




                MINNESOTA

                           BULLETIN








Quarterly Publication of the
National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota, Inc.
100 East 22nd Street
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55404
(612) 872-9363
Tom Scanlan, Editor


Volume LXI, Number 4, Spring 1997


WE ARE CHANGING
WHAT IT MEANS
TO BE BLIND



Table of Contents


Les Affaires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   1

A Note of Thanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8

A List of Ideas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8

Blindness, Learning and New Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  14

Move-A-Thon Set. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  17

SSB Communication Center Plans for the 21st Century. . . . . . . .  18

MCTO Meets the Metro Chapter Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  19

Parent Column. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  27

Linda Oliva Honored. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  28

Convention Alert!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  29



                             Les Affaires
                      By Joyce Scanlan, President

(Editor's Note:  The quotations in the following article are made directly from
the book being reviewed.  The grammar was not edited.)

When I became a rehabilitation student (they called us "trainees") at the
Minneapolis Society for the Blind (now Vision Loss Resources, VLR), I had
specific goals to achieve.  I wanted employment.  Independence and self-
sufficiency had always meant everything to me.  Teaching English and Latin
had been my profession when I could see.  But now that I was blind, I
questioned my ability ever again to teach.  My confidence had been shattered,
and my self-esteem was at an all-time low.  I wanted to know how to deal with
this blindness, this new barrier in my career.

On the surface, I wanted a job.  Deep down, I wanted something done about
the problems blindness was causing.  My future had been destroyed. 
Financially, I was bankrupt.  It was a very angry and frightened person who sat
across from the intake worker that first day.  If I could have verbalized my
situation at the moment, I might have said, "I challenge you to show me that
I can succeed as a blind person.  Prove to me that I can have a happy and
productive life.  Give me hope that life can again be good."

What did I learn at the rehab center?  Instructors said to me, "You are not
blind.  You don't look blind.  You look at people when you talk to them.  You
can carry your collapsible cane for identification.  If you lose all your vision,
you'll be better off than most people here, because you have seen.  Also, if you
lose more vision, you can always come back to the center for more training." 
This was my first experience in a rehab center, and I had nothing by which to
measure what happened.  Many observations made me very uncomfortable. 
Staff were heard talking about and laughing at students.  They frequently
discussed students with other students in negative terms.  One instructor
brought out a student file and read from it to another group of students.  In
my book, this was a breach of confidentiality and most unprofessional.  All this
was very upsetting, but I felt powerless to do anything about it.

At the end of one month at the training center, I was informed that my time
was up.  All my fears and doubts about blindness had been confirmed. 
Blindness was even more a barrier, since I had learned that even the experts
feared blindness and treated blind people with disdain.  Any hope for a
productive future was gone.

Lest anyone think I am making up stories about the negative attitudes toward
and poor treatment of blind people practiced by the professional staff of our
local rehab center, let me tell you about a book written by Marie Williams
entitled "The Worldwide Church of the Handicapped" and recently published
by Coffee House Press in Minneapolis.  The fifteen stories in this book provide
the foundation for the criticism blind people in the area have raised concerning
the attitudes toward blindness of our once-upon-a-time only rehab training
center for blind people.  Marie Williams, a social worker, served at various
times as intake worker and director of community services at VLR in
Minneapolis.  According to her book, she also fancied herself to be a writer. 
I will not attempt to evaluate that aspect of her career.  (Her book was quite
favorably reviewed by several social workers and psychotherapists.)   However,
her role as a professional staff person in the rehab center, where many of our
friends received "services," is of interest to us as Federationists.

One major gripe many Minnesota Federationists might have with Ms. Williams'
book is that she names one of her key characters Evangeline Kuhlman.  Why
would she choose the name Evangeline?  One of our Federation members,
who was also connected with VLR--she was employed in the sheltered
workshop there--was Evangeline Larson.  Ms. Williams' dedicates her book to
several people, among them Myrtle Coplen, another social worker at VLR. 
The dedication says, "to Myrtle Clara Coplen, who lives in these stories and in
the hearts of many, many people whose lives she touched."

In fact, Myrtle Coplen, or Evangeline Kuhlman, does figure in many of the
stories of Ms. Williams' book.  The first story in the book is entitled, "The
Worldwide Church of the Handicapped."  The reader is immediately
introduced to Evangeline Kuhlman as "a woman.  . . .  She is sixty years old,
blind, fat, psychic, some kind of alcoholic, I guess; intelligent, kind, and tough;
and she has high blood pressure which she attempts to control occasionally
with Transcendental Meditation.  She says the T.M. really works, but she can't
be bothered most of the time."  Later Evangeline is further described:  "Her
face is merry; round, soft, blurred, little nose, little mouth, almost always an
effect of smiling; if you ask her any time at all how she is, she will say--
"Excellent!"  You can depend on it.  Her speaking voice is a hoarse shout,
ruined into this by years and years of talking to blind people who are also hard
of hearing.  . . .  She is (she says) crazy.  I am pretty crazy too.  When we are
together we are sometimes marvelously and spectacularly crazy.  Technically
she is handicapped.  Technically I am not."  Later this Vange and Ms. Williams
are discussing their jobs at the rehab agency; both are apparently quite drunk. 
They are considering somewhere else they might work; Vange says, "'Anyway,
we're too crazy now, no place else would want us,' she said, with the cracking
laugh that comes from screaming at deaf people for twenty-one years and
smoking three or four packs of unfiltered Chesterfield Kings a day."  This
Vange is definitely Myrtle Coplen.

Why in the world was the name Evangeline selected for Mrs. Coplen?  Surely
Ms. Williams knew both Myrtle Coplen and Evangeline Larson well.  A lack
of creativity?  An attempt to confuse or blur personalities?  There's no viable
excuse.  Many Federationists who will read the book will find this aspect
offensive.

I will not claim to understand everything Ms. Williams is talking about in this
book.  She goes crazy over dwarfs, authors' names, messages from former
workers, and all manner of in-group sort of humor.  Several of her characters
are identifiable, although she does use aliases.  In the first story, "The
Worldwide Church of the Handicapped," she launches into this long diatribe
on some dwarf with numerous disabilities and some church, which was
organized or not organized.  She says, "I would like to tell you that it lasted
forever, but it didn't last forever of course.  In a few years the blind people got
the idea that because they were first, they were special.  A superiority cult of
blind people started up:  A sort of subdivision-The International Church of the
Blind."  In some garbled way she is probably referring to us, the Federation. 
But who knows for sure?

