[Mt-blind] More History Notes

[Bernice DeHaas]

    I have been fascinated by the recent posts about the history of the MAB.  As an amateur historian (as well as a retired chemist), I want to thank Jim Aldrich for sharing his experiences and memories with us.  They are priceless.  And I'm looking forward to Jim Marks' article based on his interviews with Ruby Huckaba.  There are so few left from that era.  I thought you might be interested in an excerpt from the November-December 1982 Observer.  John and I were not members at that time, but a few Observers from that era were passed on to us by a member of the family of a person who was.  Susan Ford was the Editor.
"A Letter from MAB's President:
    My fellow members:  as most of you know, at this year's MAB convention a motion was adopted calling for a lawyer to examine the new NFB charter and constitution, and ordering an election by the entire membership to determine whether or not the Association would remain an affiliate of the National Federation of the Blind.
    The documents were turned over to a lawyer for such examination and she completed her work on Sept. 16.  She summarized her findings as follows:  'The adoption of a new charter of affiliation by the Montana Association for the Blind does not in itself appear to alter the relationship between the National Federation of the Blind, Inc. and the Montana Association for the Blind, Inc., especially since the constitution has been in effect in its present form since 1979.'
    Those 228 members who were eligible to vote in this election received copies of the lawyer's opinion along with their ballots.  Voting began Sept. 27 and ended Oct. 17.  A committee chaired by Robert Brassey of Lewistown, tallied the votes.  The results found 147 in favor of our continued affiliation with the National Federation of the Blind.  With this decision now behind us, let us put an end to the devisiveness and rumblings of the past and unite our efforts again in making this an organization that puts the welfare of the blind first.  I hope that this recent unhappy experience will make the Montana Association for the Blind a stronger and more closely knit organization.  There is much work to be done and we must pull together as a team if our goals are to be accomplished"
                                                                                                    Virginia Sutich           

I say Amen to that.

For your information, it was my understanding that Lelia Proctor's records, etc. were given to the Montana Historical Society library in Helena.  They should be available for study if someone wants to dig further into this or any other subject.

Bernice DeHaas                                                                             
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    I have been fascinated by the recent posts about the history of the MAB.  As an amateur historian (as well as a retired chemist), I want to thank Jim Aldrich for sharing his experiences and memories with us.  They are priceless.  And I'm looking forward to Jim Marks' article based on his interviews with Ruby Huckaba.  There are so few left from that era.  I thought you might be interested in an excerpt from the November-December 1982 Observer.  John and I were not members at that time, but a few Observers from that era were passed on to us by a member of the family of a person who was.  Susan Ford was the Editor.
"A Letter from MAB's President:
    My fellow members:  as most of you know, at this year's MAB convention a motion was adopted calling for a lawyer to examine the new NFB charter and constitution, and ordering an election by the entire membership to determine whether or not the Association would remain an affiliate of the National Federation of the Blind.
    The documents were turned over to a lawyer for such examination and she completed her work on Sept. 16.  She summarized her findings as follows:  'The adoption of a new charter of affiliation by the Montana Association for the Blind does not in itself appear to alter the relationship between the National Federation of the Blind, Inc. and the Montana Association for the Blind, Inc., especially since the constitution has been in effect in its present form since 1979.'
    Those 228 members who were eligible to vote in this election received copies of the lawyer's opinion along with their ballots.  Voting began Sept. 27 and ended Oct. 17.  A committee chaired by Robert Brassey of Lewistown, tallied the votes.  The results found 147 in favor of our continued affiliation with the National Federation of the Blind.  With this decision now behind us, let us put an end to the devisiveness and rumblings of the past and unite our efforts again in making this an organization that puts the welfare of the blind first.  I hope that this recent unhappy experience will make the Montana Association for the Blind a stronger and more closely knit organization.  There is much work to be done and we must pull together as a team if our goals are to be accomplished"
                                                                                                    Virginia Sutich           
 
I say Amen to that.
 
For your information, it was my understanding that Lelia Proctor's records, etc. were given to the Montana Historical Society library in Helena.  They should be available for study if someone wants to dig further into this or any other subject.
 
Bernice DeHaas