DISCLAIMER: This publication contains announcements from the Silicon Valley Council of the Blind and is also a forum for opinions relating to blindness issues. Signed articles reflect the views, and research, of their authors.
STATUS: SVCB is a 501(c)3 non-profit, tax-exempt organization under the California Council of the Blind.
MEETING LOCATION: SVCB's monthly meetings are held in the dining room of the Monte Vista Terrace Apts. at 1101 Grant Road, Mountain View. Meetings run 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. the third Saturday of the month and are open to all. Monte Vista Terrace is one block from the intersection of Grant Road and El Camino Real and is accessible by bus #22.
Note: Local contact information is removed except when requested to remain. For local contact info, access www.svcb.cc.
Let me start this month's column with the disposition of some old items. At the July meeting, a constitutional amendment was proposed to change the succession of officers. The membership decided that this amendment should be returned to its owners for further development. At the September Board meeting, the amendment's owner proposed that this amendment be dropped due to the expressed opposition. Result: it's dead!
In addition, SVCB (with the help of Dawn Wilcox, George Spelvin, Roger Petersen, and Naomi Grubb) wrote a letter to the VTA (Valley Transportation Authority) Board requesting that Outreach eligibility rules be frozen until the Board had a chance to evaluate the effects of changes in bus and light-rail routes on the disabled community in Santa Clara county. I'd like to thank Lupe Medrano for highlighting SVCB's letter at the VTA Board Meeting, and I'm happy to announce that the Board approved it. Those of you who have been concerned that you'll lose your Outreach eligibility when the new routes are implemented can now rest assured that you won't, at least for the time being. SVCB is monitoring developments closely; and we may have Katie Heatley, President of Outreach, at our November meeting.
During our September program Susan Schulter told us about her teaching career, and there were interesting discussions about whether students take advantage of a blind teacher and being in- between the sighted and blind worlds. You can hear Susan's program by going to www.svcb.cc/psaudio/ps0907.mp3 .
In our business meeting, Roger Petersen was elected delegate to the fall CCB convention, and Susan Hyatt is our alternate delegate. Among other things, Roger will be reporting to the Credentials committee that SVCB now has 80 home- chapter members. We're one of the largest chapters in CCB.
The Nominating committee was also announced. Roger Petersen is chair, and Lupe Medrano and LeeAnn Nakagawa are members. This committee will announce a slate of officers and directors for 2008 in the November In Touch newsletter. If you'd like to suggest someone as an officer or director, contact Roger, Lupe or LeeAnn. At our November meeting, where we will also celebrate our 20th anniversary, we will have elections for the 2008 administration.
Michelle McGrew, chair of our Braille Literacy committee, described ongoing braille literacy projects SVCB is involved in and explained that her committee is actively looking for new ideas. She also told us about SVCB's almost- finished 20th anniversary cookbook. You can order yours now by contacting Michelle.
At our October meeting, Beth Berenson from the San Francisco LightHouse will be with us. She runs the Vision Loss Resource Center there, and we can look forward to a lively program. In addition, the Budget committee will be announced. Please come join us. These meetings are your opportunity to be involved in the doings of SVCB.
Don't forget our White Cane Safety Day Walk on October 13. This has been detailed in the September In Touch newsletter. Contact Dawn Wilcox, dewilcox@pacbell.net. for up-to-date information and to join in the fun!
Return to "In This Issue"Our speaker at the October 20 meeting will be Beth Berenson from the new Vision Loss Resource Center at the San Francisco LightHouse. She will explain what the center is and how it can serve us here in Santa Clara County. Some of us already receive the weekly bulletins she sends out with the described movies and other current entertainment items. She is eager to talk with us, and I, for one, am eager to hear her.
Return to "In This Issue"Happy October birthdays to our members Mary Fisher, Brian Higgins, John Kanze, Julie Lovins, Michelle McGrew, Donna Sanchez, and Katherine Stewart-Lopez!
Return to "In This Issue"
You may recall that having received funding for new assistive listening equipment, we decided to donate our old equipment to another chapter, whose president, Rob Turner, is a former member of SVCB.
We recently received the following communication.
To: Mike Keithley
From: Rob Turner
Date: Thursday September 27, 2007
Subject: a Glendale Burbank thank you to SVCB for Assistive Listening Devices
On behalf of the Glendale Burbank chapter, a hearty thank you for the Assistive Listening Device transmitter and three companion receivers. Our portable public address system has an output that can easily be connected to the transmitter. I have no doubt that we will get lots of use from your generous donation. Again my sincere thanks to the members of SVCB for a very timely gift.
Best regards,
Rob Turner,
President,
Glendale Burbank Area Chapter,
California Council of the Blind;
CCB Unity and Integrity
To commemorate our 20th anniversary, SVCB is producing a cookbook featuring recipes enjoyed by chapter members and guests at our meetings, picnics, and holiday parties. Contributors also share special memories about these recipes in short anecdotes. We hope to have the books back from the printer's in time for our October meeting. Cookbooks cost $10 each, and are available in large print, in braille, and on CD-ROM. A cassette edition will only be available upon special request. To place an order or to help sell cookbooks, please contact me at michelle@svcb.cc. and indicate your format preference.
