THE BRAILLE FORUM Volume XLV June 2007 No. 10 Published by the American Council of the Blind THE AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND STRIVES TO INCREASE THE INDEPENDENCE, SECURITY, EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY, AND TO IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR ALL BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED PEOPLE. Christopher Gray, President Melanie Brunson, Executive Director Sharon Lovering, Editor National Office: 1155 15th St. NW Suite 1004 Washington, DC 20005 (202) 467-5081 Fax: (202) 467-5085 Web site: http://www.acb.org THE BRAILLE FORUM (TM) is available in braille, large print, half-speed four- track cassette tape, and via e-mail. Subscription requests, address changes, and items intended for publication should be sent to Sharon Lovering at the address above, or via e-mail to slovering@acb.org. Submission deadlines are the first of the month. The American Council of the Blind (TM) is a membership organization made up of more than 70 state and special-interest affiliates. To join, visit the ACB web site and complete an application form, or contact the national office at the number listed above. Those much-needed contributions, which are tax-deductible, can be sent to Mike Godino at the above mailing address. If you wish to remember a relative or friend, the national office can make printed cards available for this purpose. To remember the American Council of the Blind in your Last Will and Testament, you may include a special paragraph for that purpose. If your wishes are complex, contact the ACB national office. Join the MMS program and help improve tomorrow today in ACB. Contact Ron Milliman by e-mail, rmilliman@insightbb.com, or by phone at (270) 782-9325 and get started making tomorrow look brighter today! To make a contribution to ACB via the Combined Federal Campaign, use this number: 11155. For the latest in legislative and governmental news, call the "Washington Connection" toll-free at (800) 424-8666, 5 p.m. to midnight Eastern time, or visit the Washington Connection online at http://www.acb.org. Copyright 2007 American Council of the Blind ***** TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement from "The Braille Forum" President's Message: Meeting Future Leaders, by Christopher Gray In Memoriam: Eugene Barton, by Bill Newland and Sue Lichtenfels Michigan Loses a Treasure, by Donna Rose Low Tide Lamentations, by Teddie-Joy Remhild Minneapolis, Here We Come!, by Carla Ruschival Convention Sneak Preview, Part 2 Seeing Eye Lets You Experience the 'Flying' Sensation at Convention Affiliate News Win a Hamilton Beach i-Talk Microwave!, by Ron Milliman Board Adopts Balanced Budget, Establishes New Award, by Charles S.P. Hodge Tilt!, by Carl Jarvis A Friend Goes off to War, by Michael Vining Here and There, by Sue Lichtenfels High Tech Swap Shop FORUM SUBSCRIPTION NOTES You can now get "The Braille Forum" by podcast! To subscribe, go to "The Braille Forum" page on www.acb.org. If you do not yet have a podcast client, you can download one from the Forum page. To subscribe to "The Braille Forum" via e-mail, send a blank e-mail message to brailleforum-L-subscribe@acb.org. ARE YOU MOVING? DO YOU WANT TO CHANGE YOUR SUBSCRIPTION? Contact Sharon Lovering in the ACB national office, 1-800-424-8666, or via e-mail, slovering@acb.org. Give her the information, and she'll take care of the changes for you. CORRECTION Due to an editing error, there was a misstatement in the "Recreation Preview" (May 2007). There will be blindfolds and darts available at the audio darts exhibition. You do not need to bring your own. ***** STATEMENT FROM 'THE BRAILLE FORUM' "The Braille Forum," the ACB Board of Publications, and the author, Gary Norman, express regret that anyone may have felt harmful or hurtful intent in the article "Local Advocacy at its Best: Community Advocates from Baltimore's Ronald McDonald House, ACB Representatives Learn from One Another," published in "The Braille Forum," March 2007. The intent of the article was to focus on the Ronald McDonald House of Baltimore, Inc., as an organization, the processes and systems set in place to assist families with ill children and the education and outreach advocacy of the ACB organizations in Maryland to assure that service animals are guaranteed the fullest access. While "The Braille Forum" commends the educational advocacy effort of the Maryland Area Guide Dog Users, we regret that a lack of judicious editing or dialogue with the author caused at least one statement to be published as fact, when it clearly should have been labeled as the opinion of the author if included within the article at all. Please accept our sincere apology. ***** PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: MEETING FUTURE LEADERS by Christopher Gray Between January and May of 2007, a number of notable conventions and other meetings have been held in the field of blindness and visual impairment. In this message, I will share some highlights of these activities, and discuss possible future leadership development meetings to be held by ACB and its affiliates. One of the more notable of such events occurred in March as the members of the Hawaii Association of the Blind celebrated their 40th anniversary. Attendance at Hawaii conventions is always excellent, but this year can only be described as outstanding. So too was the convention program. While at the convention, I had a lengthy conversation with HAB President Warren Toyama about new leadership he has brought to the affiliate and his desire to bring still more new and capable people into HAB. To highlight these efforts and encourage others to do likewise, Toyama has pledged seed money of $3,000 for a western regional leadership conference. I strongly urge other affiliates to consider similar programs to assist in both discovering and nurturing new leadership throughout ACB. Another particularly noteworthy conference occurred May 6-10 in Nairobi, Kenya. This was a continent-wide conference of the Africa Blind Union. This conference was broadcast worldwide through the facilities of ACB Radio. All proceedings were carried on our newest channel: ACB Radio World. Many young, bright, dedicated leaders throughout Africa came together to discuss topics ranging from education to human rights. It was both moving and enlightening to hear these discussions and to witness such leadership emerging out of so much chaos, violence and impoverishment. ACB is very pleased to have assisted in making the proceedings of this historic conference available to the world. We also acknowledge the work of the Hilton-Perkins Foundation in making this event possible. Chrissie Cochrane of ACB Radio did an outstanding job of hosting and acting as the sole radio anchor for all of the proceedings and did a wonderful job under some trying circumstances. Just a few short weeks before the Africa conference, the World Blind Union Executive Board and the North American-Caribbean Regional Board held consecutive meetings in Toronto, Canada. The Canadian National Institute for the Blind, its executive director Jim Sanders, its board of directors and CNIB staff acted as outstanding hosts for all attendees. It was a true learning experience to witness the worldwide team of leaders discuss and manage the affairs of the WBU and to begin to better understand their roles, perspectives and contributions to blind people worldwide. In the next several months, let us devote ourselves in ACB to developing the leaders who can participate on the affiliate, national and international levels in moving forward our mission as an organization to improve the lives of all blind people. A number of us will be working specifically on the western regional leadership conference, and rest assured you will be reading more about that in the pages of "The Braille Forum" in forthcoming issues. Let me encourage you also to consider joining us in the west and beginning to plan and hold additional regional conferences throughout the United States. Great