We thank Audiovision, the Radio Reading Service of the New Jersey State Library Talking Book and Braille Center for the use of their recording studio to produce the cassette and digital formats that are aired on Audiovision and our website www.njcounciloftheblind.org. We thank Audiovision's John Hart and our webmaster Dave Casterline for their technical assistance. The Chronicle is read by Bob Lucas. For more information about Audiovision call 1-800-792-8322 or visit their website at www.audiovision-nj.org. The NJCB Chronicle is also available on Newsline.
The New Jersey Council of the Blind's mission is to strive for the betterment of the blind and visually impaired community. The purpose of this publication is to provide a forum for the free exchange of ideas, opinions and information that concern blind and visually impaired people. The New Jersey Council of the Blind (NJCB) is a 501 (c) 3 corporation and all gifts are tax deductible. Tax deductible donations should be sent to the Treasurer of NJCB. Four quarterly newsletters are sent to members free of charge in either large print, audio cassette or E-mail. Non-members may request the NJCB Chronicle by E-mail and for an annual donation of $5.00 may receive copies in large print or on cassette. In order to make the Chronicle better, we need and appreciate information from our chapters, from individuals and from agencies and other outside groups and organizations which serve the blind and visually impaired.
Articles to be included in the NJCB Chronicle, requests for copies of the newsletter or membership information should be sent to NJCB, 520 Ewingville Road, Ewing, NJ 08638. They may also be e-mailed to njcounciloftheblind@verizon.net or phoned to (609) 882-2446. All information must be received by May 15th to be included in the next issue of the Chronicle. You may obtain the current and back issues of the Chronicle and other information from our web site at www.njcounciloftheblind.org. The NJCB officers are: President, Larry Morgan, 53 Pollman Ave., Hamilton, NJ 08619, (609) 588-5012; First Vice President, Frank Schack (973) 595-0116; Second Vice President, Joyce Sowa (732) 596-9675; Secretary, Ottilie Lucas (609) 882-2446 and Treasurer, Bob Lucas (609) 882-2446, 520 Ewingville Road, Ewing, NJ 08638.
The next quarterly meeting of NJCB will be on April 27, 2013 at the Trinity United Methodist Church at 1985 Pennington Road at the corner of Pennington Road and Carlton Avenue in Ewing across the street from The College of New Jersey. Lunch will be served at noon for a cost of $5.00 and the general business meeting will begin at 1 PM. The day's activities will be over at about 4 PM.
Call Lauren Casey at (609) 912-0657 to ensure that Garden State Guide Dog Users, the host chapter, will have sufficient refreshments for all attending.
Spring is just around the corner. How do I know? I know because I hear the crack of the bat and the sound of the ball hitting the catcher's glove. These past three months have given me a little flavor of just how much work goes into the operation of NJCB. Publishing the Chronicle, developing the budget, keeping track of our finances, setting up and running committees, keeping everyone informed are never-ending, necessary and time consuming tasks. Right now we have run into a transportation problem that I hope someone can solve. MCAT is no longer running weekend trips. Therefore, several of our members now must find another way of being transported to and from our meetings. Please contact me or any of the board members with any ideas to rectify this problem.
The Executive Board held a conference call with Walt Gardiner to discuss his proposal for traffic signals at roundabouts. We will keep you informed of any updates.
I have asked Ottilie Lucas to be our delegate and I will be the alternate at the ACB convention this summer in Columbus, Ohio.
The committees for the next two years are as follows: Chris Ward, Pat Kay and Lee Tilden are on the Scholarship Committee. I am on the Public Relations and Membership Committee with Joyce Sowa, Betty Dougherty, Bill Dougherty and Lauren Casey. John Vernon will be monitoring all relevant legislation and will give a report at our next meeting.
Things are moving slowly but in a forward direction. I believe we will reap large dividends for NJCB if we persevere with these committees.
At the next meeting I will pose a question to all of you. How do you do your grocery shopping? Your responses will add a little knowledge to everyone's life.
