The ACB E-Forum Volume LVI December 2017 No. 6 Published by the American Council of the Blind ***** ** Be A Part of ACB The American Council of the Blind (TM) is a membership organization made up of more than 70 state and special-interest affiliates. To join, contact the national office at 1-800-424-8666. ** Contribute to Our Work Those much-needed contributions, which are tax-deductible, can be sent to Attn: Treasurer, ACB, 6300 Shingle Creek Pkwy., Suite 195, Brooklyn Center, MN 55430. If you wish to remember a relative or friend, the national office has printed cards available for this purpose. Consider including a gift to ACB in your Last Will and Testament. If your wishes are complex, call the national office. To make a contribution to ACB by the Combined Federal Campaign, use this number: 11155. ** Check in with ACB For the latest in legislative and governmental news, call the “Washington Connection” 24/7 at 1-800-424-8666, or read it online. Listen to ACB Reports by downloading the MP3 file from www.acb.org, or call (605) 475-8154 and choose option 3. Tune in to ACB Radio at www.acbradio.org or by calling (605) 475-8130. Learn more about us at www.acb.org. Follow us on Twitter at @acbnational, or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AmericanCounciloftheBlindOfficial. © 2017 American Council of the Blind Eric Bridges, Executive Director Sharon Lovering, Editor 1703 N. Beauregard St., Suite 420, Alexandria, VA 22311 ***** Table of Contents President’s Message: Visiting Affiliates – It Makes Me Proud, by Kim Charlson Eatsa Agrees to Make Its Cutting-Edge Technology Accessible to Blind Customers 2018 Convention Tidbits, by Janet Dickelman Audio Description in Your Community, by Joel Snyder Medicare and Diabetes, by Danielle Kunkle Reaching Blind and Visually Impaired Seniors, compiled by the ACB Membership Committee I Love to Fly, by Larry P. Johnson Phoebe Catlin: A Humble Centenarian, by Greg Lindberg Amy Salmon Seemingly Does the Impossible, by John M. Williams Holiday Season at the ACB Mini Mall, by Carla Ruschival Here and There, edited by Sharon Strzalkowski Separate, by Ann Chiappetta ACB Officers, Board of Directors, and Board of Publications Accessing Your ACB Braille and E-Forums Are You Moving? Do You Want to Change Your Subscription? Contact Sharon Lovering in the ACB national office, 1-800-424-8666, or via e-mail, slovering@acb.org. Give her the information, and she’ll make the changes for you. Keep up with the most important ACB news and announcements without any other chatter. Subscribe to the ACB Announce listserv. Send a blank e-mail to announce-subscribe@acblists.org, or visit www.acblists.org/mailman/listinfo/announce and type your e-mail address and name where indicated. All blind musicians, all the time at the ACB Radio Café, www.acbradio.org/cafe. Blind show hosts offer a plethora of musical genres at www.acbradio.org/interactive. ** Corrections Due to an editing error, the telephone number for the ACB Mini Mall was listed incorrectly (“Mini Mall Mayhem,” November 2017). The correct number is 1-877-630-7190. Due to an editing error, the date of Redbox beginning to provide quarterly reports listing the locations where the kiosks have been modified during the preceding quarter was listed as 3018 (“Notice of Proposed Settlement of Class Action Lawsuit,” ACB E-Forum, August 2017). It should have been 2018. In an item about blind pen pals and blind singles listservs in “Here and There” (ACB E-Forum, June 2017), the email addresses listed were incorrect. The correct address to subscribe to the blind penpals group is blind-penpals+subscribe@groups.io; for the blind singles group, it is blind-singles+subscr@groups.iobe. We regret the errors. ***** President’s Message: Visiting Affiliates — It Makes Me Proud by Kim Charlson One of the things I enjoy the most about serving as ACB president is being able to visit local, state and special interest chapters all around the country. This fall, I had two wonderful experiences in Casper, Wyo. and Louisville, Ky. In September, Brian and I visited the Wyoming Council of the Blind convention. They are a small affiliate, but they are motivated, committed, and ready to work on issues to help fellow Wyoming residents who are blind. They organized an excellent one-day convention, elected several new officers, who are excited and enthusiastic to start working for WYCB. Their president, Graham Steele, was a 2017 DKM First-Timer and was at our ACB national convention in Reno in July. She managed to interest a reporter from the Casper Star-Tribune, who came to the convention and wrote up a great article about WYCB. I’ve excerpted a bit of the article below: ** Wyoming Council of the Blind by Elysia Conner, Star-Tribune Graham Steel has talked with state lawmakers this year about maintaining funding for talking books and other resources for people who are blind or visually impaired. The Wyoming Council of the Blind president also met with Gov. Matt Mead to advocate and spread awareness about issues for people who are blind and have low vision in Wyoming. Steel also invited American Council of the Blind president Kim Charlson to the organization’s annual state convention. WYCB is working to revitalize its membership and activities, and “re-grouping” was the theme and a major topic of the convention. Leaders hope the