Don’t
forget to pay your membership dues!
Words
of Wisdom By Chelle Hart
Happy spring!
It's been a long winter and I'm sure that all of us are happy to welcome March
21st with the treasures of spring and warmer weather. Keith and his family are
in the process of moving to a new home in Madison
so the "words of wisdom" are coming from Chelle. The SDAB Board of
Directors will be holding meetings on a regular basis; so we hope those of you
who have something you would like discussed would
contact one of us. As you might have seen in the "Braille
Forum", the ACB Convention will be held in Louisville, KY
on July 5-12, 2008. We are trying to determine how many members will be
attending this year so please let Keith or I know if you are thinking about going
to Louisville
for the National Convention. Linda Biffert and the Program Committee are busy
planning the next State Convention for October. We need input from our
members so if you have any ideas or wish to brainstorm about possible topics
for the program, please contact Linda at (605) 627-5608.
Awards
It is not too early to start thinking about our award
for this year. The last few years we have given out the "Together We
Can" as a service award, which was previously called the Gus Zachte
Memorial Award. If anyone has any nominations or ideas to recognize our member,
feel free to contact Lerae Olesen, Awards Committee Chairperson at (605) 978-9267
or by email at lerae@rapidnet.com
Craft Fair The Siouxland
Chapter of the SDAB announces the 2008 Craft Fair will be held on Saturday, November 1, 2008,
from 8 AM to 4 PM at the East Side Lutheran
Church, 1300 East 10th Street, Sioux Falls SD.
For more information contact Siouxland Chapter c/o Jim Madsen, 2605 East 12th Street, Sioux Falls, SD 57103
Aberdeen school praised Broader role for School for the Blind suggested By Bob
Mercer, American News Correspondent Published on Saturday, March 29, 2008
PIERRE - The state Board of Regents
received a positive report Friday praising the quality of services delivered to
children and their families by the South Dakota
School for the Blind and Visually
Impaired in Aberdeen.
In fact, the outside reviewer recommended the school take a larger role by
adding staff, so the school can perform more assessments and provide more
services, especially in rural areas. He also suggested that the regents develop
an undergraduate program at Northern
State University
that would serve as a multi-state regional center for training new teachers in
educational services for blind and visually impaired children. The regents
clearly liked the ideas and told Marjorie Kaiser, the blind school's director,
to develop proposals they can start considering in June to be part of the 2009
budget request to the Legislature. The School for the Blind is next door to the
NSU campus. The regents govern both institutions. The innovative and broad
services being delivered to children, whether in their home communities or at
the school in Aberdeen, make the city a natural center for doing more in the
field, according to the reviewer, Phil Hatlen. "It's the natural hub of
educational services in the state," he said. Hatlen is recognized as a
national leader in the field of providing services to blind people. He retired
last year as superintendent at the Texas
School for the Blind and
Visually Impaired. The regents contracted with Hatlen to analyze whether South Dakota's school is
meeting 10 national goals in blind education. "I think this is an
excellent report. I feel better," regent’s president Harvey Jewett of Aberdeen told Hatlen.
"I think we got a passing grade." A state task force with 30 members
participated in the review, including parents, educators and two legislators,
Rep. Paul Dennert, D-Columbia, and Rep. Lance Carson, R-Mitchell. Dennert told
the regents he supports the idea of making NSU a regional center for blind
education training. "I think it would be a great niche," he said. Some
of the task force members attended the regents' meeting Friday as Hatlen
delivered his findings and his recommendations. Hatlen said there are about 200
blind children in South Dakota.
He questioned whether 80 to 90 of those children, who tend to attend small
schools in rural areas, are receiving the same level of services as children in
larger communities. He suggested the School for the Blind double its staff of
outreach consultants, from the current four positions to eight, so that rural
children can receive more direct services. He said those children are receiving
textbooks and instructional materials. While
Hatlen suggested improvements in some areas, his remarks generally praised the
school's performance. He said the study led him to respect the school
"very, very much." He spoke highly of many services, describing the
program for assessing children's needs as "magnificent." As for the school's development and distribution of Braille
materials, he said, "I don't know of another state that does it
better." One of the parents who participated in the task force was Karla
Schlosser. She told the regents that she and her husband moved their family
from Pierre to Aberdeen two years ago so they could receive
more services for one of the children. "It has saved our life, going to
the School for the Blind and Visually Impaired," she said.