leadership is available, but we must train and mobilize it in order to increase our effectiveness. Finally, I look forward to seeing many of you at ACB's upcoming convention in Minneapolis, Minn. This is proving to be a far larger convention than we had originally anticipated. I hope you can come and join the fun. If you cannot, please don't forget to tune in to ACB Radio Mainstream and join us live or via repeat broadcast 24 hours per day the whole of convention week, June 30 through July 6. It will be lots of fun! ***** IN MEMORIAM: EUGENE BARTON by Bill Newland and Sue Lichtenfels On Friday, January 26, 2007, Pennsylvania Council of the Blind President Henry Eugene Barton passed away at his Pittsburgh home after battling pancreatic cancer. "Gene was a beacon of light for so many blind and vision-impaired citizens of Pennsylvania," remembers his wife, Darlene Barton. Without a doubt ACB and PCB were most fortunate to have Gene Barton as a member for nearly 40 years. Over those years he was an active member of the PCB chapters in Altoona, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh. After the death of Gene's first wife Jolane in 2002, Gene became president of Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle Council of the Blind. He took on the responsibility of chairing the host committee for the ACB convention to be held in Pittsburgh in 2003. One of his duties was coordinating the volunteer training for the convention, and Gene was rewarded for his hard work. It was during that first training session that he met Darlene Mitchell, who he would marry that September. Gene not only got a wife, but ACB, PCB, and GTCB got someone who was willing to pitch in whenever called upon. "It is unfortunate that in our egocentric culture where those who aspire to positions of leadership create every opportunity to exaggerate their accomplishments, the unassuming and humble often go unnoticed and unappreciated, at least until they are gone. We as an organization will feel deeply the loss of a good leader, but in the greater scheme of things, we will feel deeply the loss of a good and generous man," states Tony Swartz, PCB board member. Gene dedicated both his professional and personal life to advocating for the blind. He worked for 30 years as a vocational rehabilitation counselor with the Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services. In his retirement, Gene was concerned about issues such as voting and transportation. He became president of PCB in 2003 and was re-elected in 2005. Gene also served on the Pittsburgh region's Committee for Accessible Transportation, the City-County Task Force on Disabilities, and the Consumer-Provider Council on Blindness. He met with his local legislators frequently and attended numerous legislative seminars in the state capital. "He was a man worth listening to because you knew what he said was well thought out and clearly stated," admits Ed Facemyer, Gene's long-time friend. "Whatever Gene did he put his heart and soul into." Gene earned himself quite a reputation in the visually impaired community. Many referred to him as the "go-to guy," because whenever you needed something fixed, a project accomplished, or someone to talk to, Gene was the man. He put new siding on his home, tinkered with wheelchairs, built stands for the audible dart boards, caned chairs, and fixed everything. Gene was an easy person to talk to because you always knew he was listening. He had a thoughtful manner that gave credibility to everything he said. Gene had an infectious laugh that was usually followed by one of his incredibly detailed, never-embellished life stories. When Gene was not working on advocacy projects or helping friends, he enjoyed playing cards, shooting darts, bowling, listening to old-time radio or bluegrass, and following high school wrestling. "Gene will be missed, but I know he expects us to work to insure that the quality of life for those who are blind and vision-impaired only gets better," says GTCB past president Bill Newland. In lieu of flowers, you may send contributions in Gene's memory to either the Forbes Hospice, 113 S. Neville St., Pittsburgh, PA 15213, and/or the Pennsylvania Council of the Blind, 931 N. Front St., Harrisburg, PA 17102. ***** MICHIGAN LOSES A TREASURE by Donna Rose While working on our state's membership list today, I reflected on the people represented by each name. Many of them hold a special place in my heart. We are losing a lot of older members. These are the people who we can personally thank for Social Security programs that raised much of our population out of poverty, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Braille literacy legislation and so much more in the way of social justice. These are the people who worked at jobs before disability civil rights were even conceived. Sadly, on April 25th Michigan lost one of these valued senior members, Sue Illingworth. At 83 she was still going strong working on behalf of all of us and doing it so seamlessly. We just spoke to her at our quarterly board meeting four days prior to her death and she attended a committee meeting for our resolutions committee the night she passed away. Sue had a heart attack. It was a shock to everyone. I can't remember a time when I didn't know the Illingworths, as they have been a consistent fixture in the history of our state since before I was even born. A graduate of Ohio State with a degree in education, Sue spent her career as a home teacher in Ohio and for the state of Michigan as a rehabilitation teacher for the blind. Sue herself was dealing with the eye disease retinitis pigmentosa, and she ultimately lost all of her sight. But that wouldn't stop Sue, who remained active after retirement with the Lions Club and the Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired. Once when I was in my 20s she said to me how irritating it was to her that many people didn't think that a blind person could be employed and afford to pay for things. She was proud of her work, as we all should be, and she had no trouble speaking her mind to set people straight when they just didn't get it. Sue was always a true champion for our community. Sue was a personality of so much more worth than my words can express here. She and her husband George were the best set of inseparable soul mates I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. They routinely finished each other's sentences and it was obvious how important one was to the other. There is a tale that, at a Halloween party some time in the past, Sue dressed in slacks and went with a T-shirt that read "Hershey's" and George was dressed the same, but his shirt read "Hershey's With Nuts." Sue could be so whimsical! And, like most seniors, she had a lot of stories and history to share. Sue is survived by her husband of 48 years, George. The hearts and minds of all those who are blind and have known the Illingworths will be with him as he grieves and attempts to adjust to life without his best friend. It is suggested that those who wish to further honor the memory of Mrs. Suzanne "Sue" Illingworth may do so by making a contribution to: Lions Club-Plymouth Chapter or Wayne County Regional Library For the Blind, 30555 Michigan Ave., Westland, MI 48186. There is now a void that can never be filled by another. We miss you, Sue! ***** LOW TIDE LAMENTATIONS ... and the tears flow as the tides recede, They mourn the loss of massive power. The waning waves accede to the force of grief engulfing the loss. As the tears dissolve, A calm stillness heralds the rebirth of steadily rising tides. Thus is the endless evolution of the forces of life. Teddie-Joy Remhild ***** MINNEAPOLIS, HERE WE COME! by Carla Ruschival It's down to the wire! We're almost there! Minneapolis, here we come! The hotels are packed to overflowing, pre-registration is in full swing, the program's at the printer's, and everyone's gearing up for a fabulous convention in the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes. Here are a few last-minute