2007 and a motion was made and passed for CCB to set up a booth at the conference. Discussion commenced regarding CCB's membership with the Better Business Bureau, and a motion was made and passed to retain membership with the Colton office.
Cathie reported on the progress of the CCB history project. There was an update from the AD-HOC committee regarding moving the CCB office to Sacramento.
After public comment, a motion was made and passed to move into executive session where personnel matters were discussed. Out of necessity, Ed Branch was present during this time. The meeting adjourned at 10:43 p.m.
Summary of CCB Board Minutes, December 13, 2006, Teleconference Call
President Jeff Thom called the meeting to order at 7:36 p.m. Rhonda King took roll call
and Richard Rueda was absent. Jeff then read the agenda and asked for additional
items.
Rhonda brought up the Scholarship Sweepstakes drawing; and after brief discussion, a motion was made and passed to have the drawing again in the spring. The three cash prizes would be $1000, $500, and $300. One thousand tickets would be printed and sold for $10 each.
Rhonda reported on the membership incentive awards. In order for affiliates to qualify for the membership increase award, they must update their membership rosters regularly and forward that information to the executive office. It was also noted that credential forms do not always reflect the correct number of members. It was suggested that the Membership Committee formulate guidelines regarding this matter.
The leadership seminars were discussed. It was decided that there would not be one held at the spring convention due to sparse participation. The issue was scheduled for discussion during the President's conference calls. Cindy Van Winkle was to be contacted for a cost-breakdown so possible grants for these seminars might be sought. It was also suggested that the committee implement follow-up procedures.
Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian will begin negotiations with Cinemark for descriptive video programming in their theaters. A motion was made and passed for CCB to participate in the structured negotiations on behalf of the client.
A motion was made and passed to move into executive session so the board could discuss personnel issues. Due to the subject matter, Ann Kysor excused herself from executive session. A motion was then made and passed to exit the executive session and the meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.
Return to the Table of ContentsWe had a fund-raiser last year that I just had to share with everyone. We took in over $2200, and donations still trickle in. After expenses, our profit was over $1900, much more than we expected.
Bernice Kandarian suggested this idea to our Board. She had organized a previous such event a few years ago with gratifying results for our chapter. It's a virtual tea party, where letters were sent to as many people as we could think of: chapter members, their families, friends and relatives. The letter contains a small poem, details about our chapter and a tea bag, donated by The Good Earth. While sitting down to a fragrant cup of tea, recipients would read our letter and think about donating to a worthy cause, such as our chapter.
We invested about $300 for materials for 200 recipients and raised over $1900; so as you can see, it was a smashing success.
Everyone can try this at least once every few years.
Lots of luck!
Return to the Table of ContentsRegardless of our visual abilities, those of us in our second half continue to eagerly grab hold of life and run with it. As we do, we want to stop and highlight for you the topics we addressed in our convention programs over the last year; and then we'll say a few words in support of an issue so strongly emphasized by our President, Jeff Thom, in the winter, 2007 issue of the BC: the importance of interesting everyone, including seniors, in joining us in CCB.
In our program at the fall, 2006 convention, we reached entirely outside the blind community for an endlessly fascinating and resourceful speaker: Tim Carpenter, who heads the nonprofit "More Than Shelter for Seniors." His organization's weekly radio program primarily features seniors engaged in all kinds of artistic and other creative enterprises. From Tim we also learned of an equally exciting activity of his organization: providing innovative structures and classes in a number of senior housing complexes. These activities offer vital social support and help to overcome feelings of isolation and of no longer being needed that can plague some persons in later life. Tim covered so many areas of potential interest to us that we cannot convey them all in a limited space. By going to their web site at www.experiencetalks.org, you can learn many more details and also listen to archives of past radio shows. This is a wonderful resource, especially for those with dreams of stirring up those creative juices.
Our 2007 spring program furthered one of our committee's goals of continuing to explore the experiences of those who find themselves losing their vision in later life. This is a large population that is largely unfamiliar with CCB. We need to attract these people to our numbers if we are to thrive as an organization. We got a dramatic and insightful perspective in the stories of over ten seniors with fairly recent vision loss. They were brought to us by Kathleen Shevlin, who is with the Sacramento Society for the Blind's Senior Impact Project. Everyone who heard these stories of struggle and hope among a diversity of people were touched.