conference will spark more efforts across Wyoming. The nonprofit organization under the American Council of the Blind works to advocate, connect people around the state and point people to resources, Steel said. “We’re focusing on getting the word out and bringing in new people,” Steel said. Those efforts are crucial, Kim Charlson said during her talk. “What happens when people don’t know or see blind people, they don’t think they’re there,” she said. “And the last thing you want is for the decision-makers here in Wyoming to think that there aren’t any blind people, because there are. Especially in a rural state, it’s even more important to be vigilant and outspoken to make sure people know what your needs are and the funding that you need for your programs and your services.” She described the national council’s numerous advocacy efforts, including for paper money that’s accessible to people who are visually impaired or blind, prescription containers with audio features, and laws about service animals. Attendees Saturday afternoon also would see technology demonstrations from Brian Charlson, director of technology for the Carroll Center for the Blind. He showed people how they can use apps on their phones to access services. That morning, he showed a reporter how he can use his phone to dial the Aira service. An agent there read him the numbers for his raffle tickets he’d bought at the event that morning. … The Wyoming Council of the Blind later filled open board seats during its annual meeting at the convention as part of its effort to grow the organization, said state council board member and past president Tom Lealos. The council’s activities include a monthly newsletter and distributing the [American] Council of the Blind newsletter to help people stay informed about what’s happening for advocacy, advancements and resources around the state and country, Lealos said. He and the other leaders are working to increase awareness about the council and increase its activities throughout the state, he added. … [end of quoted article] On Friday, Oct. 13th, I visited the “Roundabout” of the Greater Louisville Council of the Blind, a chapter of the Kentucky Council of the Blind. This chapter is truly amazing, and exemplifies people who are blind working to support each other. They meet every Friday for their “Roundabout,” which they hold at the United Crescent Hill Ministry. Bill Wright is the chapter president, and Carla and Adam Ruschival are very involved as organizers. The nice thing is that so many people pitch in to do small group or one-on-one sessions on different topics – iPhone and VoiceOver, braille instruction, family genealogy, or cooking demos. They often have an informational speaker, and I was honored to fill that role the evening I attended to speak about ACB activities. Thirty-seven people attended, and after I spoke, we had a Southern home-cooked dinner that each attendee pays $5 for each week. It was wonderful food prepared by Patti Cox and her stepdaughter, Chastity Starkey, who do the cooking! Dedicated volunteer, Sister Agnes, reads mail for people, and helps prepare and serve the pre-plated meal, beverage, and dessert. It was absolutely great! But wait, there’s more! After dinner, a small group of people played cards, and a larger group played Bingo. It was so much fun, with camaraderie, and it’s all organized and run by members. It provides members such a great evening activity and opportunity to socialize. If you feel like sitting, you can do that. If you want to learn a new skill, shown to you by another blind person, you can do that too! I was completely impressed, and think the Greater Louisville Chapter of KCB is providing an amazing service, supporting the blind community in Louisville, and showing everyone that they can do things independently and support each other. Maybe your chapter isn’t in a position to cook a meal for 40 people, but look at the skills your members have and put them to use – crafts, cooking demos, flowers, gardening, informational speakers, refreshments, and remember games, cards, described movies, book clubs, and sharing. Make it an event for everyone! It can be done, and with the collective group involved, one person doesn’t have to do all the work. I’ve seen it work and it’s truly incredible! My commendations to “Roundabout” and the Greater Louisville Chapter for making a place where everyone is welcome! ***** Eatsa Agrees to Make its Cutting-Edge Technology Accessible to Blind Customers To read this press release online, go to www.acb.org/eatsa. NEW YORK — Eatsa, a growing, national fast-casual restaurant chain, has reached an agreement with the American Council of the Blind (ACB) and members of the blind community in New York and California to make its automated self-service restaurant experience accessible to blind customers throughout the country. Eatsa utilizes a high-tech service model in which customers order meals via its smartphone app or at an in-store iPad kiosk. When the order is ready, the meal appears in a cubby where the customer retrieves the order. Over the past six months, eatsa has been in negotiations with ACB and several of its members, represented by Disability Rights Advocates (DRA), and blind Californians, Serena Olsen and Darian Smith, represented by Timothy Elder of the TRE Legal Practice, and Stuart Seaborn. As