WELCOME TO THE 2008 ANNUAL CONVENTION OF THE WASHINGTON COUNCIL OF THE BLIND

Hosted by: The Riverside Association of the Blind

October 23, 24, and 25, 2008

All WCB meetings are open to members and non-members alike. The WCB is pleased to offer this program to assist you in locating all activities of this convention along with times and room assignments. Throughout the general sessions, the Friday luncheon, business meeting and banquet, door prizes will be given out to those registered for the convention and in attendance at the time their name is drawn.

This year, all convention related events will take place in the Conference Center.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

3:00-6:00 p.m. WCB Lounge open: Drop by to meet old and new friends or find a partner for dinner or someone to go through the program with you; door prizes will be given every half-hour for those present – hosted by the WCB Membership Committee (Heritage C)

4:00-6:30 p.m. Information/Registration desk open, pre-registration only (Conference Center foyer)

7:00 p.m. Pre-convention board meeting (Heritage A-B)

9:30 p.m. Resolutions Committee meeting following the Board meeting – Facilitator: Carl Jarvis, Chair, Resolutions Committee (Heritage D)

9:30 p.m. Constitution & Bylaws Committee meeting, following the Board meeting – Facilitator: Frank Cuta, Chair, Constitution & Bylaws Committee (Heritage C)

10:00 p.m. Hospitality - sponsored by the Riverside Association of the Blind (Suite 339)

Friday, October 24, 2008

7:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Information/Registration desk open (Conference Center foyer)

7:30 a.m. General breakfast (Heritage E-F)

7:30 a.m. First-timer breakfast (Heritage C)

7:30 a.m. Presidents breakfast (Heritage D)

Tours of the Washington State School for the Blind will be taking place throughout the day. Please meet in the hotel lobby 5 minutes ahead of your scheduled tour time (reservations required).

9:00 am. WSSB Tour
10:30 am WSSB Tour
1:00 pm WSSB Tour
2:30 pm. WSSB Tour

8:00-10:00 a.m. Exhibits set up, vendors only (Discovery D, E, F)

10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Exhibits (Discovery D, E, F)

9:00 a.m. Youth Conference (Heritage D)

8:45-11:55 a.m. General Session (Heritages A-B)

8:45 a.m. Call to order – Denise Colley, President, Washington Council of the Blind; Presentation of the Colors: Schick Ogle, VFW Post 4278, Camas, WA; Invocation: Father Gary Lazaroni, St. Joseph’s Catholic Church; Welcome to Vancouver - Mayor Royce Pollard; welcome from the host chapter – Judi Sorter, President, Riverside Association of the Blind

9:00 a.m. President's report – Denise Colley, President, Washington Council of the Blind

9:20 a.m. Nominating Committee report – Berl Colley, Chair, WCB Nominating Committee

9:30 a.m. Constitution and Bylaws Committee report - Frank Cuta, Chair, WCB Constitution & Bylaws Committee

9:50 a.m. Embracing Universal Design: learn how to embrace Universal Design to enhance everyone's experience in the built environment. - Susan Duncan, The ABCs of Accessibility inc.

10:15 a.m. Break

10:30 a.m. Safe & Sound: Practical tips for staying safe in our homes and communities. - Judy Stewart, Community Policing Specialist, West Vancouver Police Precinct

10:55 a.m. WCB Jeopardy - Berl Colley, Chair, History Committee

11:00 am. More Than Just Dots: Learn the Status of Braille in our State & Nation - Colleen Lines, Manager, Instructional Resource & Braille Access Centers, & Kim Charlson, Director, Braille and Talking Book Library, Perkins School for the Blind, & Past President, Braille Authority of North America

11:30 am. Living Independently Later In Life: What is the IL Program? - Debbie Cook Lewis, Independent Living Program consultant, Department of Services for the Blind

11:50 am. WCB Jeopardy - Berl Colley, Chair, History Committee

11:55 a.m. Break

12:00 p.m. Awards Luncheon – MC: Cindy Van Winkle, Chair, Convention Committee; Keynote Address: Val Ogden, former representative, 49th district; presentation of internal WCB Awards: Julie Brannon, Chair, Awards Committee.

1:00 p.m. Youth Conference (Discovery A)

1:30 p.m. 3 concurrent break out sessions:

Self Defense (registration required): This session will teach you the basics of self defense, including work with the Kubaton (a defensive weapon), several strikes and escapes, what to do if attacked and how to get out of the situation. Learn how to walk with confidence in life. – Trainers: Dan Edwards, Head Instructor & Randy Tedrow, Instructor, both of CKK (Combat Kempo Karate) (Discovery B)

Making Wise Choices for Healthy Living: learn about naturopathic medicine, nutrition and other healthy options – Dr. Chris Cooke DN, Portland, Oregon; sponsored by Guide Dog Users of Washington State (Heritage C)

Your Role as an Advocate in Universal Design: This session will build off the morning discussion of the principals of Universal Design, as well as another core concept to Universal Design, the role of the user-expert. There will be a highly interactive empowerment discussion with participants to encourage advocacy and break down myths of this vital missing link in the design process! – Susan Duncan, The ABCs of Accessibility inc.; sponsored by the WCB Environmental Access Committee (Heritage A-B)