In the same program, we heard another marvelous example of how visually impaired people help themselves and help each other. Some years ago, Lucinda Talkington realized there needed to be a low vision support group in her community in Northern California. She used her ingenuity and networking skills to start one. Over time, this group grew and grew, and is now spreading its message of confidence and hope throughout the community. Whether it's a story of rehab dollars well spent at a private agency for the blind or the success of a grassroots group making an impact, we were treated to models we can all learn from. They show us once again what is possible if we will dream, plan, work and organize.
Some in our midst may someday wish to implement, or advocate for, innovative programs and services in our communities. If we do, we can point to these presenters and others, and say: "We know this can be done! This is how they did it, and this is how people were benefited." This is one reason we invite such inspiring speakers to our convention programs.
You may be able to obtain tapes of recent CCB convention programs by calling the state office. You are also welcome to make suggestions for our future convention programs or specific speakers. You may do this by e-mailing me at eal727200@aol.com or calling me at 562-651-5730 in the daytime. The more good ideas that we hear from you out there, the better!
We close this report with some thoughts on expanding our CCB ranks. Our President gave us a serious call to action in his earlier-mentioned article. He even pointed out the unpleasant consequences that we'd rather not think about, if we don't keep finding effective ways to recruit and retain new members in CCB, including seniors.
Let's hope we can all keep on sharing and working on interesting new ways to reach out and bring seniors and others to CCB, and get them involved and enthused. In the meantime, there are things those of us without these clever new ideas can do.
Are you a loyal, perhaps longtime CCB member' Are you in your second half of life' Well, think of what's going on right now. Maybe it's the local advocacy causes, the food, the fun and fellowship of your local CCB chapter; or it's the learning, the social networking, the little tips on dealing with your computer, library, low vision issues, and countless other benefits of attending the statewide conventions. The list of your activities is a varied and personally rewarding one. Now think of one or two friends or acquaintances who you know are also looking for these same sparks of encouragement. Tell them about CCB and invite them to a meeting or share your Blind Californian magazine. By sharing the wealth we've found in CCB, we may all benefit.
Return to the Table of ContentsThere has always been speculation among animal professionals and us animal lovers as to whether or not our pets truly possess a sense of humor. The vignette I wish to share with all of you should produce a resounding "yes", as well as a good chuckle.
It all began one cool February morning in 1989 as I and my first guidedog, a little fire plug of a female yellow Labrador named Fawn, were getting ready to leave the house for work. I was working for one of the local blind vendors in downtown Sacramento and normally arrived at the location around 6:15 to open up.
Fawn was over 11 years old and was scheduled to retire as a guide. Although still quite spunky and willing to work, she was beginning to show telltale signs of aging, such as some arthritis, and occasional confusion on familiar routes. It's never easy to retire a beloved guide, and the first is often the hardest to let go. I was all too aware that we had less than two weeks together, as my older sister was scheduled to pick Fawn up and take her to her new home in Eureka: a place with which she was very familiar and would be well loved and cared for by my mother and sister.
So I was feeling rather blue as we walked the seven-block route to the state building where the vending facility was located. The final task in my setup routine was always to open the safe and take out the cash tray containing that day's till. The safe was in a small storeroom in the back of the stand, and Fawn had a nice foam bed next to it. It was a combination safe with a large dial that one turned so many times to the right and left in a sequence. As I reached the point to turn the handle and open the door, Fawn knocked my hand off with her nose. I thought nothing of it and tried again. Once again as I prepared to turn the handle, she pushed my hand away with her nose. She then panted loudly several times as if saying:
"Hahahaha! What are you doing, silly old girl'" I said, "I have to get this thing open soon. People are going to show up any minute."
This happened several times more, with Fawn continuing to pant and beat her tail against the safe. I can only guess that she was able to hear the tumblers turning in the lock and knew exactly when to knock my hand off the dial. Soon I was lying on the floor, gasping and helpless with mirth. Anyone passing by would have certainly thought I was in the middle of some kind of seizure. Meanwhile, there is Fawn, grinning, panting and wagging to beat the band.