The attitude toward blindness and the blind people seeking services at the
rehab agency expressed in this book provide the single reason for a
Federationist to read and review the book at all.  The negative attitude toward
blindness and blind people comes out again and again throughout the stories
in the book.  In identifying herself and her colleagues, Ms. Williams says early
on in the first story, "We are the honorable cadre of folks who look straight at
incomprehensible pain five days a week for a living:  Who the hell else could
understand."  This theme appears numerous times in the book.  Blindness is
"incomprehensible pain; it remains that way for all blind people forever. 
Nothing ever changes."  The staff of the rehab agency escape from the pain
that they sense around them on their jobs by drinking at the "Orange Onion,"
the local bar they all frequent.  The staff have many discussions in public (on
the bus) about who is more "handicapped" and should be allowed to sit in
handicapped seating.  Ms. Williams seems to be proud of this behavior.  She
says, "People look at us, or look away, in disapproval.  Not all of them, though. 
Some of them like us.  We do make inroads.  . . .  We laugh together; we are
entirely enchanted with ourselves."  "PBP's" are poor blind people, and a
"PDSS" is a poor dumb sighted shit.  There are derogative labels for everything
and everyone.  Sometimes Peter (probably John Bankovics, the Braille and
abacus instructor at VLR) is also on the bus.  Vange calls Peter a "blind
drunk."  All have just come from the Orange Onion and are probably drunk. 
What a scene to educate sighted people about blindness, and this provided by
the professionals, the experts, of a rehab agency.  What a fine set of role
models for blind people present on the bus.  Is it any wonder that VLR
graduates are strong advocates for Metro Mobility for blind people?  Who
would want to mingle with this crowd of professionals?

Rehab counselors are drawn into Ms. Williams' book also.  She, the writer, is
an intake worker at the agency for the blind.  She tells of a counselor who
called her from the referring agency one day.  "I've got one for you:  her
sardonic, flat, pained voice came over the telephone.  Brenda is probably my
favorite counselor over there:  she never bullshits me, she shoots absolutely
straight, her attitudes are almost a hundred percent negative, I find her very
funny."  Then, the counselor goes on to tell about the couple she is referring: 
They will soon be on Social Security Disability benefits; currently they receive
SSI:  The author says, "I wouldn't want to shit you, said Brenda:  I'm probably
the only professional in town who likes them.  Vickie's doctor hates them, and
their social worker hates them, Legal Aid hates them, Methodist Hospital hates
them, listen, their garbage collector probably hates them, the mailman probably
hates them.  . . .  Well, you know, she said.  They're a multiproblem couple. 
A blight on society.  The sty in the eye of the nation, you should excuse the
expression.  They've got every agency in town involved in their case.  And the
thing is, they're not a bit ashamed or depressed or anything.  They're making
a very good life out of it."

The story of "The Blight on Society" goes on to tell of how Vickie's diabetic
condition deteriorated and the counselor and social worker went to visit her
and her husband Grange in their home.  Much is made of the couple's home
with mirrors, paintings, sculptures, much art--all paid for by welfare.  The
bedroom in which the two professionals sit with Vickie to offer some comfort
as she sobs over her toe, which has now become gangrenous, is described over
and over.  Ms. Williams says, "Oh, you know, the laughing devil in me loved
it, the devil went mad.  Purple crepe-paper bed canopy, he pointed out, and
gangrene.  Too much.  Too much.  . . .  so there we were, two fortunate cynical
women, holding a sobbing Vickie with her gangrenous toe under the purple
crepe-paper canopy."  As she and Brenda sit rocking and comforting Vickie,
the writer's thoughts wander through many issues--her own life and divorce,
her daughter, Brenda's life, their husbands, the mirrors, the Jesus statue, etc. 
Then Ms. Williams says, "Oh, my devil who saves me is laughing to split his
sides:  can you hear him?  Surely his laughter is so loud that you can hear it." 
As the two leave Vickie and Grange, they go on ridiculing and laughing at the
unfortunate pair whom they regard as "a blight on society."

"Poor Raymond" is a story in which we see more self-pity on the part of the
professional social worker.  She and her coworkers receive calls from distraught
clients who wish to die.  Their conditions deteriorate, and there is no hope for
recovery.  The professionals laugh and cry and search for relief for themselves. 
They are unable to offer anything to their clients, so they focus on themselves. 
"You want to be a social worker, a therapist, serve mankind and rake in the
chips?  Be a fat cat?  You can be my goddamn guest."  We can all understand
how difficult it is to feel helpless and not being able to offer solace to a person
who is dying.  But to laugh at those involved and ridicule them is not a good
answer.  Why do these social workers remain in their field of work?  They are
obviously miserable and would do better in another line of work.  Leave the
blindness field, please.

At one point in the Williams book there is true honesty.  In defining the
professionals as "we" and the blind people as "they," she says, "Obviously we
exist because of them--live off of them, if you care to look at it that way. 
Sometimes we do look at it that way, when we are being particularly honest,
or bitter, or even just smart-ass.  ("Live off of"?--there are days when I think
that if this is living, you can--uh--have it.)"  She says that clients are always told
that they can come back for more training, as I was told, but she says also, "out
of the hundreds, really very few ever come back."  Typical attitudes toward
blind clients appear and reappear throughout the book.  In "The Prettiest Girl
in Eau Claire," in reference to someone she calls Melanie, the storyteller says,
"We did the best we could for her, but it wasn't really very much.  And to tell
the truth, we weren't that crazy about Melanie.  We tried hard for her because
we are, in our own field, the best in the business.  But there was something
about her you couldn't quite like."  This story contains a long narrative about
how the social worker waited with rehab students for taxicabs at the end of the
day.  Why aren't they, or some of them, taking the bus?  Is this just another
example of teaching blind people to be dependent and not ride the bus?  More
business for Metro Mobility!  In the same story, a person named Emily begins
to cry.  Ms. Williams says, "Silly to cry?  Not so, Emily.  Cry all night, make
rivers with your tears--I have to make a point with you, though, it will not help,
tears are not silly, they are just useless after a while.  And people do not like
you when you cry all the time."  The theme of despair, sadness, and
hopelessness comes into the stories over and over again.

As I read this book, I searched and searched for stories of success.  Mostly the
book tells of multihandicaps, futile struggles and deaths.  I longed to hear of
progress blind people were making, new skills they were learning, confidence
they were gaining as they went through training.  Frankly, I did not find any
of this.

In the story on "Wilma Bremer's Funeral," Ms. Williams reveals some of her
thinking on cane travel and the use of sighted guides, as well as several other
skills.  She is discussing the teachers in the rehab center, who, she says, "teach
blind people how to walk with white canes, for example (that is a terrifying job,
I don't know how the hell they can do it; most of the mobility instructors are
or become--very different from the rest of us, somewhat withdrawn and apart. 
And they more or less consider themselves the high priests of our remarkable
craft, as strange and esoteric and religious in its way as any ancient Egyptian
embalmer's trade); other teachers who teach blind people how to read Braille,
use an abacus; how to cook without burning themselves and everything else up
when they can't see the fire; how to type, write checks, use cassette recorders,
how to knit, model in clay, crochet, weave, do macrame, play poker, and use
the power saw.  (You think I am putting you on, I'm not, we do teach blind
people to use power tools, why not?  We've even got a blind hockey team,
blind archers.)"  She does mention that some of the staff do teach blind people
to work.  She says that some of the staff teach blind people to "earn money,
support themselves and their families, view themselves as workers--after all,
that's where it's at, isn't it?  You earn money, you are worth something?  You
do not, you aren't?  So we teach blind people to work."  The emphasis is on
the sheltered shop workers, although Ms. Williams grants that some people do
go out to work in the community (if they meet all sorts of qualifications, etc.) 
The sheltered workshop and the employees in it are described fully.

