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, email Mike Keithley, SVCB president.
Happy rainy days to you!
I am pleased to announce that the chairs for the Transportation and Volunteer committees have been filled. Brian Higgins will chair Transportation and Naomi Grubb chairs the Volunteer committee. Please contact them with your concerns and suggestions, and remember that all our committees need new members with fresh ideas.
Our January meeting was well-attended, and the program segment was worth listening to for its presentation and lively questions. The business calendar was approved with an amendment that the first yearly membership list will be distributed in March rather than April.
Unfortunately the roving tape recorder didn't circulate as promised. It wanted to get your ideas for new programs but got lost in the rain! We'll give it better directions to get to the February meeting, so be ready! In fact, I heard a rumor that it was found wet, bedraggled and inoperable by an Outreach driver who didn't know what to do with it. It's true it wasn't raining that day, but I have to come up with an excuse, and it's raining as I write!
At the February 16 meeting you will be asked to approve our 2008 budget, which will be part of this newsletter. As Victor explained during his January treasurer's report, much hard work went into producing an operationally balanced budget. Contact me, Michelle McGrew, Bernice Kandarian or Victor Clifford if you have questions.
Dawn Wilcox, Michelle McGrew, Beverly Clifford and I will be traveling to the San Francisco LightHouse on February 9 to attend the regional Braille Challenge, which was described in my January report; and I'll describe it to you as part of my March offering.
I hope you renewed your membership. The new membership list will be distributed in the March newsletter. If you didn't renew, you won't get it, so sad!
See you in March!
Return to "In This Issue"At the time of our February 16 meeting, our legislative chairperson, Sam Chen, will be just back from the ACB legislative seminar in Washington, DC and I thought this would be a good time to have him report on his trip. I have asked him to tell us about the trip, the seminar, his visits on Capitol Hill and the issues he talks about with the members of Congress. It should be interesting!
Return to "In This Issue"Hello to you all on this bone-chilling, rainy day.
I hope you are keeping warm as you fill your minds with sunny thoughts to combat these winter doldrums. This piece of news should make you smile: we have completely filled our 2008 roster of goodies-bringers! I want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you who signed up, and in such a timely manner, too! Mike started us out with a bang bringing his wonderful fig bars, and I know that the upcoming goodies will be just as tasty. At the beginning of your goodies month, you will receive a reminder call or email from me (if I'm being a good little girl, that is), and at that time you can let me know what you plan to bring.
If you have any questions, you can email me.
Thanks again for your welcome contributions to our meetings--we all look forward to them each month as we socialize and catch up on the events of our lives.
Return to "In This Issue"Happy February birthdays to Ruth Fisher, Barbara Manipod, and Sylvia Munoz!
And now for our first interview of 2008, with Michelle McGrew.
I thought that I would begin the New Year with a member who always has her fingers in many pies--fund-raising pies. Michelle must bring a very large cart with her to the meetings in order to carry everything that she is currently selling; or Darin, her husband of nearly 22 years, carries everything while he works out for the Iron Man.
Michelle was born in Sea Isle, New Jersey. She described it as a little town that has a larger population in the summer than in the winter; but does not remember it because she was a baby when her family moved away. Michelle was born with retina damage of unknown cause. She said that she can tell when the sun is shining and sometimes if a light is on.
Michelle and her older brother grew up in and around Portland, Oregon. She attended a school for the blind in Maryland for kindergarten to the third grade. From the third grade through high school she was mainstreamed in schools in Oregon, usually being the only blind child in the school. An itinerant teacher prepared materials for her, but when the materials were not available, her brother helped by reading the schoolwork to her. She graduated from Hillsboro High School in Hillsboro, Oregon and then went on to Stanford University, earning a BA in psychology with an emphasis in health and development.
Michelle said that she has mainly been a homemaker, but has combined some paid jobs with volunteering. She has worked and volunteered as a teacher's assistant with pre-school children, age 2 to 5 years, and for elementary school children in Kindergarten through fourth grade. She said that the elementary grades were fun because it was possible to communicate with older children, but the small ones were cute. She said that she had a dog when working at the schools and was able to communicate at different levels what it is like to be blind and what can be done and what cannot be done.
Blindness Organizations:
Save the date, Saturday morning, May 10, and plan to participate in this year's 5K walk-a-thon, The Human Race. We'll need people to walk/run and/or collect pledges. Watch for additional details.