details that you might find helpful as you get ready to spend a week with ACB. TAXI: Thanks to the hard work of Ken Rodgers and the local host committee, we do not anticipate any problems with taxi service in Minneapolis. Several of you have asked about fares from the train and bus stations. The Greyhound station is just a few blocks from the hotel, and taxi fare should be $5 to $10. The Amtrak station is in St. Paul, so fare will be about $25. Remember also that the taxi from the airport is approximately $27 plus tip; shuttle is $15 one-way per person, or $26 round trip. CONVENTION INFORMATION: Keep up with all the latest changes and program add-ons both before and during the convention. Visit the Convention Updates page on the ACB web site (www.acb.org/convention), or subscribe to our brand-new ACB Convention e-mail list by sending a blank message to acbconvention-subscribe@acb.org; be sure to reply to the confirmation message. The new list will carry all the handouts, such as the restaurant list, the list of exhibitors, delegate lists, proposed constitution and bylaws amendments, etc. Best of all, it will carry the daily convention newspaper. Even if you aren't in Minneapolis, you can be right up-to-date on what's happening. A huge thanks to Lisa Salinger for this great idea! You say you can't do e-mail while you are in Minneapolis, but you'll have your notetaker along? No problem! Stop by the Information Desk each morning with your SD card, compact flash card, thumb drive, etc. and we'll download copies of the hand-outs from our computer. MALL OF AMERICA COUPON BOOKS: The Mall of America has generously provided giant coupon books for every convention attendee who registers. They contain 200-plus coupons worth over $1,500. Braille, large print and electronic summaries of the books will be available at the Information Desk and on the acbconvention e-mail list. CANE CAPERS: Many of you have requested an orientation to the hotels for cane users, similar to that provided by GDUI for guide dog users. Don't miss Cane Capers, offered on Saturday afternoon, June 30. Watch the Updates page and e-mail list for more details. NEW FACE FOR FIRST-TIMERS' MEETING: Whether you are a first-timer or someone who just wants a quick overview of what's happening, you will enjoy the Keys to the Convention. Unlock a week of information and fun; sessions on Saturday, June 30 and Sunday, July 1. THE DETAILS: Convention dates are June 30 through July 7, with pre-convention tours on June 29. The lead hotel is the Hyatt Regency, 1300 Nicollet Mall; rates are $81 single/double, $91 triple/quad; 1-800-233-1234. The Millennium, 1313 Nicollet Mall, is also an official convention hotel ($84 single/double, $94 triple/quad; 1-800-522-8856). Rates are quoted per night, and do not include tax. Both hotels have been full for some time. If you do not have a reservation and wish to attend the convention, call Carla Ruschival at (502) 897-1472 for information on room availability. We'll see you in Minneapolis! ***** CONVENTION SNEAK PREVIEW, PART 2 Products and Services to Make Life Easier -- Whether You are a Techie or Not! Plans are well under way for the 2007 ACB convention to be held in Minneapolis from June 30 through July 7 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. The information access committee intends to start things off with a highly worthwhile seminar on various types of technology, and we hope you will plan to join us. It is impossible to know what will please the greatest number of people who attend our event this year! The committee has chosen to initiate discussions on such issues as cell phones and wireless devices, home appliances, and shopping, e-mailing and browsing without a computer. We have great speakers, including Darrin Burton, a well-known author and speaker who evaluates a variety of products at the American Foundation for the Blind; Emdad Khan, who developed a way you can use the Internet on your phone; and representatives and demos from companies that provide wireless products and services including T-Mobile and AT&T Mobility. If any or all of these topics appeal to you, plan to arrive early enough on Saturday, June 30, so you can attend our interactive discussions and demonstrations from 2 to 5 p.m. You can either reserve your ticket on your pre-registration form or purchase one at the door for $3. Technology is progressing so rapidly that, at the very least, it's difficult to keep up with it. Join us so that you can stay in step. NELDS to Host CD Swap Shop and Yard Sale at 2007 ACB Convention The National Educational and Legal Defense Services for the Blind (NELDS) will host a CD swap shop and yard sale on Saturday evening, June 30, 2007. The plan is to encourage ACB members to bring CDs where they have multiple copies, or ones they no longer play, and either swap them with other members for CDs they would like to add to their collections, or sell them to someone for an appropriate price. The swap shop will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m., prior to the Welcome to Minnesota Party. In addition to good old-fashioned bargaining and greeting old friends, there will be a cash bar to help the process along. The pre- registration price is $5; admission at the door will be $7. We encourage everyone to bring their extra CDs and spend a fun evening in bartering them. Who knows what you will take home as new favorite recordings? If you can't attend the convention but would like to contribute CDs to the cause, you may send them to Sandy Sanderson, Alaska Independent Blind, 1102 International Airport Rd., Anchorage, AK 99518. NELDS would like to thank the many members who participated in the 2007 ACB convention drawing. The first prize winner of two round trip airline tickets to Minneapolis is Jack Mindrup of Nebraska. Second prize of five nights hotel room and taxes for a party of two went to the enterprising Middle Tennessee chapter of the Tennessee Council of the Blind. They plan to use the prize to help five chapter members attend the convention by giving each one a night's free room. And third prize -- two banquet tickets -- went to our national treasurer, Mike Godino. Tickets for the 2008 raffle will be available in Minneapolis. ***** SEEING EYE LETS YOU EXPERIENCE THE 'FLYING' SENSATION AT CONVENTION "It felt like I was flying!" That's the response most often uttered by first-time Seeing Eye dog users. ACB conventioneers will have the chance to experience that sensation firsthand. Seeing Eye instructors will be out in force during the entire convention, providing what's known as "Juno walks" with an imaginary dog called (you guessed it!) Juno. One highlight of the convention will be a special presentation by Seeing Eye graduate Mike May on Sunday, July 1, from 3 to 5 p.m. Blinded at the age of 3, Mike went on to break world records in downhill skiing, work for the CIA, and become a successful inventor and entrepreneur (his company, Sendero Group, produced the first talking GPS for people who are blind). A book about his life, "Crashing Through: A True Story of Risk, Adventure, and the Man Who Dared to See," will be released in late spring, and a movie based on the book is being produced by Fox 2000. Mike will discuss his journey to success and will sign copies of his book. Everyone is welcome to enjoy the food and an exciting presentation by Mike. On Wednesday, July 4, at 7 a.m., The Seeing Eye will host its annual graduate breakfast. Grads are encouraged to bring along a friend who might have interest in The Seeing Eye. They'll hear all about recent and upcoming developments at the school and meet the new president, Jim Kutsch. Please let us know if you have special dietary needs. Registration for Juno walks is available at The Seeing Eye's exhibit booth or at the school's hospitality suite (check the convention program for the location of our suite). Please refer to the ACB registration packet to pre-register for Mike May's presentation or the graduate breakfast. Visitors to the suite or the booth can enter a variety