Federationists have always recognized a conflict between the rehab center and
the workshop.  Ms. Williams confesses, "You have to understand that there is
a great chasm, a barrier, between 'Rehab' and 'The Shop' so that very few of
the people from the shop know the people from rehab, and vice versa. 
Essentially, I think rehab is shy and aloof because they are somehow afraid of
the workshop.  And the workshop is very resentful of what they perceive as
rehab's disdainful attitude toward them.  Rehab is the class operation--the
showpiece of the agency--it is clean, righteous, haloed, the people in it seem
to think of themselves as somehow better.  (Confess--in your deepest heart,
don't you think you are better than a worker on a factory assembly line?). . . 
The workshop nurses a terrible anger against rehab; whenever anything goes
wrong, especially financially, it is 'rehab's fault.' And it is, too - rehab is
expensive, it is the son or daughter going to college, it cannot support itself
entirely.  The workshop is the old mother and father who toil and drudge to
support that glittering child--but sometimes they are hurt and angry even when
they are proud.  Especially if that child won't speak to them, especially if he
(or she) seems to be ashamed of them.  Rehab is ashamed of its hardworking
parent:  The workshop.  It is a very uneasy relationship.  Apparently it cannot
be resolved.  So the people in rehab do not know many of the people in the
workshop."  That is Ms. Williams' explanation and one with which we can
probably agree.

The thriving attitude toward blind people, travel, and sighted guides at the
agency emerge in the story of Wilma Bremer's funeral.  Ms. Williams is asked
to be a sighted guide for some of the sheltered shopworkers.  Sighted guide
technique is described in detail.  The sighted person leads "easily and gracefully
and in a way that is perfectly dignified and inconspicuous.  . . .  Sighted guide
becomes automatic after you've done it a few thousand times.  It is a very
beautiful thing to see when it is done properly; and it is a very beautiful thing
to experience.  It is an act of pure service, economical, absolutely appropriate,
not too much given, not too little.  The blind person (if he's a good sort--there
are a few holdouts in any category) receives it as such, and this receiving,
acceptance, on his or her part, makes it an interaction, a gift, perfectly offered,
perfectly received.  How many gifts are that pure?  I absolutely love being a
sighted guide."  There you have it.  What melodrama.  This sighted guide thing
goes on and on.

The guided people in this story were told, "Now stand right here, don't move
until I get back . . ."  Those so instructed did not heed and left their assigned
spot.  The author concedes that it was understandable that they wouldn't wait,
since this was a funeral of one of their colleagues.  Then come the attitudes
toward the use of white canes:  We are told, "tripping or poking people with
the white cane is strictly out, as is stepping on toes or crashing into people.  A
certain amount of this however unavoidable in a crowd situation, unless you've
got one-to-one on sighted guide, which somehow never seems to happen in the
clutch."  This VLR social worker seems to believe that independent travel is
simply not possible for blind people.  We must all rely on the beneficence of
our caretaking professionals whenever we go out of our houses.  A very sad
story, but one which reveals the underlying cause of the failure of blind people
who were trained at that agency to believe in themselves.

"The Sun, The Rain" tells the story of Rosealice, a misfit in society who comes
to the rehab agency to work as a typist and braille transcriptionist.  No one,
except the social workers, like her because of her quaint style of dress, some
rather antisocial behaviors, her "highwaters," her name, her "differences."  In
the end, Rosealice is transfered to the workshop, because, as Ms. Williams
says, "The new blind board members don't want her, ... Because she's not blind. 
They think she should be blind."  This seems to be a reference to the eight
Federation board members who were elected to the board as a result of the
litigation over VLR's discriminatory behavior toward blind members.  None of
us can remember any such complaint over a typist who wasn't blind.  It is,
however, very possible that VLR officials concocted that story for the staff
when they wanted to move this Rosealice into the workshop.

I am very glad to have had the opportunity to read Ms. Williams' book.  She
has corroborated for me and for all of us everything we thought about the
rehab training provided by VLR when it had a monopoly on training programs
for blind people in this state.  Clearly, the purpose of the program was to keep
jobs going for the professional staff.  They were burned out and did not feel
their work had merit.  If we are to judge by this writer, they found escape in
alcohol, etc.  Why did they remain in their unpleasant jobs for so long?

Thank you, Ms. Williams, for demonstrating your attitudes toward blindness
on paper.  There lies in your stories absolute proof that you have little to offer. 
Blind people deserve better.  We have hope for a better life and we have
found it in our own organization.

The National Federation of the Blind has given us a philosophy with
opportunity for changing our society.  We are no longer powerless.  We have
each other as colleagues, and we no longer need the repression of the
traditional agencies to keep us down.  We're on the move to reach first-class
status in society.


                           A Note of Thanks
                          By Maxine Schrader

Dear Peggy,

This is a note of thanks for your excellent Minnesota Bulletin articles
concerning the past 75 years of the NFB of Minnesota.

Thanks for the caring, thoughtful way you presented the people and events of
those past years.  You're a very discerning person.

Thanks for the countless hours you spent researching the archives.  Choosing
just the right material was no easy task.

Thanks for recognizing the dedication and loyalty of those old-time members. 
They fought the agencies for just the right to organize, and they won.

And thanks for the memories your articles evoked.  It's good to recall old
times and old friends.  They were tough-spirited, good people, and I'm proud
to have known them and to have played a little part in shaping this
organization into the great one it is today.

Sincerely,

Maaxine


                            A List of Ideas
                            By Peggy Chong

At the March Metro Chapter meeting, we shared ideas and information on
helpful locally-available products or services.  Everyone learned something new
that day.

By keeping our ears open and using a bit of imagination, we can take
advantage of many products and services.  Services or products do not have to
be specifically marketed for the blind to be used by blind people.

Don't forget that your local library is a great place to start looking for
information and ideas.  Libraries have collections of videos, Compact Discs or
tapes of recorded music, and books on tape (commercially done).  Some have
a large-print collection and some have reading machines.

Here is an expanded list of the ideas that came out of the discussion at our
March chapter meeting.  

               INFORMATION AVAILABLE OVER THE TELEPHONE

The Minneapolis Public Library, 372-6500, Info Line is 372-6633.

St. Paul Public Library, 292-6311.

City Line, 645-6060, has a variety of categories to choose from for information
ranging from news to your horoscope.  There are also job listings on this
service.

Certificates of Deposit Interest Rate Line, 673-9040.

Movie Phone, 777-3456 (777-FILM), tells you what movies are playing this
week and where.

Minneapolis Star-Tribune Info Line, 673-9050, has many categories that include
movie listings to racetrack results.  The categories change from time to time. 
The current listings are listed in their newspaper.

Phone A Home, 673-8888, has listings of current rental property in the Metro
Area.

