NFBCO Web site Calendar

Notes from the Editor’s Desk

Welcome to the second issue of the NFBCO newsletter.  We are pleased to offer a couple of new permanent features.  First, in the upper right hand corner is a link to the NFBCO Web site Calendar.  Here you will find the most up-to-date listing of affiliate events.  We encourage you to make regular visits to www.nfbco.org in order to stay informed about affiliate and national office business.  

The second feature is a link to the Colorado Parents of Blind Children newsletter.  COPOBC president, Lucie Kiwimagi, tells us more about the newsletter later in this issue.  Remember, current and archived issues of the NFBCO newsletter and the POBC’s eCONNECTOR are available at www.nfbco.org. Of special interest in this issue is an article by Andrea Beasley. Andrea, an active NFBCO member, participates in every chapter and event that we have.  But her latest challenge—running in a mini-marathon—exemplifies her belief in herself as a blind person and her belief in the philosophy of the NFB, that blindness can be reduced to the level of an inconvenience.  She is a busy mom with two pre-schoolers at home, works part-time for her church, and is never too busy to jump in and help with NFB activities.  She is a great example of what we believe in the NFB. Congratulations, Andrea! 

If you have any corrections, suggestions, or new information for either the NFBCO Web site or newsletter please send an email to lriddle@cocenter.org.

Greetings from the President

What a Spring it has been!  As many of you know, we successfully led the effort to get H.B.1274 passed through the Colorado General Assembly to create the Colorado Commission for the Blind. On May 24, 2007, Governor Bill Ritter signed the bill into law at the State Capitol.  Representative Joe Rice and Senator Suzanne Williams spoke and then Governor Ritter called upon me to address those assembled.  We were the only group specifically recognized by the Governor.

The Commission will be an advisory Commission and no one knows how effective it will be.  You can rest assured that we will push as hard as we know how to make sure that the Commission addresses the real problems faced by the blind in our State.  We have high hopes for this new entity and we will have to work hard to make those hopes turn into reality.

I am also extremely pleased to announce that we have selected five 2007 state scholarship winners, and all five will join us at the National Convention in Atlanta as well as our state convention.  These winners will compete for scholarships that will start at $1,500 and could exceed $5,000 for each individual.  Our winners are Adam Campfield of Grand Junction, Terry Garrett of Colorado Springs, Anna Reid of Boulder, Elisha Wells of Denver, and Ethan Johnston of Denver.  We are very proud of this year's class and we will have more to say about them in future issues of this newsletter.

As we get this issue out, we are, many of us, getting ready to take off to Hotlanta for the 2007 Annual Convention of the National Federation of the Blind from June 30 through July 6.  Our Annual Convention is a time for us to take stock of our organization, celebrate our accomplishments, and plan for the future.  By the way, the Agenda for the Convention is available on our national website at www.nfb.org. 

For those who are going from Colorado, please make a note that our Colorado Caucus will take place Monday evening, July 2, at 8:45 p.m. in Room M101 of the Marriott Marquis.  This will be an opportunity to check in on how everyone is doing and coordinate such things as ticket exchange for the Banquet.  We will also discuss our affiliate's plan for the March for Independence.  I will ask our scholarship winners to carry our state banner during the March.  I hope to see most of you in Atlanta.

Speaking of conventions, I would be remiss if I did not mention our 53rd Annual State Convention.  It will start on Thursday, October 4 (my son Alexander's fifth birthday) and last through Sunday, October 7.  More about the convention is in this issue.  The Convention will take place at the Denver Double Tree Hotel at 3203 Quebec Street.  You can reserve your hotel room with the hotel by registering either by phone or online.  Soon there will be NFBCO convention registration available on our Website.

Also please stay tuned for an announcement regarding our next state board meeting.  It will be a public meeting taking place at our Colorado Center in Littleton.  We are targeting late July.

As I close this message, I am very proud of what we do  as an organization.  Some times it seems as if it takes a long time to make real change in our society.  However, we change the beliefs about blindness one person, one action at a time.  As they say, there is only one way to eat an elephant, one bite at a time.