Remember. everyone has something to offer. so let's do it!
Larry Morgan, President, NJCB
Have fun playing the Native American Flute at a workshop on Sunday, April 28th from 1:30 PM to 4:30 PM at the South Brunswick Library! Anyone over the age of 13 is welcome. NO music background is necessary. For a nominal cost of $15.00, you will leave with your own flute and the ability to play with other flute players and drummers at a novice level. There will be follow-up sessions where you can learn more and have more fun.
The Native American Flute (NAF) is probably the most accessible musical instrument for blind and visually impaired people. It is very easy to learn it and one does not need to read music to make beautiful sounds either alone or with others. Neither is one limited to playing Native American music. Jazz, Blues, Hymns, Classical, Middle Eastern, and just about any other kind of music can be played on Native American Flutes, but perhaps the most fun is in improvising your own tunes and that is something made quite simple and enjoyable on NAFs.
The workshop on April 28th will be followed by Flute Circles in May, July, September and October. Each Flute Circle will contain some further instruction, some ensemble playing, and some solo playing for those who wish to do it. The workshops and circles to be held in South Brunswick are limited to 15 participants. A second round of beginner's workshops and following Flute Circles will be held starting in September in Metuchen.
These workshops are being made possible by the South Brunswick Public Library, the South Brunswick Community Development Corporation, and the partners of the Aging in Place Partnership. This Program or service is funded in part by:
Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission with assistance thru a grant provided by New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Dept. of State
For more information, directions and registration, call Pat Kay at (732) 274-2963.
As you probably have heard, our NJCBVI Executive Director, Vito DeSantis, has announced his retirement effective June 1, 2013. Vito has served the Commission for the Blind skillfully with leadership, compassion and professionalism for over 28 years. All of us who have had the opportunity to work with Vito will miss his wise counsel and dedicated commitment to the education and employment of people who are blind and visually impaired so that they could achieve their goals of independence and financial security. Wherever the future leads Vito, he will always be a strong advocate for people with disabilities.
A Retirement Dinner party is planned for Vito on Friday, June 7th from 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM at the Mountainview Golf Course Club House, with a picturesque view of the 18th hole at the Mercer County golf course in Ewing Township. The cost is $45.00 per person. RSVP to Lorri Ghio at (973) 648-2325 by April 17th. The cost covers an excellent dinner and a gift for Vito. Please save the date so that we can give Vito a great send-off as he embarks upon a retirement that promises not only great adventures but plenty of golf!
TBBC is busy planning 3 events in 2013. First, the Talking Book and Braille Center is dedicating their new Donor Wall giving recognition to those who have made and will make significant donations to TBBC. It will take place on June 1st at 12 noon. It will be preceded by the Spring Friends of the Library for the Blind and Handicapped (Friends) meeting which begins at 10:00 AM. The Friends will be honored for their significant contribution to this project. The press is invited to add to the celebration.
On June 4, 2013, TBBC will be having their second annual Golf Outing. Contact Adam Szczepaniak at (800) 792-8322 extension 801 to get more information.
The Fall Book Festival will be held at the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton Township on October 12, 2013. More details will be available in future issues of the NJCB Chronicle.
Effective March 14, 2013, patrons of the NJSL-TBBC began receiving their magazines on digital cartridges. Following is an abbreviated sketch of the way their system works.
Delivery Schedule - Each patron's delivery schedule will differ according to his/her magazine subscriptions. The magazine on cartridge (MOC) program will determine a "trigger" magazine that optimizes the timeliness of the cartridge and the magazines it contains.
Undeliverable cartridges - When the post office cannot deliver a magazine cartridge, it will be returned to the contractor who sent it out.
Overdue cartridges - The MOC will allot each patron a specific number of cartridges he/she can have out at one time based upon the frequency of magazines on the cartridge. The number of cartridges will adjust as cartridges are sent and returned.