2:45 p.m. Break

3:00 p.m. 3 concurrent break out sessions:

Dealing with Low Vision in a 20/20 World: Come hear from those who have successfully dealt with low vision from the personal to the professional environment. Take away some tips, tricks and techniques for being more confident and competent as a low vision person - from the gym to the copy room at work to the ubiquitous salad bar. - Moderator: Cynthia Hinton, United Blind of Seattle; Panelists: Karen Johnson, United Blind of Seattle and Frank Johnson, King County Chapter of WCB. (Heritage C)

Staying Fit With Accessibility In Mind: Let’s devote some quality time to getting serious about personal fitness. Whether you are just interested in working off a few of those extra pounds or you are determined to add a few pounds of muscle, our panel of experts will tell you what’s hot and what’s not, Including how to get started. - Moderator: Frank Cuta MSEE Registered Professional Engineer, Battelle PNNL.; Panelists: Jennifer Butcher, MS TVI LM, Children’s Fitness specialist & Teacher of Health and Fitness, Washington State School for the Blind; Nick Wilks, President, Northwest Association of Blind Athletes
(Heritage A-B)

Becoming Job Ready; Before the job, comes the job search. Learn about resources available to blind and visually impaired job seekers and how one can best prepare for the job of looking for a job. – Moderator, Cindy Van Winkle, WCB Immediate Past President; Panelists: Mark Adreon, Communication & Employer Consultant, Department of Services for the Blind; Brian Charlson, Vice President, Computer Training Services, The Carroll Center for the Blind, Newton, MA; & Denise Colley, Program Coordinator 3, Employment Security Department. (Heritage D)

4:00 p.m. Reception honoring Danielle King, Program Manager, Washington Talking Book and Braille Library (WTBBL) (Suite 339)

7:30 p.m. 5th Annual WCB Talent show: come and enjoy the musical talents of many of our conventioneers - Hostess: Meka White, Peninsula Council of the Blind (Heritage A-B)

9:00 p.m. Hospitality - sponsored by the Riverside Association of the Blind (Suite 339)

Saturday, October 25, 2008

7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Registration/Information desk open (Conference Center foyer)

7:00 a.m. Guide Dog Users of Washington State breakfast/business meeting (Heritage C)

7:30 a.m. General breakfast (Heritage E-F)

8:00 a.m. Quiet car demonstrations will be taking place outside the hotel every 15 minutes, Participants meet in the lobby near the front doors to be escorted to the demonstration site. The last group will leave at 8:45 a.m.

8:45 a.m. Youth Conference (Heritage D)

8:45-11:50 a.m. General Session (Heritage A-B)

8:45 a.m. Call to Order and Announcements

9:00 a.m. ACB Connection: learn what’s happening on a national level with the American Council of the Blind – Kim Charlson, 1st Vice President, American Council of the Blind

9:30 a.m. The Jobs People Do: a panel discussion - Moderator: Sue Ammeter, First Vice President, WCB; Presenters: Brian Charlson, Vice President, Computer Training Services, The Carroll Center for the Blind, Newton, MA; Dr. Chris Cooke, DN, Naturopathic Physician, Portland, OR; Ursula McCully, Customer Services Representative, Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind, Seattle, WA

10:20 a.m. Break

10:35 a.m. WCB Jeopardy - Berl Colley, Chair, History Committee

10:40 a.m. State of the State, hear what’s happening with our three state agencies serving the blind – Lou Oma Durand, Director, Department of Services for the Blind (DSB); Danielle King, Program Manager/Librarian, Washington Talking Book & Braille Library (WTBBL);
Dean O. Stenehjem, Superintendent, Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB)

11:50 a.m. Break

12:00 p.m. General lunch (Heritage E-F)

12:00 p.m. GDUWS lunch and program (Heritage C)

1:30 p.m. WCB business meeting: In memoriam; elections; adoption of WCB budget; resolutions; constitutional amendments & bylaws; old business; new business (Heritage A-B)

4:30 p.m. Adjourn

6:00 p.m. No host social hour (Heritage E-F)

7:00 p.m. WCB annual banquet: Master of Ceremonies - Eric Hunter, Treasurer, WCB; Invocation - Father Tom Warne, Good Shepherd’s Episcopal Church; Scholarship presentations - Alan Bentson, Chair, WCB Scholarship Committee; Awards presentations - Julie Brannon, Chair, WCB Awards Committee; Banquet address – Kim Charlson, 1st Vice President, American Council of the Blind
(Heritage E-F)

10:00 p.m. Hospitality - sponsored by the Riverside Association of the Blind (Suite 339)

A special thank you goes to the following for helping this convention be a success! Cindy Van Winkle and the members of the convention committee; all of our special volunteers; the members of the Riverside Association of the Blind; Glenn McCully & our exhibitors; Frank Cuta for providing excellent audio and recording of the numerous presentations; Rick & Debbie Lewis for providing the streaming and Rhonda Nelson for recording the taped version of our convention program; Sue Ammeter and others who assisted in hospitality; all those who worked on the Youth Conference; scholarship escorts and the many presenters who contributed to our program.