a result, eatsa has agreed to incorporate accessible design features into its software and hardware that will allow blind users to use the system independently. Under the agreement, eatsa will: • Make its mobile applications accessible through common smartphone screen readers; • Utilize technology to give blind customers independent access to eatsa’s in-store ordering; and • Implement an order notification process so that blind customers who order through an in-store kiosk or via eatsa’s mobile applications can independently retrieve their orders through eatsa’s food pick-up system. This agreement resolves a class-wide federal lawsuit brought in the Southern District of New York by ACB and Michael Godino, a New Yorker who is legally blind. Kim Charlson, president of ACB, said, “ACB and its members are pleased that eatsa will be using its innovative technology to incorporate accessible design in its new market technology.” Michael Godino concurred, stating: “Inclusion in new marketing advances is paramount to the community. I look forward to equal, independent access at all the eatsa restaurants.” “Incorporating accessibility into software and hardware from the get-go is good business,” stated Michelle Caiola, Director of Litigation at DRA’s New York Office. “We hope that as other companies emulate similar business models, they too will make accessibility a priority.” A copy of the agreement is available at http://tinyurl.com/ya22r5dk. ***** 2018 Convention Tidbits by Janet Dickelman As I write this message, members of the convention committee and ACB board members are getting ready to visit St. Louis, Mo. and the Union Station Hotel. Margarine and Vicky will be working on the hotel orientation guide. There is no hotel remodeling planned, so we’ll have the guide available well before the convention. Sally Benjamin will be meeting with several groups discussing volunteering at the convention, and Michael is busy working on the exhibit hall. Rhonda Trott has done a superb job of planning some great tour site visits. It looks like once again this year we’ll have an outstanding tour lineup! Spoiler alert: we will attend a St. Louis Cardinals-Atlanta Braves game Friday evening, June 29th. Be sure to read the January 2018 issue of the Forum for a listing of our 2018 tours. As you read this article, you will be preparing for the holiday season. I’ll be getting ready for Christmas. Whether you celebrate Christmas or one of the many other holidays this time of year, a very Merry Christmas or happy holidays from my house to yours. ** Convention Dates Our first tours and the ACB board meeting will be on Friday, June 29th. Affiliates, committees and our business partners will begin programming on Saturday, June 30th; that is also the day the exhibit hall will open and general sessions begin. Our concluding general session and the banquet will be on Thursday, July 5th, with final tours on Friday, July 6th. ** Hotel Details Room rates at Union Station are $89 per night, plus tax; this rate applies for up to 2 people in a king room and up to 4 guests in a room with two queen beds. Room tax is currently 16.92%. Make telephone reservations by calling (314) 231-1234, and be sure to mention you are with the American Council of the Blind to obtain the conference room rate. To make reservations online, visit www.acb.org and follow the 2018 convention link. ** Staying in Touch The convention announce list will be filled with information regarding the 2018 convention. You can subscribe to the list today by sending a blank e-mail to acbconvention-subscribe@acblists.org. If you received updates for the 2017 convention, you do not need to subscribe again. ** Convention Contacts 2018 exhibit information: Michael Smitherman, (601) 331-7740, amduo@bellsouth.net 2018 advertising and sponsorships: Margarine Beaman, (512) 921-1625, oleo50@hotmail.com For any other convention-related questions, contact Janet Dickelman, convention chair, at (651) 428-5059, or via email, janet.dickelman@gmail.com. ***** Audio Description in Your Community ACB’s Audio Description Project will celebrate its 10th year in 2018 — hooray! As we hope you know, our website, masterfully monitored by Fred Brack, is one of our most important initiatives. Please visit us at www.acb.org/adp. In addition to described broadcast television, movies and DVD listings, we also keep track of audio description availability throughout the country at performing arts venues and in museums — and we need your help! As of Jan. 1, 2018, we want to increase those listings by at least 20%. Please let us know the names and locations of theaters, performing arts centers, museums or park sites where your experience has been enhanced by audio description. If we have your contributions by the end of 2017, we hope to be able to meet our goal and make the ADP website even more helpful. Simply send a brief email to me at jsnyder@acb.org or give me a call at (202) 467-5083. Thanks so much! — Joel Snyder, Director, Audio Description Project ***** Medicare and Diabetes by Danielle Kunkle (Editor’s Note: Danielle Kunkle is the founder/partner of Boomer Benefits, and on the Forbes Finance Council as a Medicare expert. To read this article online, go to https://boomerbenefits.com/medicare-and-diabetes/.) Diabetes is a health condition that affects millions of Americans, including