POST JERNIGAN ERA OFF TO A FAST START IN MD; 1998 CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS
By Al Maneki

The death of Dr. Kenneth Jernigan on October 12 weighed heavily on the minds of everyone
who attended the NFB of Maryland's thirty-second annual convention, held the weekend of November
6-8 in Cumberland, at the Holiday Inn. He was the undisputed leader of the organized blind
movement, an extraordinary role model for blind persons throughout the world, and was highly
respected by many outside the movement. He was a man of many talents; he possessed a superior
intellect and thoroughly understood the human condition. Dr. Kenneth Jernigan was truly a
Renaissance man. Federationists, by training, are survivors and fighters. By nature, we are optimists.
Despite the loss of our cherished leader, we came to this convention resolute in our conviction that,
under the dynamic leadership of President Marc Maurer, we will fill the void, and that we will build
on Dr. Jernigan's legacy.
This was the largest convention ever, with 252 persons registered. Due to the crush of last
minute reservations, we had to book extra rooms at the Oak Tree Inn in the nearby town of Lavale.
Not only did this convention mark the beginning of the post Jernigan era in Maryland, but it was also
notable for several "firsts."
Instead of the usual round of Friday afternoon seminars, we started this convention with a tour
of nearby Frostburg State University, to broaden the horizons of blind youth and prospective college
students. After the tour, students had an opportunity to discussed the ins and outs of picking the right
college with blind adults who served as mentors and role models. Other convention starters included: a
business luncheon sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland and Blind Industries
and Services of Maryland, NFB Jeopardy (see the related article elsewhere in this issue), a students
pizza party, a convention welcome board of directors meeting, as well as a friday night talent show
and auction.
Much of the Saturday morning session was taken up with a Memorial to Dr. Kenneth Jernigan
(see the related article elsewhere in this issue) and the national report by national representative Diane
McGeorge.
Of the many invited speeches which crowded the Saturday and Sunday general sessions, by far
the most significant was the first time ever address given by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of
the Maryland School for the Blind. Given James Datovech's recent appointment to this position, and
given our support for MSB's bill in the last session of the Maryland General Assembly, Sharon
Maneki decided that the time had come to once again extend an invitation to the chairman of MSB's
board. Mr. Datovech graciously accepted this invitation. The tone of his speech was a refreshing
change from the rancor `and hostility that we have so often heard from that corner of the blindness
field. While no hard promises were made, we now finally seem to have a crack in the door to
cooperation and better communications with MSB.
A Sunday breakfast meeting between service providers--the Colorado Center for the Blind,
Blind Industries and services of Maryland's rehabilitation department, and the new Job Opportunities
for the Blind Targeted Initiatives program and future prospects was also a notable first at this
convention.
At its Saturday luncheon, our Parents Division elected: Danielle Becker, president; Karen
Herstein, first vice president: Patti Barnes, second vice president; Bernice Lowder, secretary; Loretta
White, treasurer; Regina Byrd, Barbara Cheadle, and John Cheadle, board members.
Business Division officers elected at its Saturday luncheon: Ray Sewell, president; Leon Rose,
vice president; Don Morris, secretary; Fred Flowers, treasurer, Raymond Lowder and Holly Mooney,
board members.
For its officers, the Student Division elected: Nicole Fincham, president; Diane Grant, vice
president; Tiffany Green, secretary; Pierre Wills, treasurer, Shervonda Fisher and Tamara Oxindine,
board members.
Results of the Affiliate's elections: Sharon Maneki, president, Lynne Mattioli, first vice
president; Barry Hond, second vice president; Debbie Brown, secretary; Judy Rasmussen, treasurer;
Jean Faulkner, Don Morris, and Joe White, board members. Board members carried over from the
elections last year: Fred Flowers, Michael Gosse, and Doris Johnson. Sharon Maneki thanked Yasmin
Reyazuddin for her service as a board member for the last two years and for her service as the
president of our Student Division.
As usual, the banquet, with Dr. Marc Maurer serving as master of ceremonies, was chock full
of merriment, singing, door prizes, raffle winners, a rousing keynote address by Diane McGeorge, and
awards galore. The McCraw Scholarship winners for 1998 were Christina Shorten, a sophomore at
Goucher College (Baltimore), and Jim Collins, a freshman at Richmond University (Virginia). For his
work on the technology bill, we presented our Legislative Service Award to Del. John Morgan, who
brought his entire family to the banquet, and accepted the award with deepest appreciation. Because of
family matters, Sen. Joan Carter Conway was unable to attend the banquet to receive her Legislative
Service Award. (We were able to present it to her outside her Senate office in January at our Day in
Annapolis.) A most surprised Dr. Hilary Connor stepped up to the podium to receive the Anna Cable
award, for teaching himself Braille at age 75, and for becoming an avid Braille reader. Nicole White
received the newly created Jennifer Baker Award, with Howard and Susan Baker, Jennifer's proud
parents, in attendance, and with Susan Baker making the presentation. (See the related article in this
issue on Nicole White.) Mrs. Mary Ellen Jernigan was everyone's sentimental favorite to receive the
Dr. Kenneth Jernigan award for 1998. In presenting the award, that was exactly what President Maurer
did. It was well deserved.
Other notable dignitaries made convention appearances. Pete Elliott, member of the
Cumberland City Council, welcomed us to Cumberland in the opening moments of the Saturday
morning session.  House Speaker Cas Taylor turned out for the Saturday afternoon session, while Sen.
John Hafer attended the banquet. Their appearances at our convention came despite heavy weekend
schedules, that weekend being Cumberland's annual homecoming.
As the Sunday morning session made its way to adjournment, amid the resolutions, last minute
announcements, the PAC drawing (The Winner is--Bernetha McLamore!), and thank-yous to the many
persons who helped to put on the convention, Sharon Maneki announced the date and location of next
year's convention--October 22-24, at the Carousel Hotel, on the beach front in Ocean City.
We end this convention report by quoting Diane McGeorge's closing remarks. She aptly
captured the mood and spirit of everyone who took part in this convention, marking the end of a
significant period in the history of our movement, as well as marking the start of an even greater one.
She said: "I do a Presidential Report each year at our State Convention, as is very common. I did one
again this year. I ended my report like this, and I'd like to end my weekend with you in the same
manner if I could. I said: 'If Dr. Jernigan could be here with us today, (This was delivered in
September, but it is as apropos then as it is now) I would like to say to him these things: Dr. Jernigan,
you have told us that the greatest gift we can give you now, or after you are no longer physically with
us, is to continue the work of the National Federation of the Blind, and above all to support our
national President - President Maurer. We will do that, Dr. Jernigan. We will give you that gift. It will
not be hard to continue the work of the National Federation of the Blind. You have taught us well,
and we know that what we do is vital. Dr. Jernigan, you have said it over and over, and Mrs. Jernigan
repeated it, we have heard it in the presentation of the tenBroek award. We have chosen well in our
president - President Maurer. He is now our teacher, and leader, and mentor, and indeed we have
chosen well. Thank you Dr. Jernigan for all you have given us.' Thank you for having me here this
weekend."
We will see you in Ocean City!THE PEOPLE REMEMBER DR. KENNETH JERNIGAN: NOVEMBER 13, 1926 - OCTOBER 12,
1998

From The Editor: After the opening remarks, the first item in the morning program was devoted to
personal remembrances of Dr. Kenneth Jernigan. Instead of her customary "State of the Affiliate"
message, Sharon Maneki gave her own remembrance of Dr. Jernigan. She then invited the comments
of Tom Bickford, Don Morris, Tom Ley, Doris Johnson, and Joe White, all of whom first met Dr.
Jernigan at different stages in his life. She then opened the floor to anyone else who wished to add
their own remembrances. These personal remembrances could have continued for the entire day. Alas,
other pressing convention business called this program to an end, much sooner then was appropriate.
In this article we begin with Sharon Maneki's prepared comments. Since other speakers made
impromptu presentations, we have edited their remarks for brevity and clarity. We have however,
maintained some of their colloquialisms of speech when we considered it appropriate to do so. For the
record, here are the personal remembrances of the Federationists who attended the 1998 convention of
the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, beginning with Sharon Maneki.

Fellow Federationists: While 1998 was a year of progress and accomplishment for the National
Federation of the Blind of Maryland, it was also a very sad year because of the loss of so many of our
members. We were shocked by the tragic death of Laurel Buck. We benefitted immensely from the
experience of knowing her. Her death serves as a vivid reminder to all of us to continue to offer
support and encouragement to each other. We will deeply miss the colorful and irascible Arthur Segal,
whose unquestioned loyalty and dedication to the movement will continue to be an inspiration to all of
us. Arthur was of that rare breed who was an integral part of us, and could still do it his way.

Most especially, we will miss our spiritual leader, colleague and friend, Dr. Kenneth Jernigan. Here is
a poem that I would like to share with you:

We Remember him

At the rising of the sun and at its going down
We remember him.

At the blowing of the wind and the chill of winter
We remember him.

At the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring
We remember him.

At the blueness of the skies and in the warmth of summer
We remember him.

At the rustling of the leaves and in the beauty of autumn
We remember him.

At the beginning of the year and when it ends
We remember him.

As long as we live, he too will live; for he is now a
part of us, as we remember him.

When we are weary and in need of strength
We remember him.

When we are lost and sick at heart
We remember him.

When we have joy we crave to share
We remember him.

When we have decisions that are difficult to make
We remember him.

When we have achievements that are based on his
We remember him.

As long as we live, he too will live; for he is now a
part of us, as we remember him.