of raffles, competing for fun and exciting door prizes. A lucky winner will have a chance to name a Seeing Eye puppy! A special notice for Seeing Eye grads -- check the suite schedule for details on beginner and advanced lessons in clicker training for your dogs. This form of operant conditioning uses a marker signal (clicker) and positive reinforcement to modify your dog's behavior. ***** AFFILIATE NEWS Why is VIVA Important For ACB Vets? by Ellsworth L. "Skip" Sharpe At last year's ACB national convention in Jacksonville, I was elected president of the Visually Impaired Veterans of America (VIVA). For many years I have wondered how many veterans were members of ACB and were not members of VIVA. I would like to contact these veterans and discuss with them the benefits of VIVA. VIVA membership helps keep veterans informed of changes in the law and policy of the Veterans Administration (VA). These changes can lead to improvements in benefits for veterans with disabilities that are either service-connected or non-service-connected. And information about these changes is not always published in the media. Several years ago I attended a Blinded Veterans Association (BVA) regional group meeting in Richmond, Va. One of the speakers at the meeting was the director of the unit that evaluated veterans' claims for service-connected disability at the Richmond VA Medical Center. The speaker indicated that the criteria for disability claims for retinitis pigmentosa (RP) had been modified. In the past the only reason service connection was granted for RP was that military service had irritated the eye condition and caused the condition to progress faster than normal. The new criteria will award service connection for RP if the veteran entered the service without RP but had some RP symptoms while he or she was on active duty; it does not have to be diagnosed while the veteran is on active duty. After hearing the representative discuss the new conditions for awarding service connection for RP, I relayed the information to a very close friend. He was discharged from the military many years earlier because of poor night vision. Loss of night vision is often the beginning of RP. He was able to hold a good job and drive a car for many years after discharge from the military, but eventually became totally blind. I felt that his case fit the new service connection criteria that were stated in Richmond. He filed an application for service-connected disability with the VA. VA officials rejected this application. He appealed this decision and after a year's wait he was granted service connection. He received full benefits including back pay, which dated back to the date he filed his application. Many veterans who were blind due to conditions not related to their military service are not aware that they can receive benefits from the VA. These veterans are eligible for comprehensive health care, which includes medical care, prosthetics (CCTV devices, computers, braille equipment, etc.), blind rehabilitation, and training on the prosthetic devices mentioned above. Non-service-connected blind veterans may also be eligible for VA pension, which is a monthly cash benefit given to catastrophically disabled non-service-connected veterans who have a very low income. VIVA publishes a newsletter several times a year. This newsletter will inform you of VA benefits and any changes in them. I hope you will join us at VIVA in the coming years. To encourage you to join VIVA now, VIVA will charge you for the year 2008 ($15), and you will be a member the rest of this year and all of next year. You will receive all the VIVA newsletters for both years, including the one just released. To take advantage of this offer, send your name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, branch of service, highest rank held, dates of service and a check or money order for $15 made out to VIVA. If you are not a veteran or do not want to include some of the above information, just submit your data without all the information. Please state whether you are a veteran. Send the above items to: David L. Dowland, VIVA Treasurer, 1111 E. 39th St., Tulsa, OK 74105. ***** WIN A HAMILTON BEACH i-TALK MICROWAVE! by Ron Milliman Effective retroactively as of October 1, 2006, through the end of the 2007 ACB national convention in Minneapolis, all new enrollees into the Monthly Monetary Support (MMS) Program will be eligible to win a free Hamilton Beach i-TALK Microwave. The drawing will take place shortly after the 2007 convention. This change includes all people who enrolled during the state affiliate conventions that took place in fall 2006 and this spring, as well as all those who enroll during the ACB 2007 national convention! It also includes all those enrolling online during this time period. And it includes all new enrollees, no matter what method you use to enroll. We will be set up during the ACB 2007 national convention in Minneapolis to answer questions, to enroll new members and to help those who want to increase the amounts of their contributions. We will be announcing the times and locations throughout the convention. So, let's get those enrollment applications filled out and submitted! You could be the lucky winner of a free Hamilton Beach i-TALK Microwave! Plus, as a token of our sincere appreciation, all new enrollees will receive a free pocket-sized FM scanner radio just for participating in the program. ***** BOARD ADOPTS BALANCED BUDGET, ESTABLISHES NEW AWARD by Charles S.P. Hodge President Chris Gray called the mid-year board of directors meeting to order at 9:05 a.m. on March 10, 2007, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Minneapolis. Secretary Donna Seliger called the roll; all board members were present except for Naomi Soule. Executive director Melanie Brunson and comptroller Lane Waters were also present. Guests were asked to identify themselves, and there were a good number of guests in attendance. Gray then reviewed the proposed meeting agenda. Some items were rearranged in order to accommodate individuals' schedules. Following approval of the amended agenda, Paul Edwards then moved to approve the minutes of the January 4, 2007 conference call board meeting. Gray began his president's report by calling upon Nona Graves of Milwaukee, Wis., to bring the board up-to-date on some important developments in her state. Graves reported that while ACB's current affiliate in Wisconsin, the Badger Association of the Blind, had paid dues and would cast affiliate votes at the upcoming national convention, at the end of the convention, the association intends to surrender its affiliate charter in favor of a newly organized Wisconsin affiliate. She explained that the Midwest Association of the Blind, a well-established organization with the potential for local chapters throughout the state, was in the process of changing its name to the American Council of the Blind of Wisconsin (ACBW), and that the ACBW would be applying for a charter to become the new affiliate in Wisconsin. She asked the board to approve ACBW's charter petition. Gray indicated that the ACBW's charter application, when received, would likely be taken up at the board's pre-convention meeting. Gray also reported that the National Library Service (NLS) will, by the middle to end of 2008, be introducing digital talking book players, and that cassette books will not be produced after 2016. Mitch Pomerantz interjected that he recently had the opportunity to look at two distinctly different NLS digital players. One player is more sophisticated, and the other is very simple in design and is intended for the use of senior citizens. Paul Edwards raised the matter of his unjustified removal from the NLS committee dealing with the design and development of digital talking book players. Gray suggested that Edwards, Kim Charlson and himself form an ad hoc committee to write a document regarding this matter to be presented to NLS and shared with the board. He also reported that the advocacy services committee has met and