Easter comes early this year--March 23 to be exact. So, it's time to begin placing your orders for your See's Easter candy! I will have your orders available for pick-up at the March meeting, but can also make arrangements to get them to you sooner if needed. To ensure timely delivery, please place your orders with me by Friday, February 29. You may choose from the following items: Dark Chocolate Butter Egg (no nuts, new this year), Bordeaux Egg (brown sugar buttercream surrounded by milk chocolate and topped with chocolate sprinkles), Peanut Butter Egg, Bunny Box (assorted milk and dark chocolates), and Milk Chocolate Foil Wrapped Bunny (in sitting position). Each item weighs four ounces, and costs $5. The flavor of the Bordeaux Egg is hard to describe, but it is very good. The brown sugar buttercream adds a wonderful complex flavor, reminiscent of toffee or caramel, to enjoy along with the chocolate. Please be aware that SVCB must purchase each item in blocks of 24, so if we do not receive enough requests for a particular item, I will check with you to see if you have another preference. If you are interested in purchasing candy or would like to help sell some, please email me, and indicate your format preference.
See's candy bars are still available! Dark chocolate with almond, milk chocolate with toffee, and plain milk chocolate bars cost $1.50 each. Nut and chew bars and walnut squares cost $1 each. Plus, we have decided to get more See's peanut brittle; these 5-ounce boxes cost $5 each. To purchase or help sell See's candy, please email me.
Do you have your 2008 large print/braille calendar yet? These calendars feature artwork by blind and visually impaired people of all ages. SVCB is selling them for $9 each. To purchase yours, contact me as listed 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.
Please thoughtfully consider how you personally might help SVCB raise funds this year, and join together with other chapter members to make this year the best yet! See you at our February meeting.
If you like reading audiobooks, you probably are already a patron of The Braille and Talking Book Library, a regional library of the NLS.
But suppose you'd like to recommend audiobooks to a friend who doesn't qualify for NLS services. Or perhaps you'd like to borrow even more books than you can borrow from your regional library. Maybe you would like to listen to books on standard CDS or cassette tapes that will play in a car stereo, or perhaps even you'd like to hear the books on your computer or MP3 player.
Options abound outside the NLS. For example, as a Bay Area listener with a visual impairment, you can borrow from the ever-growing tape library at the Santa Clara Valley Blind Center. These commercial audiobooks have been donated by volunteers and play on standard cassette-based stereo equipment. Contact information for the center and the other resources listed can be found at the end of this article. The Santa Clara Valley Blind Center also loans some DVS described movies.
Another great local library of books on tape is BooksAloud, a San Jose based non-proffit located in the basement of the San Jose main library. Volunteers read these books and all of them are provided on standard cassettes. The quality of the recordings varies but all are of acceptable fidelity. If you listen frequently, you will discover volunteers whose voices you love and others whom you may find it difficult to listen to. But the service costs nothing, and titles are mailed out Free Matter, so it's easy to try out a variety of reading material. Unlike NLS, BooksAloud enables sighted patrons with learning disabilities to qualify for the service. An additional nice feature of BooksAloud is that everything they read is unabridged.
If your preferences tend towards abridged titles, you prefer commercial audiobooks, or you share with sighted friends, don't overlook the great collections available from all of our Bay Area libraries. Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Gatos, the City of Santa Clara and San Jose all have their own libraries. Milpitas, Morgan Hill, Los Altos, Saratoga, Cupertino and Campbell belong to the Santa Clara County Library system, which shares a central catalog and website. Each of those cities has at least one branch you can visit as well. Each library has its own hours and rules about who can apply for a library card; for example some libraries merely require you live in the state of California, while others require you reside in the city they serve. All libraries offer books on cassette, some offer CDs as well, and all libraries have a CCTV or computer equipped with screen enlargement software. San Jose is the only local public library with computers that talk. All catalogs can be searched on the web.
And speaking of the web, it's the hottest place to check out nowadays for free audiobooks. All the libraries mentioned above subscribe to the Overdrive digital media service, which can loan you free audio books to listen to on your computer or MP3 player. You download the books after checking them out, and when your due date arrives, you'll find you don't need to return anything or pay any late fees. Books simply "expire", which means they no longer play on your computer. (If you've downloaded them to a portable player, they won't expire on the player and you can listen to them at your leisure.) After personally racking up over $50 in late fees, I've learned my lesson, and now download all my public library audiobooks digitally!
