AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND OF OHIO

EVENTS AND ISSUES

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EVENTS AND ISSUES

1 Building Blocks for a Brighter Future

Building Blocks for a Brighter Future
A seminar for Parents of Blind Children
Sponsored by
The American Council of the Blind of Ohio
The Ohio Lions Foundation
And
The Bureau of Services for the Visually Impaired

Are you a parent of a child who is blind or visually impaired? Do you know how to work with school administrators so your child receives the services he or she is entitled to? Are you comfortable with the "Alphabet Soup" of Special Education such as LRE, FAPE, LEA, IEE, MFE and IDEA? Do you know the meaning of “due process,” and how, when and why would you get to that point? Have you heard of “prior written Notice?”

The second annual Building Blocks for a Brighter Future is a full day of workshops and activities for parents and children. We invite you to come to the Ohio State School for the Blind, 5220 N. High St. in Columbus, on September 13, 2008. Sign-in and exhibits begin at 8:15a.m. with coffee, juice, and doughnuts.

The keynote speaker will be Ashley Morgan, graduate student at the Ohio State University and recipient of the first annual OSU/ACB-Ohio scholarship for students who will be teaching blind children in the classroom. Ms. Morgan is blind, herself, so you will meet a true success story in person. Attorney Virginia Wilson, from Ohio Legal Rights, will talk about advocating for the rights of your child with a disability. Dan Kelley, teacher of assistive technology at OSSB will give hands on demonstrations of the technology that will assist your child in learning and interacting with the sighted world.

The goals of this seminar are to give parents tools to work with; to encourage children to explore creative outlets through various activities, provide round table discussion groups for parents and/or grandparents, and for families to network with one another.

Here’s the best part. It’s free! All we ask is that after you have sent in your registration, and something prevents you from attending, please let us know. ACB-Ohio, The Ohio Lions Foundation, and BSVI are very pleased to be offering this service to you.

To register, please call our toll free line at 1-800-835-2226 or send an e-mail message to our executive director at Mary.hiland@sbcglobal.net by September 10.

2 Safety of Blind Pedestrians Update

For Immediate Release

April 22, 2008

Rep. Don Young Joins the American Council of the Blind in
Supporting the Safety of Blind Pedestrians

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) joined with the American Council of the Blind (ACB) today in demonstrating his continued commitment to the safety of blind pedestrians by signing on as a co-sponsor to H.R. 5734, The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2008.

“The auto industry has made amazing technological strides over the past decade that have allowed our automobiles to be more energy efficient and to burn cleaner,” Young said. “This is to be commended, but, as with most advancements in technology, it has given us a newer and different set of issues to look at. Unfortunately, one of the side effects of these newer hybrid cars is that the noise level produced has been greatly reduced, leading to safety issues for those who are visually impaired. The safety of people is something I take very seriously, and for that reason I am proud to be a co-sponsor of H.R. 5734, the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act. I am encouraged that Congress is looking into this issue and that we are looking to do something about this as soon as possible. Let’s continue to use our technology for good and use it to keep people safe.”

“ACB has a long history of being the leader in the blindness community regarding pedestrian safety issues and was pleased to see that much of the language in H.R.5734 mirrored draft legislation our staff had been working to have introduced by Congressman Young,” said Mitch Pomerantz, President of the American Council of the Blind. When vision is reduced or completely eliminated as a means of understanding and responding to one’s environment, an individual’s hearing takes over as the primary source of environmental information. Traditionally, people who are blind or visually impaired have learned to rely on their hearing to navigate safely across streets and through other vehicular ways, such as parking lots. In so doing, the sound of traffic is their primary focus. Traffic sounds provide information about such things as the position of vehicles, their direction of travel, and the speed at which they are likely to move. With this information, the pedestrian can make informed decisions about when to cross a street or other vehicular ways safely.

Pomerantz said, “This issue is one that the entire blindness community is united in supporting. I urge ACB membership to contact their members of Congress to ask them to co-sponsor this legislation, as this is an opportunity to bring real change and make blind pedestrians’ lives safer.”

This legislation is being sponsored by Reps. Edolfus "Ed" Towns (D-N.Y.) and Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.).

About H.R. 5734:
The bill directs the Secretary of Transportation to conduct a study beginning within 90 days of enactment of this legislation, and to complete it within two years of its commencement, at which time, the secretary shall report the study’s findings to Congress. Within 90 days after the conclusion of the study, the secretary is then directed to establish a standard that will take in to account the results of the study, and will set forth the minimum information that must be provided by motor vehicles required for blind and other pedestrians to travel safely and independently in urban, rural, and residential environments. The bill provides that the standard shall apply to all "new motor vehicles."

