Fore~Sight:
The Newsletter of the Arizona Council of the Blind Winter 2009
As a teacher, I never liked
changes. I had a schedule and lesson
plans that I was expected to follow.
Changes disoriented me, and the misbehavior of the students increased
especially after a fire drill or an assembly. For both my students and myself,
it always seemed hard to get back on track.
Eventually, I learned to have a Plan "B" or just rewrote my
lesson plans.
When
I had a particularly bad day at school, I always tried to learn from that day
and start the next day over again in a positive way or as a new beginning.
Even
today, I still don't like changes. I am
often told that I am too responsible and I need to go with the flow. My family advises me to work on the things I
can change, and don't worry about the things I can't change. However, I find that difficult when it comes
to things or people I care about.
Listening
to the news can be scary. Things seem to change so quickly. Everyday, there are
more job layoffs and economic failures. Those are not changes I like to hear
about.
Recently,
someone told me that the only thing you can count on is change. Change is
constant. Things in nature are constantly changing or transitioning into
something else. Nature and living things
continue on everyday like nothing has happened.
This year will begin the new term of
Barack Obama. With this new beginning, there will be changes. The American
Council of the Blind (ACB) representatives met with the Obama's transition team
suggesting recommendations and changes that would benefit people who are blind
and visually impaired. I certainly don't envy Barack Obama. Even he, may not
like changes, but I hope he will be able to learn, develop a Plan
"B", and start the next day in a positive way with a new beginning.
My hopes and prayers will be with him.
WebAIM is conducting a
survey of screen reader users. http://webaim.org/projects/screenreadersurvey/
Web accessibility experts
often say something like, "Screen
reader users prefer." followed by some accessibility recommendation.
However, many of these recommendations are based on personal preference or
conjecture, often from sighted users who only test with screen readers. The
fact is that there is little data about screen reader usage to back up these
recommendations.
This
survey will ask screen reader users about their usage and preferences. If you
are a full-time, part-time, or even occasional screen reader user, please take
a few minutes to complete the survey and provide us with a few details on your
screen reader usage and preferences. We will be comparing results between those
that rely on screen readers and those that primarily use them for evaluation
and testing, so all screen reader users are invited to respond. Your feedback
will help influence the accessibility techniques that web developers implement and
that experts recommend. We'll be posting the survey results in a few months.
Braille
and Large Print Beverage Brochures at Starbucks By Melanie Brunson
Did
you know that there are over 87,000 beverage combinations at Starbucks? To help
you order, Starbucks has made their popular brochure, "Make It Your
Drink," available in both Braille and Large Print. Ask your barista for it
the next time you visit your local Starbucks.
I
have notified Starbucks of the complaints I've received from people who have
tried unsuccessfully to make use of the Braille and large print brochures. I
have been assured that all U.S. stores, except for the stands in locations such
as airports and hotels, have been sent these brochures and that managers have
been told to make them available to customers.
If
you ask to read a brochure in your store and the barista says they don't have
one, ask to speak to the manager. Ask the manager to please locate it for
you. If the manager doesn't know
anything about it, please send an email to Marthalee Galeota at Starbucks. Her
email address is mgaleota@starbucks.com. She is the person who has overseen
this project. You will need to let her know the particular location of the
store so that she can follow up with the manager. She has assured me that she will follow up.
Enjoy
your lattes!
The cuts in state and city
budgets are affecting everything including the libraries. The Arizona Council of the Blind has donated
$500.00 to the Phoenix Public Library Foundation for the Accessible Needs
Center and $500.00 to Friends of the Library of the Arizona State Braille and
Talking Book Library.
Both
of these organizations provide valuable services to people who are blind or
visually impaired. You can help. No donation is too small. Please help if you
can.
Pay to: and Mail to:
Arizona State Braille and Talking Book Library
1030 North 32nd Street
Phoenix, AZ 85008
or
Phoenix Public Library
Foundation
f/t Accessibility Center
Burton Barr Library
1221 North Central Avenue.
Once
again, I can accurately report that life is what happens while you were making
other plans! Remember last winter when I
explained about blindness not being the worst?
Well, it still isn’t, despite everything that’s occurred in my life and
Janet’s. Here’s the latest.
I
recently had a mild stroke and while at the Tucson Medical Center they found a
latent pre-diabetic condition. These were not anything to worry about, but added
to my previous conditions, I was again headed the skilled nursing wing of my
Handmaker home. However, blindness still ain’t the worst!