Let us remember and celebrate Dr. Jernigan's life together. Tom Bickford, Tom Ley, Doris
Johnson and Lorretta White please make your way to the head table. After these speakers have
finished, I will recognize as many people as possible who wish to share a personal memory, a bit of
humor, or make some other expression in celebration of Dr. Jernigan's remarkable life.
I first came to know Dr. Jernigan through his speeches. The first speech that I heard was Why
I am a Federationist. I heard it in May, 1976 at a reorganization meeting of the National Federation of
the Blind of New Jersey. It is unusual to remember the date of a first speech that you heard by
anyone. However, Dr. Jernigan was a powerful speaker. He touched emotions that all of us feel in the
depth of our souls. He not only moved audiences of the blind, but also touched the minds and hearts
of the sighted as well. When Dr. Jernigan spoke at the Maryland Governor's Conference on Libraries
in 1990, the sighted audience learned of the despair brought upon us by the scarcity of reading
materials. He certainly had a way with words. The title of his first banquet address as president of the
NFB was poignant and clever, Milestones and Millstones.
Dr. Jernigan had the ability to speak eloquently while getting to the heart of the matter. For
instance in his speech on the Nature of Independence, he said:
"Hold your head high in the joy of accomplishment and the pride of independence: but not
because of dog or cane or human arm, and not because of your ability to read Braille or use a
computer. These are the trappings of independence, not the substance of it. They should be learned,
and used when needed: but they should be regarded only as means, not ends. Our independence comes
from within. A slave can have keen eyesight, excellent mobility, and superb reading skills: and still be
a slave. We are achieving freedom and independence in the only way that really counts: in rising self
respect, growing self confidence, and the will and the ability to make choices. Above all, independence
means choices, and the power to make those choices stick. We are getting that power, and we intend
to have more of it. That is why we have organized. That is why we have the National Federation of
the Blind."
One of my favorite speeches is called Competing on Terms of Equality, because of its
frankness and because he shares some of his personal experiences. Dr. Jernigan talks about a man who
was an electrician before he became blind. Dr. Jernigan describes how he convinced this man to stay
in that same line of work. Then he explains:
"He taught me a lesson, too. The electrician said, 'You tell me that you believe a blind person
ought to have an equal opportunity to be an electrician. Your house has some wiring problems. How
about if I come over and work on your house? Are you willing for me to do that?' Dr. Jernigan said,
Yes, I guess so if you'll give me some idea about how you propose to do it. The electrician
responded, I'm a licensed electrician. Would you ask a sighted man to give you that kind of proof?"
Dr. Jernigan admitted that he really wouldn't. Dr. Jernigan taught his students very well. His
frankness about his attitudes encourages self examination by each of us.
Later in the speech, Dr. Jernigan talks about his experience of selling life insurance. I have
never sold insurance and probably never will, but I admire Dr. Jernigan's ingenuity. His example
remains an inspiration to me. Each salesman had a huge rate book which the life insurance company
kept changing. Dr. Jernigan explains, since he could not afford a reader or get the book in Braille, that
he had to come up with another alternative. He wrote one of the rates on a card in Braille and just
kept it in his pocket, for he had devised a formula to figure out any other rate based on the
information on that card. Dr. Jernigan took personal responsibility for solving his own problems. The
advice in this speech for getting a job and keeping that job is timeless.
I remember Dr. Jernigan as a compassionate man. Once, at a Baltimore chapter meeting,
someone commented on a family who lost everything in a fire. Both of the parents were blind and
they had several children. Dr. Jernigan immediately said that we should help them. Someone piped up
that they were not members of the NFB. Dr. Jernigan said, well, they should be members, but we
should help them anyway, and we did.
Even though national conventions were always extremely busy for Dr. Jernigan, I can recall
many occasions when he took the time to say hello to the workers in the exhibit hall, or anywhere else
in the convention, and thanked us for our assistance. Even at our 1998 convention, when he was so ill,
he stopped back at the Jernigan fund table to say thank you.
I admire Dr. Jernigan's decisiveness. During my first convention as President of the National
Federation of the Blind of Maryland in 1987, held a few miles from here in Frostburg, many of the
vendors who worked in the Randolph Sheppard program attended the Business Division lunch. They
complained about the then DVR being five years late with new regulations for the program. Dr.
Jernigan simply said, stop paying your set-a-side and you will get your rules. He also promised that
the NFB would protect the workers if DVR tried to fire any of them. We went into action, and the rest
is history. Vendors in the program today are still reaping the benefits of Dr. Jernigan's decisive action
in 1987.
I remember Dr. Jernigan for his vigor and vitality. While waiting for the start of the Preakness
parade in 1991, the sky suddenly opened up, and the rain fell in buckets. To keep the water from
collecting on our banner, we frequently had to tilt it in such a way that the water ran down the back of
our necks. We were soaked to our bones! When the parade finally began, Dr. Jernigan, the oldest
marcher in our delegation, set a torrid pace. The rest of us had trouble keeping up with him. Mayor
Schmoke was supposed to march with us, but he did not because it was to wet for him.
Of the many civic awards that Dr. Jernigan received, I will best remember the resolution
adopted by the Maryland House of Delegates in 1987, shortly after Dr. Jernigan ceased being President
of the NFB, commending him for his contributions to Maryland and to the nation. Dr. Jernigan
addressed the delegates from the floor of the House, a privilege rarely granted to nonmembers.
To celebrate Dr. Jernigan's life, we have included two pictures in the print agenda. The picture
on the first page, taken at the state capitol, shows Federationists surrounding Governor Glendening as
he signed our technology bill into law on May 21, 1998. This is tangible proof of just how far we
have come under Dr. Jernigan's guiding hand. The other picture, in the center of the agenda, shows
Dr. Jernigan as he is about to cut the cake at his 70th birthday party, held at the National Center for
the Blind on November 9, 1996. We also celebrated his birthday at the last Maryland convention that
he attended in October 1996. I chose this picture because a birthday is a time of hope and joy, as well
as a celebration of life. When Dr. Jernigan presided at national conventions, he called for door prizes
with such great gusto. Since macadamia nuts were his personal favorite, I would like to close by
remembrance of Dr. Jernigan by saying, Mrs. Maurer, please draw for the Macadamia nuts in honor of
Dr. Jernigan.
We are so fortunate to have Dr. Jernigan's speeches and writings available in print, Braille,
and on cassette. Reading Dr. Jernigan's masterpieces will be both instructive and inspiring. The best
way that we can honor and remember Dr. Jernigan's life is by becoming thoroughly acquainted with
his work. Today we have a sample of his speeches, one in print, one in Braille, and one on cassette for
each of you. If you don't read print, please share it with someone who does. If you don't read Braille,
then hand it out to someone who does. If you don't do cassettes, then pass it on to someone who does.
Let us continue to follow Dr. Jernigan's example of changing the world by individual actions
collectively focused, by walking alone and marching together.
Sharon Maneki continues: I want to call Tom Bickford to the podium. Tom Bickford knew Dr.
Jernigan during Dr. Jernigan's California days.
Tom Bickford: I also knew Jack Polson, the electrician. I was a guest in his home many times,
and he in mine, and I heard those stories about doing electrical work in Jernigan's house. I first met
Kenneth Jernigan in 1955. I was a blind college student in California and rehab referred me to the
Orientation Center in Oakland. We were young then, both in our twenties. Kenneth Jernigan looked
young - but he didn't like to be told so. As the years went by he learned to bear the burden, the
weight, of responsibility and feel the power of authority. And he bore those burdens with dignity and
wisdom. He was not the administrative director of the Orientation Center, but he did, just by his
personality, become the spiritual and philosophical leader. He taught many classes - the most important
class was called "Business Methods and Procedures." In which we discussed ideas about blindness -
ours and society's. Each day he would pick on a particular topic and often enough - a particular
student. And he would grill us, on our I ideas and attitudes. We grew, and we learned, and we put
those ideas to use in our own lives. We worked hard and we thought hard, and at the right times we
played hard, and he was always there leading by example.
Among his many characteristics, Dr. Jernigan was enthusiastic, eager, idealistic and practical.
There was one time when his idealism got ahead of his practicality; he brought me to Iowa and tried
to make a Rehab counselor out of me [Laughter]. I was not a rehab counselor before I had the job, I
was a poor one while I had the job, and even a Masters Degree didn't make me one. We both knew
that it wasn't working well, and we parted company as employer and employee, on very good terms.
He taught me that to make my life work right, to improve my lot in life, I had to work through the
National Federation of the Blind to improve the lives of other people. He taught me to live a good life
and I have [Applause].
Sharon Maneki: Thank you, Tom. Don Morris knew Dr. Jernigan in his Iowa days.
Don Morris: Dr. Jernigan is the man who told me that I was blind. I drove to work the day
that I learned that and I did not drive home [Laughter]. While I was not easy to convince, he was
masterful at it. I recently was in the state of Kansas for their convention, and talked about Dr. Jernigan
and some of the things that he was to me besides a teacher, and a mentor, and a friend. He really was
a model. When I was twenty-eight years old is when I had the meeting with Dr. Jernigan and learned
that I was blind. I worked for the telephone company in those days and I was also extremely wise,
because while Dr. Jernigan told me that as a blind person my life didn't really need to change
substantially - that there were some things I would do differently but that I could do whatever I was
doing; I said, "Well, that may all be well and good you certainly have the knowledge over me on
blindness, but I know my job at the telephone company and there's no way that a blind man could do
it." Which is like saying I know what two's are and there's no way that any other number with it
could be a three. I only had half of the equation, and he asked what I wanted to do. I said, "Well, I
want to feed my family and do that kind of stuff, but I think I better get a rocker, get it picked out
while I can still see something, and get off in the corner out of harms way." He said, "Well, that's one
of the choices you can make." He said, "But if you do that you need to blame it on your laziness, not
on your blindness." And I thought about that. He gave me a lesson that I have tried to stick with. If
you want to have a dream come true, you must first have a dream. And that's pretty easy to do.
When I was a kid on the farm and we used to go down the path to the outhouse, and I would
read "Sports Afield" and some magazines like that, and people going on hunting trips and deep sea-
fishing and stuff. I never had any idea in my life that, that would happen. Thanks to Dr. Jernigan, I've
done many of those things. I've not hunted wild game, which they don't do in pleasant weather, so I
just stay inside with that, but, some things have happened in my life that Dr. Jernigan made possible.
Last weekend at this time I was in Nassau deep sea-fishing with my brother-in-law. Thatūs only
because of Dr. Jernigan. I would tell you also about his tenacity. Either Dr. Jernigan saw some ray of
hope in me, or else he recognized I was a slow learner. Most of the people who went through the
Iowa Commission did so in nine months - I was there for twelve months. One of the things that he
thought would be good for me was to go off to state conventions. The first state convention that I
went to was Indiana. I had heard that blind people did not get a fair shake - that things really weren't
right and that their work opportunities were few and so forth. One of the first two people that I met
there was a couple that were both medical transcriptionists, and I thought this is not so bad. These
people are making five or six dollars an hour. This was 1967 and they were making five or six bucks
an hour, that was what I concluded because of the money they said they were taking home. They in
fact were working about sixty hours a week for that money, so their pay was certainly somewhat
reduced, but I'm thinking, well they still got jobs, I don't know why these people are complaining. In
fact both of them had Master's Degrees and were working as medical transcriptionists. It occurred to
me that maybe you had to do more as a blind person to prove up at all. This was one of the things
that Dr. Jernigan had said. I think one of the next conventions that I went to, Mrs. Jernigan you might
remember the North Dakota Convention that we went to, Dr. Jernigan said, "Well, you know these
people are not the strongest Federationists." He said, "But its gonna be your job to go up there and
help win them over." We met with the four of them or six of them. however many it was, I think that
Mrs. Jernigan, and two other students and I doubled the size of that convention. That was also a great
learning experience.
Dr. Jernigan was tenacious in all that he did. Dr. Jernigan used to own a great big Cadillac car
and we were going to go to Texas and there were five of us in the car. I think that we were going
either eleven hundred miles or seven hundred miles, but if it was seven hundred miles we did it in
about eleven hours, but it seems more likely it was eleven hundred miles and we did it in seven hours.
In any event we drove the wheels off of the car, and in the middle of Oklahoma we needed to stop
and get tires, and thank goodness we did because we weren't going to eat any other way. We were
going through, we were going to get to Texas. We stopped at a truck stop thing to get the tires and
they were running a truck driver's special T-bone steak 89 cents. And I tell you that they gave you
your money's worth and no more. That was probably the worst piece of meat that I've ever tangled
with. The other thing that they offered was a ham steak with mashed potatoes and red-eye gravy. This
was the first time I ever saw anybody do this and as I said, he, Dr. Jernigan was determined. He said,
"Well, I want that T-bone truck driver's special for 89 cents {and he said} I want the mashed potatoes
