[CCCNFBW] October meeting minutes with adendums

Thu Nov 6 02:14:45 UTC 2025

Below are the October chapter minutes. They are also attached. 

CLARK COUNTY CHAPTER MEETING MINUTES

OCTOBER 11, 2025

Meeting called to order on Saturday October 11 2025 at 10:06 AM PDT.

.Persons present: President Chris Higley: Don Mitchell, chapter secretary:
Bob Sellers: Song    Downen, board member: Beth Greenberg: Betty
Fitzpatrick: Norm Larkin: Tina: Kaye Kipp: Patricia              Maddix:
Corey  Grandstaff:

.The published minutes were presented for approval: Betty Fitzpatrick moved
acceptance and seconded by Kaye Kipp. The minutes were approved.

.In the absents of Doug Trimble, chapter treasurer, President Chris Higley
presented the October treasurers report. Current balance $3057.88. A review
of income and expenditures was given. Bob Sellers moved acceptance of the
treasurers report and Betty Fitzpatrick seconded. Some discussion followed
clarifying amounts presented in the report. The treasurers report was
approved.

.In the absents of Doug Trimble President Chris Higley conducted a
discussion of the fund raising committee activities. She asked if there was
any follow up to the June fund raising concert. Don Mitchell said that he
would like to see us investigate better publicity of the event so we might
fill the Fries Auditorium. Get advice from people who are more experienced
and in a position to promote the event with better visibility. The group
thanked the groups "three Together" and "Wishful Thinking" for their
performances. 

.Patricia Maddix said that she felt things went quite well. Cory Grandstaff
said that we had 48 or 49 persons attending. Kaye Kipp suggested that we
need to have more people to help with setup to try and make it less hectic.
Don asked, again, if the event could be held on a day other than Sunday?
Response to the question was that Sunday may be the best day for Seller 55.
The secretary was directed to send a thank you letter to Michelle at Seller
55 via email. A discussion of the music performance took place. People liked
the music, but it was too loud in side. Some people moved outside because
they could not visit over the music. The music must be at a background
volume level. It was suggested that the music be outside where it has been
in the past.  The group complemented Chris for her MC work. 

.Cory Grandstaff presented a chapter engagement report. He thanked Chris for
her work on the scavenger hunt at the Washington State School for the Blind.

.Our next event is a karaoke night in January. We need to develop a group of
people to support this event. 

.We are still working to get another meeting with Maria Perez to continue a
dialog on our legislative goals. 

.There is going to be a white cane event on October 15 at 9:00 AM. The city
will be presenting a white cane proclamation.

.Our chapter holiday party will be held at the Pizza Hut on Milplane at
11:00 AM on December 13. 

.The committee has instigated a social gathering after our meetings. Today
it will be at Blind Onion Pizza. 

. Ryan Palm has agreed to  do reminder calls for our meetings. 

.The committee is working to include activities in our meetings to make them
more interesting for both new members and our regular attendees. Today we
will have a Medda Glasses demonstration. 

.Bob Sellers suggested that the chapter develop a video to present to
hospital workers to educate them on how to work with blind patients. The
group suggested  developing a live presentation because the cost and
technical challenges to making a video are somewhat daunting. It is obvious
that the hospital workers need some sensitivity training where blind
patients are concerned.  Cory suggested the courtesy 

rules of blindness be a starting point.

.The past July convention was discussed. The next 5 years convention
locations were announced. 2026-27 Austin Texas:2028-29 Chicago: 2030 Fenix
Arizona.

.State convention this year is in Seattle Seatack February 26-March 1.
Financial assistance will be available soon.  

.The Waymo taxi service will be at state convention. Waymo is a driverless
taxi service. 

.Chris gave a review of our last summer Bell Acadmy program. We had 8
partisipents. 