After
a few days in the Rich Unit (Skilled Care) we realized that I needed more care
and that I was in the situation that Anne was in seven years ago. Janet and I had to make the tough decision to
put me in Arizona Long Term Care System and let ALTCS pay for all the
exorbitant medical costs. Incidentally, it’s a good idea to use an attorney who
specializes in “elder care” such as Jackson-White to assist in this process, if you or yours are ever in a
similar situation.
Anyway,
I am now in Room 407 (same street address) and Janet has moved into Apartment
215 to save expenses. This will take a
bit of getting use to, but it will all work out. As you know, our slogan is “Count Your
Blessings,” and I am more pleased than ever to have married Janet, who believes
in the same positive approach to life.
Here
is a summary of what has happened to me ” that is NOT worse than blindness:
Retinitis pigmentosa, which
has left me totally blind for the past few years and which I have long since
conquered.
Late in 2004 I began
having serious balance problems, diagnosed as “atrophy of the cerebellum,” a
part of the lower brain that controls automatic functions such as balance,
manipulation, etc.
In late 2006, a severe fall
resulting in a dislocated right shoulder, a permanently spastic right arm and
hand with “proprioceptive dysfunction” (this means that parts of the body don’t
know where they are, like when the doctor has you close your eyes and touch
your nose).
On July 3, 2008 I had a mild
stroke which somewhat impedes the fluency of my speech and interferes with
recall of certain words but fortunately doesn’t hamper my thought processes –
at least I don’t THINK so!
While in Tucson Medical
Center they picked up a pre-diabetic condition and now every morning I get my
finger stuck to check for blood sugar level.
Just as an
annoyance, I suppose, I get a runny nose almost every meal – no cure so far for
this interruption to my fantastic one-handed dining process!
So
there you have it, some of the challenges, which recently entered my life while
Janet and I were making other plans. But
“ALL” of them are worse than blindness. Do you get my point??
Many
disabled taxpayers may be overlooking a valuable tax credit that could increase
their federal income tax refunds by as much as $4,824.
The
IRS estimates that up to one in four taxpayers who qualify for the Earned
Income Tax Credit (EITC) fail to claim the credit. Are you one of them?
You
may qualify if your income was under $41,646 last year and you, or your spouse,
worked or received disability retirement benefits under an employer plan and
were under the minimum retirement age.
The
amount of your EITC depends on several factors, such as the amount of your
earned income, your filing status, whether you have children and how many, etc.
Special rules apply if you have a child who is permanently and totally
disabled.
To
get the credit you earned, you must: File a federal income tax return and Claim
the credit.
Many
communities have volunteer income tax assistance sites or local IRS Taxpayer
Assistance Centers, which will compute your EITC and prepare your return
without charge. To locate a volunteer site, call your community's 211 for local
services or call the IRS at 1-800-906-9887.
Find
more information about EITC in alternative formats for people with print
disabilities at www.irs.gov Follow the homepage link to
"Accessibility", then the link to "Accessible IRS Tax
Products" and select the appropriate link to download accessible forms or
publications.
Tax
preparation sites are hosted by governmental, faith-based and community
organizations throughout Arizona.
Visit www.az211.gov
Louis
Braille was born January 4, 1809, near Paris.
He lost his sight as a child, due to an accident while playing in his
father's harness-making workshop. In his youth he devised what we now call
Braille, a code using raised dots to enable blind people to read and write.
Braille is the premier tool for literacy for people who are the blind.
There
will be worldwide celebrations throughout the coming year in honor of Louis
Braille’s achievement. The U.S. Treasury will issue a commemorative coin in the
spring. Visit louisbraillebicentennial.org for information.
Not
all blind people learn braille. Many
never have the opportunity; some think it would be too hard to learn; still
others believe that it is obsolete, given today's technology.
Why
don't talking computers make braille outmoded?
For the same reasons that electronic devices haven't made real books,
pens and pencils pointless. For one
thing, you don't need electricity to use braille; so you don't lose access to
it when the power goes out, batteries die, or a storm makes it advisable to
unplug your computer. Furthermore, when "assistive technology"
malfunctions, getting it repaired or replaced can cost a lot of time and money.
Around
Thanksgiving my office building was without electricity for five business days,
due to a construction project. That was four days longer than expected. Being
unable to use my computer, I made notes in braille.