Saint Paul Pioneer Press Info Line, 222-1000.

                          ALTERNATIVE FORMATS

The Home Shopping Network has a listing of their coupons in Braille.

Sears and Westinghouse have Braille overlays for their appliances.  Ask where
you bought your microwave oven or stove for the overlays.

AT&T sells an answering machine that is totally voice-accessible for blind
people.

Tupperware is putting the size of the bowls in Braille on the bottom of the
bowls.

Alan Ackley, 627 East 5th Street, Des Moines, IA  50309,
515-288-3931, repairs Braille writers. 

U.S. West Special Needs Center, 1-800-223-3131.  Through the Telephone
Pioneers, repairs Braille writers locally in Minneapolis.  The fee for service is
$15.

Prophecy Designs, PO Box 84, Rt. 32, Road Pond, Maine 09564, 207-529-5318,
has Braille greeting cards for sale.  Not only is the verse in Braille, a
description of the front of the card is also Brailled.

Hidden Gifts, 522-2501.  Maureen Pranghofer, one of our members has started
a transcribing business.  She will transcribe anything, no matter how small, onto
tape, computer disc or Braille.

Volunteer Braille Services, 612-521-0372, 3730 Toledo Ave. N. Robbinsdale,
MN  55422, will Braille just about anything for blind persons.  They also have
a lending library of children's books in Braille and print/braille versions that
is now open to blind children across the country.

Playskool Toys sells magnetic letters and numbers for young children that have
the Braille character in the mold of each letter or number.  They are available
at Target, Wal-Mart, K-Mart and all other discount stores for under $4.

Minnegasco offers a home thermostat free of charge that has raised print
letters that can easily be read by touch.  It also clicks every two degrees.

Descriptive Video Service, 800-333-1203, has a catalog that comes out several
times a year with a listing of descriptive videos for sale at the same cost as the
original movie.  Also, several of the Blockbuster stores in the Metro area now
carry DVS videos.

Raised-line checks are available through many banks, including First Bank. 
They have raised lines to locate the spaces needed to be filled in.  These 


checks cost the same or just a bit more than the regular checks offered by the
banks.

                            TRANSPORTATION

Transportation is important for many activities.  There is more out there than
the bus and a taxi.  Check around at your local community center for leads on
transportation services in your neighborhood.  Don't forget that many of the
suburbs have services through the Metropolitan Council, 291-6359, such as the
Anoka or Dakota County Traveler, the new Woodbury Dial-A-Ride and the
Roseville Circulator.

Jewish Family and Children Services of Minneapolis, 593-1244, has a grocery
bus that runs every Tuesday for $3.  There are services to take you to the
doctor and other trips.  Call for routes and other information.

Northeast Neighborhood House, 781-6011, provides transportation to the
grocery store.  They would like you to call a week ahead, but that is not always
necessary.  It serves residents of Northeast and Southeast Minneapolis.

Several hospitals also offer a variety of transportation services for their in-
patients and patients.  Check with your hospital's Social Service Department
to see what services they may offer.

Minneapolis Age and Opportunity Center (MAO), 863-1042, provides
transportation for Minneapolis residents over the age of 55 for a small fee. 
They also have a host of other services available to seniors.

Below is a listing of van or shuttle services that service communities in greater
Minnesota.  Most of them leave from the airport.  Your travel agent may also
have other ideas of ground transportation that might service the communities
that you wish to reach.

Eau Clair Passenger,  715-835-0399.

Rochester Express,  507-288-4490.

Rochester Direct,  507-280-9270.

Four Star Lines,  612-537-0609.

Mankato Land to Air,  612-625-3977.

                 STORES THAT CARRY HARD TO FIND ITEMS

Brookstone sells a bird feeder with a cordless monitor so you can hear the
birds singing at the feeder.  At one time, they did sell a talking scale.

Sharper Image has been known to carry talking items on many occasions.

Speak To Me Catalog, 800-248-9965, 17913 108th Avenue, SE, Suite #155,
Renton, WA 98055, seth@halcyon.com.  They sell all kinds of things that make
sounds or talk, such as a sneezing pepper shaker.  They sell a talking caller ID
box, a talking thermometer, and a voice-it card that can be used to record and
play back verbal messages.

Avery Paper Co., 529-9133, 1401 West River Road, Minneapolis MN  55411,
carries hard-to-find paper products such as 5 x 7 roladex cards.

The Store, located at State Services for the Blind, 642-0777, has many of the
catalogs, too numerous to mention, from companies that market to the
blindness community.  Items from dymo tape and slates to computer-related
products can be found in "The Store" and in the catalogs they order from.

Radio Shack carries talking clocks, watches and at one time a talking volt
meter.

                          COMPUTERS AND SUCH

Columbia House, 800-544-4431, has a web site at www.columbiahouse.com that
a blind club member can use without sighted assistance.  The entire catalog of
videos, music, CD's and laser discs are listed on this site.

Critic's Choice Video, 800-367-7765, has a video catalog that does not require
membership or minimum order and has low shipping and handling charges. 
They will help search for titles or by stars through their video search line. 
They also have British imports such as "Are You Being Served" and "Dr. Who". 
 

OmniPage Pro 7.0 is a scanning software package that works well with speech
in Windows 95.  I am told that with an HP scanner that costs about $500 and
this scanning package, it is better than an Arkenstone system at a fraction of
the price.

CD Now is a way to order CD's over the Internet.  They are also selling videos
on this site.  TELNET to cdnow.com or access the service via the Web at
www.cdnow.com.

                           DELIVERY SERVICES

Ask your mail carrier for an envelope to purchase stamps through the mail.

It has come to my attention that there are a lot of stores that are starting to
deliver their products.  We just need to ask for the service to find out if it is
available.  Walgreens Drug and Butler Drug say that they will deliver
everything in their store including pop.

Other drug stores that will deliver are: Ideal Drug, Merwin Drug, and Snyder
Drug.  Check with your local drug store to find out what and where they will
deliver.  A few will even mail you a prescription if you purchase it from them
on a regular basis.

Rainbow Foods has a service to deliver its groceries.  The service is called
Store to Door.  Call 642-1892 or call the nearest Rainbow Foods to see if they
offer this service for your area.  There is a membership fee plus a charge based
on a percentage of your grocery bill.

Lunds Foods does not deliver, however, they provide shoppers to accompany
the customer through the store.  

Daytons stores have shoppers in the FYI Department.  They are mostly used
when shopping for clothes.  The shoppers will give advice of style and color on
the items they have chosen.   They will also shop for anything in the store for
you.

Gourmet Express, 922-3463, delivers for a wide variety of restaurants in the
Metro Area (southwest Minneapolis and western suburbs) for a fee.  Call for
specifics.

                                 IDEAS

Tim Aune says that he purchased a CD adapter from Target that plugs into his
talking book machine.  With his walkman, he can listen to books on cassette
through the headphones of his walkman radio, without having cords all over
the place.  The adapter transmits a signal to a radio.  You need to select a
section of the dial where there are few or no stations.