To this day, I don't know whether she did it simply because she felt full of the Dickens, or whether she intuitively knew Mommy was feeling sad and needed a little cheering up. Suffice it to say that, for whatever the motive, that bit of mischief created a precious memory of Fawn that I cherish to this day.
The folks at Reader's Digest were so right in claiming that laughter is the best medicine, and the dose is even sweeter when given by a dog.
Return to the Table of Contents[For further information, contact Dawn Wilcox at thl@vistacenter.org or call the Health Library at Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, 650-858-0202; from 408 area codes: 660-2009 or 800-660-2009; from 831 area code: 705-2970 (use ext. 132).]
New Blind Interest Resource Directory (BIRD 2007) is a compilation of resources of interest to blind people; contact above.
* Diet With Low Glycemic Index Slows AMD Progression: People whose diet consists of foods that lead to a high dietary glycemic index have a substantially higher risk of progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), according to recent long-term results from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS). Consumption of highly refined carbohydrates can lead to a 17% increased risk of AMD progression, according to data presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Vision and Research in Ophthalmology (ARVO). This newest set of results shows that the effect of diet on AMD is even stronger than previously thought. The AMD arm of AREDS is a long-term clinical trial sponsored by the U.S. National Eye Institute (4757 people with at least early-stage AMD with a mean follow-up of 5.4 years).
At baseline, patients were administered a food-frequency questionnaire, from which researchers were able to extrapolate each participant's overall dietary glycemic index. Those with a high index were 7.8% more likely to have greater progression of AMD. Foods that contribute to a lower dietary glycemic index include things such as legumes, rolled oats, basmati rice [small grained Indian rice], whole bran, whole grains, and even pasta if it is cooked al dente (slightly hard). Foods that contribute to a higher glycemic index include things such as instant oatmeal, overcooked pasta, white bread, and many types of potatoes.
As a rule, foods that are more processed are more likely to increase blood sugar while foods that are "whole" and less processed are thought to provide cardiovascular protection.
* Clinical study of the Argus (TM) II Retinal Prosthesis System across the U.S., including the University of California, San Francisco: The Argus II is the second generation of an electronic retinal implant designed for the treatment of blindness due to RP. This implant consists of an array of electrodes that are attached to the retina and used in conjunction with an external camera and video-processing system to provide a rudimentary form of sight to implanted subjects. The first generation implant, Argus 16, was implanted in six RP subjects between 2002 and 2004 at the Doheny Eye Institute at the University of San Francisco.
The Argus II retinal stimulator is designed with 60 electrodes, which should provide implanted subjects with higher resolution images. The new study will require each subject to be followed for at least three years, with visits to the implanting center up to two times per week. Contact patients@2-sight.com or Don Eubank, UCSF Clinical Trial Coordinator at 415-476-0444.
Return to the Table of ContentsThe surge of nature brings new life, And so begins an unknown sojourn. As a seedling's life bursts forth New growth transforms and blooms.
In time, knowing replaces innocence And other paths are forged, With mysterious crossroads in the offing.
Thus it is, that life invites choice Toward becoming ... beyond the known.
As nature's seedling evolves, reaching out to life, Transplantation offers even greater growth. Be it transplantation or transformation, A life journey provides a myriad of magical moments: Moments to strive, And Moments to repot a life.
Return to the Table of ContentsHey everyone, summer is here; and something quick, tasty, and easy can be fun to make for your family and friends. I hope you have as much fun as I've had while making these dishes.
The Basic Foiled Fish is a great idea for an outside picnic or over the grill; without the bag, just using foil will work. Grill this while surrounded by music and guests. The Cotton Candy Salad is a must have in the summer! And, just for fun and a bit of humor, don't pass up my recipe on how to deal with stress at the end of the day.