Braille
reading and writing promote true literacy (e.g., knowledge of spelling),
whereas audio books and such do not. The
majority of successfully employed blind people are braille users. In fact, statistics show that braille is a
key element in advancing beyond entry-level positions.
I started learning braille in
kindergarten. Now I have the privilege of teaching it to visually
impaired/blind adults who are preparing for the job market. Being able to read and write braille boosts
students' confidence, and increases their chances of succeeding with
employment.
Even
people who have reduced sensitivity in their fingers (e.g., from diabetic neuropathy) can
benefit from learning at least uncontracted braille, which they can use for
labeling items at work and home and for keeping phone numbers, addresses, etc.
Braille
can be written with a machine called a braillewriter (weighing about ten
pounds), which has a key for each of the six dots positions; or Braille can be
written with an easily portable slate and stylus, with which a person manually
punches each dot. Braille can even be produced electronically, by connecting a
computer to a braille embosser, a "printer" that creates raised dots.
Braille
is like magic to the uninitiated. It
still has magic for me. I can read in the dark, under the covers, under a
table, on a lectern while facing the audience, or in a moving vehicle without
risking motion sickness.
Experiencing
a book or magazine through Braille is quite different from listening to an
audio book or computerized speech, just as for sighted people to hold a book in
their hands, turning the pages themselves, is different from listening to a
recording.
We
who are Braille users want to spread the word that Braille is a premium tool
for anyone who has difficulty reading print because of vision loss (even if an
individual can read large print; usually that format is slow-going, and becomes
a strain if reading much). For most people, learning at least basic braille is
doable.
For adults and teens, free
correspondence courses are available through Hadley School for the Blind
(1-800- 526-9909). In-person instruction
can be arranged through either Vocational Rehabilitation (602-266-9579) or
Independent Living Rehabilitation Services (602-266-9286). Braille instruction
for children can be arranged through the Foundation for Blind Children
(602-331-1470).
You
can contact Gail Wilt at:
gwilt@seeitourway.org
or 602-331-1470, X 190
The
Southern Arizona Chapter of the Arizona Council of the Blind elected new
officers at their last meeting, which was held on December 20th at the Southern
Arizona Association for the Visually Impaired known as SAAVI in Tucson. The
president is Janet Kells, the vice-president is April Martin, the secretary is
Sharon Booker, the treasurer is Dorothy Levinson, and the two directors are
Thom Booker and Norma Rice. This group
meets every third Saturday of the month at SAAVI. More information, may be gained by calling
Janet Kells at 520-742-7787.
The
Phoenix Chapter of the Arizona Council of the Blind elected new officers at
their last meeting in November. The
president is Gail Elaine Wilt, the vice-president is Geri McGinty, and the
secretary/treasurer is Barbara McDonald.
This group meets at Macayos at 4001 North Central in Phoenix on the
fourth Tuesday of the month. The next
meeting will be January 27, 2009 at Macayos.
This group alternates business meetings with social get-togethers. For
more information, please call Barbara McDonald at 602-285-0269.
Local
chapter groups have the advantage of knowing local issues and being able to
focus on solving these problems.
Dear ACB Members and Friends,
As
part of the historic agreement negotiated by ACB, The California Council of the
Blind (CCB) and several blind individuals, free annual credit reports available
through www.annualcreditreport.com and are now designed to be accessible to
blind consumers.
Each
person is entitled to one free report each year from each of three different
companies. By the end of December 2008,
these companies will also be providing the free reports in Braille, Large
Print, and Audio formats.
ACB
and CCB used Structured Negotiations to reach the landmark agreement with the
Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
To
access your free on-line credit report, go to www.annualcreditreport.com. After
selecting your state and requesting your report, you will be taken to a form
that must be filled out. At the end of
the form there is a security feature (known as a Captcha) as well as an
alternative request page for blind and visually impaired consumers who cannot
see the characters that need to be entered into the box. Unlike some on-line
audio Captchas that are difficult to understand, the security feature on the
credit report site includes a phone number to call that will clearly provide
you with the code you need to enter into the site. These security features are
designed to help companies make sure that you are a real person, and not a
computer. The credit reporting companies have worked hard over the past several
months to make the Captcha on this site an accessible one. When you have
completed the form and the security feature, you will be asked to select which
of the three companies you want to receive your report from.