The California State library also subscribes to the same Overdrive digital media service, and what's interesting is that each library I use has access to a completely different collection of audio material. Even the digital "e-audio" books are different for each library. So if you're a real junkie when it comes to reading, possessing a number of library cards gives you access to the widest number of titles.
Finally, there's a worldwide service of free audio titles on the internet called Librivox. It is the goal of Librivox volunteers to read all titles aloud that are available in the public domain. Nothing on the Librivox website is copyrighted, and all books are in MP3 format. You can copy them as often and for as many friends as you like, and it is perfectly legal and encouraged.
This listing is only a sample, touching the very tip of the iceberg of what's available on cassette, CD and digitally. Besides other sources that are free, vendors will sell you audiobooks for a fee! I've only mentioned about half the libraries I know about, and with a little exploring you could easily uncover others that I've never looked into. As blind citizens today, it's easy to stay both entertained and informed.
Here's a listing of resource contact information:
Santa Clara Valley Blind Center, Inc.
101 North Bascom Avenue, San Jose, CA 95128
408-295-4016
http://www.visionbeyondsight.org
Braille and Talking Book Library California State Library
P.O. Box 942837,
Sacramento, CA 94237-0001
916-654-0640 or 800-952-5666
E-mail:
btbl@library.ca.gov or
http://www.library.ca.gov/services/btbl.html
BooksAloud
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library (Lower Level)
150 E. San Fernando St.,
San Jose, CA 95112
P.O. Box 5731, San Jose, CA 95150-5731
408-808-2613
http://www.booksaloud.org/home.htm
San Jose Library
(same street address as above)
http://www.sjlibrary.org
Sunnyvale Public Library
665 W. Olive Ave.,
Sunnyvale, CA 94086
408-730-7300
http://www.sunnyvalelibrary.org
Mountain View Public Library
585 Franklin St., Mountain View, CA 94041
650-903-6887
http://www.ci.mtnview.ca.us
Palo Alto City Library
1213 Newell Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303
650-329-2436
http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/depts/lib/
Los Gatos Public Library
110 E. Main Street, Los Gatos, CA 95030
408-354-6891
http://www.losgatosca.gov/index.asp?NID=42
Santa Clara City Library
2635 Homestead Rd., Santa Clara, CA 95051
408-615-2900
http://www.library.ci.santa-clara.ca.us/
Santa Clara County Library system
(includes Campbell, Cupertino, Los Altos, Gillroy, Milpitas, Morgan Hill and Saratoga)
14600 Winchester Blvd.,
Los Gatos, CA 95032
(no phone available; call your local branch)
http://www.santaclaracountylib.org/
Librivox
http://www.librivox.org
Hi there, all you California voters,
At our January 2008 meeting, I asked a question of our speaker from The League of Women Voters which she was unable to answer at that time. Since then I have learned what I needed to know, and thought I would pass it on to those of you to whom it might be relevant. Unfortunately, by the time you receive this newsletter, the upcoming primary election will be a thing of the past, but you will at least have the information for future reference.
Question: I am a "decline to state" voter, and also a permanent "vote by mail" voter. When I received my election packet, there was a ballot on which I could vote for the state propositions and referenda, and also for my local issues. But since I had declined to state a party affiliation when I registered to vote, there was no ballot for either of the two political parties who will allow "decline to state" voters to cast a ballot for their candidates (which in this case, means for President) in the primary election. The Election Guide states that, when I go to my polling place to vote, I can request a ballot that lists the candidates running in the party of my choice. But I want to have that ballot beforehand so that I can fill it out at home, and just hand it in at my polling place and then leave. What must I do to obtain the party ballot that I need?
Answer: All you have to do is call the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters at 408-299-8683 (299-VOTE), press 0 to speak to a Voter Service Representative, and request that they send you a ballot for the party of your choice. You will receive it within three or four days from the time of your call. The catch is that you must do this before each primary election, because there is no way they would know from one election to the next which party ballot you want to receive. Be sure to make your request well before the "vote by mail" deadline for that particular primary election, whether you are getting a "vote by mail" ballot just for one election or every time.
It's good to know that there's a way to support our candidate of choice at the ballot box, even if we wish to retain our politically independent status.
Return to "In This Issue"The following note comes from Ardis Bazyn, the CCB representative on the Secretary of State's Voter Advisory Committee.