Overdue policy - There are two types of cartridges: weekly cartridges, which only hold weekly magazines, and monthly cartridges, which hold monthly/bimonthly/quarterly magazines. Weekly cartridges will be designed as overdue when they are more than three weeks old. Monthly cartridges will be designed as overdue when they are more than six weeks old.
More details about this program can be found on the Friends of the Library website at www.friendsnjlibraryfortheblind.org.
GSGDU Chapter Report. Our chapter had a member conference call on Wednesday, March 20th. We will share information discussed on this call in a later issue.
Our face to face meeting will take place on Saturday, June 8, at 10 A.M. at the home of Ottilie and Bob Lucas, 520 Ewingville Road, Ewing, NJ. A picnic celebrating all the summer birthdays from Mercer County Association of the Blind will follow the adjournment of our chapter meeting. Call (609) 882-2446 for directions or for more details. Lauren Casey, president
MCAB Chapter Report. MCAB has enjoyed several speakers at our meetings and are looking forward to activities in the near future. We enjoyed the update from Susan Vanino from Adjustment to Vision Loss Project at our February meeting. We learned how we can be prepared for emergencies by our own members, Len and Joan Pope, at our March meeting. These members have been active and honored for their contributions in times of emergencies. We celebrated the birthdays of our members whose birthdays are between January 1st and April 30th with dinner at the Lucas' on March 22nd. Twenty-six of us are going to Hunterdon Hills Playhouse on April 6th for a delicious dinner and to see "Butterflies are Free". We always enjoy this experience. We thank John Torres, Joan Pope, Gary Rhodes, Pat Marcattilio and Bob Lucas for volunteering to drive members to the playhouse. Again, George and Elsie Bumbera is donating pizza for the refreshments at our May meeting. Many of our members donate refreshments. Some of these are: Barbara Knoblock, Larry and Marcia Morgan, Jean Cannella, Bob Collins and several others. Acts of kindness such as driving, donations and other contributions are greatly appreciated.
BCA Chapter Report. We have a very busy couple of months ahead of us. On Saturday, April 13th the Ladies Auxiliary will be holding our semi-annual Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Takeout orders will be available. Reservations are preferred, but not required. For $10.00 you will receive a salad, spaghetti, meatballs, sausage, bread, dessert and a beverage (non-alcoholic). Please call the office at 732-291-0878 if you need more information. The Eatontown Lions 5K Race will be run on May 4th. The 8th annual Gift Auction will be held on May 31st. This is our largest fundraiser of the year. Admission to the NJBCA Gift Auction is $20.00 per person. There will be a limit of 320 tickets sold. No one will be admitted without a ticket. Purchase price includes admission ticket and one sheet of auction tickets. Call Stacey at (732) 291-0878 to reserve your tickets. Proceeds from all these events go directly to NJBCA.
Saturday, April 27, 2013: The quarterly meeting of NJCB will be held at the Trinity United Methodist Church hosted by The Garden State Guide Dog Users. Check the meeting notice for more details.
Saturday, June 1, 2013: Friends of the Library meeting at TBBC at 10 AM. The Donor wall will be dedicated and the press is invited at noon.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013: The Golf Outing for TBBC. Contact Adam Szczepaniak at TBBC for more details at (800) 792-8322 ext. 801.
Saturday, July 27, 2013: The quarterly meeting of NJCB will be held at Camp Happiness in Leonardo, NJ hosted by NJ Blind Citizens Association. More details and directions will be in the July issue of the NJCB Chronicle.
Saturday, August 3, 2013: The summer picnic for Mercer County Association of the Blind will be held at the Trenton Elks Club from noon to 4 PM. Watch for more details in the July Issue.
Saturday, October 12, 2013: The Fall Book Festival will be held at the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton. Watch for more details in future issues.
Saturday, October 26, 2013: The quarterly meeting of NJCB will be held at Grace Lutheran Church in Perth Amboy hosted by the Members at Large. More details and directions will be in the October issue of the NJCB Chronicle.
NOTE: Disclaimer. The views and opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of the New Jersey Council of the Blind officers and/or members. The editor reserves the right to edit articles submitted for both space and content.