Want a chance to win a $500 shopping spree at Wal-Mart? Get your CCB Sweepstakes Tickets for your chance to win this grand prize or other prizes to be announced. The drawing will be held at the CCB fall convention banquet on October 27, 2007. Winners need not be present. Tickets are $1 each or $10 per book of 10. I'll have the tickets at our October meeting, or you may contact me as above.
SVCB is again selling Entertainment Coupon Books. They cost $25 per book. SVCB receives 20 percent of the proceeds for each book sold. To purchase or help sell books, contact Ken Carey. He has books for San Francisco, San Mateo County, and Santa Clara County. And, if you need books for anywhere else in the United States, just let him know so he can get them for you. By the way, if you would be interested in chairing this fund raiser in future years, please also contact Ken as he is interested in taking a break after this year.
I hope to receive our 2008 large print/braille calendars in time to bring them to October's meeting. These calendars feature artwork by blind and visually impaired people of all ages. SVCB is selling them for $9 each. To place your order, contact me as above.
Remember to save your recyclable aluminum cans and plastic water bottles. Donna Sanchez is collecting plastic water bottles, and Charlie Stein is collecting aluminum cans. You may bring these items to an upcoming meeting or call the appropriate contact to make other arrangements. Donna and Charlie redeem the bottles and cans for funds which are then used to support SVCB activities.
And finally, remember that you may still purchase the talking thermometer key chains ($10 each) and the white cane safety awareness T-shirts ($15 for those we have in stock or $17 for those we must order). To place an order or to request info, please contact me as above. We have received some requests for T-shirts that we do not have in stock, so if you are interested, please do let me know. Once we have enough requests, I can send in another order, but please do so ASAP as the cost is likely to increase soon.
See you at the October meeting!
Return to "In This Issue"Flu season is fast approaching. Besides remembering to wash your hands frequently and avoid coughing without a tissue to block the spray of virus, ask your physician whether you should get a flu shot. Those of us who are 65 plus or have diabetes or some other chronic health condition may be more likely to catch the flu and less likely to bounce back easily if we dont get the flu vaccine. The flu information number for Kaiser is 800-573-5811.
Return to "In This Issue"Are you totally blind and searching for an extraordinary experience?
Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston is currently evaluating how light and behavior influence sleep and wakefulness under real-world and laboratory conditions in men and women who are totally blind. The research study consists of living in our sleep lab for 21 or 34 days across two separate visits. You will also be asked to collect information while living at home before and after each visit. The results of the research study may help to develop potential therapies to treat sleep-wake disturbances related to jet-lag, shift-work and visual impairment.
You may be eligible to participate in this study if you are totally blind, between the ages of 18 and 70, have no light perception, and take no prescription medications. We will cover all travel expenses for Boston and non-Boston residents. Individuals who participate in the study could be reimbursed for up to $9,300.
If you are interested and would like to learn more about this study, please contact Joe or Lisa at 1-888-8-BTH-BWH (1-888-828-4294). You can also email Joe at jhull@partners.org.
Return to "In This Issue"As Mike indicated in his President's Message, we wrote a letter to the VTA board about our concerns related to the coming route and schedule changes. We particularly stressed that we didn't want the changes to affect anyone's paratransit eligibility. George Spelvin, Dawn Wilcox and I worked on the letter and our corresponding secretary, Naomi Grubb, dutifully dispatched it.
Below is the response we received, dated September 11, addressed to Naomi and signed by the VTA General Manager, Michael T. Burns.
Thank you for your comments regarding VTA's January 2008 Service Plan. We appreciate the concerns expressed by Santa Clara County residents, social agencies, businesses and our customers, and their input was extremely valuable in formulating the service plan that will be put into place beginning January 14, 2008.
At its August 30, 2007 meeting, the VTA Board of Directors adopted as proposed the revised January 2008 Service Plan. For specific details regarding the service plan, you can access route by route descriptions at www.vta.org . The changes to service will take place beginning January 14, 2008.
Your correspondence specifically cites concerns regarding paratransit service. It is VTA's pledge that no currently-certified paratransit customer will have their status changed as a result of the plan.
Your correspondence also references service to Menlo Park. The service plan does require transfers to SamTrans service at the Palo Alto Transit Center, a facility that underwent significant upgrades within the past several years and offers a much safer transfer point than previously available on El Camino Real. A relatively small number of people use the Route 22 past the Palo Alto Transit Center, and since the service is duplicated by SamTrans, the decision was made to reallocate the VTA resources into a transportation corridor with higher ridership demand.
Current service agreements between VTA and SamTrans allow free transfers for valid pass holders at joint stops, such as the Palo Alto Transit Center. In addition, VTA has committed to working with SamTrans to identify solutions that would simplify transfers and related fares.