David Andrews says that he takes a baby-monitor transmitter and puts it in
front of his talking book machine to listen to his books around the house. 
Baby monitors can be bought all over the place such as Radio Shack and
rummage sales.


                Blindness, Learning and New Dimensions
                           By Cary A. Supalo

(Editor's Note:  Cary Supalo is a former student at our training center (BLIND,
Inc.) and delivered this speech at the 1997 National Conference of Blind Students
in Washington, D.C. as part of the National Federation of the Blind Washington
Seminar.)

It was five years ago when I was a junior at Bolingbrook High School in
Bolingbrook, Illinois.  That was when I was first told that a blind person was
limited in what he or she could accomplish in life.  I was in a meeting with my
itinerant teacher, guidance counselor, current and several past math teachers,
and my parents.  The topic at hand was whether a blind person could do
calculus or not.  I wanted to take calculus my senior year, but there were those
who were concerned about this.  I had successfully met all of the prerequisite
coursework.

I don't remember what I thought I was going to accomplish in this meeting
before I went in.  Everyone in the room told me that it was impossible for a
blind person to do calculus.  This was the first time when it hit me that a blind
person could not do everything he or she wanted to do in life.  In that meeting,
after over an hour of discussion, I was very reluctant to give in on the issue, so
I stood up and walked out and slammed the door behind me.  I had always
been a well-behaved student and never got upset at anything school related
before.  I don't know what was said after I left, but their point was made:  A
blind person was limited in what he or she could do in life.

Anyway, I then had to choose a major and a college that I wanted to attend. 
I, not knowing any better, chose a school that I thought would provide good
services to help a blind student.  I chose Northern Illinois University.  My
guidance counselor and my itinerant teacher both felt this school could best
meet my needs.  I proceeded to apply and was accepted.  I then had to choose
a major.  All of my interest-inventory surveys indicated math or science-related
fields.  Of course, I ruled these options out because a blind person couldn't do
calculus.  I chose business administration for my major.  My guidance
counselor said, "Yes, that is probably a field that a blind person could manage." 

Before I knew it, I graduated from high school and was off to college.  It was
now the summer of 1993, and I had no idea what to expect in college for a
blind student.  I had heard about this convention that was going on in Dallas,
Texas the first week in July.  I didn't know what it was, but I had decided that
it was in my best interest to attend this convention.  This convention was, of
course, the national convention of the National Federation of the Blind.  There
I met many blind people who were employed in different fields.  One of whom,
I will never forget, was a blind Advanced Calculus high school teacher.  At that
moment, I thought about what I had been told previously.  I couldn't believe
what I was seeing:  Blind people employed in just about any field that I could
imagine.  I started asking questions and talking to many people, and getting
people's names and numbers to contact later about other questions that came
to mind.  I now realized that Northern Illinois University was not the place for
me. 

I changed my major to electrical engineering, and then decided to transfer to
Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.  Now that I knew a blind person
could do Calculus and all the other science classes that went along with it, this
was something that I wanted to try.  There I spent my first year pursuing an
electrical engineering degree.  I learned that engineering wasn't the field for
me.  However, I enjoyed my science classes a great deal.  I eventually changed
my major to be pre-med, communications, and chemistry education.  It took
me some time before I came up with this combination of degrees.  I would like
to go to medical school and possibly go into the field of obstetrics or internal
medicine.  


However, all students who are trying to go to medical school should have a
viable fallback in mind in case they do not get in.  My fallback would be my
chemistry education degree.  I would like to teach at a school for the blind
teaching high school students to enjoy advanced math and science material. 
I realize this isn't for everyone, but I don't want what happened to me to
happen to another blind student.

Through the National Federation of the Blind, I learned that a blind person
can do whatever it is he or she wants to do if the commitment and desire are
there, along with the confidence and problem solving skills needed to deal with
the many barriers that will be encountered in a scientific field.

Obtaining quality training skills with the use of the long white cane, Braille,
computers with speech, and good home management skills greatly enhance the
learning experience.  By showing faculty members, classmates, and other
community residents that you are a competent blind person, it raises the
expectations of your fellow peers.

Being a pre-med student, I have to be familiar with several different science-
related concepts and theories.  These primarily consist of biology, chemistry,
and physics.  There is also some math required.  Many of these classes require
laboratory work.  Chemistry usually consists of a procedure from a lab manual,
required readings for that experiment which assist in helping me to predict
what should happen in the experiment.  In a chemistry lab, I do my required
readings and calculations with a reader.  If library research is required before
the lab is performed, I do that with a reader also.

Before lab, I read through the lab procedure with my sighted lab assistant. 
From there, we write up an outline of everything from what will be used in the
lab, to the procedure that will be conducted, to preparing all data tables for
data that is to be recorded.  At this point, I determine what my lab assistant
will and will not do.  I always ask the questions of the T.A. who is overseeing
the laboratory.  I am always the one who thinks about why a certain result was
obtained, and how to solve a problem if it should occur.  I usually record
observations with a slate and stylus, and the lab assistant writes down in the
data table what I instruct them to write down.  Once the lab is completed, I set
up a time to do the final lab report.  These I usually do on a computer with
speech.  I have my lab assistant draw the necessary graphs that go along with
the report.  These graphs can be anything from simple data relation graphs to
diagrams of specific molecules.


I also must be familiar with biology laboratory experiments.  Again, in these
labs the necessary readings are done in advance, and I have another sighted lab
assistant in this lab also.  Before the lab, we meet and read through the
procedure, do any pre-lab questions and calculations, and write up an outline
about what we'll be doing in the laboratory.  In a biology lab, many
experiments require the use of microscopes.  For these parts, the lab assistant
looks through the microscope and verbally describes what they see on the slide. 
From that, I decide what it is I am looking at.  If I need further clarification,
I ask questions.  Does it appear that it has a firm exterior?  Or are there any
obvious visible discolorations?  I also may ask the lab assistant to change the
magnification to a higher or lower level, if I feel it would help in the
identification of what it is that is being viewed.

All collected data are recorded in a lab notebook.  I sometimes record data
with a slate and stylus, but I don't always because if the lab consists of a
dissection, it is difficult to record data with animal parts and bodily fluids on
your hands.  For these experiments, I like to feel the organism that is being
dissected to get an idea of structural layout and size of one part verses another. 

Once the data has been collected, I meet with the lab assistant at another time
to do the lab report.  Again I do these on a computer with speech, and the lab
assistant draws the necessary diagrams of cells viewed on microscopes,
organisms being dissected, mathematical data relations, etc.  We also go over
the data that was recorded to make sure it was recorded in the most
appropriate way.

These are just a few basic procedures that I have adopted that seem to work
fairly well in laboratory classes.  They don't always work.  Some problems do
arise, but it is nothing I usually can't figure out some viable solution to.

I believe that if a blind student wishes to go to medical school, I think he or
she should be given the opportunity to do so.  With good training in the
alternative skills of blindness, problem solving skills, lots of creativity, and an
innate ability to understand scientific and mathematical concepts, you can
probably succeed in a field of this nature.