made a decision regarding a matter coming to the committee from the Randolph- Sheppard Vendors of America (RSVA), but indicated that he would not go into further detail until Melanie Brunson had the opportunity to discuss the matter with the board. Finally, Gray told the board that Joel Snider had asked for authority to represent ACB at two separate meetings, one with film makers and the other with DVD makers, which would take place at the CSUN conference in Los Angeles. Snider intended to promote the inclusion of audio description on movie DVDs. The board accepted the president's report, then turned its attention to the report from the national office made by Melanie Brunson. Brunson reported that Day Al-Mohamed, the director of legislative and governmental affairs, had tendered her resignation to pursue another employment opportunity. Al-Mohamed's last day with ACB would be March 23. The affiliate presidents' meeting and legislative seminar went well, with members from many states participating. There probably will not be any comprehensive Randolph-Sheppard Act legislation in the 2007 legislative session, as the emphasis is and will continue to be on Iraq and other high- priority legislative issues. A policy statement was to be put together by a group with representatives from the Department of Education, the Department of Defense and the Committee for Purchase. The policy statement was intended to resolve perceived problems between the Javits-Wagner-O'Day (JWOD) program and the Randolph-Sheppard program. The resulting policy statement was not especially balanced or kind to the Randolph-Sheppard program. A group of organizations has formed an alliance, the Blind Entrepreneurial Alliance (BEA), which has hired a high-powered, experienced lobbyist to work on its behalf. Organizations participating in the BEA include the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), ACB, the Blind Merchants' Guild, and RSVA, along with other interested parties. Brunson reported that the Hawaii Blind Vendors are currently involved in litigation. The vendors have not been able to collect funds from certain vending machines on county and state government locations since the county of Honolulu and the state of Hawaii have respectively taken such revenues for themselves. The vendors brought a suit against the county and state in the state courts, but lost their case on appeal before the Hawaii Supreme Court. The vendors are now preparing to bring the case before the United States Supreme Court. Bob Humphreys, counsel for the vendors, has asked ACB to file its own amicus brief or to join RSVA's brief in support of the vendors. Brunson stated that both the Washington and Minneapolis offices have been working hard to streamline operations and to evaluate expenditures to find where additional savings can be achieved. She reported that she has begun compiling a group of documents intended to become part of a board handbook. Following acceptance of Brunson's report, Ray Campbell moved that the board authorize moving forward on the recommendation from the advocacy services committee. He stated that if it could be done within the tight time constraints confronting us, ACB should file its own amicus curiae brief supporting the Hawaii Blind Vendors; if not, ACB should join RSVA's brief. On a voice vote, the motion carried. The board next turned its attention to an update on the American Council of the Blind Enterprises and Services (ACBES) from Michael Garrett, chairperson of the ACBES board. Garrett stated that ACBES had met its initial budgetary commitment to ACB through 2006. He added that through the adoption of new management strategies and updated management in certain stores, an increase in profits has already been seen through the first two months of 2007. Lane Waters, ACBES' comptroller, reviewed ACBES' financial reports. He stated that during his tenure with ACBES, he has been able to make savings in certain expense items such as property insurance and workman's compensation expenses, to name just a few. Waters stated further that through positive attitude adjustment training and management changes in certain stores, the thrift stores are doing much better overall. He also reported that ACBES has recently purchased six 2004 International trucks for use by the thrift stores. The trucks are painted bright yellow with black lettering and the round ACB logo on them. Each truck also has prominently displayed the telephone number of the thrift store in its local area. Carla Ruschival moved that the board express its appreciation to the staff in the Minneapolis office throughout 2006 for their steadfast persistence and assistance. After acceptance of the ACBES report, the board turned its attention to a discussion of a survey that had been published in "The Braille Forum" regarding the accessible paper currency issue. Melanie Brunson read the survey questions published in "The Braille Forum." M.J. Schmitt then reported that the initial response level to the survey was disappointing, but that she and Brunson had not had a chance just before this meeting to evaluate later responses to the survey which had been received more recently. Schmitt indicated that she and Brunson intended to make a more up-to-date report at the next board meeting. Mitch Pomerantz then reported on the National Telecommuting Institute (NTI) issue. An ACB member had applied for a job with NTI, but was turned down. The individual then contacted Linda Dardarian and Lainey Feingold about her employment discrimination complaint against NTI on account of her blindness. Feingold wrote NTI a detailed 14-page letter laying out the complainant's employment discrimination claim. NTI sent back two separate letters in response to the Feingold letter; one was addressed to the board, indicating a willingness to negotiate the claim while making no commitments regarding the matter, the other from an NTI attorney suggesting that lawyers are expensive and that ACB therefore did not have to involve lawyers in this issue. The board accepted the NTI report. During lunch, David Trott, chairperson of the resource development committee, made two announcements, one that the annual raffle would be offered again, and that the Cancun, Mexico time share auction would also be conducted again this year. Trott then introduced Lou Abbott, who discussed the benefits of the product lines offered by Melaleuca Inc. Abbott described the many benefits of Melaleuca's products, and he outlined a potential partnership arrangement between Melaleuca and ACB to develop a network of ACB members as preferred customers with a percentage of all sales and orders from ACB members being returned to ACB. After lunch, the board entered into an executive session to discuss personnel and other sensitive and confidential matters. When the board returned, Gray reported for the record that the only action taken by the board in the closed session involved a very positive increase in the compensation level of one of ACB's employees that would be reflected in the proposed budget to be acted upon by the board later in this meeting. Trott then continued the resource development committee report by indicating that the committee had voted to investigate the Melaleuca proposal. Ed Bradley moved to accept the committee's recommendation by investigating Melaleuca's intention with respect to making its web site and product catalog accessible to its envisioned network of blind and visually impaired customers. The resulting vote was 9-5 against; the motion failed. Those voting in favor were Ed Bradley, Mike Godino, Mitch Pomerantz, Pat Sheehan and David Trott; those opposed were Ray Campbell, Brenda Dillon, Paul Edwards, Billie Jean Keith, Oral Miller, Carla Ruschival, M.J. Schmitt, Donna Seliger and Jeff Thom. Next on the agenda was the budget committee report, presented by Mike Godino and Lane Waters. Godino reviewed the proposed 2007 annual budget line item by line item. Paul Edwards moved to increase the income item from the monthly monetary support (MMS) program from $25,000 to $30,000. The motion carried. Edwards then moved to adopt the revenue side of the proposed budget. The board adopted it. Edwards moved to increase the meetings and training line item by $2,000 to make a new total of $3,000. The motion passed. Thom moved to increase the miscellaneous line item by $3,000, thereby making a new total of $6,000. The motion carried. Edwards then moved to adopt the expense side of the proposed budget. The board adopted it. Mitch Pomerantz then moved to recess the meeting to reconvene at 9 a.m. on March 11. The meeting went into recess at 5:45 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 9:15 a.m. on March 11. Seliger called the roll; all board members except for Naomi Soule were present. Executive director Melanie Brunson and comptroller Lane Waters were also present. Carla Ruschival then presented an update on the 2007 national convention. She announced that those attending the banquet this year will have four entr‚e choices from among which to choose: beef, chicken, fish and vegetarian. Ruschival indicated that several students from the Indiana School for the Blind have raised $10,000 to enable them to attend the convention and to participate in the Youth Activity Center. She also reported that both convention hotels are planning to have their in-room information put into braille, and to have their information packets available for convention attendees at the time of check-in. She indicated that one-third of sleeping rooms and some meetings and functions during the convention will be located in or held at the Millennium Hotel. The board accepted Ruschival's report. Ray Campbell, chairman of the constitution and bylaws committee, then reviewed a document proposing to streamline Bylaw 6 on standing committees. The board discussed the current bylaw. Some board members raised concerns as to whether a potentially revised Bylaw 6 should include only so-called "required or mandated" committees. The board made no decision on the matter other than agreeing by consensus that the committee should go forward with its work on this issue. Charlie Hodge then presented the board of publications' report. He discussed a recommendation from the BOP that a new award, to be named the Hollis K. Liggett Braille Free Press Award, be established. This award -- if established -- would be presented by the BOP to promote best journalistic practices and excellence in writing in publications of ACB's state and special-interest affiliates. Hodge then moved that the board establish the Hollis K. Liggett Braille Free Press Award. When a voice vote proved inconclusive, the secretary called the roll. Seven votes were in favor and seven votes in opposition. Gray then cast his tie-breaking vote in the affirmative, thereby establishing the Hollis K. Liggett Braille Free Press Award. Those voting in favor were Ray Campbell, Brenda Dillon, Chris Gray, Mike Godino, Carla Ruschival, Donna Seliger, Pat Sheehan and Jeff Thom. Those opposed were Ed Bradley, Paul Edwards, Billie Jean Keith, Oral Miller, Mitch Pomerantz, M.J. Schmitt and David Trott. Next, M.J. Schmitt presented a report on the American Center on Blindness and Visual Impairment. She read the recommendations of the governance subcommittee -- which had subsequently been affirmatively recommended by the provisional American Center Board -- for the board's review and approval. Ed Bradley moved that the American Center's permanent board of directors should be constituted in the following manner: two members of the ACB board of directors to be elected by that board, two other members to be elected by the ACB board, the ACB president as well as a member to be appointed by the ACB president, two members of the current provisional board chosen by its members, and one additional member to be elected by the other eight members. On a voice vote, the motion carried. Paul Edwards then suggested a friendly amendment clarifying that the two members to be elected by the ACB board in addition to two board members should be ACB members, but not necessarily members of the board of directors. Schmitt accepted the amendment, and it was approved. Edwards then moved to accept the report on the American Center on Blindness and Visual Impairment project. The motion carried. Ed Bradley, chairperson of the vehicle donation task force, presented a number of recommendations for the board's review and approval. He moved that the task force's first recommendation, involving the establishment of a committee on vehicle donation, be adopted; its duties would be to monitor the vehicle donation program, and to make annual reports to the board regarding the agreement between ACB and the Vehicle Donation Processing Center (VDPC). The proposed new committee shall be comprised as follows: the ACB president or his/her designee, the executive director, and one board member to be appointed by the president, plus two state affiliate presidents chosen by the ACB president from among those state affiliates currently having agreements with the VDPC. The motion passed. Bradley then moved to approve the task force's second recommendation, to establish a 50-50 revenue-sharing plan for vehicle donations generated through Internet advertising from states having existing vehicle donation programs. Carla Ruschival moved to refer this recommendation to the resource development committee for its recommendation, which should be brought back to the board no later than May 15, 2007. The motion to refer passed on a voice vote. M.J. Schmitt moved to accept the third recommendation, that the monthly reports generated on vehicle donations made to ACB through the Internet be provided to all committee members. The motion carried on a voice vote. Paul Edwards moved to accept the fourth recommendation, that no changes be made to the vehicle donation program with respect to vehicle donations made to ACB through newspaper and/or radio advertising. On a voice vote, the motion carried. Bradley then reported on behalf of the Durward K. McDaniel Fund Committee that the committee has in its possession a cassette tape made by Durward McDaniel himself, and the McDaniel committee intends to sell cassette editions of "People of Vision" with the McDaniel cassette tape included for $9.95 above the suggested retail price of $30.95 for the cassette edition of ACB's history, with the additional funds going to the McDaniel Fund. After some discussion and suggestions from board members, Bradley moved that additional copies of the cassette edition of "People of Vision" including the tape made by Durward McDaniel be sold for $40, with the additional $9.05 going to the McDaniel Fund. The motion carried. With no further business, the meeting adjourned at noon. ***** TILT! by Carl Jarvis It struck me the other day that we blind folks have been going at it all wrong. We've been spending our energy trying to convince ourselves and the world that we're just about as good as everyone else. All this talk about the "level playing field." It seems that the idea is to somehow manage the environment so blind people can compete on equal terms with their sighted peers. The message is intended to be a positive one. Unfortunately, it implies that without all this effort and control, we really aren't equal at all. No wonder some folks deny they're blind. Who wants to join a club like that? Think of belonging to a political party and hearing a politician say, "I'm trying to be just about as good as my worthy opponent. I've got some pretty average ideas for making this nation about as good as any other nation." What we need to do is to take a lead from those slick TV ads. It's really amazing. Why, with a little spit and polish, you can sell just about anything. Take, for example, water. Water! An old Indian chief tells us it dribbled out from under a glacier, hundreds of miles from any human, and we rush right out and pay big bucks for the stuff. Sure, it's untouched by human hands, but does anyone stop to think what else might have been under that glacier? But