Basic Foiled Fish
Cooking Tip, Fast Fish: The easiest and most foolproof way to cook fish is to place it in a
foil packet and heat it in the oven. Here's why: An air-tight packet allows the fish fillet to
both steam and bake, so the fish stays moist while the flavors intensify. You can also
throw herbs, spices, lemon slices, and even vegetables into the packet to add extra flavor
to your fish. Cleanup is as easy as just throwing what's left away! following this basic
recipe, experiment with the fish and flavorings of your choice.
Ingredients: 4 1/2 ounce fish fillet of your choice, a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese, freshly ground pepper to taste, a squirt of lemon juice, and chopped onion to taste.
Instructions: Tear off a good-sized piece of foil. Spray the center lightly with vegetable spray (I use Pam cooking spray). Place fish in the center of the foil. Top with onion, pepper, lemon juice, and cheese. Fold foil over fish, leaving space around the fish. Carefully turn and seal the ends and the middle so that juices don't leak out. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 18 minutes. When done, carefully open foil to prevent steam burns. It is always a good idea to open away from your face, and you can use a fork to help open the foil.
Serve on a bed of white rice with your favorite veggies on the side, either steamed or raw.
Cotton Candy Salad
Ingredients: 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk; 2 cups drained crushed pineapple; 1 can cherry pie filling; 1 can strawberry pie filling (can use any pie filling); 12 ounces Cool Whip whipped topping; 3/4 cup chopped pecans; 8 ounce whipped cream cheese (optional); Graham Crackers for texture (optional).
Directions: Fold all ingredients together and blend well. Chill until ready to serve.
Stress Reducing Diet
This is a specially formulated diet designed to help women and men cope with the stress
that builds during the day.
Breakfast: 1 grapefruit, 1 slice whole wheat toast, 1 cup skim milk.
Lunch: 1 small portion lean, steamed chicken, 1 cup spinach, 1 cup herbal tea, 1 Hershey's kiss.
Afternoon Tea: The rest of the Hershey Kisses in the bag, 1 tub of Haagen-Dazs ice cream with chocolate chips.
Dinner: 4 glasses of wine (red or white), 2 loaves garlic bread, 1 family size supreme pizza, 3 Snickers Bars.
Late Night Snack: 1 whole Sarah Lee cheesecake (eaten directly from the freezer).
Enjoy!
Return to the Table of ContentsCCB-Related
Beginning June 4, the new CCB Sacramento Executive office local number will be 916-
441-2100 and the address is 1510 J. Street, Sacramento.
* From Dan Kysor: For those of you who have web capability, we are now providing links to the actual bill information for legislation discussed on our website. These links will provide you with the bill's text, status, amendments, etc. As time permits, we will also provide much of this information on our 800 line: 800-221-6359.
New Services
TravelBraille.com announces braille travel and tourism information. These Braille Readable-only Files (BRF) are excerpted from popularly published guidebooks such as Lonely Planet and Fodor's, brochures, Tourism Authority websites, and newspaper travel sections such as The New York Times.
Persons who are blind must first register on the website. For further information, please contact john@TravelBraille.com or visit www.travelbraille.com.
* DB101 Launches Online School and Work Calculator: Disability Benefits 101 at the World Institute on Disability has launched its latest "Work and Benefits Calculator, School and Work," expanding the DB101 calculator tools available at www.db101.org. Many benefit programs change their rules when youth turn 18. If you're looking at your 18th birthday or work with youth, the School and Work Calculator helps you navigate these changes. It is designed for youth with disabilities aged 14 to 18.
When you give the calculator information about your work plans, the Benefits-to-Work Calculator shows how benefits might change when taking a job. If you are leaving a job or have left one recently, and expect to start your next one within a year, the Job-to-Job Calculator can show what might happen to your income and health coverage during the gap.
For more information, contact Talia Wesley, Family Readiness Leader; cell: 951-567- 0423.
* Old Time Radio: Radio Spirit is donating archives of old time radio shows to Helping Hands for the Blind. For info, access www.helpinghands4theblind.org.
New Websites, Email lists and Groups
President's list: A new email list has been added to CCB's online presence: The President's list. This group is a forum dedicated to the Presidents of CCB chapters and affiliates. For more information and to subscribe, send an email message to ccb.moderator@gmail.com.