SBVI
Staff Recognized By
Gaye Mattke
As a
part of employee recognition program, production awards were handed out during
the annual Midwinter Conference held in March. The Counselor Award for the
highest average weekly earnings for successful closures in 2007 went
to Ann Mack from the Sioux
Falls office. The Rehabilitation Teacher Award
for highest number of successful closures in 2007 went to Dawn Brush from
the Aberdeen
office. Also recognized for their accomplishments were two other SBVI
employees: Bob Smith who recently became certificated through ACVREP as a
Certified Orientation & Mobility Instructor and Eric Weiss who, in the past
year, obtained his certification as a Rehabilitation Counselor.
Mark Your
Calendar!
FOCUS
ON SUCCESS III
When: Sept 30 – Oct 2, 2008
Where: Best Western Ramkota Hotel, Sioux Falls, SD
Who: Everyone is welcome but individuals who
are blind or visually impaired, parents, family members, students, teachers, professionals in education, rehabilitation and
independent living are encouraged to attend. The program will address options
for education, vocational rehabilitation, and adult services for individuals
who are blind or visually impaired.
Featured
Speakers and Topics
Olegario D. Cantos VII - US Depart. of
Justice;
Dan
Roberts - Age-related Macular Degeneration;
Karen
Gerety - Keys to Success at College;
American
Foundation of the Blind-Senior Siteband Career
Connect;
Assistive
Technology Solutions;
Low
Vision Options;
Finding
a Career;
Orientation
and Mobility;
Deaf-Blindness;
Braille;
and
Overcoming
Adversity.
Continuing
Education credits will be available.
Additional
details and registration information is available on the SBVI website at: http://dhs.sd.gov/sbvi/fos2008.aspx
Questions
or for more information contact:
Service
to the Blind and Visually Impaired @ 605-773-4644 or 1-800-265-9684
SD
School for the Blind and Visually Impaired @ 605-626-2580 or 1-888-275-3816
Braille
and Talking Book Library @ 605-773-3131 or 1-800-423-6665
Out of
Sight! By Mary Milne
After
planning for several months, the Hot
Springs (Edgemont included) has a new older blind peer
support group! The first meeting was held in February with a wonderful turn out
of 17 individuals. During a second meeting in March, the group officially named
themselves the “Out of Sight Support Group of Hot Springs”. Meetings are held at the
Brookside Apartments on the 4th Wednesday of the month at 1:30 PM. Some topics of interest the group will
explore are: Coping with low vision, updates in Medicare and Medicaid, and the
tax stimulus rebate package. The members have discovered most of them are fans
of the Cubs baseball team which will result in lively discussions as the
baseball season gets underway. The group
is already planning a picnic this summer. The members are very excited about the
opportunity to meet with others who have low vision. Some of them have
experience with peer support either through the former local group or they
participated in peer support when living out of state. For others, this is their first experience
with sharing ideas about the challenges they face with living independently
with vision loss. Transportation for the attendees can be arranged by
contacting Prairie Hills Transit at 1-877-673-3687. For more
information about the group's activities, call the Out of Sight Support
Group of Hot Springs
leader Lillian Dillie at 605 745-5974.
State
Plan Public Meetings The agency wants to hear from you regarding your thoughts
on services for South Dakota
citizens with vision loss. Meetings are open to all interested parties
including current and past recipients of services, employers, service providers,
and family members.
May 2, 2007: 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Mountain Time) Rapid City – Rushmore
Plaza Holiday Inn
May
15, 2007: Video Conference - 4:00 to
6:00 p.m. (Central Time)
Aberdeen
- SBVI District Office – 1707 4th Avenue SE, Suite A
Sioux Falls - Rehabilitation Center for the Blind - 2900 W. 11th Street Ste.
101
Pierre - Department of Human Services – Hillsview Plaza, 3800 East Hwy 34
The
SBVI State Plan Preprint and Attachments can be viewed at http://dhs.sd.gov/sbvi/
SDAB Convention–Mark Your Calendar!
When: October 10-11, 2008
Where: Governor's Inn in Pierre, 605- 224-4200
Theme:
Needed!!!! Now that we agree on a place we now need your ideas for the convention
Activities:
Fun, frolic, fellowship!