and the red-eye gravy." The waitress said, "No sir, you can't have that." And he said, "Why may I
ask, can't I have that?" She said, "Well, they don't go together. She said, "The mashed potatoes and
the gravy go with the ham steak, not with the T-bone." So he said, "Well, fine, I'll have both." And
that's what he did, but back to the steak he didn't want the ham he just wanted the potatoes and the
red-eye gravy and the steak. He cut on that steak, and I'm telling you this with my hand raised, he cut
on that steak until he raised a blister on his finger [Applause]. Dr. Jernigan was tenacious in all that he
did.
Sharon Maneki: Thank you, Don [Applause]. Tom Ley is a graduate of the Louisiana Center
for the Blind.
Tom Ley: Thank you, Sharon. I'm honored to be here in front of you to share a few of my
thoughts about Dr. Jernigan; how he touched my life and some remembrances. How do you measure
the greatness of a man? Do you measure it by buildings built? We all take a look at our National
Center and we see a wonderful building and yes, Dr. Jernigan was a great man if you measure it by
buildings. Do you measure it by articles written and published and speeches made? We've all been
touched by the speeches and the articles we've read. And he was truly a great man if measured that
way. Do you measure the greatness of a man by members recruited? We take a look at us as we join
together in our thousands and yes, Dr. Jernigan was a great man. Do you measure his greatness in
terms of dollars raised? By anyone's stretch of their imagination, Dr. Jernigan was a great man.
Measured by any of these rulers, Dr. Jernigan was a great man. But more than that I think you
measure a man's greatness by the lives touched. We've all been touched in one way or another
through Dr. Jernigan. I, unlike many of you, didn't know Dr. Jernigan personally when I was growing
up. I went blind when I was seventeen, which wasn't to heck of a long time ago and, its nice to be
able to say that. I was living in Louisiana, and I didn't meet Dr. Jernigan formally for several years
until after I went blind and that was mostly just a handshake at a Washington seminar. And, how did
Dr. Jernigan touch my life? He touched my life by having given of himself to others and having
taught other blind people that the most important thing that they can do is give back. I am in many
generational ways a grandson of Dr. Jernigan's. Dr. Jernigan in the sixties and fifties started the Iowa
Commission for the Blind - the training program there, and he touched the lives of many of our
current leaders of the Federation today. One of them was Joanne Wilson and he taught her more than
anything that it was important to give back. He taught us to give back to others, and that when we
truly start to give back and give of ourselves, thatūs when rehabilitation for us and our freedom truly
has been won. Joanne started the Louisiana Center for the Blind with the help of the Federation in
1985 in Louisiana, and his legacy lives through that center today. I learned of Dr. Jernigan's greatness
and his inspiration by how he inspired others, who in turn inspired me. Through his teachings, through
those who he taught, I learned to think differently about myself, and then after I thought differently
about myself for awhile, I learned to feel differently about myself, and after I had felt different about
myself, I then began to act differently. And once I began to act differently, I too, through the blessing
of Dr. Jernigan, began to give back. So, I think we are the measure of Dr. Jernigan's greatness as a
man. He was truly a man, a great man among great men. He was a tremendous leader among
tremendous leaders. How do we measure that? We measure that through us, and we will measure it
through the legacy that we leave. We must all go and continue to remember Dr. Jernigan's greatness
each day as we live our lives and give back - give back to others in the Federation, give back to our
society, give back to our churches, give back to our communities. That is how we will continue to
make Dr. Jernigan's greatness even grow greater. We should all go out and continue to remember Dr.
Jernigan as we walk alone, and as we march together in the Federation behind our truly great leader,
Dr. Maurer, into the twenty-first century.
Sharon: Thank you, Tom. Doris Johnson knew Dr. Jernigan as a volunteer at the National
Center for the Blind. Doris spends many hours volunteering and we appreciate that Doris.
Doris Johnson: Good morning everybody. I just want to say that Dr. Jernigan has touched my
life, encouraged me quite a bit, because I was getting on up in age when I had my serious problems
and didn't have no tremendous background on what I was supposed to do to carry on with this
blindness. I've read some, listened to some tapes when I was out to BISM concerning Dr. Jernigan.
And I say, "If this man can do all of this in his condition, and he wasn't no rich, rich person when
some of the material was presented to me." I said, "Well, if I can just keep doing what I'm doing now
I'll be very happy." I was inspired by Dr. Jernigan - he didn't have no different in people. 'Cause I
know a few times we had to go and encourage some people that they was saying negative things about
the organization and some of them said, "Well, I can't do no public speaking." Well, you don't have
to, your body means something, you're present, come on and go with us. We learned a whole lot by
that [Applause]. Then when I started doing volunteer work down at the center - I just trying to get
myself together so I can cope with this situation and enjoyed it and pay no attention, didn't care what
they did. I was packing envelopes down on the, first level. In the early 90's we went to a state
convention, and Mr. Maurer reading about this person doing this and the other, and we just finished
having our banquet - just finished the banquet, finished eating - and I wasn't paying no attention to
what he was saying. I didn't know who he was talking about, then he said, "Doris Johnson." But what
he was doing, it was the Kenneth Jernigan Award, and that was the furthest from my mind. I
encouraged everybody: we need to work together and follow Dr. Jernigan's inspiration because he was
a tremendous man.
Sharon: Thank you, Doris [Applause]. If people will make their way to the mike, I'm going to
recognize as many as possible, but you need to be succinct. The program says that Loretta White is
going to speak. Loretta unfortunately is not here because of the illness of one of the children, Alicia.
But we have Mr. Loretta White - Joe White. It's very appropriate for Joe to speak as an active parent
in the National Federation of the Blind. Joe?
Joe: Imagine if you will, knowing all this about Dr. Jernigan, and going to your first
convention with your three year old daughter. You're sitting there listening to the speakers and who
does your daughter trip with her cane, but Dr. Jernigan [Laughter]. My wife said that, "Of all the
people she could have tripped with her cane, why did she have to pick him?" That was when she
learned about Dr. Jernigan. He took the time to show her his cane, to tell her that these things happen,
talking to Nicky, asking her about how she got around with her cane - how he got around with his
cane. He took the time to make my wife feel better about what happened, and he took the time to
encourage my three year old daughter. Who is sometimes quite outspoken, to say the least. But she is
a very determined individual and she learned a lot from her first encounter with Dr. Jernigan, as did
my wife. I think we'll always remember him for that and I'm really sorry that he's gone, but I think
we'll always remember him for his contribution to our family [Applause].
Sharon: Thank you. Does anyone want the floor?
Carol Siegel: I remember Dr. Jernigan in the sixties. When I first met him we had conventions
that just lasted a day in Maryland. I remember a lot of our former leaders such as John and Connie
McCraw and Isabelle S. Grant. How Dr. Jernigan encouraged us; the beginning of our center where we
volunteered; the weekends when some of us taught travel; Braille; whatever people wanted to learn,
and others of our leaders who aren't here, and so many things I could go on and on for years, but I
won't do that.
Charles Biebl: I remember Dr. Jernigan when he did all those talk shows I asked him to do. I
really appreciated that because we had to get our word out, and even though radio has changed itūs a
lot harder to get us on the radio now then it ever was because of the nature of talk shows. I remember
like in the middle seventies, I was working at Goodwill Industries, which was horrible, which was like
slavery, and I had a big dispute or disagreement with my supervisors. I was just angry with the way
they treated me. I had Mr. Jernigan send them some material to help explain to them why I felt the
way I did. I don't know if it changed my supervisors mind at all, but I didn't care as long as it got my
point across. That's the way it is. I'm really glad I was able to get Dr. Jernigan on the radio, like I
did.
Angela Cummings: I'm only twenty-one, so I regret to say I donūt know Dr. Jernigan very
well. I just want some little short message that Dr. Jernigan, even though he's gone physically, he'll
always remain a part of the National Federation of the Blind. That's all. Thank you.
James Daughton: I remember, like Carol Siegel, Dr. Jernigan coming to the state of Maryland
in 1967 at our convention in Baltimore at the Holiday Inn hotel. I remember those leaders back in
those days. And well I remember some of the preceding times. I can remember one time in 1974, in
Chicago, when a young man from North Dakota came to the National Convention in Chicago. And
people would ask me, "What do the Federation do for people?" I can remember this young man, I
think his last name was Jennings, and he wanted to set up a business - he needed tools and a whole lot
of stuff, and Dr. Jernigan in his compassion came to the Federation and we took up a collection for
that young man to go into business. One of the things that I will always remember, as a Christian, is
that at our national convention in Texas. Here is a man that was sick, here was a man that was on the
point of death, but he courageously came down to conduct business as usual, and it reminded me of a
friend that I knew in South Carolina named Fred Charlotte who taught us how to prepare yourself to
depart this land. Dr. Jernigan did that and I can always admire his courage, his charisma, and his
compassion, and his humbleness, and his greatness. I knew him up close, but I will always remember
the leadership that he has performed, and I will still remember that first convention in Baltimore in the
sixties when I heard about Dr. Kenneth Jernigan. Thank you very much.
Ron Metenyi: It took me a long time to work up the courage to speak to Dr. Jernigan, but I
was fired up about the idea of having a job bank, and I went to him and I said, "We need to have a
job bank." And he said, "That makes sense. And if we had the resources, we'd do it." We developed
JOB which was so much more, and we developed the program we have, and we developed JOBLine.
The speech that really knocked my socks off was "Is History Against Us?" Because a people has a
history, and history includes difficulties and humiliations, but it also includes heroism and conquest
and triumph. I learned that we have a total history that included all of those things, and that through
the century we have had some heroes and conquerors, and we've had those who have been inspired by
Dr. Jernigan and Dr. tenBroek, and we will in the future need to know our history and realize that
we're just folks and whatever just folks can do, we can do [Applause].
Fred Kamara: Way back in 1973, I attended the first, I mean my first convention, of the NFB
as a guest, an international guest invited by the late Dr. Isabelle Grant. I'm from Sierra Leone and one
evening Dr. Grant introduced me to Dr. Jernigan and he said, "Oh, I'm glad you are able to come all
across the Atlantic to attend the convention. I hope you will take back the burning flame of the NFB
to your country, and let it blaze the trail that we have set here for the blind and for sighted people to
know that the blind are capable." I promised him that I would take back that flame to Sierra Leone.
And I did, and I can assure you we established the Sierra Leone Association of the Blind. I can say
the NFB had a very big influence on that through the inspiration of people like Dr. Jernigan and Dr.
Grant. Thank you. [Applause].
Pat Gormley: I think the proudest moment I ever had as a member of the Federation was in
Detroit in 1994, when Justin Butterbaugh, a toddler, was attending his first convention, and Justin had
various medical problems and died in his sleep. It was a very sad moment for everybody because of
his medical problem and his parents had no resources at all. The thing that Dr. Jernigan did is he
spoke very gently and he said, "I think we need to do something, but we need to do it in a way - very
humbly and very quietly." Not only did we raise the money for them to get them home, to get the
Butterbaugh's home, and we also raised the money for the burial expenses very quietly and we now
have a member of the parents division that will stay a member of the parent's division because of
those humble actions that were taken at that point. And to me that makes me proud to be a
Federationist. That's why I will be a Federationist the rest of my life. Thank you [Applause].
Shawn Jacobson: I first got to know Kenneth Jernigan, although not very well, at the Iowa
Commission for the Blind. I would come down on student days. I came down on student days and
used commission services while he was the head of the commission, and after he left the commission.
And I think I appreciated him more in his absence because when he operated the Commission for the
Blind in Iowa it served the customers and afterwards it more served the bureaucrats. I also remember
that when I first started reading Dr. Jernigan's material, I was at the Iowa School for the Blind and
there - being a Federationist was a subversive thing to do. You had to keep your Braille Monitors
under your bed so people wouldn't see them. And I mentioned that to him at the D.C., one of the D.C.
Conventions. He quoted the Bible, saying that, "Blessed are you, when people revile you in my name
[Laughter]." I remember that of him. Thank you Dr. Jernigan for all your services [Applause].
Sharon: I'm going to call on Lloyd Rasmussen to introduce and sing a special song with
Debbie and Tom.
Lloyd Rasmussen: That's a mike for one of us. Debbie maybe you can get on my left and
Tom needs to get to another mike. I would like to say a couple of things. My remarks will take thirty
seconds, our song is going to take close to five minutes - but it'll be worth it. I would just say that I
was also a student of the Iowa Commission for the Blind in the 1960's - 1965 to be exact. I got a job,
which I held for two years. I was unemployed for three years, and I really ended up in a state where I
just kind of 'hung out'. It didn't look like I was going to go back to work again - I had become too
discouraged. But even in that period, Dr. Jernigan still believed in me even if I didn't believe in
myself. Debbie Brown has written a new song, and it is in your agenda. In the Braille copy it's on
page twelve. Uh, it's a whopdolloger of a song to commemorate a whopdolloger of a life. Oh, Okay.
We ready? I think we're ready.