* Seminary Group: A new email list for seminary students who are blind or visually impaired has been formed to share experiences, ideas and resources. Former seminarians and other supportive people are also welcome. To subscribe, send mail to seminary_bvi-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
* MobileSpeak and Talks Group: a group for the discussion of the MobileSpeak and Talks software for mobile phones has been created. This list is more casual than others and allows general discussion about all products which make mobile phones accessible to the blind and visually impaired. To join, send an email to speaktalks-subscribe@googlegroups.com.
* Open-Source Software: A new mailing list has been formed to discuss open-source software for the blind. To join, put the word "subscribe" in the subject field of a message sent to this e-mail address: blindopensource@freelists.org.
* Visions Network: The Visions Network is a website for the blind, visually impaired, friends, family, guide dogs, pets and even neighbors. We are not like most chatrooms. We network with the entire community and provide links to all chat sites for the blind as well as sites that are of interest to blind people. We are here for you and for your enjoyment. Go to www.new-visions-network.com to sign up.
* Job Assessment: www.cacareerzone.org is an accessible website where you can perform job assessments, make interest profiles and do job searches.
* Google It! A Guide to the World's Most Popular Search Engine, by Jonathan Mosen with Anna Dresner; braille edition, 1 volume, $12.00. Now you can harness the amazing power of Google's searches with this new tutorial. It is designed to be screen-reader and access-technology independent. It will be useful to you regardless of how you access the Internet. So grab your copy of this book, sit down in front of your computer, and get ready to Google! To order online, visit www.nbp.org/ic/nbp/GOOGLE.html.
New Products
PAC Mate" Reads DAISY Books from RFB&D: Freedom Scientific announced that its PAC Mate Accessible Pocket PC can now play AudioPlus.books from Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D). To access RFB&D AudioPlus books with FSReader, PAC Mate's Daisy player, users will need a special user Authorization Key available from RFB&D. Users can purchase this key by calling 800-221-4792. RFB&D will only provide and support the key. Users must first purchase the FSReader software from Freedom Scientific. Current users of FSReader for PAC Mate 1.0 should have the 1.1 update that is compatible with the RFB&D key before contacting RFB&D. Download the update from www.freedomscientific.com.
* Calculator: ViewPlus announces the third, fully-accessible, scientific Audio Graphing Calculator for Windows. Purchase the full version for $295 or upgrade from AGC 2.0 to version 3.0 for $195. For more information or to download a 30-day demo of the AGC, please visit www.viewplus.com.
Miscellaneous
The Customer Service department at Delta Airlines would like to hear from disabled
travelers about what Delta needs to do to improve their service to customers with
disabilities. Please send your response to David Martin at
David.S.Martin@delta.com.
Also, check out Delta's new accessible website at
www.accessibledelta.com.
* If someone is interested in being considered for narration work with DVS/WGBH, please send a note and a work sample to Linda Idoni, West Coast Director, Media Access Group at WGBH; 300 E. Magnolia Blvd, 2nd Floor; Burbank, CA 91502.
* Alumni Survey and Pet Food Recall: Guide Dogs veterinary staff has received numerous questions about the recent pet food recalls you may have seen in the news. Get the latest information at
www.guidedogs.com/site/R'i=HFwGfaAbX7lholgf6ySCYQ.In addition, the Alumni Association would like to ask for your feedback. Alumni Ed and Toni Eames co-founded and lead a consumer organization called the International Association of Assistance Dog Partners (IAADP); a non-profit, cross-disability organization representing people partnered with guide, hearing and service dogs. Please take a moment to fill out a brief survey to give input as we consider recommending membership in this organization to our alums. Take the survey at www.guidedogs.com/site/R'i=9mz5x4lIS48Mm3Nc7WvUhg.