Kay Kipp presented a philosophy discussion: Her topic was  the; use of
labels to describe blind persons such as "visually impaired" "sight
impaired" Visually handicapped" ETC. We determined that the NFB has passed
resolutions on the subject. Many were apposed to labels that contain the
word impaired because it may reinforce the idea that the blind are limited
by their blindness. The federation prefers the words blind and low vision.

.Chris conducted a "chapter chat" This is a time for members to bring up
questions or problems they are facing. Don asked: How do I learn what the
message "has alert" in regards to text messages?" Cory explained that that
often means the text was not sent. The solution is to go in to your messages
and look through them and you may find a message that says the message was
not sent. If this is so there may be a "re-send button" 

.Song brought up the use of imogeys when sending or receiving texts. An
interesting discussion followed. Some imogeys are tagged so that they will
be described by voiceover. There is a website that explains and describes
many of the common imogeys.  

.Kaye asked if there is a way to respond to only one person who is a member
of a group chat. The answer is no, not with the native iPhone app. 

.A general discussion of smart glasses took place. 

.In future chapter chats you may send questions to any board member if you
would like them to be discussed. 

Cory Grandstaff presented a demonstration of the Medda smart glasses. He
explained how to do the setup when you are a beginner and some of the tasks
they can perform. The glasses have a little demo they present when you start
to familiarize you with the glasses. If you leave your Bluetooth environment
and move into cell towers: If the cell service is bad the glasses will not
work well. 

Following the demonstration the motion was made to close the meeting and the
meeting was adjourned. Presidential release number 553 for October was
played. 

Addendum:

Thank you letter to Michelle at Seller 55:

National Federation of the Blind of Clark County

218 St Louis Way

Vancouver, Washington 98664

Seller 55

1812 Washington St

Vancouver, Washington

Dear Michelle: 

The NFB of Clark County wishes to thank you for your kind and generous
assistants in helping us conduct our annual fund raising event at Seller 55.

Over the years people have enjoyed your facility  and have found you to be
welcoming and generous with your services. 

Thank you, so very much, for making your venue available to us for these
many years.

Don Mitchell, Secretary

Donmi1949 at gmail.com <mailto:Donmi1949 at gmail.com> 

360.281.0187

Resolution concerning labels used to describe blindness:

RESOLUTION 2024-21: Regarding Calling Upon the News Media to Use the Word
"Blind"

WHEREAS, blind people are held back by a common set of misconceptions about
being blind, low expectations for blind people, and barriers resulting from
a lack of equal access to information and public services; and 

WHEREAS, since 1940 the National Federation of the Blind has used the word
"blind" as an inclusive term with a functional definition that encompasses
individuals with varying degrees of blindness, but who have in common the
need to use nonvisual tools and techniques, some or all of the time, in
order to learn, work, play, and otherwise live the lives we want; and

WHEREAS, throughout our history, we have rejected the tendency of society to
treat the word "blind" as a word to be avoided; and 

WHEREAS, for example, in 1993, our convention affirmed in Resolution 1993-01
that "We believe that it is respectable to be blind, and although we have no
particular pride in the fact of our blindness, neither do we have any shame
in it. To the extent that euphemisms are used to convey any other concept or
image, we deplore such use"; and

WHEREAS, because of our belief in the normality and capacity of blind
people, we reject the idea that eyesight or vision is a requirement for
success, and believe that vision-centered language focuses on what we are
perceived to lack, a negative framing of blindness, rather than on our
fundamental normality as people who share a characteristic that, while it
does not define us, is a positive part of who we are; and

WHEREAS, increasingly other groups of people with disabilities and the wider
society have embraced the idea that "blind" and other words describing
disabilities are not words to be avoided, but positive indicators of
identity; and

WHEREAS, a common euphemism for the word blind is the phrase "visually
impaired," or variants thereof, which is an example of vision-centered
language that portrays us as broken because of our lack of eyesight; and

WHEREAS, the news media, in all its forms and to varying degrees, uses words
to inform and shape the perceptions of those who consume it; and