Return to Navigation

In Memoriam

Ray McGeorge, Senior Support Group Coordinator at the Colorado Center for the Blind, reports with great sadness the passing of Joalyne Roberta Hoover who had just celebrated her 82^nd birthday on March 18.  Roberta was a businesswoman dealing in property management until she began to lose her vision late in life.  It wasn’t until many years later, when she attended our first Possibilities Fair and found the NFB that she realized she still had a full life ahead of her.  She immediately became an active and enthusiastic learner of blindness skills, including Braille, and became a member of the NFB of Denver chapter.  At the 2006 NFB of Colorado convention she gave an uplifting and entertaining address encouraging seniors who are losing vision to learn the techniques that will help them gain back their lives and keep their independence.  She will be greatly missed by her many new found friends in the Federation. 

Another recent loss to the Senior Support Group was the passing of Ode Kottenstette.  Ode was in her early 70’s and had serious vision loss.  She believed strongly that she needed to learn Braille so that she would not be illiterate.  She regularly attended the Tuesday morning Braille classes until poor health prevented her from doing so.  She will also be missed by her many friends in the Senior Group.

NFBCO Day at the Capitol

Federations brought three major issues to the attention of the Colorado General Assembly.  First, we urged adoption of HB07-1274, which would create the Colorado Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired.  Second, regardless of which voting reform measures surfaced, we called upon the Assembly to maintain the right of blind citizens to cast a secret and independent ballot, a right only realized for the first time in 2006.  Finally and third, we requested that the Assembly continue its support of NFB-NEWSLINE^® through an appropriation of $50,000.00. 

More than fifty NFBCO members gathered at 8:00 a.m. in the Old Supreme Court Chambers of the Capitol Building where they formed seven teams, picked up NFBCO information packets and their assignments.  It is always an exciting to be at the heart of our state’s government and especially important this year as we urged support of HB07-1274.  Please make plans to join us next year.

State of Colorado Commission for the Blind Bill

State Election Reform and Accessibility

As mentioned in the winter issue, the right to an independent and secret vote for blind Coloradans is again at risk due to a state movement to have all votes cast by a mail-in ballot.  In response Secretary of State, Michael Coffman convened a series of meetings and public hearings after the first of the year intended to discuss potential solutions to the problems that plagued Colorado’s 2006 election cycle.  Click here for more background information from the January 15 Denver Post article.

Due to the many concerns raised by the disability community at these hearings Secretary Coffman has now convened the “Voter Accessibility, Independence and Privacy Task Force” to examine election-related issues facing the Disability Community in Colorado.  In its initial monthly meetings, the task force will focus on developing a fair and consistent policy to ensure that every polling location across the state is accessible to all voters – as required by federal law.  Task force members will also serve in an advisory capacity to Coffman on any elections issues before the General Assembly, and will assist the Secretary in examining the potential impact of such issues on people with disabilities.

Diane McGeorge, who has given testimony on behalf of the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado (NFBCO) at several of the public hearings, has been appointed to the task force as has NFBCO president Scott C. LaBarre.  Other task force members include: Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition representatives, Julie Reiskin, Executive Director and Sheila Hicks; Executive Director David Bolin and Bruce Gogan of the Center for People with Disabilities; Barbara Boyer, Executive Director, American Council of the Blind of Colorado; Faith Gross, VOTE! Program Coordinator, The Legal Center for People with Disabilities and Older People; Terrance Turner, Executive CO-Director, Atlantis Community Inc.; and Patricia Yeager, University of Northern Colorado, Rehabilitation Continuing Education Program.

