Board members John and Jennifer had an opportunity to attend the American Council of the Blind National Convention in July. This update is from Jennifer.
American Council of the Blind
The first general session of the convention. As most conventions it started with welcoming speeches from the President of the board. This was followed by speeches by affiliates of ACB. ACB also has a number of tendrils associated with ACB. Groups within the group, Next Generation, Communications Radio Operators, Attorneys as well as BITS (Blind Information Technology Specialist). Lifetime memberships were celebrated as well as first time members attending this year’s convention.
An election was held during this session; most were uncontested except one. In this case both candidates were given the opportunity to mention any qualifications as well as someone in their corner to give their recommendation. The vote was taken the next allowing everyone to review qualifications and make a decision. They proceeded with a popular vote as well as State electoral votes, one vote for every 60 members.
If you are not in the general assembly meeting you may find yourself in a learning session with Microsoft, or listening to an author from the Talking Book library. All of these sessions are filled with lecturers and a question and answer session.
Another excursion place to visit would be the exhibition hall. Here you can learn all about the latest in technology. Equipment that is available, even sports, and musical instruments for the blind.
The effectiveness of the convention taught me that you have friends across our great nation and that if you are on a committee everyone has a responsibility to perform for the good of the committee.
