[nfb-talk] state con attendance
Mike Freeman
k7uij at panix.com
Sat Nov 10 19:59:35 CST 2007
Chris:
With great respeect, I think you have not just a chip but a whole forest
on your shoulder as regards volunteers at convention. NFB has them also
but they are very unobtrusive and only help when asked and, frankly,
don't help in areas wherein blind persons should be able to do for
themselves. Lest you think I'm being preachy, I'm thinking of what
happened at a recent WCB (Washington Council of the Blind -- WCB)
convention wherein convention-goers who came on a WCB bus were told to
put labels on their bags so that volunteers could find their bags for
them (no thought that the passengers would find their own bags) and also
there were volunteers to unpack and repack the bags of convention-goers.
I'm sorry but that's plumb ridiculous.
I agree with you that such things as appliance access are looming large
in the inaccessibility department. But ACB is no more equipped to solve
that problem than are we in NFB. Everyone may talk a good line about how
wonderful "universal access" is but it ain't gonna happen. Why? Because
manufacturers and, by extension, the general public, aren't going to pay
for it. There are many more sighted persons than there are blind
persons.
Eventually, litigation may make a difference -- that's where your
lawsuit and ours come into the picture. But there's a lot of case law to
be made before such suits can be made effective.
Moreover, when we worry about equal access, what do we really mean? How
do we specify it legally? And do we mean access for the tech-savvy or
for those who haven't a clue insofar as computer use are concerned.
Accessibility, at least in terms of software, is a moving target and
probably always be about two steps ahead of us. But we must keep on
fighting. But we must act intelligently and not go off half-cocked. Just
claiming, as ACB often does, that if the sighted have it, the blind
ought to also won't cut it because, in the end, the only way that can
happen is for all blind persons to regain their sight which won't
happen. What we must strive for is access that's "good enough" -- that
allows us to compete.
By writing the foregoing, I am not minimizing your concerns; I tend to
share them although I think the solutions aren't as simple as many of us
would like them to be. So we're not so far apart on these matters as I
may sound.
However, I am going to challenge you a bit on the convention bit and
about NFB governance. Mostly, what I here from you is "can't can't can't
can't". Have you talked with your local chapter about getting a national
convention scholarship? How about Robert Stigel, your affiliate
President? And, believe me, there's a lot for state affiliates to do;
the national leadership cannot handle a majority of what NFB does. So
have you run for local office? How about state office? How many projects
have you volunteered for in the last six months for your local chapter
president? How about for the state affiliate?
In other words, the NFB really is all of us. Quit complaining about how
you are de facto being excluded ang get in there and pitch! WE need you
and you need us!
And get that block of wood off your shoulder! (broad smile)
Mike
----- Original Message -----
From: Chris Westbrook
To: NFB Talk Mailing List
Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 2:36 PM
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
Mike, you make some good points. Being a young blind person myself, I
think
it's sad that many younger blind people view progress as inevitable
and feel
no need to join an organization. On the other hand, I'm not really
sure
what NFB is really doing to stop the tide from turning against us The
biggest issue I see looming ahead is a loss of access to information.
This
could be due to inaccessible computer software, inaccessible
appliances, or
any number of other things I haven't thought of. On the inaccessible
appliances front, we had a home showcase at convention, but do you
really
think that will make a difference? I'm sure most manufacturers really
don't
care whether their products were coincidentally sort of accessible. I
hope
our NFB Jernigan Institute can eventually help with this area. That
leads
me to my next point, which is what mike said about some people
believing
that the national leadership are the experts. I see the NFB as a very
top
down organization with much of it's activity happening at the national
level. I wonder if in the future the NFB will become more and more
focused
on it's Jernigan institute and basically be a clearinghouse for
research and
product design, while the ACB does most of the advocacy work? I know
for
myself I really don't see that many ways for a rank and file member to
influence policy, especially if they can't come to convention but even
if
they can.
Also, I really think people in NFB need to relax and realize that not
every
blind person has had great training or has the ability to do
everything
independently. I know ACB has been criticized for having volunteers
at
their convention, and frankly I find that kind of amusing when NFB's
leadership always has someone going sighted guide with them. IF it's
good
enough for the leadership, why is it not good enough for the general
membership? If you don't want the help, just refuse it, but don't
keep
someone like me from using help that we may need. On another note, I
frankly think ACB is better equipped to handle the challenges of the
future.
Yes, they can be a bit more demanding than necessary, but I think we
as
blind people are going to have to do more and more of that as time
goes on.
NFB's philosophy is too focused on always being independence and this
whole
idea of blindness being a nuisance and not that big of a deal. I'm
afraid
the NFB will suddenly wake up one day when all microwaves and other
appliances are flat paneled with no way to use them effectively, there
are
no usable telephones, all keyboards are completely touch screen and
wonder,
gee how did we get here? I think I may be exaggerating slightly, but
I
don't think I'm exaggerating as much as some may think. My only
consolation
is that when things start getting worse, we will wake up and disregard
what
Kenneth Jernigan said in his speech "the day after civil rights"
whenever
that is, and start fighting again. I just hope it's not too late.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mike Freeman" <k7uij at panix.com>
To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 2:02 PM
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
> Ray:
>
> Welcome to the way the "other half" lives. Here in Washington, we
> consider we're doing an outstanding job if we get seventy-five to
eighty
> people at our state banquet. Unlike at national conventions, our
> banquets are more well attended than are our plenary convention
sessions
> as some convention participants bring guests to the banquet who do
not
> attend the rest of the convention.
>
> Of course, part of the problem here in Washington is that, whether
we
> admit it or not, we're still suffering from the organizational split
> that accompanied the whole Robert Acosta business in the late 1970's
> when the then-affiliate for Washington was expelled (or chose to
leave,
> depending upon one's viewpoint) and was reorganized. The old
affiliate
> eventually joined ACB so that ACB is considerably larger numerically
> than is NFB in Washington. In the legislature, however, it is we of
NFB
> who are known for getting things done.
>
> AFfiliates east of the Mississippi such as Massachusetts are far
larger
> than are our affiliates out here with the exception of California.
WE
> are, in Shakespeare's terms, "we happy few". But NFB is where the
action
> is.
>
> On the original subject, what I see in terms of dwindling convention
> attendance and grousing about the irrelevance of convention material
> stems, I believe, from a number of trends in society today. First,
> society is, in general, much more fragmented than was the case
thirty or
> forty years ago. People move around the country much more often than
> heretofore and, hence, don't put down roots and make as many lasting
> local friendships. (When was the last time you attended a "block
> party"?) They are thus less likely to have great circles of
friends --
> arguably a prerequisit for easy growth of organizations.
>
> Second, perhaps because society is more fragmented and because there
are
> more venues of entertainment (cable TV, the Internet, video games
and
> the like), I believe that people are far less likely to be "joiners"
> then was the case even twenty years ago. There are too many other
things
> competing for their time.
>
> Third, I believe that it is fair to say that the 1960's and 1970's
were
> decades of activism. Whatever your thoughts are concerning the war
in
> Iraq, note the vast difference between the small anti-war
demonstrations
> of today and the mass protests against the Vietnam war from 1964 to
> 1975. WE of NFB, like many other activist organizations, are the
victims
> of the paradigm shift from activism to indifference and (see above)
from
> the paradigm of working to make changes to being entertained.
>
> Fourth, I believe that, rightly or wrongly, many young blind people
> today see all the progress that the blind have made over the
previous
> two generations toward a world of equality with the sighted and
conclude
> that continued progress in this arena is inevitable. Obviously, I
> disagree with this assessment and, in fact, I am worried that we
might
> be on the verge of slipping backward, making NFB even more of a
> necessity than it may have been twenty years ago. Couple this with
laws
> mandating provision of services such as DSS offices at universities
and
> this is a recipe for organizational lacitude IMO. I opine that many
> young people do not recognize that provision of some of these
services
> constitutes a wolf in sheep's clothing and, hence, when they hit the
> "real world" and encounter businesses that don't automatically
provide
> them with all the high-tech gadgetry they think they need, they
> interpret the problem as one of discrmination rather than one simply
of
> the way the world works. All this is to say that many blind people
of
> all ages today don't see why they need to gain advocacy skills or
pay
> attention to all the "dull" stuf involving politics or their
agencies
> for the blind. Let "the experts" do it. And while many would agree
with
> us that agency moguls may not be the "experts", some are beginning
to
> see *us* as the "experts",where by "us" I mean NFB leadership. In
other
> words, I'm not sure that the rank-and-file always sees that it has a
> stake in what's happening or that it really has the power to change
> things.
>
> This problem is not unique to NFB: ACB has it also. The "advantage",
if
> one wishes to call it that, that ACB has is that often its
affiliates
> conduct many more social functions than do NFB affiliates -- at
least
> it's like that out here in the Pacific Northwest. When, for example,
was
> the last time you attended a NFB affiliate convention where a
comedian
> was the featured banquet speaker? It has happend in ACB affiliates
out
> here.
>
> Now I would hazard that this sort of fluff is not what we in NFB
truly
> want. But to make changes, we must understand why what we're doing
may
> not always appeal to "the masses" and, therefore, must decide
whether we
> can incorporate other items into our conventions that might gain
> interest and not cause groans of "same ol' same ol'" while at the
same
> time not betraying our NFB heritage and philosophy.
>
> I don't have the answer but I value the discussions as we may
> collectively come up with ideas that might work for all of us.
>
> Mike Freeman, President
> NFB of Washington
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ray Foret Jr
> To: NFB Talk Mailing List
> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 9:37 AM
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
>
>
> Edd, I am floored!!! Are you truly telling us that at your last
New
> Hampshire state NFB convention, y'all only had 30 attendees? Only
30?
> What
> is y'all's membership compared to that number? I just cannot get
my
> mind
> around the idea of y'all putting all that work in to an all day
state
> convention and having only 30 people there. Perhaps you might
inquire
> of
> your members just what the issues are which cause them not to
attend
> y'all's
> convention. From what I gather, you say in your message that folks
> were
> complaining that the program items were "so so". If I'm not
mistaken,
> we
> usually have over 100 folks at the Louisiana NFB state convention.
> How
> about I forward your message on to Pam Allan and she can maybe
suggest
> what
> you might want to consider.
>
> Sincerely yours,
> The Constantly Barefooted,
> Ray
> Home phone and fax:
> (985)853-0139
> E-mail:
> rforetjratbellsouthdotnet
> Skype Name:
> barefootedray
> Blog:
> www.raysworld.blogs.com
> Podcast .rss Feed:
> http://feeds.feedburner.com/worldofray
>
> God bless President George W. Bush!
> God bless our troops!
> and God bless America
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ed Meskys" <edmeskys at localnet.com>
> To: "nfb-talk" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 10:44 AM
> Subject: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
>
>
> When I first became NH state president in 1988 the first few state
> conventions I put on had about 100-120 attendees, up about 20% from
> the
> previous president, because I did a lot of outreach to find former
and
> new
> members, and initiated a state newsletter. We had been drifting
down
> ever
> since, to under 50. Last year we had our 50th anniversary, and got
> more
> attendees, but with people muttering about our programs being the
> "same old,
> same old." This year we decided to devote our whole morning to a
topic
> important to blind persons and many others in a rural state, the
> future of
> transportation in NH. We made it a one-day con, with a luncheon
> banquet, and
> the National report, some technology, mobility, and our business
> meeting in
> he afternoon. With the help of Blind Services, the talking book
> library, the
> Governor's Commission on Disabilities, and Granite State
Independent
> Living
> (Foundation) we distributed over 2000 flyers, and aside from
program
> participants we had only 30 attendees. Our officers are very
> disappointed,
> and are saying it cost so much money to put on and advertise the
con,
> and
> put in so much work, that we will pull back and only have a
business
> meeting
> with lunch in the back room of a restaurant next year. Are other
> states
> having the same problem getting attendance at a con?
>
> We are using an Imagination Grant to put on a one-day tech expo
next
> April,
> which is not a convention (cons are normally in October or
November).
> If
> this flops too, I think the board will be devastated. We lined up
an
> excellent panel of five experts and administrators for the
> transportation
> panel, and are working on getting excellent speakers for the tech
> expo.
>
> Incidentally, the results of our state elections were:
> continuing constitutional officers:
> Marie Johnson, President
> Gil Vickery, FVP.
> Judy Leavitt, SVP
> Ed Meskys, secretary
> Lucille Lynch, treasurer
> and our new slate of untitled board positions is:
> Julie Clark (new)
> Wayne Harvey (new)
> Donald Little (new)
> John Parker (returning)
> Stephen Yerardi (returning)
>
> Best, Ed Meskys
>
>
> Edmund R. Meskys
> NIEKAS Publications
> National Federation of the Blind of N.H.
> Moultonboro Lions Club
> edmeskys at localnet.com
> 322 Whittier Hwy
> Moultonboro NH 03254-3627
> my credo:
> Clinton lied, nothing happened
> Bush lied, thousands died
> and over 3,000 permanently brain injured
>
> _______________________________________________
> nfb-talk mailing list
> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk
>
> _______________________________________________
> nfb-talk mailing list
> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk
>
>
>
> __________ NOD32 2651 (20071110) Information __________
>
> This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system.
> http://www.eset.com
>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> _______________________________________________
> nfb-talk mailing list
> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
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>
>
>
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-------------- next part --------------
Chris:
With great respeect, I think you have not just a chip but a whole forest on your shoulder as regards volunteers at convention. NFB has them also but they are very unobtrusive and only help when asked and, frankly, don't help in areas wherein blind persons should be able to do for themselves. Lest you think I'm being preachy, I'm thinking of what happened at a recent WCB (Washington Council of the Blind -- WCB) convention wherein convention-goers who came on a WCB bus were told to put labels on their bags so that volunteers could find their bags for them (no thought that the passengers would find their own bags) and also there were volunteers to unpack and repack the bags of convention-goers. I'm sorry but that's plumb ridiculous.
I agree with you that such things as appliance access are looming large in the inaccessibility department. But ACB is no more equipped to solve that problem than are we in NFB. Everyone may talk a good line about how wonderful "universal access" is but it ain't gonna happen. Why? Because manufacturers and, by extension, the general public, aren't going to pay for it. There are many more sighted persons than there are blind persons.
Eventually, litigation may make a difference -- that's where your lawsuit and ours come into the picture. But there's a lot of case law to be made before such suits can be made effective.
Moreover, when we worry about equal access, what do we really mean? How do we specify it legally? And do we mean access for the tech-savvy or for those who haven't a clue insofar as computer use are concerned. Accessibility, at least in terms of software, is a moving target and probably always be about two steps ahead of us. But we must keep on fighting. But we must act intelligently and not go off half-cocked. Just claiming, as ACB often does, that if the sighted have it, the blind ought to also won't cut it because, in the end, the only way that can happen is for all blind persons to regain their sight which won't happen. What we must strive for is access that's "good enough" -- that allows us to compete.
By writing the foregoing, I am not minimizing your concerns; I tend to share them although I think the solutions aren't as simple as many of us would like them to be. So we're not so far apart on these matters as I may sound.
However, I am going to challenge you a bit on the convention bit and about NFB governance. Mostly, what I here from you is "can't can't can't can't". Have you talked with your local chapter about getting a national convention scholarship? How about Robert Stigel, your affiliate President? And, believe me, there's a lot for state affiliates to do; the national leadership cannot handle a majority of what NFB does. So have you run for local office? How about state office? How many projects have you volunteered for in the last six months for your local chapter president? How about for the state affiliate?
In other words, the NFB really is all of us. Quit complaining about how you are de facto being excluded ang get in there and pitch! WE need you and you need us!
And get that block of wood off your shoulder! (broad smile)
Mike
----- Original Message -----
From:
mailto:westbc at clw19.com Chris Westbrook
To:
mailto:nfb-talk at nfbnet.org NFB Talk Mailing List
Sent:
Saturday, November 10, 2007 2:36 PM
Subject:
Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
Mike, you make some good points. Being a young blind person myself, I think
it's sad that many younger blind people view progress as inevitable and feel
no need to join an organization. On the other hand, I'm not really sure
what NFB is really doing to stop the tide from turning against us The
biggest issue I see looming ahead is a loss of access to information. This
could be due to inaccessible computer software, inaccessible appliances, or
any number of other things I haven't thought of. On the inaccessible
appliances front, we had a home showcase at convention, but do you really
think that will make a difference? I'm sure most manufacturers really don't
care whether their products were coincidentally sort of accessible. I hope
our NFB Jernigan Institute can eventually help with this area. That leads
me to my next point, which is what mike said about some people believing
that the national leadership are the experts. I see the NFB as a very top
down organization with much of it's activity happening at the national
level. I wonder if in the future the NFB will become more and more focused
on it's Jernigan institute and basically be a clearinghouse for research and
product design, while the ACB does most of the advocacy work? I know for
myself I really don't see that many ways for a rank and file member to
influence policy, especially if they can't come to convention but even if
they can.
Also, I really think people in NFB need to relax and realize that not every
blind person has had great training or has the ability to do everything
independently. I know ACB has been criticized for having volunteers at
their convention, and frankly I find that kind of amusing when NFB's
leadership always has someone going sighted guide with them. IF it's good
enough for the leadership, why is it not good enough for the general
membership? If you don't want the help, just refuse it, but don't keep
someone like me from using help that we may need. On another note, I
frankly think ACB is better equipped to handle the challenges of the future.
Yes, they can be a bit more demanding than necessary, but I think we as
blind people are going to have to do more and more of that as time goes on.
NFB's philosophy is too focused on always being independence and this whole
idea of blindness being a nuisance and not that big of a deal. I'm afraid
the NFB will suddenly wake up one day when all microwaves and other
appliances are flat paneled with no way to use them effectively, there are
no usable telephones, all keyboards are completely touch screen and wonder,
gee how did we get here? I think I may be exaggerating slightly, but I
don't think I'm exaggerating as much as some may think. My only consolation
is that when things start getting worse, we will wake up and disregard what
Kenneth Jernigan said in his speech "the day after civil rights" whenever
that is, and start fighting again. I just hope it's not too late.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mike Freeman" < mailto:k7uij at panix.com k7uij at panix.com
>
To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" < mailto:nfb-talk at nfbnet.org nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
>
Sent: Saturday, November 10, 2007 2:02 PM
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
> Ray:
>
> Welcome to the way the "other half" lives. Here in Washington, we
> consider we're doing an outstanding job if we get seventy-five to eighty
> people at our state banquet. Unlike at national conventions, our
> banquets are more well attended than are our plenary convention sessions
> as some convention participants bring guests to the banquet who do not
> attend the rest of the convention.
>
> Of course, part of the problem here in Washington is that, whether we
> admit it or not, we're still suffering from the organizational split
> that accompanied the whole Robert Acosta business in the late 1970's
> when the then-affiliate for Washington was expelled (or chose to leave,
> depending upon one's viewpoint) and was reorganized. The old affiliate
> eventually joined ACB so that ACB is considerably larger numerically
> than is NFB in Washington. In the legislature, however, it is we of NFB
> who are known for getting things done.
>
> AFfiliates east of the Mississippi such as Massachusetts are far larger
> than are our affiliates out here with the exception of California. WE
> are, in Shakespeare's terms, "we happy few". But NFB is where the action
> is.
>
> On the original subject, what I see in terms of dwindling convention
> attendance and grousing about the irrelevance of convention material
> stems, I believe, from a number of trends in society today. First,
> society is, in general, much more fragmented than was the case thirty or
> forty years ago. People move around the country much more often than
> heretofore and, hence, don't put down roots and make as many lasting
> local friendships. (When was the last time you attended a "block
> party"?) They are thus less likely to have great circles of friends --
> arguably a prerequisit for easy growth of organizations.
>
> Second, perhaps because society is more fragmented and because there are
> more venues of entertainment (cable TV, the Internet, video games and
> the like), I believe that people are far less likely to be "joiners"
> then was the case even twenty years ago. There are too many other things
> competing for their time.
>
> Third, I believe that it is fair to say that the 1960's and 1970's were
> decades of activism. Whatever your thoughts are concerning the war in
> Iraq, note the vast difference between the small anti-war demonstrations
> of today and the mass protests against the Vietnam war from 1964 to
> 1975. WE of NFB, like many other activist organizations, are the victims
> of the paradigm shift from activism to indifference and (see above) from
> the paradigm of working to make changes to being entertained.
>
> Fourth, I believe that, rightly or wrongly, many young blind people
> today see all the progress that the blind have made over the previous
> two generations toward a world of equality with the sighted and conclude
> that continued progress in this arena is inevitable. Obviously, I
> disagree with this assessment and, in fact, I am worried that we might
> be on the verge of slipping backward, making NFB even more of a
> necessity than it may have been twenty years ago. Couple this with laws
> mandating provision of services such as DSS offices at universities and
> this is a recipe for organizational lacitude IMO. I opine that many
> young people do not recognize that provision of some of these services
> constitutes a wolf in sheep's clothing and, hence, when they hit the
> "real world" and encounter businesses that don't automatically provide
> them with all the high-tech gadgetry they think they need, they
> interpret the problem as one of discrmination rather than one simply of
> the way the world works. All this is to say that many blind people of
> all ages today don't see why they need to gain advocacy skills or pay
> attention to all the "dull" stuf involving politics or their agencies
> for the blind. Let "the experts" do it. And while many would agree with
> us that agency moguls may not be the "experts", some are beginning to
> see *us* as the "experts",where by "us" I mean NFB leadership. In other
> words, I'm not sure that the rank-and-file always sees that it has a
> stake in what's happening or that it really has the power to change
> things.
>
> This problem is not unique to NFB: ACB has it also. The "advantage", if
> one wishes to call it that, that ACB has is that often its affiliates
> conduct many more social functions than do NFB affiliates -- at least
> it's like that out here in the Pacific Northwest. When, for example, was
> the last time you attended a NFB affiliate convention where a comedian
> was the featured banquet speaker? It has happend in ACB affiliates out
> here.
>
> Now I would hazard that this sort of fluff is not what we in NFB truly
> want. But to make changes, we must understand why what we're doing may
> not always appeal to "the masses" and, therefore, must decide whether we
> can incorporate other items into our conventions that might gain
> interest and not cause groans of "same ol' same ol'" while at the same
> time not betraying our NFB heritage and philosophy.
>
> I don't have the answer but I value the discussions as we may
> collectively come up with ideas that might work for all of us.
>
> Mike Freeman, President
> NFB of Washington
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ray Foret Jr
> To: NFB Talk Mailing List
> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 9:37 AM
> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
>
>
> Edd, I am floored!!! Are you truly telling us that at your last New
> Hampshire state NFB convention, y'all only had 30 attendees? Only 30?
> What
> is y'all's membership compared to that number? I just cannot get my
> mind
> around the idea of y'all putting all that work in to an all day state
> convention and having only 30 people there. Perhaps you might inquire
> of
> your members just what the issues are which cause them not to attend
> y'all's
> convention. From what I gather, you say in your message that folks
> were
> complaining that the program items were "so so". If I'm not mistaken,
> we
> usually have over 100 folks at the Louisiana NFB state convention.
> How
> about I forward your message on to Pam Allan and she can maybe suggest
> what
> you might want to consider.
>
> Sincerely yours,
> The Constantly Barefooted,
> Ray
> Home phone and fax:
> (985)853-0139
> E-mail:
> rforetjratbellsouthdotnet
> Skype Name:
> barefootedray
> Blog:
> http://www.raysworld.blogs.com www.raysworld.blogs.com
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>
> God bless President George W. Bush!
> God bless our troops!
> and God bless America
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ed Meskys" < mailto:edmeskys at localnet.com edmeskys at localnet.com
>
> To: "nfb-talk" < mailto:nfb-talk at nfbnet.org nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
>
> Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 10:44 AM
> Subject: [nfb-talk] state con attendance
>
>
> When I first became NH state president in 1988 the first few state
> conventions I put on had about 100-120 attendees, up about 20% from
> the
> previous president, because I did a lot of outreach to find former and
> new
> members, and initiated a state newsletter. We had been drifting down
> ever
> since, to under 50. Last year we had our 50th anniversary, and got
> more
> attendees, but with people muttering about our programs being the
> "same old,
> same old." This year we decided to devote our whole morning to a topic
> important to blind persons and many others in a rural state, the
> future of
> transportation in NH. We made it a one-day con, with a luncheon
> banquet, and
> the National report, some technology, mobility, and our business
> meeting in
> he afternoon. With the help of Blind Services, the talking book
> library, the
> Governor's Commission on Disabilities, and Granite State Independent
> Living
> (Foundation) we distributed over 2000 flyers, and aside from program
> participants we had only 30 attendees. Our officers are very
> disappointed,
> and are saying it cost so much money to put on and advertise the con,
> and
> put in so much work, that we will pull back and only have a business
> meeting
> with lunch in the back room of a restaurant next year. Are other
> states
> having the same problem getting attendance at a con?
>
> We are using an Imagination Grant to put on a one-day tech expo next
> April,
> which is not a convention (cons are normally in October or November).
> If
> this flops too, I think the board will be devastated. We lined up an
> excellent panel of five experts and administrators for the
> transportation
> panel, and are working on getting excellent speakers for the tech
> expo.
>
> Incidentally, the results of our state elections were:
> continuing constitutional officers:
> Marie Johnson, President
> Gil Vickery, FVP.
> Judy Leavitt, SVP
> Ed Meskys, secretary
> Lucille Lynch, treasurer
> and our new slate of untitled board positions is:
> Julie Clark (new)
> Wayne Harvey (new)
> Donald Little (new)
> John Parker (returning)
> Stephen Yerardi (returning)
>
> Best, Ed Meskys
>
>
> Edmund R. Meskys
> NIEKAS Publications
> National Federation of the Blind of N.H.
> Moultonboro Lions Club
> mailto:edmeskys at localnet.com edmeskys at localnet.com
> 322 Whittier Hwy
> Moultonboro NH 03254-3627
> my credo:
> Clinton lied, nothing happened
> Bush lied, thousands died
> and over 3,000 permanently brain injured
>
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