(Editors Note: We end these remembrances with the lyrics to "A Song for Kenneth Jernigan", followed
by a new verse to "Glory, Glory, Federation".)

A SONG FOR KENNETH JERNIGAN
words and music by Deborah Brown

You were born a poor boy in the hills of Tennessee;
The people there had never met someone who couldn't see;
Though your family loved you, they sometimes got in your way,
But you made some money while the others just made hay.

You tried to be a lawyer, but your counselor told you, "No,
If you want our money, find another way to go,"
So you became a teacher, and today you're teaching still;
The counselor didn't know you had a dream he couldn't kill.

Because your dreams were bigger than your rehab counselor's mind,
Someday they'd reach beyond you to enfold all of the blind.

But the world was changing as you taught in Tennessee,
Because Jacobus tenBroek led the fledgling NFB;
While at your first convention in 1952,
Did you know his leadership would be passed on to you?

You went to California, then in Iowa you taught;
You knew we couldn't learn unless we changed the way we thought;
You reached a generation with the stirring words you said,
But they were more than words, for your philosophy baked bread.

Because your dreams were bigger than one generation's mind,
Today they reach beyond you to enfold all of the blind.

You followed Dr. tenBroek as the head of NFB;
You led us in the war against repressive agencies;
The blind across the nation helped you storm the gates of NAC;
You told them, "we know who we are, and we're not going back!"

Because of you we've witnessed NAC's dying agonies,
But now the blind are facing a new set of enemies;
The agencies were floundering, their exalted place denied;
You made them see the wisdom of enlisting on our side.

Because your dreams were bigger than the blindness experts' minds,
Today they reach beyond you to enfold all of the blind.
You stood behind the effort to improve technology,
But you believed solutions should transcend mere gadgetry,
Because you knew the problems that now face the nation's blind
Are not the fault of hardware but the software in the mind.

Your Kernel Books have helped us with the stories that they tell:
As children, parents, workers, too, we can get along quite well;
The Federation's teachings have spread over all the earth;
Because of you the blind of every land now know their worth.

Because your dreams were bigger than a single country's mind,
Today they reach beyond you to enfold the whole world's blind.

Though we truly love you, and we're sorry that you're gone,
We know your greatest wish is for the movement to go on;
Though future generations will extol your memory,
we know our altered lives will be your greatest legacy.

Because your dreams were bigger than your generation's mind,
Today they reach beyond you to enfold the future blind.

"Glory, Glory, Federation"
A New Verse
by Debbie Brown

Through Jernigan's great leadership the Federation's grown;
We have seen the truths of blindness to the whole world be made known;
We have reaped the bounteous harvest of the kernels that he's sown;
Our cause goes marching on.
NFB JEOPARDY A BIG HIT
By Lorraine Rovig
The weekend of November 6-8, the NFB of Maryland held its 1998 state convention in
friendly Cumberland, in the mountains of the Land of Pleasant Living. As usual, we had special events
for blind teens, parents, and merchants and we had NFB visitors from other states. I met members
from the NFB's of Utah, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Colorado. (This year's national speaker
was Mrs. Diane McGeorge, who is from Denver.) Over 200 persons attended. I think it was more than
we have ever had before, even though we were in the far northwest corner of the state. Ever notice
that the best state conventions tend to fit that old rhyme for what's needed at weddings? "Something
old, something new, something borrowed, something blue." (If by "something blue," we mean some
issue that makes us feel blue
and that we intend to improve through our group action.) This year a "something new," or maybe,
"something borrowed," turned out to be a fun way to learn more about blind history in general and
NFB history in particular. 
On Friday afternoon, from 2 to 4 p.m., we played a game we called "NFB Jeopardy." The
game committee President Sharon Maneki appointed to design it was-Lynn Mattioli, chairperson; Tom
Bickford, Peggy Chong, and Lorraine Rovig, members. We began by meeting one evening at a local
eatery to go
over the rules, approve our modifications, agree to categories, and then assign categories for which we
would each write five questions by our agreed upon deadline. As insurance, we wrote 2 or 3 extra
questions for each category.
On television, "Jeopardy with your host, Alex Trebec" has 2 rounds of 6 categories with 5
questions in each category or thirty questions, plus a single final question. We reduced the number of
questions to allow time for groups to compete. In each round we had 5 categories with each category
having 5 questions.
Everyone in the room was invited to join one of three teams. Each team, crowded around a
different table, chose a Captain who answered for the team, and a Braille-reading Captain's Assistant.
The Assistant had charge of twenty-five 3x5 cards with each card having on it in Braille, not the
question, but the name of the category and the amount of money for a single question. Once that
question was used, the card was torn in two so that folks knew what categories and which questions
were left to play. Lynn, as
the game master who asked each question, had a duplicate set which included the actual questions and
answers. Tom Bickford and I were the Judges ("Judges' decisions are final. Blame them.") Virginia
Bickford was the Scorekeeper who kept track of the "money" won and lost.
Tom supplied a big cowbell and a medium cowbell; Lorraine lent a large whistle. In order to
answer, each team made its "buzzer" work and was recognized by the game master. The
knowledgeable captains were Mrs. McGeorge, James Daughten, and, on the winning team, Patrick
Gormley.
In the first round, our categories were:
* When Hector Was a Pup (questions about blind persons, pre-NFB);
* NFB Songs;
* Technology Questions;
* Heroes of the NFB; and,
* NFB of Maryland History.
Here are some samples of the categories and questions I wrote. (Answers later.) According to
game rules, remember your answer must be stated in the form of a question.
1. When Hector Was a Pup-This blind soldier was nicknamed One Eye, even after he lost the
other eye. He successfully led the armies of Bohemia against two armies sent against that country by
the Pope.
2. Dollars and Sense-This blind man is a full-time pharmacist.
3. Punch Lines-You drop him a line.
Each question was worth from 100 to 500 (imaginary) dollars. If you answered incorrectly,
your team lost that amount of money. The losing team was several thousand in the hole by the end of
our game. Lynn chose one question in the first round to lurk secretly as the "Double Jeopardy"
question. (Surprise, surprise, Team Two! Up to a limit of $1000, how much do you want to bet on
knowing the answer?)
In the second round, called the Double Jeopardy Round, we had these categories:
* Dollars & Sense (match blind persons to jobs);
* Legal & Illegal (about laws affecting blind persons);
* Blind Publications
* Fictional Blind Characters; and,
* Punch Lines.
In this last category, the answers to the crazy puns heard at the ends of Presidential Releases
were given. Then the teams had to devise questions to match the puns. Each question in Double
Jeopardy was worth from 200 to 1000 dollars. Lynn surprised the players with two secret Double
Jeopardy questions in the second round. 
To finish the game, teams with a positive score were entitled to attempt an answer to the last,
most difficult question in Final Jeopardy. The category was Maryland History. Lynn read the answer.
It was, "These three blind persons were the first three presidents of the NFB of Maryland." Only
long-time member, James Daughten, knew the answer, but his team was ineligible.
To add to the fun, Tom Bickford recorded the famous Jeopardy music off the television and
played it on his C-1 machine as we waited for the answers to the Double Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy
questions.
I suggest other chapters and affiliates could share some blind history and have a lot of fun
with this, too. We enjoyed the learning, the competition, and the "no one loses" ending. Everyone who
played received a paper sack containing four great homemade cookies baked by Alexandra Trebec,
(Whoops, I mean, Lynn). Each member of the winning team won a gift certificate for one free Kernel
Book, their choice of title and format (to be mailed to them later). NFB Jeopardy was a great way to
get revved up
for our state convention. Answers: 1. Who was Zisca? ("Is History Against Us?" by Dr. Jernigan) 2.
Who is Tony Burda? (Braille Monitor articles) 3. How do you send a letter to a fish? (Groan) 
Staying in touch through Braille By Ernest F. Imhoff
Reprinted from The Baltimore Sun, February 9, 1999.
The raised dots and flat areas of his Braille page take Jeremy R. Lincicome through the hills
and plains of the stories he loves. He may be revisiting his favorite book, "Aliens for Breakfast." He
may be reading about a hospital in a book by television's Mister Rogers. Or his fingers may tell him
about Stevie Wonder.
Jeremy, an 11-year-old fifth-grader, is the only blind student at Johnnycake Elementary School
in Baltimore County and one of about 200 visually impaired students learning Braille in Maryland.
Use of Braille has declined sharply in the United States since World War II. Three decades
ago, 44 percent of the nation's blind used Braille; now that's only 9 percent.
In Maryland, about 15 percent of the 1,356 visually impaired students ages 3 to 21 are
studying Braille, according to the most recent statewide school survey in 1995.
But advocates are urging a resurgence ū and have helped enact laws making Braille instruction
available.
"Blind children need the same opportunities as sighted children to read by 9 years old," says
Barbara Cheadle of Catonsville, president of the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children
and a staff member of the National Federation of the Blind.
In the late 1980s, Cheadle and her husband, John, won a long battle to have Baltimore County
schools teach Braille to their son, Charles.
That victory helped spur the General Assembly to enact a 1992 law providing that every
visually impaired child who wants to learn Braille can do so.
In 1997, federal legislation required much the same.
In Maryland, Braille use has increased since the state legislation, says Loretta McGraw, who
overseas the state education services for the visually or hearing impaired.
She says instruction in Braille is available for all students who want it.
But the relatively low percentage of Braille readers continues to be of concern for advocates.
In the 1995 survey of Maryland's visually impaired students, twice as many students ū about
30 percent of these surveyed ū were nonreaders as were studying Braille.
Some of these students have other disabilities such as mental retardation, cerebral palsy,
learning disabilities and motor deficits that limit their ability to read. But the survey results do not
bode well, according to Braille advocates.
Many blind people are "exceedingly successful" without Braille, but "the percentage of success
for many are better if they do know it," says Marc Maurer, president of the federation. Others echo
that feeling.
"If a blind person doesn't know Braille it isn't devastating, but Braille does offer much to
enrich lives," says Frederick K. Schroeder, commissioner of the federal Rehabilitation Services
Administration.
Schroeder is the highest-ranking blind presidential appointee, but he does not use Braille. He
relies instead on tape recorders, books on tape and people reading to him. He became totally blind at
16 and began teaching himself Braille but is not proficient.
Because about 80 percent of legally blind Americans are not totally blind and can make some
use of print, Schroeder argues, the best approach for many is striking a balance between reading some
print and Braille.

Link to employment

But Braille promoters say that the blind need it to be literate, fully educated, employable and
independent. The National Federation of the Blind says that, while 70 percent of the country's blind
people are unemployed, 91 percent of those with jobs are proficient in Braille.
Rather than learning Braille, many blind people rely on such devices a tape recorders, taped
and large-print books, and magnifiers. Some educators and parents lack knowledge of Braille and
enthusiasm for it. In some cases, that's because parents and children with partial sight may feel that
using Braille stigmatizes children with their peers.
Braille makes use of raised dots in various combinations that are read by fingertips moving
from left to right. The dots are arranged in a basic module called a cell, a rectangle of two columns of
three dots each.
Different combinations of dots and cells express the 26 letters of the alphabet, numbers, capital
letters and punctuation. Speeding the process is an American Braille list of 180 contractions of
frequently used words and groups of letters.
A blind French teenager, Louis Braille (1809-52), invented the system in the 1820s, when he
discovered that the blind could not easily write using the existing methods of reading raised lines.
Braille is not easy, but blind children can learn to read using it in the same amount of time as
sighted children of equal ability, supporters say. Braille readers are considered proficient if they read
faster than they normally talk.
Jeremy Lincicome, who has cerebral palsy that affects some movement of his left hand, isn't
fully proficient yet by that standard. He has been studying Braille for more than five years.
"Best thing about Braille is it gives me the capability to read and write myself," says Jeremy.
"The worst thing is if I ordered a whole Bible, it would take up a whole bookshelf. About 28 books.
The heavy paper and dots make it so bulky."
When Jeremy talks, his sentences and questions tumble out in bursts of quick energy about
computers, friends, playing drums at school and favorite sports such as fishing and ice skating: "This
summer I'm going to learn how to swim. I want to be a lawyer. My mother says I know a lot of
stuff."

A job for both hands

He likes to read and write Braille, although "the longer sentences are harder," he says.
He reads Mister Rogers' "Going to the Hospital" carefully but with determination, his right
hand pausing every few words to make sure of them, his left hand marking the start of the next line of
Braille ū an accommodation to his cerebral palsy. (Most Braille readers read with both hands.)
Later he shows off a pamphlet he wrote on a Braillewriter, a device like a typewriter. The
book is called "My Family" about the Lincicomes of Catonsville: His mother, Judith Lincicome, and
his siblings, Rebeccah, 18; Sarah, 12; Daniel 12; and Kelly, 4.
All the Lincicome children have developmental disabilities and all were adopted by Judith,
who was aware of their challenges. Jeremy is visually impaired because the need for extra oxygen led
to broken blood vessels in his retina when he was born prematurely at 27 weeks.
"Here, let me read you some things," he says. "I live with my family. I help my family. My
family helps me."
Suddenly, Jeremy looks up at the nearby window which has let in a burst of light. "The sun's
out," he says. Matter of factly, he explains, "I have light reception."

Blindness is expensive

Jeremy says he sometimes feels discrimination because of his blindness: "Everyone else has
these cool computer programs that don't cost much. Why do blind people have to spend so much more
for software programs, the talking translators or simulators?"
Teaching children or adolescents Braille is easier than teaching adults, say two officials of the
National Federation of the Blind.
The two, Aloma Bouma and Patricia Maurer, were born prematurely in the Midwest in the
1950s. Their retinas also were damaged when they received higher concentrations of oxygen, partially
blinding them. Growing up, they had no easy options for learning Braille.
Maurer, however, pressed her parents and Kenneth Jernigan, a blind proponent of Braille then
living in Iowa, to help her get instruction in Des Moines when she was a teenager. (Jernigan, who died
recently, later moved to Baltimore as head of the blind federation.)
Bouma did not begin learning Braille until after college, and she concedes that Maurer can
read and write more proficiently. They both use a slate and stylus to write by hand, a Braillewriter to
type in Braille and a computerized Braille note taker.
Says Maurer: "I don't know how I could do my job without Braille." Bouma agrees.
Barbara Pierce, the blind editor of the Braille Monitor, a publication of the federation, adds:
"No one mentioned Braille to me when I was growing up. If I had that as a child, I would have had
more opportunities."
Cheadle's National Organization of Parents of Blind Children tries to remedy that.
It assists Blind Industries of Maryland in a Kids Camp for the blind one week in August and
sponsors "Braille Readers are Leaders," a competition encouraging children to enjoy Braille. The
organization also helps get Braille tutors for blind children and provides information on the rights of
parents and children in school districts.

'A fuller lifetime'

"Once you get good instruction and become Braille literate, your chances of employment are
greatly improved, you can have a fuller lifetime of contributions," says Cheadle, who serves as the
federation's point person for parents and students interested in Braille.
"But it requires concentrated formal instruction time in school," she says. "You can't count on
parents; most won't learn it."
"And, [although] sighted people can learn print from infancy, [and] they learn all year round
by looking at street signs, food labeling, television messages, blind children start learning Braille only
in class."
Dr. Hilary H. Connor, 77, shows that the blind can learn Braille even at an advanced age. The
Baltimore pediatrician could see perfectly well until temporal arteritis, a blood vessel disorder, struck
him at 73 and he quickly became totally blind.
Eight months later, he began to teach himself Braille. He learned in six months and now reads
mysteries and spy novels in Braille and hears other books on tape. "I enjoy both Braille and books on
tape," he says.
The International Braille and Technology Center for the Blind at the National Federation of the
Blind, 1800 Johnson St., is the world's leading training center on new Braille technology. For more
information, call 410-659-9314 for Barbara Cheadle at the federation.WILL THE REAL NICOLE WHITE PLEASE STEP FORWARD
By Holly White and Loretta White
From the Editor: We established the Jennifer Baker Award in honor of a young woman who
died at an age when the rest of us are just beginning our active adult lives. Despite blindness and other
disabilities, and with the encouragement of her parents, Jennifer learned Braille, something the experts
said could never be done, and became an avid reader. For Jennifer, Braille was her window to the
world. We will present this award to students who successfully acquire Braille proficiency and other
alternative techniques of blindness, and exhibit the same courage and zest for living that Jennifer
Baker displayed in her short life. From the following article, reprinted from the Winter 1998 issue of
Future Reflections, the quarterly publication of the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children,
it is easy to understand why Nicole White was chosen as the first recipient of the NFB of Maryland's
Jennifer Baker Award. Nicole's parents, Joe and Loretta White, have been active members of the NFB
for a number of years.
From the [Future Reflections] Editor: In some ways the perception most people have of blind,
multiply disabled or deaf-blind children is the flip side of the old adage about not being able to see the
forest for the trees. It is easy with these children to only see the myriad physical, mental, and/or
emotional manifestations of the disabilities, and to entirely miss seeing the unique individual under all
those disabilities. Sometimes it takes someone like, well, another child - maybe a sister or a brother -
to help us see that distinctive personality.
The following article contains two descriptions of the same child - Nicole White. Both are
accurate, but neither is truly complete without the other. One is a detailed description of Nicole's
disabilities. This information is vital to developing an appropriate education plan. But even the best
prepared plan will not work unless the teacher understands that he or she is not teaching a
conglomeration of disabilities - he or she is teaching a child; a child that a sister can play with, argue
with, tease, and love.

NICOLE WHITE: THE DISABILITIES
by Loretta White
[Future Reflections] Editor's Note: Yes, they are related. Mrs. White is Nicole's mother, but
she is also a special education teacher. She put this report together with as little bias as possible--just
as if she were doing a report on any special education student.
Nicole, now 11 years old, was a 3 pound, 14 ounces preemie. She was born in Calcutta, India.
She lives with her adoptive parents and three siblings. She is deaf-blind which presents as total
blindness (secondary to Retrolental Fibroplasia) and asymmetrical high frequency hearing loss (mild in
the right ear and moderate to severe in the left ear). She has a history of grand mal seizures.
Occupational Therapy evaluations have findings of delay in fine motor, perceptual-motor, and gross-
motor skills approximately 2 years below expectation. Her school reports poor and inappropriate
behavioral patterns. Psychological assessments place her cognitive functioning in the low-average
range with significant discrepancies in her overall profile. She has significant weaknesses in
identifying common objects placed in her hands and poor sensory integration.
Nicole displayed above average strengths in measures of memory functioning, including both
long-and short-term memory. Her high frequency hearing loss appears to have an impact on her
language processing which may be exacerbating her distractibility and attention to task, as testing
placed her in the defective ranges. Nicole displays an aversion to certain materials and her strength,
while bilaterally equally, is below expectation for grip strength in her upper extremities.
Diagnostic formulations state that Nicole has a mild to moderate neuro-cognitive disorder,
predominately hyperactive-impulsive type in the mild to moderate range, anxiety disorder due to
blindness, mild cerebral palsy syndrome, and uncontrollable grand mal seizures in the moderate range.
She also has a learning disorder in the mild to moderate range, which is further defined as a central
integrative processing disorder. She has educational problems related to discord with teachers and
peers and an inadequate social environment.


NICOLE WHITE: THE SISTER
by Holly White
Nicole is a beautiful girl. She has black hair and brown skin. She is eleven years old and her
birthday is November 21. She is interesting.
Nicole has a large family. She has seven brothers and three sisters. Six of the brothers are half
and one sister is half. She has two loving and caring parents, Joe and Loretta. Her sisters that live with
her are Alicia (9) and Holly (12). She has a nephew living with her named Joey who is 8 years old.
Nicole enjoys many things. Music is one of her favorites. She is very good at keyboarding.
She plays by ear and makes up her own songs that are really quite good. Her favorite type of music is
Bluegrass. She likes to play it really loud so of course our parents yell at her to turn it down.
She loves food. Her favorite is spicy food, especially Cajun. Of course, she was in heaven
when we went to New Orleans. She will even eat things she doesn't particularly like if you add hot
sauce. She also loves crunchies such as chips, cookies, and crackers. She can't stand slimy foods like
oatmeal and bananas.
Nicole is into Barbies. Her favorites are Teacher Barbie and Barbie and Ginger (the walking,
talking dog). She has a red Barbie corvette, bed, and more. She likes to use her Barbie answering
machine, too.
She has a lot of toy dogs. She pretends she is the head of Seeing Eye and she trains the dogs
to be guide dogs for the blind. That's unusual since she usually hates soft things such as soft and
fuzzy fur. She has given each one a name and a personality. Some are nice but some are pesky who
bark in the middle of the night.
Laura Ingalls Wilder is Nicole's favorite author. She loves all the books about Little House on
the Prairie. She likes to pretend to be the characters. When she reads one of the books in Braille, my
mom lets her do things in the old-fashioned way. Her favorite was making sausage, but she also liked
making butter and washing clothes on a washboard. She did not like washing dishes without a
dishwasher.
In school her favorite subject is Social Studies because she likes learning about and creating
land features. She is home-taught by her excellent mother. When she gets mad at Mom she writes her
memos. Nicole named our homeschool the Whitehouse Academy. She calls my mom the
Headmistress. My Dad used to be the Superintendent but she fired him. Now he is just the Principal.
Nicole loves telling lame jokes. Knock, knock this and knock, knock that. She thinks that they
are all very hilarious. The jokes are pretty good the first ten times but after that they get boring.
Nicole has an interesting personality. She sees things a little differently. She is like a banana
on an apple tree, so she is never boring (except for her jokes). She is loving and helpful, but she can
also be really annoying at times. I guess all siblings are like that. After all, I am her sister. But
through thick and thin she is a sweet little sister. I love her.CANES AND TRAINS
By Leon Rose
From The Editor: Leon Rose has been an active and energetic person for all of his life. He
knew that when he became a senior citizen, he would still be a productive and creative person. When
blindness came, however, he understandably started to have doubts. Yet, he is not a quitter. Even
before he met the National Federation of the Blind he began to think about functioning as a successful
blind person. By participating in the NFB, he has learned that even his wildest ambitions are not so
unrealistic. As you read his story, keep in mind that he has not had the benefit of the type of
rehabilitation that a newly blind person should have. As a measure of his success, his many activities
include: President of the Central Maryland Chapter of the NFB of Maryland, vice-president of the
NFB of Maryland's business division, facilitator of a low vision peer group at the Florence Bain
Senior Center, member of that center's senior council, and member of the access committee of the
Howard County Commission on Disability Issues. In addition, he writes a monthly column for "The
Senior Connection", a publication of the county's Dept. of Citizen Services. A semi-retired journalist,
Mr. Rose continues to work part-time as a publications consultant.
It used to be so easy to travel anywhere I wanted to go. Just hop in the car, drive to the
Amtrak station, buy a ticket to the desired destination and I was on my way.
That was the way it was until about a decade ago, before my vision started to decline. Today,
however, what was so routine and automatic had become a adventure. Until recently, any such travel
was always done in the company of a sighted companion. If someone was not able to accompany me,
I simply stayed home.
But all that is behind me. Necessity is not only the "mother of invention," as the old saying
goes, it is also the "mother of confidence-building."
The time had come, finally, when I had no choice; I either went to Newark, New Jersey from
Maryland by myself, or lose out on a lucrative consulting opportunity. I know I am not the first
visually impaired person to travel alone, but how I arranged this first-ever solo trip and how it was
accomplished may serve as a confidence-builder for other first-timers.
First of all, I have had mobility training and have gotten adept at using a white cane. That's an
essential tool wherever one goes, whether around home or on a trip. It not only helps one find the
way, but it serves as a wonderful "ice-breaker--" with others ONE MEETS ALONG THE WAY. I am
constantly telling those who are hesitant about cane use that most sighted people are understanding,
considerate and helpful when they realize you are blind. That cane says it for you, and there is
absolutely no reason to be embarrassed or reluctant to learn how to use one.
When that fateful travel day arrived, my wife drove me to the Amtrak station at Baltimore-
Washington International airport. She stayed with me until I had purchased my round-trip ticket and
settled into a waiting room seat. Then, she left. I was on my own. But not really on my own. You see,
I had called 1-800-USArail the day before, and told the reservation agent that I was blind; that I would
be on the 6:44 a.m. train the next morning; that I would be grateful if the conductor would look for
me; that I would appreciate it if I could be seated in the food car so I could purchase some breakfast;
that I would be returning on the 5:25 p.m. train from Newark the same day. I was assured that my
name would be on the train manifest.
To further add to my confidence, the ticket agent said he would see that someone would guide
me onto the platform a few minutes before the train arrived. But I was nervous about that. He was
very busy that morning. I wondered if he might forget about me. Five minutes before train time I
stood up, EXTENDED MY TELESCOPING WHITE CANE, picked up my briefcase, and headed for
what I thought was the door. I was off on my direction and someone immediately asked if I would
care to be led out to the platform. Example Number One of the white cane's awareness value. I
gratefully accepted his offer. It turned out that I should have had faith in the ticket agent, for as the
train arrived he materialized at my side and guided me to the right platform location to board the cafe
car.
A conductor took over at that point, made sure I was aware of a gap between the platform and
the train doorway, and sat me at a table in the car. "I'll come back for you," he said, "just before we
get into Newark." And there I was, seated where I was supposed to be and on my way to my
destination.
The only problem I encountered was not having enough arms and hands. I was carrying a
briefcase as well as my cane, and the two items were not compatible with holding someone's elbow
when being guided. It was awkward most of the time, and could have been dangerous. When I
mentioned this to a veteran traveler, he strongly urged me to use a knapsack the next time, rather than
a briefcase. That little item, he explained keeps your hands free and is even less tiring physically. If
you think you would look silly with a knapsack on your back, he suggested a case with a shoulder
strap would accomplish the same goal of freeing your hands, although the weight and balance would
not be quite as well distributed.
 He also pointed out that I had made the right choice in canes, even though I had done it without
realizing the benefits. A folding or telescoping cane is so much easier to store when traveling. It fits
easily into luggage, can be tucked anywhere around you, and does not stick out in aisles or under
chairs the way a rigid long cane so often does. Of course, a rigid, light-weight cane has other
advantages )for example, it never collapses under pressure), so it pays to own at least one of each
type.
About fifteen minutes after I boarded the train and got settled, we pulled into Baltimore. A
number of commuters came aboard, and several settled across the aisle and overflowed opposite me. It
was only natural to strike up a conversation and we talked all the way to Philadelphia, their
destination. We talked about politics and, inevitably, about vision loss. As is so often the case, there
were people in the group who had incidences of blindness in their families.
When the train started moving again, I got up and began moving down the aisle toward the
cafe counter, using my cane as I went. Suddenly a hand touched my shoulder and a young woman's
voice said, "You're almost there. I'll tell you when to stop." I could have made it on my own, I'm,
sure, but here was example Number Two of the awareness value of the white cane and the
consideration and understanding of people. We chatted amiably while waiting for service, and then she
headed back to her seat in another car. I took my coffee and a bun in one hand, my cane in the other,
and started the return trip of half a car-length. As I neared my table, a voice on my left said, "One
more table and you will be there. Okay, stop right there." Example Number Three of the help you get
when out and about with your white cane. You're never alone.
True to his word, just before arriving at Newark, the conductor returned, led me to the
doorway and, as we came to a halt, he made sure I was off the train and on the platform. Again,
thanks to that long white cane, I could have handled it on my own. But the guidance was welcome,
since I had that cumbersome briefcase as well as the cane to juggle, and that left me without a free
hand to grasp handrails and the like. Once on the platform, the conductor informed me that a white-
haired gentleman was headed for us. That was my colleague with whom I was to spend the day. He
also delivered me to the train I took home that evening, a trip similar to the morning experience
except that I traveled in a regular coach instead of the cafe car.
Once again, the conductor came by to guide me off the train when we pulled into BWI station,
and my wife was there waiting. I greeted her with the mannerism of a seasoned traveler. What had
started out as a noble and nervous experiment had evolved into an uneventful, confidence-building
experience.
Would I travel by myself again? Absolutely. Thanks to the attentiveness of Amtrak employees
(the same is true of the airlines), and thanks to the awareness value of that white cane, you never
really travel by yourself. Fellow travelers are wonderful. You are never alone.ART OF LIVING
By Tom Keyser
From The Editor: Our good friend, Arthur Segal, died on August 25, 1998. For those of us
who knew Arthur and Shirley, Federation life will never be the same now that they are both gone. As
a remembrance, we are reprinting an article about Arthur and Shirley which appeared in the Baltimore
Sun, August 8, 1989.
Shirley Trexler and Arthur Segal met as youngsters at a school for the blind 50 years ago.
She had been born with glaucoma, an eye disease that eventually took her sight. He went blind
after being shot in the eye with an arrow while playing cowboys and Indians.
Blindness has not prevented Shirley and Arthur from living a full life in Baltimore. Their
canes have led them through the crowds at Artscape and Summerfest and performances of the
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Longtime friends, they got married this spring after living together 15
years. She is 57. He is 61.
They live in an apartment at Horizon House at 1101 N. Calvert St. There are paintings on the
walls.
Shirley laughed.
"It always takes people a while," she said, "but they end up saying, `Gee, we didn't know
what to expect. We didn't even know whether you'd have anything on the wall.'"
Modern art hangs above the sofa, and a painting of birds adorns the kitchen. A peace sign
hangs in the living room, and a sculpture squats next to the record player, and plants thrive in baskets
by the windows.
Most of the art work are gifts.
"It means something to us to have things around," Shirley said, "just like it means something
to most people."
She could see colors and large objects until she was in her 30's. But she never saw well
enough to rely on her sight.
Arthur could see until he was 8 years old, when an arrow made out of an umbrella spoke
pierced his right eye. Doctors couldn't save the eye, and in a couple of weeks he lost his sight in his
other eye.
It was a phenomenon known as "sympathetic ophthalmia." Doctors learned later on the
battlefields of World War II that if they didn't remove the badly injured eye, an inflammation could
form in the other eye and cause blindness.
Arthur had both eyes removed, and now lives in darkness - at least that is what a person who
can see would think.
"Dark is something you see," Shirley said. "To a blind person it's not anything.
"Picture trying to see out of your ears. Is it dark? Is it light? It's kind of nondescript."
Arthur said, "The image in my brain is an image of light. I know it's afternoon, and I know
the light's coming through the windows over there. At least I think it is.
"And tonight at 11, I'll know it's dark outside. And it would be dark in here except that
Shirley will turn on the lights. She likes to have the lights on at night."
She can distinguish light from dark, and anyway, she said, "It's appropriate to turn lights on at
night."
She said she used to be able to see the small colored lights on their Christmas tree.
"We'll get more flickering lights this year," Arthur said.
They listen to the radio and stereo - the news, jazz, show tunes - and to books and magazines
on tape. They are considering buying a small television because their building has been wired for
cable.
"You can hear a movie plot," Shirley said.
They seldom go out to the movies, because they generally don't like what's playing. The last
movie Arthur went to was "Love Story" in the 1970's. But they don't miss much else that goes on
around the city.
They recently went to Artscape, the city's annual arts fair. A friend gave them a ride, and at
the information booth a worker provided them with a guide.
Most people at Artscape watched people. Shirley and Arthur listened to the bands. They ate
soft-shell crab sandwiches and gyros. They soaked up "the general atmosphere," as Shirley put it. "The
sounds, the smells. We like being around people."
They didn't hesitate to ask questions: "What booth is this? What's going on at this table?" And
they got answers.
They think they got as much, if not more, out of Artscape than most people.
If you followed a sighted person through the arts and crafts booths at Artscape, and then asked
them what they had seen, Arthur said, "They'd be able to tell you very little. They don`t observe
things at all. I think you'd find out how little their vision is telling them."
Shirley added, "They don't really take it in. Sighted people really know very little about their
environment. They use their vision very poorly. It's almost visceral what they do."
"They sure don't give good directions," Arthur said, laughing. "I'd rather have a blind person
tell me how many blocks it is from point A to point B than a sighted person."
Arthur works for the city, making sure its programs and facilities are accessible to
handicapped people. Before he and Shirley moved to Baltimore, he operated food businesses in
Philadelphia for 24 years. For 13 of those years he operated a snack bar at the Philadelphia City Hall.
He also worked as a rehabilitation counselor in Pennsylvania and taught Braille and grooming
and other living skills to blind people. After graduating from the Overbrook School for the Blind in
Philadelphia, he earned bachelor's and master's degrees in special education from the University of
Pennsylvania.
Shirley also earned her degree: a bachelor's in social welfare from Temple University. Now
she works as the mid-Atlantic sales director for AIDS (Alternative Independent Devices and Services)
Unlimited, selling products for blind and disabled people.
She and Arthur parted ways after school, but met again in Philadelphia at a meeting of the
Liberty Alliance of the Blind, an advocacy group for blind people, which Shirley had formed. They
eventually shared an apartment together, and six years ago they moved to Baltimore.
She is a deacon at Brown Memorial Park Avenue United Presbyterian Church. They both are
active in the National Federation of the Blind. They usually travel by cab.
"You can have as full a life as anybody. You can have as many pleasures," Shirley said. "I
don't dwell on what I don't see anymore. I'm used to being a blind person."
"It's really a nuisance more than anything," Arthur said.
When they buy clothes they pin on Braille labels. A label on one of Arthur's ties says "yellow
with design of blue, gray and black." A label on a suit says "charcoal gray."
He gets his shirts custom-made, partly out of vanity, he said, and partly out of necessity.
Depending on its color, each shirt is monogrammed in different lettering or in a different place. He
finds the monogram with his fingers and discovers the color.
Two people visit regularly to read Shirley and Arthur's mail, to pay their bills, to write their
checks, to order from clothing catalogs. A friend takes Arthur to the supermarket every few weeks,
mainly to help select food in cans and boxes that Arthur can't identify by touch.
The friend picks out the food, and Arthur slips on a plastic label with, for instance, "Brussel
sprouts" or "onion crackers" written in Braille. He has magnetic Braille labels for cans.
They both cook, maneuvering patiently around the kitchen.
Once a week, usually Friday or Saturday, Arthur shops for fresh foods at Cross Street Market
in South Baltimore. He usually takes a cab to the Light Street entrance and enters through the glass
doors, pulling his shopping cart.
He's been shopping there six years, so he knows his way around. At Fenwick's Meats, Larry
Reisinger said of Arthur:
"It's amazing. He always, always stops at the exact same place every time, dead center at the counter."
Arthur bought chicken and ground turkey at Bill's Poultry, and June Geisler said, "That'll be
$8.40, hon"
He occasionally bumped into someone or ran his cart over their bags. But generally, with his
cane, he moved from stall to stall effortlessly.
"I try not to kill anyone," he said. "It's not good for the reputation."
At Cross Street Seafood, Arthur ordered two catfish fillets. Then John Anderson took Arthur's
hands and let him feel the soft-shell crabs.
"Got any bigger ones?" Arthur asked.
He finally declined the crabs, but ordered shark fillets and seafood cakes. Anderson added the
prices of each item out loud and slowly, but Arthur already knew the total; he had added the prices in
his head.
When Anderson said, "$22.35," Arthur hesitated , and Anderson knew he had made a mistake.
He added again and got $22.33.
Arthur took bills out of his pockets - different bills in each pocket - and paid for the fish.
Anderson slowly counted the change, identifying each bill and placing it in Arthur's hands.
Arthur folded the bills into his pockets and placed the package into his cart. He tapped his
cane on the floor and began moving toward the produce.
"See you next week," he said to Anderson.
"See you next week, sir," Anderson replied.RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE 98 CONVENTION

Resolution 98-01

WHEREAS the State of Maryland is known as a leader in the technology field through the
leadership of Governor Parris Glendening; and
WHEREAS the annual Maryland Technology Showcase, with an expected attendance this year
of over 14,000, under the direction of Major Riddick, the Chief of Staff for the Governor's Office, is
now recognized as a national model that demonstrates creative partnerships between government and
the private sector; and
WHEREAS the success of the National Federation of the Blind's nonvisual access technology
initiatives such as Newsline for the Blind, America's Job Line, and information technology access
legislation, is further confirmation of the NFB's determination to ensure full opportunity for the blind
of this country; and
WHEREAS Governor Glendening has chosen the National Federation of the Blind to be this
year's nonprofit partner of the Maryland Technology Showcase, to be held December 9 and 10, 1998
at the Baltimore Convention Center, Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, in convention
assembled this 8th day of November, 1998 in the city of Cumberland, that the National Federation of
the Blind of Maryland extends a handshake of partnership to the Governor and his staff, and conveys
appreciation for being recognized as this year's nonprofit partner at the Maryland Technology
Showcase.

Resolution 98-02

WHEREAS due to their short viable life cycle, daily newspapers have never been accessible to
blind persons in a timely manner; and
WHEREAS through Newsline, the National Federation of the Blind now has a simple means
by which blind persons may read many daily newspapers, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week,
from a touch-tone telephone, giving blind persons unprecedented access to current information; and
WHEREAS, unlike other electronic formats  (i.e. the Internet) for daily newspapers, blind
persons do not need personal computers to access Newsline; and
WHEREAS all that is required for the establishment of Newsline in any local area is a
sponsoring organization willing to fund relatively inexpensive initial setup costs and periodic
maintenance fees; and
WHEREAS Newsline has been received with considerable interest and support from blind
persons wherever local Newsline operations have been established; and
WHEREAS in Maryland, the Montgomery County Public Library has made a special effort to
support and maintain a local Newsline service for Montgomery County and the national capital area
and, as such, is widely known as an effective demonstration of nonvisual access technology; Now,
therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, in convention
assembled this 8th day of November, 1998 in the city of Cumberland, that this organization commends
the Montgomery County Public Library for supporting and maintaining Newsline for Montgomery
County and the surrounding area; and 
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we urge the Montgomery County Public Library to
continue to maintain the local Newsline service, so that blind persons may be provided with current
information from daily newspapers on a long-term basis.

Resolution 98-03
WHEREAS, it is assumed that all sighted students in public elementary and secondary
education shall be provided with the necessary textbooks; and
WHEREAS, students who read Braille are entitled to the same access to textbooks as that
which is accorded to students who read print; and
WHEREAS, according to the Maryland Literacy Rights and Education Act, which became law
in 1992, "The (Maryland State) Department (of Education) (MSDE) shall develop procedures to
coordinate the statewide availability of textbooks and supplementary instructional materials in
nonvisually accessible media"; and
WHEREAS, In accordance with the 1992 law, the Instructional Resource Center was
established by MSDE to facilitate and coordinate the statewide distribution of textbooks;  and
WHEREAS, the statewide coordination and distribution of Braille textbooks offers numerous
advantages, including: 
(1) Textbooks are placed into the hands of students in a more timely fashion;  
(2) It is cost effective for the local school systems because it facilitates the borrowing of
existing textbooks while eliminating the unnecessary purchasing of additional textbooks;  
(3) It saves time for the vision teachers in the public schools, who are responsible for the
ordering of textbooks, thus enabling them to devote more time to the needs of their students; 
(4) The local school systems are not penalized for depositing their textbooks at the
Instructional Resource Center, because the place of origin of each title is recorded and that school
system is given first preference if a student in its jurisdiction needs one of its books; and
WHEREAS, Every local school system in Maryland, except the Montgomery County school
system, now participates in this program; and
WHEREAS, Maryland students outside Montgomery County may be denied timely access to
textbooks acquired by Montgomery County because of the failure of Montgomery County and MSDE
to comply with the law; and
WHEREAS, By failing to take action against the Montgomery County Public School System
for this transgression, MSDE is not in total compliance with the Maryland Literacy Rights and
Education act; and
WHEREAS, this failure on the part of both MSDE and the Montgomery County Public School
System displays grossly parochial, short-sighted, and uncooperative attitudes towards the problems
facing the education of blind and visually impaired students; Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, in convention
assembled this 8th day of November, 1998 in the city of Cumberland, that this organization condemns
and deplores both MSDE and the Montgomery County Public School System for their failure to
comply fully with the Braille Literacy Rights and Education Act; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urges the Montgomery County School
System to participate in the textbook coordination program immediately;  and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urges MSDE to live up to its
responsibility to enforce the Maryland Literacy Rights and Education Act.

Resolution 98-04

WHEREAS blind people need to use computers to advance in our technologically demanding
workplaces; and
WHEREAS standard computers are not accessible to blind and visually impaired persons; and
WHEREAS adaptive technology is an essential tool for blind persons pursuing education,
employment and economic self-reliance; and
WHEREAS blind Marylanders must rely on the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS)
for technology assessments, acquisition and training; and
WHEREAS clients routinely have to do battle with DORS in order to obtain even the most
basic adaptive technology; and
WHEREAS it is not uncommon for DORS clients to wait months, and sometimes years, for
DORS' "experts" to assess, select and procure technology critical to clients' education, employment or
advancement; and
WHEREAS clients must wait additional months or years for training in the use of these
technologies; and
WHEREAS technologies often become outdated before DORS procures the recommended
technologies or provides training in their use; and
WHEREAS these harmful delays severely interfere with the educational and economic well-
being of hundreds of blind clients whose futures are put on hold while DORS staff casually administer
their caseloads; Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, in convention
assembled this 8th day of November, 1998 in the city of Cumberland, that we urge DORS to work
with the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland to:
(1) affirm the client's right to choose the technology which will best meet his or her needs;
(2) expedite the technology assessment and training process;
(3) establish clear timelines for the provision of needed technology;
(4) identify community-based, consumer-oriented resources to provide technology assessment
and training for blind clients; and
(5) create incentive systems which will encourage DORS staff to handle technology issues in a
respectful, resourceful and timely manner.

Resolution 98-05

WHEREAS the Maryland General Assembly, during its 1998 session, passed legislation,
subsequently signed into law, requiring the development of a nonvisual access clause for use in the
procurement by the State of information technology; and
WHEREAS the inclusion of a nonvisual access clause in procurement contracts is essential to
ensure that new technologies purchased by the State of Maryland are usable by everyone--blind and
sighted alike; and
WHEREAS this new legislation provides Maryland with the opportunity to lead the nation in
establishing nonvisual access standards for the purchase of information technology, but the progress in
implementing the law to date has not demonstrated the strong commitment needed by the State to
provide leadership in this area; and
WHEREAS the State's commitment must include the development of guidelines, in close
consultation with experts from the National Federation of the Blind, but this consultation has not been
sought except through the initiative of the National Federation of the blind; and
WHEREAS, unlike Maryland, officials in the State of Minnesota have worked closely with the
National Federation of the Blind to develop that State's guidelines to implement similar legislation;
and
WHEREAS the strategies to provide nonvisual access have been proven to be cost-effective
and readily achievable--especially when nonvisual access is considered during the early design phase;
therefore it is essential that the State of Maryland provide training opportunities for vendors and their
design engineers; Now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, in convention
assembled this 7th day of November, 1998 in the city of Cumberland, that this organization call upon
Maryland's Information Technology Chief and the Maryland Information Technology Board to
proceed with alacrity to develop and promulgate a nonvisual access clause to be used in the
procurement of information technology by the State; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urges the State's Information Technology
Chief and the Information Technology Board to consult with the National Federation of the Blind for
assistance in developing specific nonvisual access guidelines; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call upon the State of Maryland to demonstrate
national leadership in information technology by sponsoring the first-ever nonvisual access training
and technical assistance conference for vendors and their design engineers.CALENDAR

Saturday March 20, Art Auction, Sponsored by the Greater Baltimore Chapter

Wednesday March 31, Deadline for National Scholarship Applications

Friday April 9 - Sunday April 11, Teen Retreat

Saturday April 24, Maryland day to visit National Center

Saturday May 15 - Friday May 21, National White Cane Week

Tuesday June 1, Deadline for State Scholarship Applications

Wednesday June 30 - Tuesday July 6, National Convention, Atlanta, Georgia

Friday August 6, Annual Crab Feast for Scholarship Fund, Columbus Gardens, Baltimore

Monday August 9 - Friday August 13, BISM-NFB Camp for Students, 1st - 5th Grade

Friday October 15, White Cane Safety Day

Friday October 22 - Sunday October 24, State Convention, Carousel Hotel, Ocean City


SPECKS

New Baby

On February 8th, at 11:24 PM Andrea Louise Gormley came into the world. She weighed 6 pounds 7
ounces and was 19 and one half inches long. Her proud parents, Patrick and Tina Gormley, boast that
Andrea will be the youngest member of the Sligo Creek Chapter of the National Federation of the
Blind of Maryland when she joins them at meetings. Congratulations!

Dies

We have belatedly learned of the death of Alfred Wilson, charter member of our Southern Maryland
Chapter, last summer.

Hezekiah Williamson, long time member of the Greater Baltimore Chapter, died earlier this year.

Rest in peace.                             THE BRAILLE SPECTATOR

                               Al Maneki, Editor

                               Winter 1998-1999

    The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, an affiliate of the National
Federation of the Blind, is a non-profit organization of blind people whose purpose is to
promote equal opportunities for the blind.  We provide advocacy services for the blind,
special training programs for parents of blind children, job referrals and placements for the
blind, public education programs, scholarships to blind students, and help the newly
blinded to acquire special techniques for maintaining productive lives.
    The Braille Spectator is published quarterly for members of the National
Federation of the Blind of Maryland and others who share an interest in the work of this
organization.  The recorded edition, available on cassette, can be obtained upon request.
Cassettes may be returned to the National Center for the Blind, 1800 Johnson Street,
Baltimore, MD 21230.
    Send all inquiries, donations, news items, articles, letters to the editor, address
changes and additions to the circulation list to the NFB of Maryland, 9736 Basket Ring
Road, Columbia, MD 21045.

    Officers of the NFB of Maryland: Sharon Maneki, President; Lynn Mattioli, First Vice President;
Barry Hond, Second Vice President; Debbie Brown, Secretary; Judy Rasmussen, Treasurer.
    Members of the Board of Directors: Jean Faulkner, Fred Flowers, Michael Gosse, Dorris Johnson,
Don Morris, Joe White.

CHAPTERS AND DIVISIONS OF THE
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND OF MARYLAND

Baltimore County Chapter, Hilda Cullison, President (410)284-2575
  Monthly meetings fourth Thursday
Greater Baltimore Chapter, Lynn Mattioli, President (410)625-0076
  Monthly meetings third Saturday
Central Maryland Chapter, Leon Rose, President (410)730-3578
  Monthly meetings first Tuesday
Greater Cumberland Chapter, Gary Klatt, President (301)777-0131
  Monthly meetings first Tuesday
Sligo Creek Chapter, Debbie Brown, President (301)881-1892
  Monthly meetings second Saturday
Mountain City Chapter, Jean Faulkner, President (301)729-8942
  Monthly meetings third Thursday
Southern Maryland Chapter, Ed Harley, President (301)899-8178
  Monthly meetings first Saturday
Parents of Blind Children Division, Danielle Becker, President (301)695-7657
Business Division, Raymond Sewell, President (410)766-5910
Student Division, Nicole Fincham, President (410)355-0574
Diabetics Support Network, Donna Goodman, Chairman (410)730-9430
  Monthly meetings fourth Tuesday
Senior's Issues Committee, Roger Walker, Chairman (410)525-1029THE BRAILLE SPECTATOR
                            
                           Al Maneki, Editor
                           Winter 1998-1999

  The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, an affiliate of the National
Federation of the Blind, is an organization of blind persons working for equal rights
and equal opportunities for the blind.  We provide advocacy services for the blind,
special training programs for parents of blind children, job referrals and placements
for the blind, and public education programs.  We offer numerous scholarships to blind
students, special assistance to diabetics who are confronted with the loss of vision,
and help to the newly blind to acquire special techniques for maintaining productive
lives.  The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland is a nonprofit organization that
depends on public support to carry out its programs.  

        The Braille Spectator is published quarterly for members of the National
Federation of the Blind of Maryland and others who share an interest in the work
of this organization.  The recorded edition, available on cassette, can be obtained
upon request.  While there is no charge for subscriptions to the Braille Spectator,
donations to cover the cost of its production are appreciated.

        Send donations, news items, articles, letters to the editor, address changes and
additions to the circulation list to the NFB of Maryland, 9736 Basket Ring Road,
Columbia, MD 21045.

        Officers of the NFB of Maryland: Sharon Maneki, President; Lynn Mattioli,
First Vice President; Barry Hond, Second Vice President; Debbie Brown, Secretary;
Judy Rasmussen, Treasurer.

        Members of the Board of Directors: Jean Faulkner, Fred Flowers, Michael Gosse,
Dorris Johnson, Don Morris, Joe White.