Oklahoma Convention
Come join us at the Oklahoma Council of the Blind state convention! It will be held Sept. 25-27, 2015 at The Tower Hotel, 3233 NW Expressway, Oklahoma City, Okla. Room rates are $65 per night plus tax, single through quad; make reservations by Sept. 18. Our theme this year is “LIFE, Learning Is for Everyone.” For more information, contact Vicky Golightly, [email protected].
MSCB State Convention
Would you like to experience West Virginia in October? The foliage is beautiful in the mountains, and the weather is usually great! Come and be a part of the Mountain State Council of the Blind 2015 state convention, Oct. 9-11. It will be held at Alpine Lake Resort in Terra Alta, W.Va. We have an informative program planned, along with exciting social events. David Trott, an ACB board member from Alabama, will be our banquet speaker.
Room rates are $55.80 per night (plus tax). To make hotel reservations, call 1-800-752-7179 or (304) 789-2481. Make your reservations before Sept. 25, and be sure to mention that you are with the Mountain State Council of the Blind to get this rate. For more information, contact Donna Brown by phone at (304) 940-0292 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Pennsylvania State Convention in the State Capital
The Pennsylvania Council of the Blind (PCB) will hold its 80th annual convention Oct. 15-18 at the Harrisburg-Hershey Crowne Plaza Hotel in Harrisburg. The theme of the conference is “Independence: A Collaborative Approach.” The convention, through individual presentations and panel discussions, will support independence and emphasize the significance of others in achieving it. There will also be an audio darts tournament, a banquet whodunit dinner theater presented by a PCB chapter, and a tour to a brewery. All are welcome to join us!
Rates at the Harrisburg-Hershey Crowne Plaza Hotel are $89 per night, plus tax. Harrisburg is easily accessible by plane, bus or train. To reserve a room, call (717) 234-5021. For information, or to register, call or write the PCB office at (717) 920-9999, toll-free 1-877-617-7407, e-mail [email protected]. Our goal is to empower, educate and entertain. Set your sights for Harrisburg in October for a great convention!
For the most up-to-date information and online registration, visit www.pcb1.org/state-convention/.
D.C. Convention in October
The District of Columbia Council of the Blind (DCCB) will hold its annual convention on Oct. 24 at the National Education Association’s conference center, 1527 M St. NW in Washington, D.C.
Planning is well under way for the one-day event. Some of the presentations being considered include technology, transportation, legislation, and recreation. There will be exhibits as well as door prizes.
For more information, contact Richard Nuanes, convention chair, at (202) 364-0159, or via e-mail, [email protected].
Join ACB Families, Get a Chance to Win a Holiday Gift Card!
ACB Families is an affiliate of the American Council of the Blind. We assist families who experience blindness or vision loss by providing peer support, information, education, and friendship. Our activities include informational meetings and conference calls on family-related topics ranging from financial planning to accessible gift ideas and holiday traditions, and fun, family-friendly activities at the ACB conference and convention. We provide partial support for the Kids’ Explorers Club, which provides fun, safe and supervised activities for children attending the convention. We maintain a free e-mail list where members and friends can discuss blindness issues of special concern to parents, children, and other family members.
ACB Families is having a pre-holiday 2016 membership drive. Become a member of ACB Families by Oct. 31, 2015, and you will be entered into a drawing for two free holiday celebrations. First prize is a $100 gift card, and second prize is a $50 gift card.
Dues are just $8 a year. Send your 2016 dues by Oct. 31 to: ACB Families, Adam Ruschival, Treasurer, 148 Vernon Ave., Louisville, KY 40206.
Join our conference call at 9 p.m. Eastern on the fourth Sunday of each month by dialing (605) 475-6333 and entering code 1711553. Subscribe to our free e-mail list by visiting www.acb.org and following the e-mail lists link, or by sending a blank message to [email protected].
For more information about ACB Families, contact Ron Brooks, president, at (602) 616-1171 or [email protected].
2015 Joint Indiana and Ohio ACB State Convention
The American Council of the Blind of Indiana (ACBI) and the American Council of the Blind of Ohio (ACBO) are coming together for a joint convention. The theme is “Together We’re Better!” The convention will take place in Cincinnati, Ohio Nov. 6-8, 2015.
We are planning a convention where almost anyone will find something interesting, from concurrent sessions to vendors new and familiar, or a fun activity to an engaging speaker with every convention meal, there will be something to stimulate and delight! There will also be an auction.
The convention will begin with the Friday keynote speaker, Greg Daniel. Greg gained recognition in the 1970s for being the first blind person to become a member of the Ohio State University marching band. He worked for over 35 years as a computer programmer and software tester at the Ohio Bureau of Employment Services, currently known as the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services, but music has continued to play a major role in his life.
The Saturday night banquet speaker will be Kathy Nimmer. She was Indiana Teacher of the Year and a national finalist for Teacher of the Year in 2015. Kathy is blind and has been teaching in the public schools for more than two decades. She currently teaches 10th grade English in West Lafayette, Ind. Kathy will also engage us in an interactive session on Sunday morning.
The convention will be held at the Garfield Suites Hotel in downtown Cincinnati. The hotel is located at 2 Garfield Pl., Cincinnati, OH, 45202; phone (513) 421-3355. The deadline for room reservations is Oct. 10. This hotel offers suites instead of individual rooms. Each suite includes a living room, dining area, fully equipped kitchen, bath, and either one or two bedrooms. Those on the east side of the building include a balcony. One-bedroom suites are $89 a night plus tax; two-bedroom suites, $119 per night plus tax.
The program will be available on each affiliate’s web site. Online registration will be available on ACBO’s site at www.acbohio.org. The auction list will be posted on ACBI’s site at www.acb-indiana.org in late October. If you have any questions, call 1-800-835-2226 or send e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected].