The Night Owls
November Volume
3-2007
The Night Owls
November Volume
3-2007
ALUMNI NEWS
· Summary Notes of
Business Meetings (Jul, Aug, Sep)
· Blinded Veterans Advisory
Board (BVAB)
·
Read This To Me (free service)
John Sherrer……
Welcome back this toasty
autumn. We have never used our air
conditioning in October before, usually we have our heat on by now. But the heat is on outside. In
Does life end
with blindness?
Since most of us cannot see, we do not
know the strange looks we get when we go to a restaurant or some other public
place. We have discussed before that
blindness is the most feared disability.
This fact has greatly intrigued me.
But as for going to a restaurant, since I got Tommy my guide dog, they
never notice me anymore, they only notice Tommy.
In 1986 at the
The
Some of you have lost vision and you
cannot drive, but your vision is stable.
Some of you are loosing your vision gradually, and some of you are experiencing a speedup of
your gradual loss. Some of you have lost
all of your vision.
As for me, my last eye appointment Dr.
Cummings said to me, that 6 months ago I
had a patch of retina, but now I
just some scattered retina. I have been
noticing a crash in my vision the last 18 months. I may be total in a year or two, or I may
stay here a while. I will keep you
updated.
The
I remember that after I came home from the
blind center, I decided that I would start seeing with my hands. At this time I could read well enough to read
newspaper print about an inch from my eye in sunlight. So I could see better than most of you. Well, this did not work, I could not learn to
see with my hands.
Two or three years ago I remembered this
story, and then I realized that I see with my hands all the time. It happened without making a choice to do
so. My body had a mind of it’s own and caused
it to happen. And this goes back to the
blind center helping me use a click rule to measure without depending on my
vision and cooking a grilled cheese sandwich with a blind fold on.
Life does not end with blindness. Sure we have problems. Many times I have had
to hold down the power button on my computer to force it off since I caused it
to crash and have no idea what I did.
Many times I have to ask my wife to find something I have dropped or I
have to ask her to read something. We
have a truckload of problems, but we can get over them.
Tell us what you do to keep busy. Tell us how the blind center has pointed you
in the correct direction.
For now,
I will try to keep a neutral position on this issue and wait and see. Write me and tell me about your experience at
the blind center. Do you have something
to share with us? If you do, send it to
me at john@abrcaa.com or call me at
336-659-8476.
Summary
Notes of ABRCAA Business Meetings
(Jul, Aug, Sep)
Topics
·
Annual
·
Membership
Program
·
Sign
Up EXTENDED DATE - A Cruise 2008
·
Fundraising
·
Review
of Constitution
·
Treasurer
Report
Annual
Date – 1-4
Nov 07
Place of
Hotel - Radisson Inn
(843) 744-2501
Room rate -
$89.00 plus tax
Thursday – Social Hour 6:00 – 7:00
hors o’deuves (Sponsored by SC VIVA)
(Dress Casual)
Saturday – 0900 Business Meeting
1800 Dinner Banquet (Custom
dress/Pirate attire)
All
details will be posted on the website and posted in the newsletter. (www.abrcaa.com)
Membership Program –
Don Srail
(Temporarily Delayed) (Continued
again starting
1 Nov 2007)
Attention
all new and potential members, we the membership staff, do apologize for the
delay in sending out the membership cards.
With a suitable reorganization and distribution of documents, we have
come up with a solution for more effective and suitable distribution for our
members and potential members. By the 1st
of November 2007, all should be underway of all processing of applications and
distrubtion of membership cards. Please
accept our most humblest apologies. An
advanced thanks.
Membership
Staff
Sign Up EXTENDED DATE –
A Cruise 2008 – There will be one cruise date for persons
desiring to go on a cruise. From 30
August – 6 September 2008 (7 Night – Western Carribean from
Treasurer Report
Balance Sheet for ABRCAA
For South Carolina Bank and Trust
Aug 1, 2007 to Aug 31, 2007
|
Last Statement as of
08/31/2007 $4,000.55 |
$ 4,000.55 |
|
|
Total Income $875.55 |
$ 875.00 |
|
|
Total Expenses .00 |
|
|
Balance as
of 11 October 2007
$
4,875.55
Review Constitution – Modifications, changes, and/or additions have been made
throughout the Constitution BYLAWS (July 2007).
These editions will be addressed at the convention by members attending
as approved or disapproved by a majority vote.
Old Constitution and Proposed Constitution will be posted on the website
(www.abrcaa.com) .
Fundraising –
(50) First Aide kit sell for
$8.00;
(1) Home
First aide kit – 31 pieces
(2)
Auto First aide kit – 31 pieces
(28) Polo/Golf Tshirts –
for $20.00
These
new items along with hats and T-shirts will be available for purchasing at
reunion.
Blinded Veterans Advisory Board (BVAB)
Duties/Responsibilities –
BVAB is a group that was formed to provide advice and recommendations to
the
Business Meeting Notes
Announcements:
·
ABRC will be realigned into a new Rehabilitation Service effective
November 1, 2007.
·
Vision Consequences conference,
·
The Augusta VAMC will have a CARF Survey of the Polytrauma Network Site,
TBI and Medical Rehab programs November 4-5, 2007.
Other
Business:
·
ABRC/CARF results
·
ABRC Waiting list and waiting times
·
ABRC Staff meeting with the Director
·
ABRC Future expansion plans – private rooms, eye lane, optometrist, space
renovations (space summit)
·
Acquisition of Glenn Benson
·
Supplemental spending updates – ABRC has purchase new equipment/CO/BRS
may be purchasing vision therapy equipment
·
ABRC Budget Call – requested funding to support BROS travel to different
locations
·
Visual Impairment Continuum of Care update – CO/BRS to send letters to
each VISN
·
CARF & CO/BRS to have a CARF Summit in January 2008
Adjournment:
The ABRC
will distribute next year’s BVAB schedule of calls in the next month.
Tentatively today we have approximately $4,875.55
Annual
(The Beginning
Of an Adventure)
Date – 1-4 Nov 07
Hotel - Radisson Inn
(toll free number) -
(888) 744-5340
(843) 744-2501
Room rate - $89.00 plus tax before 15 Sep 07
This year, we have worked to keep the reunion registration the same as last
year. ABRCAA members pay $40.00 or $45.00 after September 15, 2007.
Non members pay $45.00 or $50.00 after September 15, 2007. The
registration form will be on the Registration link of the www.abrcaa.com
website and also within this newsletter..
When you call to reserve your room, you will be speaking to a reservation
specialist at the hotel. Any questions or services needs to be answered
directly by the staff and management of our reunion location, not an answering
service in Kalamazoo.
A station will be set for guide and service animals. Awareness training
will be conducted prior to the reunion for all staff and management.
There will be information and day room set up and manned for answering any
questions or helping with any issues that may arise.
Registration form included.
**Please, if you have any questions regarding
anything about the hotel or the reunion, please call
***Need to know what you want to do in
A free reading service for the blind community
ReadThisToMe is a free reading service for
the blind, powered by volunteers and Internet collaboration.
ReadThisToMe allows blind and low-vision
people to have printed documents read to them over the phone. All the blind
person needs is a phone line and a fax machine (no computer is required.)
Here's how it works:
1.
The blind person (whom we'll call the
"client") faxes the document to be read to the ReadThisToMe toll-free
fax number: 1-877-333-8848. The first page of the fax needs to be a cover page
that includes the client's first name and callback (voice) phone number. The
document itself can be just about anything: a handwritten letter, a bill, a can
of food, a multi-page magazine article -- just about anything that can be
faxed.
2.
One of ReadThisToMe's volunteer readers
will call the client back and read the document.
3.
That's it!
The service is available
throughout the
Because the
reading is done by people, this service can handle documents that electronic
reading hardware and software cannot, such as handwritten documents, documents
with complex graphics, etc. The cost of entry is just a phone line and a cheap
fax machine. (A flatbed fax machine is slightly more expensive but can be more
versatile, allowing clients to fax pages from books, food containers, and other
thicker items.)
ReadThisToMe needs
more volunteer readers: all volunteers need are a few minutes a day and
willingness to make a long-distance phone call
The service is
created and maintained by Savetz Publishing. Other businesses that wish to help
sponsor ReadThisToMe can send e-mail to info at readthistome.org.
An audio version of this information is
available by dialing 1-877-333-8847.
Hi
everyone! I am Cheryl Gajadhar. I hope to see you all at the reunion in November. I hope this newsletter was informative, and
most importantly – you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed creating it. Your next newsletter will be out in December
2007.
NOTE: Starting immediately, all
articles need to be less than one page at 16 font size, send a copy of a
picture (if desired) and sent to the address or email the article no later than
1 Dec 07.
Cheryl
Gajadhar
(803)
754 6764 clgajadhar@aol.com