2007 NFBCO Scholarship

Kevan Worley, NFBCO Scholarship Committee chairman, is pleased to report that the Scholarship Committee met Wednesday evening, May 20, reviewed all applications, and selected five scholarship winners.  These winners will be notified of their selection by telephone no later than June 1, 2007.  Winners will brought to the 2007 National Federation of the Blind of Colorado annual state convention in October.  This year’s convention will be held at the Denver Doubletree Hotel and the scholarship award ceremonies will take place on Saturday, October 6 at the banquet. Scholarship finalists will also be offered an opportunity to attend the convention of the National Federation of the Blind in Atlanta, Georgia, the first week of July 2007.  These expense-paid National Federation of the Blind convention education experiences are in addition to the scholarship grant.  Winners will participate in the entire convention and in the scheduled scholarship program activities. 

Return to Navigation

eCONNECTOR – A Newsletter from the Colorado Parents of Blind Children

We are excited to offer this e-newsletter for parents, families, friends and teachers of blind children throughout Colorado! 

Last summer we surveyed families around the state about their specific needs and interests with respect to raising or supporting a blind child.  Having received an enthusiastic response to the mailing, we are extending our outreach efforts to include a regular newsletter with happenings, information and educational opportunities pertinent to you and the blind children you know. Many of you who responded to our recent survey indicated an interest in attending future Colorado Parents of Blind Children (CPOBC) meetings and seminars.  We were pleased to know about such an interest. 

Our board, comprised of a handful of parents of blind children and blind adults, meets occasionally to discuss our goals as an organization, to plan upcoming Colorado Parents of Blind Children events, and to feed our relationship with the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado.  We would welcome your presence at our meetings, and are certain that our gatherings would be greatly enriched by your participation.  

As you read the eCONNECTOR, we encourage you to act on any urge you may have to become involved in the CPOBC and the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado.  It is through your participation that we will be able to forge ahead with our efforts! To join us just open the Word document for our membership form.  Print the form, fill it out, and return it with a $5 annual dues fee, made payable to the Colorado POBC.  Thank you for your ongoing interest and support in your parent organization here in Colorado!  

Warm Regards,
Lucie Kiwimagi, Kiwimagi@msn.com
President, Colorado Parents of Blind Children

Chapter Member, Mother of Two and Athlete

My name is Andrea Beasley and I am a member of the NFB of Denver.  I am also a runner.

I began seriously working-out about two years ago.  I started with step aerobics and since my goal was to lose weight, when I reached my weight goal I stopped.  Consequently I started gaining it back.  Aerobics was just not challenging enough for me.  I needed something else.

About this time a friend of mine was going to run the Chicago marathon.  This sounded so interesting that I asked her to teach me how to become a runner.  On our first run we did a one hour walk/run.  I thought I was going to die!  However I did enjoy it.  So I began getting up at 6:00 a.m. to run.  I ran in my neighborhood where there was a bike lane on the side of the road.  I hate getting up early so this schedule quickly faded in interest and I started running at night.  This was much better for me.  I really began to love it.  I would take an MP3 player with a Harry Potter book and read while I ran.  My sister told me she was running in her first marathon and explained the training.  It sounded so hard and I was amazed that a person could really run for 26.2 miles without stopping.  But, I must say I was intrigued.

Then this past February some friends of mine began talking about the half-marathon they wanted to run in the spring and I thought “I could do that.”  I asked my friend how she trained and where I could get a training schedule.  She really helped me figure out what I needed to do.  For twelve weeks, after the kids were in bed, I did my runs and cross training.  On the weekends I did long runs on the extensive bike paths we have in Littleton.  I also began to do some long runs with a friend who was going to race with me.  We were getting better and better. I could not believe what I was pushing my body to do.

We planned to arrive the night before and hop the race buses at 5:30 am.  I am still not a morning person so this really made my day.  However, the early morning was not what scared me; running for three to four hours without a break is what really scared me.  I never thought about the course and how I would do it.  I just figured I would run.  I did not know what to expect.  I only knew that the Ft. Collins race was a good beginners race because it was mostly flat.  I like flat.  It’s much easier.

About a month from the race my sister asked me how I was going to do the race.  I told her that I hadn’t thought about it and that I did not know.  Around that same time my marathon friend, who had been helping me with training, asked me the same thing.  I honestly had no idea. I really just thought I would run.  I did fine in my neighborhood and on the bike paths so I thought that I would be fine. 