* Accessing State Parks: Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) reached a comprehensive settlement in 2005 with the California Department of Parks and Recreation. CCB was one of the plaintiffs in that case. The purpose of this settlement is to provide people with sensory and mobility disabilities full and equal access to California state parks, including beaches, monuments and recreational areas. Due to the significant number of barriers to be removed, access work will be done in phases over several years throughout California. DRA is monitoring the implementation of the settlement agreement and would like to hear your experiences with state park access. If you have encountered access barriers at a California state park, we encourage you to send a complaint to the Department (not to the individual park unit) at: Director, California State Parks; P.O. Box 942896; Sacramento, CA 94296-0001. If you would like to use the department's complaint form and need the form in an alternative format, please call 916-653-8148, or by TTY at 888-877-5378. Please let Jennifer Bezoza at DRA know if you file a complaint with the Department so that she can monitor the Department's response.
* UN Petition: History was made on March 30, 2007, at the signing ceremony for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but the U.S. wasn't a part of it. Over 80 countries have signed the treaty so far, and it's time that the U.S. joined them and continued its legacy as a global leader on the rights of people with disabilities.
AAPD has created an online petition to demonstrate the strong and broad interest in having the U.S. sign the Convention. Access the petition at www.aapd.com/UN/petition.html.
* Survey: This is to invite parents of children who are blind or have low vision in K-12 public and residential schools in the United States to participate in a study on why they chose whichever type of educational placement for their children.
Parents who do not have access to a computer may directly phone Dr. Paul Ajuwon, the primary investigator, at 417-836-5397 to request a braille or print copy of the survey. The survey on the website of Texas School for the Blind is in two versions: online and downloadable Word form. Online link: s22318.tsbvi.edu/surveys/TakeSurvey.asp'SurveyID=71I663K13m65G; Word link: www.tsbvi.edu/news/choice-survey.doc.
* Bicycling: Tandems Across the Bay Bike Club is newly formed with the purpose of introducing the joy of cycling to the blind and visually impaired community. The club has several volunteers with tandems, and rides on weekends and holidays from The Fishermen's Wharf Area. The easygoing rides are usually across the Golden Gate Bridge and return to San Francisco via Ferry. There is usually a picnic after the ride. To schedule a ride or just ask questions contact club founders Aaron or Lee at 415-398-4341 or tandemsacrossthebay@gmail.com.
* Transition Services Survey: I am in a graduate program at San Diego State University and am earning a Master's Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling. I and a few of my colleagues have created a survey regarding transition services provided for sensory impaired individuals while they are in high school. We have found gaps in the transition services that students are receiving; and we are finding that they are not prepared for the "real world" once they leave high school, whether that involves college or employment or both. We are seeking individuals with hearing or vision disabilities who graduated from or left high school between 1996 and 2006, and who will take about three minutes to complete our survey. We want to identify these gaps so we can find ways of filling them, thus ensuring that sensory impaired individuals are more prepared when they leave the safety of high school. The link to the survey is www.The-fbc.org/SDSU_Survey.
* Independent Visually Impaired Enterprisers (IVIE): We are an affiliate organization of the American Council of the Blind (ACB). Our members include a wide range of blind and visually impaired business owners and entrepreneurs. IVIE is also a rich source of information on business ideas, strategies, adaptive technology and networking. Have you ever considered starting your own small business' Perhaps IVIE members can help. For questions or more information about IVIE, please contact Ardis Bazyn at abazyn@bazyncommunications.com or telephone 818-238-9321.
* Selling: Dean Hudson (415-533-0281 or rdhudson66@gmail.com) wants to sell a Pulse Data International (PDI) BrailleNote 18-cell display/notetaker with ethernet, IR port, PCMCIA slot, parallel port, 3.5 floppy, WinCe 2.12 full version, asking $1000 or best offer; Humanware Braille Window 80-cell display with serial and parallel ports, asking $1500 or best offer.
Return to the Table of Contents[Editor's note: We are indebted to Bernice Kandarian who updates and corrects the list of CCB officers and board members, including the number of the term each is presently serving, the year elected to that term and the year next up for election. Terms actually begin on January 1 following election. We shall publish the list this way at least in issues just preceding and following elections and routinely if members wish. The presence of an asterisk means that the individual served a partial term before the first full term.
In addition, privacy concerns have prompted us to remove postal addresses and phone numbers in many entries. Call the Executive Office at 800-221-6359 for complete contact information.]
Please send all address changes to the Executive Office.