Florida Convention to Be Held in Orlando
Florida Council of the Blind’s 66th annual state convention will be held in Orlando at the Avanti Palms Resort and Conference Center from Thursday, May 16 through Sunday, May 19. Room rates are $84.99 plus tax. Breakfast is included in our room rate. To make a reservation, call (866) 994-3157. For more information, call the FCB office at 1-800-267-4448.
Teachers’ Features for Rochester
by Carla Hayes
By now, you are probably planning, packing and registering for ACB’s national conference and convention in Rochester, N.Y.! As you fill out your registration form, leave plenty of time for the American Association of Blind Teachers (AABT), because we are planning plenty of fun for you!
We begin our convention week offerings with the AABT Fun and Games Breakfast! It will take place on Saturday, July 6 at 8 a.m. After kicking off the morning with quiche, put your thinking cap on for a lively game of “Out-Of-Sight Jeopardy.” This popular game has been redesigned with blindness-related categories and questions with varying degrees of difficulty. After Jeopardy, you will hear from Marty Schultz, who will give us information about Blindfold Games and ObjectiveEd, which publishes educational games that are especially designed for visually impaired students. The AABT business meeting and elections will immediately follow.
Are you in the market for a notetaker? Then join us on Sunday, July 7 from 1:15 to 2:30 p.m. for a workshop titled “Notetakers: Choosing the Right One.” AABT’s own Steve Dresser will lead a discussion of notetakers, their features, and which one is right for you. CEUs will be offered for this workshop.
Though it is not part of the AABT program, we recommend the New York School for the Blind Tour, which will take place on Wednesday, July 10th from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The cost is $44, and lunch is included.
Come and have fun and learn with us!
ACBDA Announces Convention Plans
Are you a diabetic, or a family member or friend of a diabetic? If so, then we have a special day planned just for you. Having diabetes means a complete change in the diabetic’s life, and American Council of the Blind Diabetics in Action (ACBDA) is making a big change as well.
This year ACBDA is declaring Tuesday, July 9 as Diabetics in Action Day. It will be filled with a luncheon, seminar, and a mixer, all to celebrate having or knowing someone who has diabetes.
Below you will find a list of our planned activities and a brief description of each, followed by the pre-registration and on-site registration costs
ACBDA registration: $15, $18
ACBDA Package Deal: $50
ACBDA at the Marketplace:
Stop by the ACBDA table and purchase 50/50 raffle ticket, which will be drawn at the mixer. Tickets are $5 for one or $20 for five.
ACBDA Luncheon, 12:15-1:15 p.m.: $25, $28
Come enjoy fried chicken and begin the day getting to know other blind or low-vision people who either have diabetes or support someone with diabetes.
ACBDA Seminar, 1:15-2:30 p.m.: $8, $10
Do you have questions about the Libre, a glucometer that is accessible to blind and low-vision people? Come and learn more about the Libre with speakers Bill Sparks, Chris Gray, and Jeff Bishop.
ACBDA Business Meeting, 2:30 - 4:15 p.m.:
Annual business meeting including elections of board members.
ACBDA Mixer, 4:15 - 5:30 p.m.: $15, $18
Come join us at our mixer, meet up with old friends, and make new friends. We will have food that is good for diabetics. We will also hold the 50/50 raffle drawing at the mixer.
IVIE Means Business in Rochester
by Carla Hayes
It’s hard to believe that it is already time to start making your plans for the ACB national conference and convention! IVIE has lots to offer you in Rochester.
Saturday, July 6 is IVIE Day in the ACB Marketplace from 4:30 to 7 p.m., immediately before the opening general session. Come and meet entrepreneurs who are blind or visually impaired and learn about their products and services! IVIE Day in ACB Marketplace will be handled in the same way as the IVIE Expo. If you would like to have a Marketplace booth, you must reserve it in advance through IVIE. The cost will be $10 for IVIE members and $25 for non-members, with the option of joining IVIE and applying $15 of this cost toward annual IVIE dues.
Immediately after the opening session, IVIE will join RSVA for their annual mixer. This will give you an opportunity to relax and mingle with old friends and new.
On Sunday, July 7 from 2:45 to 4 p.m., IVIE, RSVA and BPI will collaborate with the rehabilitation issues task force for a panel discussion on self-employment. CEUs will be offered for this program.
On Tuesday, July 9 from 12:15 to 2:30 p.m., we will hold the annual IVIE luncheon, program and business meeting. This year’s program title is “Making Tax Information Less Taxing for Business Owners.” A representative from H&R Block will speak to us about recent changes to the tax code and other important tax information. Our business meeting will immediately follow this program.
After the business meeting, the IVIE Business Expo will take place from 2:45 to 5:30 p.m. As in ACB Marketplace, blind and visually impaired business owners will showcase their products and services and answer your questions. Browsing is free. But if you would like to have a booth at the IVIE Business Expo, you must reserve it in advance. The cost will be $10 for IVIE members and $25 for non-members, with the option of joining IVIE and applying $15 of this cost toward annual IVIE dues. If you decide to have a booth at both IVIE Day in ACB Marketplace and the IVIE Expo, the cost would be $35 for IVIE members and $50 for non-members, with the option of applying $15 of this cost toward IVIE dues.
Since IVIE’s calendar year runs from July 1st to June 30th, this would be an excellent time to pay your dues. Dues are $15. You can reserve your IVIE Day at ACB Marketplace booth, your IVIE Business expo booth, and/or pay your annual dues online by visiting ivie-acb.org. If you are not comfortable with paying online, you can make a check payable to “IVIE,” and send it to Ardis Bazyn, 2121 Scott Rd. Apt. 105, Burbank, CA 91504. Please designate whether your check is for annual dues, IVIE Day at ACB Marketplace, an expo booth or any combination of these. Be sure to fill out and include the IVIE membership form, which can be found at ivie-acb.org.
Please make IVIE a part of your convention plans. If you have any questions about IVIE’s convention activities, please Carla Hayes at (724) 941-8184 or visit ivie-acb.org.
VIVA Seeking Veterans
Visually Impaired Veterans of America is seeking military veterans to become members, and to reach past members who have moved and have lost touch with VIVA. Please contact David Dowland, VIVA’s membership chair, at [email protected]. Include your full name, street address, city, state, ZIP code, email address, and telephone number.
VIVA will share lunch with Friends-in-Art on Monday, July 8th from 12:15 to 2:30 p.m. The guest speaker will be Marty Klein. On Tuesday, July 9th, VIVA will hold a meeting in the FIA suite in the Riverside hotel from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Come and join us!