There will be a small number of people
who will be unable to obtain their report on-line because of the need for
additional authentication. This happens with sighted people also and has
nothing to do with visual impairment. If
this happens to you, and you are unable to get your report, please contact our
lawyers using the information below.
The
companies are working closely with ACB and its lawyers to make sure the reports
are accessible and the process is as usable as possible. If problems occur, we
will try to resolve them as soon as possible.
Feedback can be sent to our lawyers, Lainey Feingold and Linda
Dardarian, by emailing LF@LFLegal.com, or calling (510) 548-5062.
Please
keep this information for future reference and share it with other blind or
visually impaired people you know. Melanie Brunson, Executive Director,
American Council of the Blind
The AzCB BRIEF FUND
The Arizona Council of the
Blind has established the Blindness Related Intervention Expenses Fund (BRIEF).
The BRIEF Fund will provide funds not to exceed $1,000.00 to acquire
eyesight related assistive technology, aids, or devices to improve or maintain
an individual’s level of independence, increase or maintain functioning, or to
improve his or her quality of life.
The
expenditures to be covered by this program must be eyesight related; the
applicant must make a commitment to bare as much of the expense as possible;
and have no other reasonable means to cover the expense. The BRIEF fund is a
safety net to give some assistance with the high cost of having a disability.
Applicants
must be a resident of the state of Arizona to qualify for this program.
Here
is an update we received from a BRIEF recipient:
This letter is to update the
AzCB regarding the funds disbursed from the Brief account. I was able to use these funds to help
purchase a new Dell Laptop and Zoomtext screen magnification and reading
software.
In
the past I was only able to access information at work from nine to five and
now I am able to access information from five to nine as well. I have the ability to research new products,
news information and medical research through the Internet. Additionally this
technology has enabled me to become an active parent in my children’s
education. Together we do research projects
and create reports and presentations.
One
of the most significant outcomes from this technology is the personal growth in
my sense of self worth. I am
contributing to my family in ways that the blindness had taken away.
Thank
you all for your hard work and dedication to enriching the lives of individuals
who are blind. David
For more information about the BRIEF Fund or for
an application contact:
Robert Shelly
Mail: Arizona Council of the Blind
Attn: Robert Shelly
3124 East Roosevelt Street, Suite 4
Phoenix, AZ 85008
Call: 602-273-1510 or 1-888-273-1510
Email: rcshelly@msn.com
Arizona Council of the Blind State Convention May
1st and 2nd 2009
Where: Phoenix
International Airport Hilton
Hotel, located at 2435 South 47th Street in Phoenix. You may reserve your room by calling the
Hilton directly at (480) 894-1600. Room
rates are $105 per night plus tax for a standard room and $135 per night plus
tax for a suite.
When: Friday,
May 1 and Saturday, May 2, 2009
We will have two full days of meetings, workshops and an
exhibits area, showcasing the latest and most advanced products designed to
meet the needs of people who are blind or visually impaired. We are also planning a number of meals,
parties, and of course, our annual AzCB Banquet.
Registration is FREE for members. Other
Convention fees are dependent on the activities which you attend. Visit the
AzCB website ttp://www.azcb.org for more information
Note: The registration form is only available in
the Fore~Sight (There will not be a
separate registration mail out)
Arizona Council of the Blind 2009 Annual Membership Convention
Registration Form
Please complete one form per person. Do not include multiple registrants on the
same form.
Name _____________________________________
Address
___________________________________
City ________________ State
____ Zip _________
Phone ________________
Email________________
Format preference:. Large
Print ___ Braille ___
Are you a member of the
Arizona Council of the Blind? _____ Yes ______
No _____ I Don’t Know
Banquet Preference - Choose one.
____ Beef ___ Chicken __ Vegetarian Not attending
the banquet ___
REGISTRATION FEE
By April 1, 2009: Free for
members $20 for non-members
At the Door: Free for members
$30 for non-members
2009 AzCB Scholarships and
Awards Luncheon $20 for all
2009 AzCB Banquet $35 for all
Saturday Box Luncheon $15.00 (*Subject to availability)
Friday & Saturday
Continental Breakfast Free for all attendees
Payable to the Arizona Council of the Blind or
AZCB. You may pay for multiple
registrants with one check or money order.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAILING REGISTRATION FORMS AND
PAYMENTS - Send your completed Registration Form and payment to the following
address.
3124
E. Roosevelt St. Suite. 4
Phoenix,
AZ 85008-5088