                            Move-A-Thon Set
                            By Peggy Chong

The date for the 1997 Move-A-Thon has been set.  Our Move-A-Thon will be
Saturday, September 20, 1997 in the great city of New Ulm.

Participants will remember that last year's route took us past historical brewery
sites in that city.  Some of us also remember the opportunity to stop and shop
at some local garage sales while walking through the quiet neighborhoods
along the route.  Others will remember the fantastic food that was donated to
the Move-A-Thon by many local businesses of New Ulm and the surrounding
area.  We all enjoyed our Sub sandwich lunch as we sat or played in the park.

Charlene Childrey has offered again to chair this year's event.  She promises
that things will be even bigger and better than last year.  "This year I know
what I am doing"  Charlene told me.

So, make sure you attend your July chapter meeting to pick up your Move-A-
Thon brochures for you, your friends, and your family.  Get out there and
collect pledges and contributions for yourself or the person you have chosen
to sponsor.  Remember, this is our only state fundraiser.  If we are going to
continue to fund many of our state's activities and the Minnesota Bulletin, we
need to go out there and collect contributions for our Move-A-Thon.

Finally, I look forward to seeing everyone Saturday, Sept. 20 at 9:00 a.m. in
New Ulm.  I should have my new walking shoes broken in by then.  A great
time will be had by all.  Oh yes, one can't forget the glockenspiel.  Some of us
missed its beautiful music last year.  The shopping is wonderful there as well. 
Why not make a weekend of it?


          SSB Communication Center Plans for the 21st Century
                           By David Andrews

The Communication Center of Minnesota State Services for the Blind has
developed a comprehensive plan to meet the needs of its blind, visually
impaired, and print-impaired customers in the 21st century.  It will address
changing needs due to increased technological sophistication of customers and
use new technology in broadcasting, electronics, and computers for their
benefit.  The plan is estimated to cost $2.1 million in one-time expenditures. 
The Communication Center is now actively seeking funding to bring this plan
to fruition.

The Communication Center will be able to deliver its services via the Internet,
digital media such as CD-ROMs, and new digitally based delivery systems
currently under development.  It will also make recording and broadcasting
processes simpler and more efficient for volunteers and staff.

The plan is divided into two phases.  Phase I will replace all existing Radio
Talking Book (RTB) receivers with new modern portable units. These receivers
will operate on a new frequency which is less susceptible to interference from
other broadcast services current and developing.  Besides offering improved
reception characteristics and audio quality, the new radios will be designed as
portable receivers.  This will allow our listeners to take the RTB with them as
they go from place to place.

Phase II will replace the Communication Center's current analog recording and
broadcast equipment with a state-of-the-art digital recording and broadcast
facility.  The new digital infrastructure will make it easy to improve the quality
and quantity of services.  We will be able to more easily produce locally-
oriented programming and direct it to different parts of the state. New space-
saving digital storage technology, such as CD-ROM, will allow us to keep what
we record indefinitely instead of discarding it after a short time.  Other future
possibilities this new digital infrastructure will make feasible include
distribution of programming via the Internet, more efficient operation of Dial-
In News and RTB due to one-time recording of newspapers, enhanced services
for learning disabled persons, and more.

Minnesota State Services for the Blind has established a Communication
Center 21st Century Fund which can accept grants from foundations and
corporate givers as well as gifts from organizations and individuals.  Interested
persons and organizations can help by making a tax deductible contribution to
the Communication Center 21st Century Fund.  Individuals or organizations
wishing to contribute may make checks payable to the "Communication Center
21st Century Fund" and send them to Gwen Bighley, Communication Center,
State Services for the Blind, 2200 University Avenue West, Suite 240, St. Paul,
MN 55114-1840. All gifts are tax deductible.

Persons having questions or ideas on how to reach our goal are invited to give
Communication Center Director David Andrews a call at (800) 652-9000 or
(612) 642-0513.  We also have a more detailed plan if you should need it and
copies are available.


                  MCTO Meets the Metro Chapter Again
                            By Peggy Chong

Does this title sound like a horror film?  I'm sure that at some point, several
employees of MCTO wondered if that were not so.  

Since the beginning of 1996, the members of the Metro Chapter have talked
with officials at the Metropolitan Council Transit Operations (MCTO) about
the changes that were made in July 1996.  

At the time, an electronic fare box was installed on every bus.  Punch cards,
transfers and flash passes were replaced with electronic fare cards.  These cards
are inserted into a slot on the fare box that reads the magnetic strip to take
the fare and count the passengers for the driver.  

Before the new boxes were installed, members wanted to know how blind
people could identify the correct way to insert the fare card.  MCTO officials
assured us that a corner of the card would be clipped to help identify the
correct position of the card.

For the first month-and-a-half things went as well as could be expected for any
new system.  Problems that blind passengers had with the new system were the
same problems that sighted passengers had.  Then came mid-August.

The corner of the fare card was not clipped.  I called MCTO Customer Service
to let them know that cards were not clipped.  We clipped our own cards and
waited.  But nothing happened.  Customer service was not passing on our
concerns.
 
At the October chapter meeting, our guest was Mel Baker, MCTO's Customer
Advocate.  He certainly was a lively speaker.  But he took nothing of our
concerns back to MCTO.  A letter was sent in November to MCTO Acting
Director Julie Johanson expressing our concerns that the cards were not
clipped and MCTO was not responding to customers' concerns.  There was no
answer.  So after two weeks, our chapter filed an ADA (Americans with
Disabilities Act) complaint with the U. S. Department of Transportation.

Repeated telephone calls to Ms. Johnson's office brought a response from her. 
Mostly she was sorry that I was upset with MCTO.  She promised to look into
the non-clipped cards.  However, nothing happened.  

In January the Federal government notified MCTO of the ADA complaint. 
Now I received calls from other MCTO officials and we exchanged several
letters.

The January issue of MCTO Takeout (MCTO's newsletter that is placed on the
buses to inform passengers of transit issues) reported on proposed
modifications to the fare box for persons with limited vision.  As a person with
"limited vision," I could not see what modifications were needed.  So I called
MCTO to talk with the person responsible for this project.  It was Sam Jacobs.

In my conversation about the fare boxes with Mr. Jacobs, I mentioned that the
cards were still not clipped after several months.  He was very surprised to
hear this.  One wonders if anyone talks to anyone else at MCTO.  Mr. Jacobs
oversees the ordering of the cards.  In just a little over a week, bus cards were
sold with clipped corners.

I sent this letter to Mr. Jacobs.

January 8, 1997

Peggy Chong, President
National Federation of the Blind
Metro Chapter
20 N.E. 2nd Street
Apartment 908
Minneapolis  MN  55413

Sam Jacobs
Metropolitan Council Transit Operations
560 North 6th Street
Minneapolis  MN  55411

Dear Mr. Jacobs,

Thank you for taking the time to talk with me on the phone yesterday,
concerning a variety of issues affecting blind people in the metro area.  I am
enclosing, with this letter, some background material.  I hope it will give you
an understanding that our organization takes matters concerning transportation
seriously.