If you have any suggestions or ideas for
activities, please share them with Linda Biffert
at 605-627-5608 or
lbiffert@msn.com
Board meeting The Board
meeting was held by conference call on Dec. 13, 2007 with the following members
present: Chelle Hart, Keith Bundy, Linda Biffert, Lerae Olesen, Steve Hart, Jim
Madsen, Jack Hogarth, Sharleen Meyers, Deb VerSteeg, and Mary Sjerven. Leighton
Meyers also participated. Ed Pinkman and Virginia Miller were absent. Treasurer’s report: The craft fair raised
$818. Craft fair: Jim Madsen presented a letter on behalf of the Siouxland Chapter,
proposing that the Sioux Falls
group take over management of the Craft Fair. After some discussion, a motion
carried to turn over the Craft Fair to the Siouxland Chapter as a fundraiser. The
state might ask for a donation. A motion
carried for the Treasurer to issue a check for $100 with a letter of thanks to East Side Lutheran Church
for the use of their facility, where the Craft Fair was held. State Lions
Convention in Aberdeen:
SDAB will have a display about the Gadgetry program along with newsletters and
information about SDAB. Chelle, Steve
and Keith volunteered to work the booth with other SDAB members from the Aberdeen area helping
out. Brochure and toll-free number: The brochure is completed except for needing
a toll-free number and to get it printed. Committees: The committees have been
assigned and published in the newsletter.
If anyone sees his/her name on a committee they do not want to be on,
contact Chelle or Keith. Gadgetry Program: There was a brief discussion of the
Gadgetry Program and having Brenda put together a profit and loss statement. The
next “Focus on Success” will be held on Sept.30-Oct 2, 2008. The consensus at the 2007 Business Meeting,
as well as at the current meeting, was to hold the 2008 SDAB Convention in
October as it is an important election year.
There
was a brief discussion of having a board work day but no date was set. The
meeting adjourned, respectfully submitted by Lerae Olesen Secretary
Sioux
Land Chapter Meeting The following are summaries of
meetings; for complete copy of minutes contact the Secretary. On January 12,
the Siouxland chapter of SDAB had its annual winter party at the new Pizza
Ranch in Sioux Falls.
Had a great turn out, good food and a good time visiting. On February 16, six people met at the Oak
View Branch of the Sioux Falls Library. Upcoming events include: monthly
meetings (speakers), White Cane week in May, and the Craft Fair. In the Treasurer’s report, the balance for the
chapter was $397.25. Ski for Light (SFL) bus balance $2767.80. The cost for the
bus was $1995. There was also a sur-charge which Ski
for Light help with. The cost per person for the bus to go to Ski for Light was
$25. A motion carried to pay Jean Olson for reimbursement for transportation to
Vermillion and Canton
as well as the volunteer award given by the people on the Sioux Falls SFL bus.
A motion carried to reimburse Jim for food for the bus, bus driver’s lunch,
stamps, and labels. A motion carried that the money taken in at the food booth
at the Craft Fair to be used as a fund-raiser for the SFL bus and the money
taken in from vendor fee and the raffle at the Craft Fair be used as a
fund-raiser for the chapter. A motion carried to send a letter to
participants/vendors of the 2007 craft fair thanking them for their
participation, letting them know this will now be operated by the Siouxland
chapter of SDAB and advising them that we are aware of some of the problems
with the 2007 fair. Deb agreed to be the Program Chairperson for the Chapter. Jean
volunteered to develop and send out a postcard to radio and TV stations before each
monthly meetings. White Cane Week is May 15-21.
Deb will contact TV stations and Lerae will contact the Argus Leader. The next
meeting will be Saturday, March 15 at 10:00 AM. Lerae Olesen, Acting
Secretary
Transition
Week 2008
Learn
about career possibilities through Vocational Skills
Learn
skills to be independent
Hear
success stories of peers and adults who are visually impaired
Job
shadowing opportunities
Preparation
for job readiness
Meet
other students and learn about a variety of careers. Tour local companies and
experience dorm life. With fun activities
each evening
Location:
SD Rehabilitation
Center for the Blind
Lodging: Sullivan
Faith Learning
Center University
of Sioux Falls
Training: Monday-Thursday 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Friday
8:30 -12 noon
Arrive: Sunday July 27 between 5 p.m. – 6:00
Depart: Friday noon August 1, 2008
For
more information, contact your SBVI Counselor, Dawn Backer at Rehabilitation Center
(800-658-5441) or Sue Birrenkott at SDSBVI (888-275-3814).
