Summer 2012 Bulletin

ICUB BULLETIN

SUMMER 2012

Published by

IOWA COUNCIL OF THE UNITED BLIND

Web Site: www.acb.org/iowa

Affiliate of the American Council of the Blind

Frank Strong, Jr., President

PO Box 93233

Des Moines, IA 50393

(515) 243-1742, Extension 3 - work

(888) 503-2287 – toll-free

E-Mail: frank@frankstrong.net

Mike Hoenig, Editor

3119 Spring St.

Davenport, IA 52807

(563) 344-8787

E-Mail: mhoenig@q.com

Jo Ann Slayton, Secretary

4013 - 30th St.

Des Moines, IA 50310

(515) 279-4284 – home

(515) 710-7875 – cell

E-Mail: slayton4284@msn.com

Gary Patterson, Treasurer

6311 Franklin

Windsor Heights, IA 50324

(515) 278-2686 - home

(515) 991-2613 - cell

E-Mail: gpatterson002@mchsi.com

ICUB OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS

Frank Strong, President – Des Moines, (515) 243-1742, Ext. 3

Robert Spangler, Immediate Past President -Vinton, (319) 472-4843

Creig Slayton, First Vice President – Des Moines, (515) 279-4284

Mike Hoenig, Second Vice-President - Davenport, (563) 344-8787

Jo Ann Slayton, Secretary - Des Moines, (515) 279-4284

Gary Patterson, Treasurer – Des Moines, (515) 278-2686

Joyce Davis, Director - Fort Dodge, (515) 955-1634

Donna Seliger, Director – Des Moines, (515) 284-0505

Elsie Monthei, Director –Des Moines, (515) 277-0442

Arlo Monthei, Director –Des Moines, (515) 277-0442

Norma Boge-Conyers, Director –Des Moines, (515) 288-1938

Rose Stratton, Director - Maquoketa, (563) 652-2546

Stephanie Hunolt, Director – Vinton, (660) 216-4369

Shirley Wiggins, Director - Cedar Rapids, (319) 550-6096

CHANGE OF FORMAT OR RETURNING CASSETTES

Anyone who cannot read this print bulletin, finds it difficult to have it read or wishes an e-mail or cassette may receive a copy at no charge. Please contact Jo Slayton at (515) 279-4284 to request an alternative format. Cassette readers are always invited to keep their copy of the Bulletin. However, if you would like to return cassettes when you are finished with them, please place in a NEW standard mailing envelope, write “Free Matter for the Blind” in the upper right hand corner, and return to the editor using the address on the front of this Bulletin. Also, please remember to contact the editor if your address changes. The Post Office rarely provides us with a new address when someone moves. We want to make sure that anyone who wants to receive a Bulletin gets one!

SELECTING ICUB AS A BENEFICIARY

If you or a friend would like to remember the Iowa Council of the United Blind in your will, you may do so by using the following language: “I grant, devise, or bequeath unto the Iowa Council of the United Blind, a non-profit charitable organization, the sum of ______ dollars, ____ percent of my net estate, or the following stocks and bonds (please list them) to be used for its worthy purposes on behalf of blind persons.” If your wishes are more complex, you may have your attorney call (515) 279-4284, or write Iowa Council of the United Blind, 4013 30TH Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50310.

DONATING YOUR VEHICLE TO BENEFIT ICUB

Are you trying to decide how to dispose of a used vehicle? ICUB's Used Vehicle Donation Program offers the perfect solution. Your vehicle will be picked up from your home and sold at auction, with a portion of the proceeds going directly to ICUB. You claim a tax deduction equal to the dollar value of the vehicle. To donate or to learn more, call 800-899-4925.

LIST OF TOPICS

From the President’s Desk

Editor's Line

Resolutions Passed at the 2012 Iowa Council of the United Blind

Conference and Convention

ICUB Memorial list for 2011-2012

In Memoriam

Howard A. Current

Anna Marie Caldbeck

David Dean Reimers

Durward A. Hutchinson

Roger Larson

News from the 2012 ACB Conference and Convention

Tyler’s Tech Talk

After 25 Years, Treasure Coast's Only Braille Printer is

Shutting Its Doors

New Website Offers Information and Support for

Adults with Vision Loss

Chapter Reports

Dubuque News

Des Moines Chapter Report

Cedar Rapids Chapter Report

Wal-Mart Pharmacy is now offering ScripTalk Talking Prescription

Labels via home delivery service!

Calorie Counter’s Prayer

My Recipe

FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

By Frank Strong, Jr.

Fellow members of the Iowa Council of the United Blind! As many of you know, I was elected to serve as president of the Iowa Council of the United Blind during the May 2012 annual convention/conference. I am deeply honored to serve as your president and I will do my best to represent you and to advocate on behalf of all blind Iowans. I want to congratulate and thank all of the board members who will be serving with me during the coming year. I also want to thank all of the board members and members of the Council who have been such reliable and steadfast supporters of the organization over the past 25 years.

The new board members and I have scheduled our quarterly board meetings and will be keeping in close contact during the next year.

You will find printed elsewhere in this Bulletin the resolutions adopted by the ICUB during our 2012 Convention/Conference. The four areas addressed by the primary resolutions concerned promotion of better education services for blind children in Iowa, enhancement and expansion of transportation services, a promotion of more employment opportunities for blind Iowans, and a review and investigation of the fund-raising program known as "Heritage for the Blind".

Each resolution speaks for itself but all reflect the wide array of advocacy and interests addressed by the Iowa Council of the United Blind. As ICUB members know, there are many areas that need to be addressed to help blind Iowans achieve the independence, education, employment and inclusion we all seek. We at ICUB are on the go and on the grow!

We have scheduled our 2013 ICUB convention to take place Friday-Sunday, May 17-19 at the Holiday Inn and Suites located at 4800 Merle Hay Road in Des Moines. The hotel has been providing us with excellent service over the past few years and we appreciate their assistance as well as the accommodations they provide us.

Today four ICUB board members met with the new director of the Iowa Department for the Blind, Mr. Richard Sorey. The four board members were Gary Patterson, Creig Slaton, Donna Seliger, and yours truly. We spoke to Mr. Sorey, a man who originally hails from Virginia and Mississippi before moving to Iowa. Mr. Sorey was selected to serve as IDB Director earlier this year by the Iowa Commission for the Blind to replace Karen Keninger.

We welcomed Mr. Sorey to the great state of Iowa. We then provided him with some information about each of us as members of ICUB, a short history of the Council, and copies of the four primary resolutions adopted by ICUB in May.

The meeting with Mr. Sorey went very well. We all agreed that we have much common ground and similar interest in providing better services to blind Iowans. If you want more details about the meeting with Mr. Sorey, please call me.

We once again have our membership drive in affect. We hope to have winners in our membership drive again in 2013 during our annual Convention/ Conference. We want to expand our membership and spread the good news about ICUB.

We also have a pair of projects which can bring in some funds to ICUB. We are selling our fabulous ICUB umbrella for $10.00. We are also selling our 25th Anniversary Commemorative Coffee Mugs for $3.00 each or two for $5.00. See any board member for details.