After talking with you regarding the upgrades to the fare boxes to help blind
persons with some vision find the slot, I took a closer look at the fare box on
my way home.  Since it has never been a problem for me or any other blind
persons that I know, to find the card slot after the first time or two, I did not
think of this as a problem.  As a blind person with limited vision, I use
blindness techniques to locate the card slot on the fare box.  But last night I
did look at the fare box and discovered several visual cues.

Above the card slot there is an amber light.  It would seem to me that a light
would be a good indicator.  Also, below the card slot there is an LED display
that looks like a red light to me.  This would also tell me that I would want to
look for the card slot between these two lights.  Has this been brought up at
the meetings with the other disabled groups you have attended?

But I also think that I should point out here that if a blind person is using
limited vision to find the card slot on the fare box and has not noticed the
many different lights on the machine or cannot use those lights as guides, that
those same people will not be able to use the colored strips with any more
success.  Too many factors come into play that will effect one's ability to see
the strips that cannot be controlled on the bus, such as lighting.

Our organization is not opposed to Braille labels or making things more
accessible to blind persons.  But we realize that funds are limited for
transportation.  We want to see the funds used to their greatest extent. 
Cutting the corners off the SuperSaver and monthly-pass cards to allow blind
persons to tell what direction to put the card into the fare box, will assist more
blind persons than the Braille on the fare box.  This is something, as you know,
that has been done in the past by MCTO.  I asked one of our members who
bought a bus pass in late December at the MCTO store in Minneapolis if his
card was clipped.  He said it was not.  This is an important issue to our
members.

I spoke with Joyce Scanlan, Executive Director at BLIND, Inc. regarding the
testing of the colored strips on the card reader.  She said that BLIND, Inc.
would be glad to give you an opinion on this prototype.

I would also like to invite you to address our chapter meeting on Saturday,
February 15.  Our meeting runs from 2 to 5 p.m.  We would like to have you
on the agenda sometime around 2:30.  This would be a great opportunity for
you to meet our members whom I have been elected to represent.  I assure
you that we will provide you with very direct input on this and other transit
issues, including those that affect blind persons.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,
Peggy Chong

Meanwhile, it was business as usual with MCTO, so I sent this letter.

January 15, 1997

Linda Bechtold, Director
Customer Service
Metropolitan Council Transit Operations
560 North 6th Street
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55411

Dear Ms. Bechtold:

I am a frequent rider of buses operated by the Metropolitan Council Transit
Operations (MCTO).  In fact, I have been riding MCTO buses for more than
twenty-five years.  I am also the president of the Metro Chapter of the
National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota, having held that office for
more than seven years.  In this capacity, I have had many occasions to contact
MCTO on a wide variety of issues.  Customer Service has been one of my
more frequently called numbers.

I routinely use the $38 thirty-day pass that allows me to ride the bus during
nonpeak hours without having to deposit any additional fare--that is, the pass
which covers bus fares up to a dollar.  I do not ride the bus very much during
the rush hour.

When I do ride the bus during the rush hour, I know that I must pay an
additional fifty cents.  I have no problem doing this.  However, I do have a
problem when I transfer to a different bus and am required to pay yet another
fifty cents!

I am told that convenience passes can be used as transfers.  In fact, I
understand that MCTO policy instructs drivers not to provide transfer cards to
passengers who use these passes.  The two examples shown below illustrate
that, in fact, transfer information is not being recorded on the $38 thirty-day
pass, forcing me and other MCTO passengers to pay extra fares.

Example 1:

      I board a #14 bus at Douglas Drive and 42nd Avenue North at 4:00
      p.m., using my $38 thirty-day pass.  After inserting my card, I pay fifty
      cents.  No problem so far.

      I transfer at Sixth and Hennepin to a #6C bus going to Rosedale.  I
      insert my card into the slot.  The fact that I am transferring seems not
      to have been recorded.  I am required to deposit an additional fifty
      cents!  Now, I have a problem.

Example 2:

      At 3:15 p.m., I board a #17 bus at 22nd and Nicollet in Minneapolis,
      heading north toward downtown.  I insert my $38 thirty-day pass into the
      slot.  The fare is registered.  It is still $1 because rush hour has not
      started yet.  I do not have to pay an additional fifty cents.  Because the
      pass is supposed to function as a transfer, I say nothing to the driver. 
      No problem so far.

      I get off the bus in downtown Minneapolis at 3:30 p.m.  I do some
      shopping.

      At 4:00 p.m., I board the northbound #18 bus.  I insert my $38 thirty-day
      pass into the slot.  Because transfer information has not been recorded
      from my earlier trip, I must pay an additional fifty cents!  Now I have a
      problem.

The above two examples illustrate situations which I have encountered on
many occasions.  If I remember to do so, I ask the bus driver for a transfer
card.  Even though policy says that they are not supposed to, they give me the
card, and I travel without incident.

Before describing what is perhaps the most aggravating problem about this
entire affair, I should point out that I have made many calls to MCTO
Customer Service describing the above two situations.  As I intend to
demonstrate, no remedy has been forthcoming.

The situation described in Example 2 above did, in fact, happen to me
yesterday--January 14, 1997.  After I got home, I called Customer Service to
report the problem.  Although she was polite, the woman who answered the
phone could not grasp the fact that this is an ongoing and recurring problem
which I have reported many times.  She explained the "no transfer" policy to
me again.  Near the end of our conversation, I said, "If you in Customer
Service kept track of complaints, you would realize that I complain about this
problem every month."  She asked for my name so that she could check her
database to see if I was there.  I was not!  How could this be?

We in the National Federation of the Blind feel that MCTO is not taking our
concerns seriously.  Certainly, the evidence in my case would show that you are
not keeping track of the problem reports you are receiving.  Your
representative claims that there has rarely been a call to Customer Service
complaining that the thirty-day passes do not record a transfer.  I don't know
where she got her statistics.  I myself have made many calls over the past three
or four months.  But then, it would appear that I am no longer in the
database.  I cannot help but wonder if other problem reports have similarly
disappeared.

Another issue I wish to bring to your attention has to do with the convenience
passes themselves.  They are no longer being clipped on the corner.  Clipped
corners on passes make it easier for many passengers, including those who are
blind, to insert the passes correctly into the receiving slot.  Passes issued in July
and August of 1996 were clipped.  In fact, in past conversations between the
National Federation of the Blind and MCTO officials, we were promised that
passes would be clipped to enable everyone to more easily determine the
correct position for inserting them into the slot.  But by late August, passes
were no longer clipped on the corners.  Many of our members, including
myself, called to report this to MCTO.  Yet, last week, Sam Jacobs, Director
of Transportation, told me that he had not been made aware of this issue. 
Why didn't your department pass along the reports of the problem?

Members of the Metro Chapter knew that when the convenience passes were
issued last July, there would be a few wrinkles to iron out.  Such things are
inevitable when any new system goes into place.  We were willing to be patient. 
We were also willing to report any problems so they could be fixed.  We
expected that MCTO would take our problems and concerns seriously.  This
has obviously not happened.