WHEREAS, the phrase "visually impaired" continues to be used by many media
outlets to describe blind people, even in stories about individuals who
embrace their identity as blind people and which purport to be positive and
affirming: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind in Convention
assembled this seventh day of July, 2024, in the City of Orlando, Florida,
that we call upon all of the major broadcast, print, and digital news
outlets, services, and other entities that influence the language used
throughout the American news media to stop using the term "visually
impaired" to describe blind people, and to instead use the word "blind" in
the way that those of us who have the authentic lived experience of
blindness use it; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call upon all of these entities to consult
with the National Federation of the Blind as they review and revise their
guidance to journalists, editors, and producers, and otherwise make
decisions about the language they use in describing and characterizing
blindness and blind people. 

RESOLUTION 2024-22 - Regarding the use of the term "visually impaired" when
referring to blind people with some vision

WHEREAS, language plays a crucial role in shaping society's perceptions and
understanding of different perspectives and aspects of life; and

WHEREAS, accurate terminology is an essential factor in the creation of a
climate which fosters respect and inclusivity for everyone, including the
blind; and

WHEREAS, at its 1993 convention, the National Federation of the Blind
unanimously adopted Resolution 93-01, which says in relevant part, ".the
word blind accurately and clearly describes the condition of being unable to
see, as well as the condition of having such limited eyesight that
alternative techniques are required to do efficiently the ordinary tasks of
daily living that are performed visually by those having good eyesight.";
and

WHEREAS, this resolution clearly declares that the word "blind" is meant to
include people with poor vision or no vision and does not circumvent the use
of a word which, in other circles, is either avoided altogether or combined
with other terms such as "visually impaired," "visually challenged," "sight
challenged" or "hard of seeing,"--euphemisms  which are thought to be more
acceptable and less off-putting to the broader community; and

WHEREAS, the term "visually impaired" (often combined with the word "blind"
as in Blind and Visually Impaired) is used by many programs and agencies
serving the blind as an attempt to clarify that their services are available
to individuals with limited or no eyesight and not just to individuals who
are totally blind; and

WHEREAS, the word "impaired" when combined with the word "vision" or
"visual" implies a sense of deficiency and inferiority and perpetuates the
incorrect notion that people who have lost part or all of their eyesight are
automatically less capable or limited in their abilities as compared to
people with normal eyesight; and

WHEREAS, when referring to a group of people comprised of individuals with
varying degrees of sight--from total blindness to legal blindness to
significant vision loss--the term "blind and low vision" is a more accurate
and positive description in that it correctly indicates less-than-20 20
vision without connoting the negative assumptions and stereotypes that have
too often been associated with the blind; and

WHEREAS, other minorities, such as the deaf community, have successfully
advocated for the use of terms like "deaf or hard of hearing" in place of
"deaf and hearing impaired," recognizing the value of moving away from
terminology that includes the word "impaired"; and

WHEREAS, self-advocacy and asserting preferred terminology can do much to
challenge existing misconceptions and encourage others to adopt more
accurate and respectful language; and

WHEREAS, raising awareness and educating the public to use appropriate
terminology that is free from negative assumptions and stereotypes can be
achieved through educational campaigns, media initiatives, and inclusive
language guidelines in academic and professional settings: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind, in Convention
assembled this seventh day of July, 2024, in the city of Orlando, Florida,
that this organization reaffirm the respectability of the word "blind" as
articulated in Resolution 93-01; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon organizations,
agencies, and entities that work with or serve individuals who are blind who
feel that it is appropriate to use terms such as "blind and visually
impaired," "visually impaired," or similar terminology in their names and/or
promotional materials to use instead "blind," "blind and low vision," "low
vision," or similar phrasing instead; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization acknowledge and praise the
United States Federal Government for making a strong effort to use the term
"blind and low vision".

Don Mitchell

Donmi1949 at gmail.com <mailto:Donmi1949 at gmail.com> 

360.281.0187

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