just think what we can do if we turn to Madison Avenue for a "New Look." A beautiful young blind woman, barely dressed, is seated in a lovely garden, stroking the head of her golden retriever. A deep voice purrs, "Not all of us are fortunate enough to be blind. But you can do the next best thing. Yes, by befriending a blind person, your life will be more meaningful." A young, muscular blind man is casually swinging a white cane as he jogs confidently down a crowded street. Suddenly a robber dashes from a convenience store carrying a bag of money. The cane catches his foot and he sprawls face down, spilling the money as several men pounce on his back. The deep voice once again speaks. "Where the blind live, life is better for us all. How can we ever thank them enough?" Before you know it, big corporations will be begging us to endorse their products -- "Blotto Beer! The official drink of the Blind!" "Wear GEE Whiz Jeans and feel positively BLIND!" "If you can't BE blind, LOOK blind. Wear Stud Sunglasses." And speaking of that "level playing field," it never was our field in the first place. It belonged to the other guys, and we had to play by their rules. Every time we thought we had one end propped up -- tilt! -- down went another corner. What we blind folks need is our own playing field. And with all the money we make from our endorsements, we can build the finest field in town. Then, with everyone else wanting to be like us, they'll have to play by our rules. ***** A FRIEND GOES OFF TO WAR by Michael Vining Over my lifetime of 59 years, I have had many experiences. Recently, I sent a friend off to the Middle East. The strangest thing about this is that he is one year younger than me. One of the points of having a volunteer military is that older people can be sent to a war zone. When they reach 60 years old, the retirement age for military people, they are shipped back home. His name is Charlie Clancy. He has been a friend of mine for nearly 40 years. He and I attended, and graduated from, what is now the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. We have kept in contact all these years. He was one of those people who had received a low number when the U.S. transitioned from a military of conscripts to an all-volunteer system. He enlisted in 1970 after graduating from college. He served five years in the active military, in Germany. He came back to live in the Twin Cities, and joined the Army Reserves. He has been in the Reserves for 28 years. In 1979, he accepted a civilian job in Milwaukee, and later transferred to the Twin Cities at Fort Snelling. His duties dealt with administering the reserve unit during the week, still remaining in the Army Reserves. He missed being called up for the first Gulf War in 1990. However, he received his orders in mid-November, this time for Iraq duties. He left the Twin Cities on Dec. 11 for training and possible deployment to Iraq. With his permission, I am summarizing some of his thoughts as he heads off to the desert. He wants to go and serve. The military has trained its forces well, and pays them well. They see it as a business trip. Yes, there are the thoughts of danger, and of being away from family and friends; however, he knows what has to be done. When you see co-workers in your unit being deployed, you want to help. He has felt this way for years. One of his duties during the first gulf war was administering fitness tests to those who were going to the Middle East to make sure they were physically fit to go. Getting ready to leave was hectic for him, as well as the other soldiers. Dealing with phone companies, power companies, and insurance providers has its challenges. This is because the soldier has a short period of time to get all his/her affairs in order before leaving. These and other vendors do not have an appreciation of what people in this situation go through, or the short time they have to deal with these affairs. He is a persistent person, and with help from Senator Coleman's office, everything was taken care of. Saying goodbye to friends and family was difficult; he went through in a whirlwind two-day trip to Milwaukee to see friends and stepchildren. I was with him on one of these days. He met me at the light rail station in south Minneapolis, and we drove over to a mutual friend's house, who, along with his brother and sister, were going to watch and maintain his house while he was gone. He and I then drove to St. Paul to visit our bowling teammate, who is in a convalescent home recovering from a brain tumor. After a half-hour with our teammate, we made our way to downtown St. Paul to meet with another friend of ours, whom we had not seen for several years. Charlie and this person both graduated from Cretan High School, and the three of us graduated from St. Thomas. Charlie had gotten in touch with this person at the Cretan reunion in October. This meeting was planned before Charlie got his orders. Add on the fact that he was still doing some of his regular civilian job until he left. No wonder one of Charlie's comments was that he seemed to have lost all track of time. In the Middle East, he will be doing support work with contractors. He could be in either Iraq, Kuwait, or Afghanistan. That is all we know. He feels that he will be as secure as a person can be there. There are 170,000 troops there, 70,000 to be support, and half of those to protect the support troops. He will have a wet trailer, that is, he will not have to use the latrine outside. At my age, this whole experience is somewhat crazy. We are supposed to send our children or grandchildren off to the conflicts, not our same-age friends. But that is how it goes. Being a visually impaired person, this is the closest I will get to having the Iraq War affect me. I have known some acquaintances who went in the military in the '60s. I also remember helping friends in college send Charlie off with a drunken party in 1970 when he joined the Army. But, at my age, doing this again! He promised to call and e-mail, so we may have news to share of what life is like over there in future issues of the Forum. ***** HERE AND THERE by Sue Lichtenfels The announcement of products and services in this column is not an endorsement by the American Council of the Blind, its staff, or elected officials. Products and services are listed free of charge for the benefit of our readers. "The Braille Forum" cannot be held responsible for the reliability of products and services mentioned. To submit items for this column, send a message to info@acb.org, or call ACB at 1-800-424-8666 and leave a message in mailbox 26. Please remember that postal regulations prohibit us from including advertisements, and that we need information two months ahead of actual publication dates. JOB TALK Looking for a job or wanting to make a career change? If you are attending this year's annual ACB convention in Minnesota, be sure to bring your resume and attend the National Industries for the Blind (NIB) employment seminar! Explore a broad range of employment opportunities and get an update on NIB's Business Leaders program. If you are unable to attend, but are interested in employment opportunities, e-mail your resume to kgallagher@nib.org or call Kathy Gallagher at (703) 310-0343. ALUMNI GATHERING Attention former students of the Governor Morehead School: Your presence is requested at the alumni gathering August 10-12 in Raleigh, N.C., for a weekend of fun. Regardless of whether you graduated from the school, you are considered part of the alumni group, and your old classmates and friends are looking for you. For more information on the reunion, please send your name, the name you were known by as a student, your current address, phone number and e-mail address (if you have one) to Joyce Kemp, 3009 Whiting Ave., Charlotte, NC 28205. KIMBROUGH NEW AT BLINDSKILLS B. T. Kimbrough will become executive director of Blindskills, Inc. on June 4, 2007. Blindskills publishes Dialogue, an international bimonthly news magazine for people who are experiencing