About ACB:
The American Council of the Blind is the largest consumer-based organization of blind and visually impaired Americans advocating for the rights of blind Americans. Comprised of more than 70 affiliates across the entire United States, the organization is dedicated to making it possible for blind and visually impaired Americans to participate fully in every aspect of American society.

For more information about the American Council of the Blind, and the issues it supports, visit www.acb.org or contact the American Council of the Blind, 1155 15th Street NW, Suite 1004, Washington, DC 20005; phone (202) 467-5081 or toll-free, 1-800-424-8666.

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3 Takes Two to Tandem

Takes Two to Tandem

ACB-Ohio Tandem Bike Rally to be held September 21, 2008
Kokosing Gap Trail, Mount Vernon, Ohio

The American Council of the Blind of Ohio, (ACB-Ohio) is hosting its second annual tandem rally-fundraiser. Visually impaired stokers and sighted captains will have three routes to choose from, 30 flat miles on the trail and 30, and 60 mile-routes on rolling terrain, each starting and ending on the beautiful Kokosing Gap Trail. The two more challenging routes will include the gently rolling hills and some more challenging ones through the beautiful Amish countryside, while the flat route will stay on the trail, which is noted as one of the prettiest and most well maintained rails-to-trails bike paths in Ohio. Sighted tandem teams and single bikes are also welcome.

Many Ways to Participate:

1. Bring your tandem and your stoker and enjoy a beautiful ride and meet some other folks who enjoy tandem cycling.
2. Bring your tandem and meet your stoker for the day, who might be visually impaired. Many blind folks love to ride, but they need a captain and/or a bike.
3. Volunteer for transportation, registration and/or food stops.
4. Pledge on a rider or sponsor a tandem team.
5. Donate give-aways to promote your business.
6. Join the PB&J lunch preparation crew the night before.

The American Council of the Blind of Ohio is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality and equality of life for persons who are blind or visually impaired. We offer information and referral for resources for equipment, training programs, emotional support, scholarships, and more.

The proceeds from this ride will help sponsor the quarterly seminars ACB-Ohio conducts for visually impaired Ohioans and their families.

Sign Up Today!
Registration Donation--$30 or more, per rider
Snacks! Lunch! New friends! Great ride! Support a worthy cause! Free stuff!

How to Sign Up:

Contact Mary Hiland at mary.hiland@sbcglobal.net
Or Call 614-221-6688 or 800-835-2226 to request registration forms.
Registration packets will include directions to start and more information about ACB-Ohio.

4 Low vision services available

UDS Low Vision Services has received a generous grant from the United Disability Services Women’s Board. The grant is to be utilized to provide low vision services and other specialized early intervention services for very young children in our community who are blind or visually impaired. For more information, contact Dr. Cheryl Reed at (330)996-4080 or creed@udsakron.org.

5 Two ways to help ACB-Ohio

Got an old cell phone lying around the house and you don’t know what to do with it? Don’t throw it away. If you do, toxic chemicles will leak into the soil and spoil the environment. If you hold onto them and bring them to your next chapter meeting, you’ll be helping the environment and ACB too. Your chapter representative will bring all collected phones to the next board meeting, where they will be collected and then sent in for a cash refund. We will get anywhere from 50 cents to $50 per phone. This is to be an ongoing project, so tell all your friends and family to bring you their discarded cell phones. No chargers or instruction books are needed. If you don’t belong to a chapter, bring them with you to the state convention, the summer retreat, the family seminar, or the tandem bike rally.

Do you shop at Kroger? Wouldn’t it be nice if a portion of what you spend at the grocery store would automatically be sent to ACB? Starting immediately, it can. All you do is purchase a special Kroger card that is programmed to take 5% of your total and send it to ACB. Here’s how it works. Send $5 for each Kroger caard you would like to the ACB-Ohio office. The $5 activates the card. Mary will order the cards, then send them to you. When you go to Kroger, first stop at the customer service desk and put at least enough money into that card to pay for the groceries. When you check out, instead of using cash, a check, or a credit card, use this special card. That’s how we get the 5%. Then, of course, you will need to keep replenishing the amount of money that card is worth, just like a gift card. If you belong to a chapter, the 5% that you have earned for us, just by buying groceries, will be split between the Ohio affiliate and your local chapter. If you are a member at large, the whole 5% goes to the Ohio affiliate. If you have questions, please call our tole free number. Then, let’s go Krogering!

ACB National

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