The changes to VTA's bus service were proposed as part of a systemwide Comprehensive Operations Analysis (COA), an effort we have undertaken to increase ridership and improve farebox revenues. Every route in the VTA network has been analyzed and assessed on how well they perform, both on the route level and the route segment level.
That information, combined with information from a survey of customers and market research studies, led to the initial proposal.
The VTA Board has set a goal of a 20 percent farebox recovery and that goal has encouraged VTA to reevaluate and rethink how it provides service to riders of public transportation in Santa Clara County. We do appreciate the hardship this causes to some who use our services as currently structured, but we have a responsibility to constantly reevaluate our service and place our resources in the areas where we carry the most passengers.
A copy of your correspondence was provided to the VTA Board of Directors in advance of their August 30 meeting and has also been forwarded to VTA transportation planners for review.
Return to "In This Issue"October: Employment for People with Disabilities Awareness Month.
Santa Clara Bowling Group: Every Saturday at Moonlight Lanes in Santa Clara, info@visionbeyondsight.org
Oct 5, 10 a.m.-noon: SAF lab tour; call 408-245-7330 for reservations.
Oct 6, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SMCCB meeting at Pete's Cafe, Millbrae. Contact Philip Kutner at fishl@smccb.org.
Oct 6 to Nov 3, 12 to 3 pm.: Blindfolded Yoga classes at the San Francisco LightHouse. For more information and to register call Phillip Kum at 415-694-7372, or email pkum@lighthouse-sf.org.
Oct 7, 1-5 p.m.: BEYOND VISION LOSS: THE EMOTIONAL IMPACT OF LOSING SIGHT. Sponsored by The Silicon Valley Chapter, Foundation Fighting Blindness. Fenwick and West LLP, 801 California Street, Mountain View. The presenter will be Lynda Johnson, M.A., Counselor with Vista Center for the Blind. There will also be break-out support group sessions for affected adults, affected teens, significant others, and parents of affected children. This event is free. To RSVP contact Tina Coffield at Foundation Fighting Blindness, tcoffield@blindness.org or 408-739-1846.
Oct 9: Insights art exhibit begins at San Francisco City Hall. Access www.lighthouse-sf.org .
Oct 10, 7-9 p.m.: SVCB board meeting, Meeting Place.
Oct 13: White Cane Safety Walk: See President's Message in this issue.
Oct 15: White Cane Safety Day.
Oct 17-19 at 8 p.m.; 20, 2 p.m.; 21, 1 and 6:30 p.m.: AMTSJ presents GUYS AND DOLLS with descriptions by AudioVision.
Oct 20, 9:30-1 p.m.: SVCB membership meeting; dining room, Monte Vista Terrace Apartments, 1101 Grant Road, Mountain View. Lunch orders must be made by 9:45. 9:30: Coffee and conversation, 10: Program, 11: Business, 12: lunch. Program: Beth Berenson from the SF LightHouse. Business: Appoint Budget Committee.
Oct 25-28: CCB Fall 2007 Convention; LAX Four Points Sheraton Hotel, 9750 Airport Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90045; Reservations: 310-645-4600.
Oct 26 and 27 at 8 p.m. and 28 at 2 p.m.: GOLDAS BALCONY described by the Visual Voice, MVCPA.
Oct 27, 2-5 p.m.: SMCCB Bowling, Bel Mateo. Contact Philip Kutner as above.
Oct 29, noon: November In Touch newsletter deadline.
Nov 3, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SMCCB meeting.
Nov 3, 2 p.m.: AMTSJ presents: GO DIEGO GO! THE GREAT JAGUAR RESCUE with descriptions by AudioVision.
Nov 4, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.: SAVE SIGHT SUNDAY. The Foundation Fighting Blindness is hosting a symposium on current leading research regarding retinal degenerative diseases and clinical trials (with presentations from implant participants). Contact Walter Raineri to RSVP: 650-465- 9899 or wtr1977@yahoo.com .
Nov 7, 7-9 p.m.: SVCB board meeting.
Nov 17, 9:30 am.-1 p.m.: SVCB 20th anniversary membership meeting. Join the festivities! Business: Elect officers for 2008, hear fall CCB convention reports.
Nov 23, noon: December In Touch newsletter deadline.
Nov 24: SMCCB Bowling.
Nov 30: Deadline for signing up for Holiday Party.
Dec 1: SMCCB Gala Installation Party.
Dec 2, 2-4 P.M. Delta Gamma Holiday Party, Mountain View Community Center in Rengstorff Park, 201 South Rengstorff Avenue. RSVP to Lolly Osborne, 650-494-7207.
Dec 5, 7-9 pm. SVCB Board meeting.
Dec 15: SVCB Holiday Party. Also deadline for expense reimbursement requests, with documentation.
Dec 28, noon: January, 2008 SVCB In Touch newsletter deadline.
Dec 30, 1 and 6:30 p.m.: AMTSJ presents Jesus Christ Superstar with descriptions by AudioVision.
Mike Keithley