vision loss or are blind, and their friends and families. The magazine, now published in braille, large print, cassette, and e-mail editions, reviews low vision aids and devices, provides tips and techniques for coping with vision loss, reports personal experiences of people living successfully with visual impairment at home, in school, on the job and in the community, interviews professionals working in the field of blindness and low vision, and is designed to inform, instruct and entertain. To get a subscription, call 1-800-860-4224. NCAA BRAILLE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE The 2007 NCAA braille college football schedule will be available again this year with 119 division 1-A and some requested division 1-AA teams. Included will be the results of the 2006-2007 bowls, the AP top 25 final polls, the 2007-2008 bowl schedule and much more. The schedule costs $10. Make your check payable to Allen H. Gillis and send it to him at 302 Schaeffel Road, Cullman, AL 35055. Call (256) 734-4047 or e-mail gill4047@bellsouth.net. SURVEY FOR PARENTS Parents of children who are blind or have low vision in K-12 public and residential schools in the United States are invited to participate in a study on why they chose the type of educational placement for their child. This survey was sent out last month, but had to be cancelled because of computer glitches. The study organizers sincerely apologize and encourage parents to complete a new survey. Parents who do not have access to a computer may phone Dr. Paul Ajuwon at (417) 836-5397 to request a braille or print copy of the survey. For the online interactive survey, visit http://s22318.tsbvi.edu/surveys/TakeSurvey.asp?SurveyID=71I663K13m65G. To download a Word version, go to www.tsbvi.edu/news/choice-survey.doc. NEW TELESCOPING CANE California Canes has developed a new telescoping cane. The cane comes in sizes from 42" to 62" and is made from the same carbon fiber material as their standard canes. The powder coating reflects light and glows in the dark for added visibility at night and in inclement weather. The cane has been adapted to fit all tips. All you need to do is pull, lightly twist and go. To place an order, call 1-866-332-4883. BRAILLE TRAVEL FILES TravelBraille.com has transcribed numerous travel-related publications for individuals who are visually impaired. The web site contains braille-ready files (BRF). Information is taken from guidebooks such as Lonely Planet and Fodor's, brochures, Tourism Authority web sites, and newspaper travel sections. Blind users must register on the TravelBraille.com web site in order to download materials for free. Files available include Tibet, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Belize, Kenya, Tasmania, Greece, Italy, the city of Rome, Thailand, and an introduction to the World Heritage program. For further information, e-mail john@TravelBraille.com. SEEKING TEACHER Bob Groff Jr., of 487 PC Circle, Quitman, AR 72131, is seeking someone to teach him Windows 2000 Professional. Contact him by phone, (501) 589-2886, for more information. ***** HIGH TECH SWAP SHOP FOR SALE: Basic-S braille embosser, rarely used, with the latest firmware upgrade. Comes with braille paper and a Duxbury program. USB compatible. Asking $13,050. Braille Lite 40 with the latest firmware upgrade. Comes with charger, disk drive, and a leather carrying case. Rarely used. Asking $12,050. Payment in two installments permitted. After item(s) are paid in full I will ship it/them free of charge. Call James Murphy on his cell phone at (917) 449-7580, at home, (212) 410-6085, or contact him via e-mail at maestro_22@earthlink.net. FOR SALE: Talking calculator. Asking $200. Contact Rosemir at (714) 267-3399. FOR SALE: id mate 2 with all accessories. Asking $900 or best offer. Voice Note 5.1 with a Magellan GPS tracking system. Asking $500. Contact Robert Lewis at (410) 653-2498. FOR SALE: Fully licensed copy of JAWS 8.0 professional containing all documentation and CDs; asking $900. Contact Jennifer at (727) 501-1656 or e- mail at jhipp25@tampabay.rr.com. FOR SALE: Trekker; has all components, newly updated. Includes SD card for storing of maps. Asking $1,200 or best offer; cashier check or money order only. Contact Debby Phillips at (509) 684-1266 Pacific time, or e-mail semisweetdebby@hughes.net. FOR SALE: ColorMouse-RM; NTSC; low magnification; RCA connection; United States power cord. Read documents on your television, and display in black, white or full color. Purchased late 2006, used only 4 times. Works perfectly. Asking $234 with free priority shipping within United States. Contact Charisma at (801) 359-0436. FOR SALE: Pico Pocket video magnifier, 10 oz., 4 viewing modes: color, enhanced, positive, negative. 3X-11X magnification, built-in rechargeable battery, charger and carrying case. Used only one month. Asking $500. Contact Robert Anderson via e-mail, rander1920@verizon.net. FOR SALE: Braille 'n Speak 640, may need new battery. Asking $50 plus shipping or best offer. Disk drive for Blazie products; like new, but needs new battery. Asking $50 or best offer plus shipping. Braille Blazer, prints on 8 «" x 11" paper and smaller labels. Like new. Asking $200 plus shipping or best offer. Contact Michelle at (814) 867-9778. FOR SALE: Six standard Perkins braille writers. All in excellent working condition. Asking $300 each. Braille Blazer embosser. Asking $250. Thermoform machine. Asking $100 plus shipping costs. All sold as is. Please contact Amy at (574) 848-7451 ext. 319 or e-mail her at schroppa@adecinc.com. FOR SALE: Braille 'n Speak 2000; bilingual, English and Turkish. Asking $500. Contact Mustafa Devrim via e-mail, mdevrim@anadolu.edu.tr or write to him at P.K. 96, Besiktas, Istanbul, Turkey. FOR SALE: Braille Note classic in excellent condition. Has Keysoft 6.1 and a GPS program which you would have to upgrade; the battery has plenty of charge left. If interested, contact Chuck Coleman via e-mail, chuckc@neo.rr.com, or call him at (330) 302-8037. FOR SALE: New and used cassette tapes, old-time radio stories on cassette, Bibles on cassette (dramatized and narrated), Old and New Testaments together in one volume or in separate volumes, new authorized recordings, reel-to-reel tapes of various lengths, reel-to-reel tape recorders, and an AM- FM radio cassette recorder. Call Joe Kelly at (903) 794-4852. FOR SALE: Perkins brailler, in good condition. Asking $250. Electric brailler, completely refurbished, $550. VoiceNote, never used, earlier software. Asking $900. Squirt notetaker with speech and qwerty keyboard, $125. PowerBraille with 65-cell display, recently serviced and cleaned. Navigator 40-cell braille display, $700. Reading Edge, $1,000. Thiel high- production braille printer (120 characters per second) with capacity for seven languages, $4,000. Buyer pays shipping. If you are interested in any of these items, contact Jill Gross at (215) 200-3757 or via e-mail, jgross@tacticus.com. ACB OFFICERS PRESIDENT CHRISTOPHER GRAY 94 RAMONA AVE. SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103 FIRST VICE PRESIDENT M.J. SCHMITT 119 SHELL EDGE DR ROCHESTER, NY 14623 SECOND VICE PRESIDENT MITCH POMERANTZ 1115 CORDOVA STREET #402 PASADENA, CA 91106 SECRETARY DONNA SELIGER 3912 SE 5TH ST DES MOINES, IA 50315 TREASURER MIKE GODINO 104 TILROSE AVE MALVERNE, NY 11565-2024 IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT PAUL EDWARDS 20330 NE 20TH CT. MIAMI, FL 33179 ACB BOARD OF DIRECTORS Ed Bradley, Houston, TX Ray Campbell, Glen Ellyn, IL Brenda Dillon, Hermitage, TN Billie Jean Keith, Arlington, VA Oral Miller, Washington, DC Carla Ruschival, Louisville, KY Patrick Sheehan, Silver Spring, MD Naomi Soule, St. Louis, MO Jeff Thom, Sacramento, CA David Trott, Talladega, AL Ex Officio: Charles Hodge, Arlington, VA BOARD OF PUBLICATIONS Mike Duke, Chairman, Jackson, MS Charles Hodge, Arlington, VA DeAnna Noriega, Fulton, MO Ken Stewart, Warwick, NY Cindy Van Winkle, Bremerton, WA Ex Officios: Ralph Sanders, Las Vegas, NV Janelle Edwards, Springfield, MO