We arrived the night before the race, registered and got our packets.  The lady who registered me asked me if I was blind.  I said yes.  Then she said with a big question in her tone “and you’re running the race tomorrow, huh?”  I said yes and that was it.  No one said anything else to me. We got up the next morning and got on the bus.  I had my cane with me the whole time and I never got a look or a question.  There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that I was there to run in the race and would be completing it, even if it wasn’t until 6:00 a.m. the next day. 

We had to walk a quarter of a mile to the start point.  I began to get nervous.  I didn’t know where the trail was going to take me , how I would know when to turn off and get on the road, how would know if I am going the right way , and why did I decide to do this anyway, and can I back out now, and on and on and on.  However, I never said a word to anyone about being nervous.  I was there to race and by God, I was going to race.

And race I did.  First on a dirt trail for a mile and then we turned off onto a road that wound around through the mountains.  It was beautiful.  We ran along a stream.  I could hear the running water and see the mountain peaks.  I was loving it!  I was just running and having a great time when my friend passed me by and asked how I was doing.  I was great.  The view was so nice and I thought I was doing well.  Then more and more people began to pass me.  Then I realized they were the 26-mile marathon runners who had started eleven miles behind and 45 minutes earlier than the mini-marathon runners. I happen to catch a mile marker sign and realized I was only at mile nine.  “Oh my goodness, only mile nine!”  Also, now we were running along the highway and the cars and trucks were only three feet away.  I have to admit I was a little scared and very happy when we got to a park.

For the last five miles or so we ran through a park with a lake and kids playing on equipment. This was very relaxing for me.  It made me think about my family and how happy I would be when I was done and I could call them and tell them I did it.

Along the way there were people on the sides of the streets, in the parks, riding bikes along side us telling us that we are doing great, and to keep it up.  It was amazing.  When I got to the three tenths of a mile marker there was a whole crowd of people telling me I was doing great that I was almost there, just up the hill, that I was almost done. My legs were killing me but I kicked it in and ran harder and faster just to finish and feel that sense of accomplishment.  Then the announcer said, “I see you number 1814.  I’m watching Andrea Beasley from Littleton. You look great Avalanche fan. Andrea Beasley has made it in, she is done.”

I was done but I couldn’t stop. I had been running for fifteen miles and I couldn’t stop. My friend and another person jumped in front of me and I came to an immediate halt.  They have you put a chip on your shoe to track how fast you are running and he said, “I need your chip.”  This stop made me fall down and I just sat there, downing a bottle of water and eating a banana.  When I arrived home I took a nap.

I wanted to check my time since I had no idea how long it took me.  I hadn’t checked the time I came in so I went online. I was kind of nervous, which seemed silly since I couldn’t change anything.  For a minute I thought that maybe I won’t check, that I really don’t want to know. Finally I typed my name in and hit search.  My time was 3 hours and 40 minutes and 44 seconds.  Wow!  Next time I want it to be just 3 hours.  My friend and I are planning to run another half-marathon (13.1 miles) in August. This one will be in Georgetown and we will camp over night with our families so they can cheer us on.  My sister says she wants me to run with her and it will be a full-marathon.  Maybe next year!

NFB National Convention – July 1- July 6, 2007

This year’s exciting convention will take place at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia.    Rooms at the Marriott Marquis are now full. But do not fear, rooms are available at the Sheraton Atlanta Hotel.  The hotel is located at 165 Courtland Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30303. Call (800) 833-8624 for reservations. The hotel rates are the same: singles, doubles, and twins, $61; and triples and quads, $66. A $60-per-room deposit or a credit card number is required to make a reservation. Please note that the deposit is not refundable. The Sheraton Atlanta Hotel phone number is (404) 586-3378.  There are a limited number of rooms at the Sheraton Atlanta hotels so please act fast.