As MCTO officials have acknowledged in the past, blind bus riders are
typically more sophisticated than your ordinary, run of the mill passenger.  We
understand how the system works, we know how to plan our bus travel
properly, and individually, we probably are familiar with more bus routes.  If
there is a glitch in the system, we will probably be one of the first groups of
riders to find it.  We do not report problems simply to cause trouble for the
bus company.  In fact, history will show that the blind, as a group, have been
one of MCTO's strongest supporters.  Therefore, we are rightfully concerned
when we receive indications that the problems and issues we raise are being
ignored.  We are rightfully concerned and--yes--annoyed when we are erased
from your database.

I hope that you will not take the issues I have raised in this letter and
pigeonhole them in the category of "Disability Issues."  Our concerns are the
same concerns that all other passengers have and equally as valid.

I look forward to your response to this letter.  We would like to work with
MCTO to ensure a better bus system for all riders.

Sincerely,
                                
Peggy Chong
President
Metro Chapter
National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota

cc:   Julie Johnson
      Sam Jacobs
      Robert Gibbons
      Mel Baker
      Joyce Scanlan
      Sen. Larry Pogemiller
      Rep. Phyllis Kahn

Because of the ADA complaint, MCTO told two of their management people
they would be attending the February Metro Chapter meeting.

And they did.  On February 15, 1997, Sam Jacobs, Acting Director of
Transportation and Linda Bechtold, Supervisor of Customer Service, spent
almost two hours talking with our chapter about the concerns that we have
about our bus system and customer service.

We talked with them about how blind persons are perceived at MCTO.  As we
see it, blind customers are not seen as customers at all, but rather as part of
the disabled group that they have to deal with.

We pointed out that a blind person had not been hired by MCTO for over two
decades.  Last summer a member of our chapter applied for a customer service
job and was scheduled to take the exam for that position.  When she called to
ask if the test was in Braille or should she bring a reader, she was told that a
blind person could not do the job and was not allowed to take the test.

They listened to what we had to say, answered our questions and welcomed us
to call them directly if we have any questions or concerns.  They shared with
us the little information they had on the newly-hired Director for MCTO.  The
new Director is a man who started in transportation as a bus driver.  We hope
this means he has a love for transportation and can give MCTO the direction
that it so badly needs.

Our guests left with NFB literature in hand.  Everyone left that meeting feeling
hopeful that a good working relationship can continue between us and MCTO.


                             Parent Column
                          By Barbara Schultz

School-aged children who are deaf-blind, blind, or visually impaired are invited
to submit art pieces for the Helen Keller National Center National Art Show. 
Winning pieces will be displayed in congressional offices.   Contact Sally Prouty
at 612-871-4788.

A youth camp for blind children will be held June 15-22, 1997 in Brainerd
Minnesota.  The cost is $25.00 for the week.  Contact: National Camps for
Blind Children, 4444 South 52nd Street, Box 6097, Lincoln, Nebraska 58506-
0097.

PACER Center Computer Resource Center (612-827-2966) has applications
available for Project GOLD (Girls On Line with Disabilities).  This is a club
for girls in 6th-8th grade who are interested in monthly meetings to share
interest in math, science, and computers.

Minnesota Parents of Blind Children will hold a fundraiser at Barnes and
Noble Bookstore in Woodbury Sunday, May 25, from 1:00 to 5:00 PM. 
Representatives of POBC will be in the store with information on our
organization, and some of the store's sales during that time will be donated to
POBC to help fund future activities.

Interest has been expressed in establishing a solid, formalized mentoring
program for blind children in Minnesota.  If you are interested, have ideas, or
would be willing to work on organizing this, please call Barbara Schultz (612-
772-4093).  If you are a blind adult or student, and would serve as a mentor
for a child, also please call.  New kids on the list include an 8-year old boy in
West St. Paul, a 14-year old girl in Minneapolis, and a 16-year old girl in
Bemidji.

Minnesota State Academy for the Blind will run two summer programs.  The
first is a three-week program beginning July 13 for school aged children who
are blind (call Elaine Sveen at 507-332-3226).  The second is the L.I.F.E.
program beginning July 7 for students 16 or older with blindness and additional
disabilities (call Max Carter at (800-657-3634).

Blind Sports Camp at Camp Courage will be July 23-30.  All ability levels are
welcome.  Call Bob Polland at 612-520-0502.

The Learning To Be Free Program at BLIND, Inc. will be July 20 to August
15.  This is for children ages 9-17.  Call Joyce Scanlan at 612-872-0100.

Looking for an affordable computer?  DRAGnet is a nonprofit organization
that takes donations of used computers, and puts them into families of children
with disabilities for a small fee.  Call 512-378-9796.

Please write B. Schultz, 1728 Leone Ave. St. Paul, MN 55106, or call Barbara
at 612-772-4093 if you have resources or information to share in this column,
or questions others may be able to answer.


                          Linda Oliva Honored
                            By Peggy Chong

On Tuesday, March 18, 1997, Linda Oliva, a senior at Augsburg College, was
inducted into the Beta Chapter of the Alpha Chi Honor Society.  Only 36
Augsburg juniors and seniors received this honor this year.  

A reception and ceremony were held at 6:30 p.m. in the chapel on the
Augsburg campus.  Later a banquet to honor the initiates was held on campus. 
Linda's daughter Donna Oliva and Peggy Chong attended the ceremony and
banquet.

Linda was a recipient of the Minnesota state scholarship for blind students in
1993.

After working for several years as a medical transcriber and raising her
daughter to get her through school, Linda went back to school herself.  At first
she went part-time at the Minneapolis Community College.  For her junior and
senior years, Linda transferred to Augsburg College to complete her Bachelor
of Arts degree in Sociology.

Linda has been an active member of the Metro Chapter for several years,
serving as our chapter secretary for four years.  In 1995, Linda was an
instructor in the older blind program at BLIND, Inc.


                           Convention Alert!

Exciting times are coming in NFB conventions.  Keep these in mind as you
plan your activities throughout the coming year.  

The National NFB Convention will be held in New Orleans, Louisiana during
the first week of July 1997.  This is a whole week of friends, fun (the French
Quarter!), and serious business.  It is a chance to be part of the largest
gathering of blind people in the world.  Full details are in the December 1996
issue of the Braille Monitor.  However, get your reservations into the NFB
National Office right away.  The Hyatt Regency Hotel has reserved only 1,100
rooms for our convention, but we expect to need nearly 1,500.  Dr. Jernigan
is working hard to get the rest, but there is a big jazz convention at the same
time.  So don't take a chance and wait too long and be left out in the cold
(even in New Orleans in July).

The Annual NFB of Minnesota Convention will be held in October in the Twin
Cities.  Members will receive a letter with details about a month before the
convention.

The Semiannual NFB of Minnesota Convention will be held in Greater
Minnesota in April or May 1998.  Members will receive a letter with details
about a month before the convention.
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