Websites
to check out To
find thousands of novelty items and gifts in Braille; http://www.cafepress.com/buy/braille/-/cfpt2_/cfpt_/source_searchBox/copt_
Hundreds
of websites that serve the visually impaired; http://edtech.suhsd.k12.ca.us/actnow/do/ptalamantes/pascual/index.htm#
Story
from NBC on Himalayan Mountain Climb for blind students http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/23556423#23482272
http://www.braillewithoutborders.org/ENGLISH/index.html
2008
Governor’s Awards The Board of Vocational
Rehabilitation is pleased to announce the Governor’s Awards which recognize
individuals and employers for their contributions to the rehabilitation and
employment of people with disabilities. The awards were given out in Pierre at a luncheon
co-sponsored by the Boards of Vocational Rehabilitation, Service to the Blind
and Visually Impaired, and the Department of Human Services. This year’s recipients are:
Outstanding
Employee with a Disability
Sara
Kumpf (Pierre)
Outstanding
Citizen with a Disability
Dillon
Haug (Spearfish)
Outstanding
Public Personnel
Sharon
Sonnenschein (Pierre)
Outstanding
Private Employer (Small)
Black
Hills Harley Davidson (Rapid City)
Outstanding
Private Employer (Large)
Hy-Vee
(Sioux Falls)
Distinguished
Service
Gerald
‘Jerry’ Raabe (Brookings)
News
and Notes
Happy
Birthday to Joyce Brush on a milestone birthday in March.
On the
mend: Our thoughts go out to Dan Boyd of Pierre
who is on the mend after a recent surgery.
Thoughts
and Prayers Our thoughts and prayers go out to the following families and
friends on the passing of some very special people.
Vernon
Wiese of Sioux Falls passed away on December 17, 2007 at the age of 79. Vernon began working for
the South Dakota Industries for the Blind shortly after losing his sight. He
worked there until he retired in 2005. He is survived by his wife, Annette,
four children, ten grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Constance
Jane "Connie" Foley of Sioux Falls/Madison passed away on Dec. 21, 2007
at the age of 79. Many will remember her for the support she gave to her family’s
activities including SDAB and the PTA
at the School for the Blind. Survivors include her husband, Cliff, four sons,
three daughters including SDAB Co-President Rochelle "Chelle" (Steve)
Hart, 13 grandchildren; and many friends and relatives.
Membership
We
realize how IMPORTANT our supporters are, and would like to recognize the
following that have graciously contributed to our organization since the last
newsletter was published.
Regular
Members: Lenora Roseland Jane Mundschenk Lori Kelsey Mark Krogstrand Seth/Koni Sims Dean Flewwellin Dean
North
Bill/Pat McGrath Ted Kneebone Charles Hodge David/Kathy Miller Mary Jane
Schmitt LeRoy Vanden Bos Dawn Srstka George Jones Shelly Pfaff, SDCCD Lynn
Hanson Gary Wald/OIL Doug Puetz Frank Strong Duane/Helen Hartmann Pat Schaeffer
James/Sherri Zuber
Associated
Members: $10 - $24 Paul Zimmerman, MD Roger/Karen Braaten Martin Pfotenhauer
James Barnett, OD John Conroy, OD
Linda
Kirnan
Sustaining
Members: $25 - $99 Reid Christopherson Stan/Pauline
Arnold Wendell Hanson Michael Guilbert, OD Menno State Bank
Jutting
Vending Barnett Vision
Center Judson J Bergen,
OD Freeman Lions Club
Support
Members: $100 or more Dr. Thomas White, MD Parkston
Lions Club Henry Carlson Jr. Dallas Wilkinson, OD Ophthalmology Associates Vision Care Associates Jeff Sayler, OD Tom
Luke Siouxland Lions Club Aberdeen
Lioness Club
Memorials
for Arnold
Auch
Dawn Srstka Dawn Brush
Memorials
for Vernon
Wiese
Dawn Srstka
Memorials
for Velma Schultz
Dawn Srstka
Dawn Brush Linda Kirnan
Memorials
for Betty Auch
Dawn Srstka
Memorials
for Connie Foley
Dawn Brush Linda Kirnan
Memorials
for Kenton Gellhaus
Dawn Brush
Memorials
for Bill Bundy
Dawn Brush
Memorials
for Caroline Gross
Linda Kirnan
Memorials
for Rose Schauer
Linda Kirnan
2008 SOUTH DAKOTA ASSOCIATION
OF THE BLIND
Mailing
address: PO Box 1622,
Sioux Falls SD
57101-1622 Website: www.sd-sdab.org
Co
Presidents: Chelle Hart: 820 S. Juneau Lane, Sioux Falls SD 57106 605-332-6059
Keith Bundy: 420 SW 1st Street, Madison SD 57042 605-256-5215
Past-President:
Linda Biffert, 505 East 6th Street,
Volga SD 57071 605-627-5608
1st
Vice President: Linda Biffert, 505
East 6th Street, Volga SD 57071
605-627-5608
2nd
V-Pres: Virginia Miller, 805
Dakota Avenue, Dell Rapids SD 57022 605-428-3651
Secretary:
Lerae Olesen, 2500 S. Dakota Ave.