Preconvention seminars for parents of blind children and other groups and set-up of the exhibit hall will take place on Saturday, June 30, and adjournment will be Friday, July 6, at 5:00 p.m. Convention registration and registration packet pickup for those who registered online will begin on Sunday, July 1, and both Sunday and Monday will be filled with meetings of divisions and committees, including the Monday morning annual meeting, open to all, of the board of directors of the National Federation of the Blind.

Colorado Center for the Blind—Always an Adventure

What is the Colorado Center for the Blind?
The CCB is a training center where all staff members have full belief and confidence in blind people; a place where we push and challenge ourselves and our students to learn and grow each day.  Everyone here has a story.  Our students come to the center to get their lives back and to gain belief in themselves.  The excitement of learning is contagious and inspiring to all of us.  The seemingly little events turn into the steps that make the difference towards confidence.  Our Center is special because we are passionate about what we want for everyone. Our Center is your Center!  Thanks to the NFB we are truly making a difference!

CCB Presents the 4th Annual Evening at the Theater
The Center is not all work and no play.  On Saturday evening, May 19, students, staff and their friends had the opportunity to put on their fancy clothes and attend the Denver Center for the Performing Arts Stage Theatre production of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.” The Center’s 4^th annual Evening at the Theater fundraiser was a huge success, netting over $20,000.  Thanks again for the wonderful support from our corporate sponsors including the Littleton Elks as our $5,000 Independence Sponsor.  A Live Auction was added to this year’s event and the bidding was fierce.  It was lively and raised almost $2,000.  Thanks to all who attended and who provided auction items and financial support.  Without your support this would not be the fun and productive event it is. .  We look forward to seeing you next year. Remember next year will be the Center’s 20^th year anniversary event and we really need to celebrate!

Business Enterprise Program Opens Doors at CCB
We are all very excited to open the Center doors to the first BEP training class under the Randolph Sheppard Program.  The first students are set to begin during the week of June. This training program will include all aspects of running a successful Randolph Sheppard operation. We are working closely with the Business Enterprise Staff and the Elected Committee of Licensed Vendors of the Colorado Department of Vocational Rehabilitation to insure a thorough and successful training of new BEP entrepreneurs. The Center plans to provide not only training in business management but also to instill the kind of confidence one needs to be a successful BEP vendor or operator.  Additional information will soon be available at www.cocenter.org.   Special thanks are extended to Kevan Worley, president of the National Association of Blind Merchants, for his efforts in making this training opportunity a reality.

Summer Programs At The Colorado Center For The Blind:  Building Confidence, Building Skills And Having Fun!
Blind and visually impaired children and youth will begin another summer of fun and learning at the Colorado Center for the Blind.  The Center, located in Littleton, will offer programs for elementary, middle school, high school and college aged young people.  The programs combine the fun of camp (think outdoor activities, sports, arts, and crafts) with a solid foundation in the adaptive skills needed to achieve independence.  Class activities include such things as supervised cane travel training, introduction to technology for the blind/visually impaired, cooking, shopping and self care, work on Braille and computers.  All classes and activities are appropriate to the different grade levels. 

The Middle School, High School and College Programs are residential.  Students will live in an apartment with a counselor and several of their peers.  Residential living provides the opportunity for students to learn and practice the skills needed for independent living such as home management, meal planning, and grocery shopping.  The Elementary School Program is a day program.  Limited transportation will be provided.  For more information contact Eric Woods at ewoods@cocenter.org or call 303-778-1130 ext. 230 or toll-free at 800-401-4632.

The NFBCO Newsletter is a quarterly publication sent to all who have provided an Email address.  If you want to sign up, change, or remove your name from any future general Email distribution, please contact Lorinda Riddle at lriddle@cocenter.org.  Your address will only be used within the NFBCO and its entities.  We do not sell, rent, or exchange Email addresses.

Return to Navigation

Newsletter Archive

Spring 2007 NFBCO Newsletter
Winter 2007 NFBCO Newsletter

Return to Navigation

2233 W. Shepperd Avenue Littleton, CO 80120 Phone: (303) 778-1130 Toll Free: (800) 401-4NFB Contact Us

©2006-2007 National Federation of the Blind of Colorado