Hello! Remember the following on Election Day. VOTE Tuesday, February 5, 2008.
If you are an individual with a disability and have problems accessing your polling place, voting privately and independently, getting assistance, or casting your vote, call 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683), for assistance in English and en Espa?ol.
Need help in a language other than English or Spanish? Call 1-800-776-5746 or TTY 1-800-719-5798.
A collaboration between Protection & Advocacy, Inc. (PAI) & the Election Protection Hotline.
Return to "In This Issue"On Saturday, Feb. 9, 2008, 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., the Silicon Valley Chapter of Foundation Fighting Blindness and the Santa Clara Valley Center for the Blind are collaborating with several low vision community-based companies and organizations to offer a seminar focusing on low vision aids and technologies for the visually impaired. It will be held at the Santa Clara Valley Center for the Blind and attendance will be free.
The seminar will feature presentations by Dr. Lisa Limtiaco, a low vision specialist with Advanced Vision; Brian Connors an employment specialist with the California State Employment Development Department; Aimee Gilmore, a technology specialist with A & E Low Vision/Enhanced Vision; and others such as Walter Raineri (a Vista Center Board member) who will share their experiences with the latest adaptive technologies.
Refreshments will be served. To RSVP please contact Tina Coffield of the Foundation Fighting Blindness at: TCoffield@fightblindness.org or call: 408-739-1846.
Return to "In This Issue"February: Eye Donor Awareness Month.
Feb 1, 10 a.m.-noon: SAF lab tour; call 408-245-7330 for reservations.
Feb 2, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SMCB meeting. Contact Philip Kutner for info.
Feb 4-8, Sagebrush, Randolph Sheppard Vendors of America: Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino; Las Vegas, Nevada. Reservations: 800-634-3454.
Feb 6, 7-9 a.m.: SVCB board meeting; Meeting.
Feb 8-9, 8 P.M., 10, 2 P.M.: THIRD by Wendy Wasserstein, presented at the Mountain View Center for Performing Arts, described by the Visual Voice.
Feb 9, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.: Braille Challenge regional event; San Francisco LightHouse.
Feb 10: Deadline for membership dues payment to CCB.
Feb 13, Employee Access Conference (EA) 2008: Microsoft Conference Center; 1065 La Avenida; Mountain View, CA 94043; www.employmentaccess.org.
Feb 16, 9:30 a.m.-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: Sam Chen. Business: approve 2008 SVCB budget, elect delegates for CCB spring convention and distribute Human Race info.
Feb 29, noon: Deadline for March SVCB In Touch newsletter, which will include membership list.
Feb 29-Mar 2: CTEVH Conference; Los Angeles Airport Marriott; 5855 W. Century Blvd.; Los Angeles, CA 90045; 310-641-5700 or 800-228-9290. Mar 1, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SMCB meeting. Mar 5, 7-9 p.m.: SVCB Board meeting. Mar 7, 10 a.m.-noon: SAF lab tour.
Mar 10-15, CSUN Conference: Technology & Persons with Disabilities Conference, 2008; Los Angeles; Phone: 818-677-1200; Email: conference@csun.edu; Web: www.csun.edu/cod/conf.
Mar 12-14 at 8 p.m., 15 at 2 p.m. and 16 at 1 & 6:30 p.m.: AMTSJ presents CABARET with descriptions by AudioVision.
Mar 15, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SVCB monthly meeting. Discuss resolutions for CCB Spring Convention.
Mar 28, noon: April newsletter deadline.
Apr 2, 7-9 p.m.: SVCB Board meeting.
Apr 5, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SMCB meeting.
Apr 10-13: CCB spring convention; Sacramento Arden West Hilton Hotel; 2200 Harvard Street; Sacramento, CA 95815; reservations: 916-922-4700 or 800-344-4321. Room rate $85 (single or double occupancy)
Apr 19, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.: SVCB membership meeting; hear convention reports.
Apr 25: May newsletter deadline. Include spring convention reports and Constitution and Bylaws.
Apr 25 & 26 at 8 p.m. and Apr 27 at 2 p.m.: TheaterWorks presents CAROLINE, OR CHANGE at MVCPA with descriptions by The Visual Voice.
Apr 27 at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.: AMTSJ presents MAMMA MIA! with description by AudioVision.
Return to "In This Issue"