Apt 102, Sioux Falls SD 57105
605-978-9267
Treasurer:
Steve Hart, Treasurer, 820 S.
Juneau Lane, Sioux Falls SD 57106 605-332-6059
Newsletter:
Dawn LaMee, 1702 Prospect Ave. #A3, Aberdeen
SD 57401 605-226-3211
Gadgetry
Program: Brenda Fish, 1101 N. Garfield, Sioux
Falls SD 57104 605-336-9534 1-888-584-7440
Board
of Directors
Ed
Pinkman, 1115 Northview Lane,
Aberdeen SD 57401 (2008) 605-225-0940
Mary
Sjerven 208 North Jackson Avenue,
Pierre SD 57501 (2008) 605-224-4183
Jack
Hogarth, 1243 Washington Street
#105, Denver CO
80203 (2009) 303-832-1156
Sharleen
Meyers, PO Box 91105,
Sioux Falls, SD
57110 (2009) 605-359-2388
Deb
VerSteeg, 2505 South Willow Avenue,
Sioux Falls SD
57105 (2010) 605-331-2131
James
Madsen, 2605 E. 12th ST,
Sioux Falls SD
57103 (2010) 605-332-3541
Committees
Amendments/By-Laws/Resolutions: Lerae Olesen (Chair), Keith Bundy, Sharlene
Meyers, Leighton Meyers, Deb Ver Steeg
Membership: Dawn LaMee (Chair), Marge Kaiser, Dawn Srstka
Nominations: Keith Bundy (Chair), Dawn Brush, Linda Biffert, Chelle Hart
Fund
Raising: Virginia Miller (Chair), Mary
Sjerven, Jim Madsen, Jack Hogarth
Scholarship: Dawn Brush (Chair), Keith Bundy, Lerae Olesen
Gadgetry: Chelle Hart (Chair), Dawn Brush, Sharlene
Meyers, Brenda Fish
Finance
& Budget: Steve Hart (chair), Keith Bundy, Linda
Biffert, Deb Ver Steeg
Legislative: Linda Biffert
(Chair), Chelle Hart, Keith Bundy, Marge Kaiser
Program/Social: Linda Biffert
(Chair), Mary Sjerven, Dawn Brush
Awards: Lerae Olesen (Chair), Andrea Barker, Virginia
Miller, Deb Ver Steeg
South
Dakota Association of the Blind (SDAB) Membership Form (2008)
NAME:
ADDRESS:
PHONE
#:
CITY/STATE/ZIP:
E-MAIL:
To
recognize and welcome new members/donors the SDAB publishes their names in our
newsletter. Please indicate your preference: Yes ____ (my name can be
published) No _____ (please do not
publish my name).
REGULAR
MEMBERSHIP (voting member) # of
members
SDAB
Regular dues $12.00
x _______ =
$_________
DONATIONS/MEMORIALS/DEDICATIONS
(non-voting members of SDAB)
Associate (Donation
of $10-$24 or more per year) Amount of Donation $_________
Sustaining
(Donation of $25-$99 or more per year) Amount of Donation $_________
Supporting
(Donation of $100 or more per year) Amount of Donation $_________
Memorial/Dedication
– In ___________________(name) for the amount of $_______
Send
To: Dawn LaMee, 1702 Prospect Avenue
Apt. A3, Aberdeen SD 57401