many Medicare beneficiaries. It’s also a condition that sometimes requires a lot of monitoring, so coverage is important when it comes to Medicare and diabetes. Fortunately, Medicare offers robust coverage related to diabetes, especially when paired with a Medigap plan. Most of the treatment related to diabetes falls under Parts B and D, although Part A will provide hospital coverage for any inpatient stays related to diabetes. In this article, we’ll discuss various aspects of Medicare and diabetes care. Be sure not to miss my comments below about common billing problems regarding diabetes supplies so you can learn how to avoid them. ** What Medicare Part B Covers for Diabetes Part B is your outpatient insurance, and it covers a vast array of services for diagnosing and treating diabetes. Let’s break them into sections to make it easier for you to learn. ** Medicare Screenings and Prevention for Diabetes All people on Medicare get coverage for an initial Welcome to Medicare physical exam. Afterward, they also qualify for an annual wellness visit. During these visits, Medicare Part B will cover preventive screenings, such as the fasting blood glucose test, to people at risk of developing diabetes. Conditions that put you at high risk for diabetes include older age, high blood pressure or cholesterol, obesity, cardiac disease or history of high blood sugar. A family history of diabetes is also considered a risk factor. When your doctor orders a screening test for you, Part B will cover up to two screenings per year. These screenings are covered 100% by Part B. Medicare Part B can also provide screenings for dyslipidemia, impaired glucose tolerance, high fasting glucose, and the very common hemoglobin A1C test. ** Medicare and Diabetes Diagnosis Once diagnosed with diabetes, Medicare Part B will cover up to 10 hours of diabetes self-management training (DSMT). This is important as you will monitor your own blood sugar levels to keep your diabetes in check. DSMT includes information on the benefits and risks of blood sugar control, how to recognize complications and how to adjust emotionally to a diagnosis of diabetes. With a written doctor’s order, beneficiaries can also get approved for an additional two hours of DSMT annually. This training is often beneficial to people with diabetes when they are changing from no medication to beginner medications, or from oral medications to insulin medications. Your doctor might also prescribe nutrition therapy so that you can learn to adapt your diet for better control of diabetes. Part B covers this. A diabetes diagnosis will also qualify you for an annual eye exam for diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma tests every year. ** Routine Foot Care People with Medicare and diabetes also qualify for foot exams every six months if they have diabetic peripheral neuropathy. This benefit is accessible only if you have not seen a foot care specialist for another reason in between visits. TIP: Over the years we’ve met many diabetics who are not taking advantage of this benefit because they’ve read online or been told by a friend that Medicare doesn’t cover routine foot care. While that may be true for non-diabetics, Medicare does often cover these visits for people with diabetes who are at risk for circulation problems and diabetic neuropathy. If that’s you, don’t miss out! Ask your doctor today. ** Shoes and Inserts Medicare Part B covers the furnishing and fitting of one pair of custom molded or depth-inlay shoes (plus inserts) for people with severe diabetic foot disease. These must be prescribed by a podiatrist or other qualified doctor. In general, the qualifications are that you: • Have diabetes; • Have partial or full amputation, past foot ulcers, calluses that could lead to ulcers, nerve damage because of diabetes, poor circulation, or a deformed foot; and • Are being treated under a diabetes comprehensive care plan and you need shoes or inserts because of diabetes. ** Medicare Diabetic Supplies Individuals with diabetes often use a lot of medical supplies to monitor their disease. This includes blood glucose monitors, test strips, lancet devices, lancets, and glucose-control solutions whether you use insulin or not. Your doctor will need to write a prescription for these supplies at least as often as every 12 months. If you take insulin, you can qualify for up to 300 test strips every 3 months. People who do not need insulin can qualify for 100 test strips every 3 months. TIP: One of the areas where we commonly see Medicare beneficiaries overspend is on their diabetic supplies. Many people fill their supply orders at local pharmacies, which can often be more expensive than using Medicare’s national mail-order program. This happens because many retail pharmacies do not accept the Medicare-approved amount as payment in full. If the pharmacy does not accept Medicare assignment, you may be charged 15% beyond what Medicare covers, plus the 20% that Part B does not cover. This is called an excess charge. At Boomer Benefits, we refer our clients with diabetes to Medicare’s national mail-order program. It can save you money while still getting you quality diabetes care products from accredited suppliers. These suppliers offer many common brands that you will be familiar with. The mail-order supply programs also give you the added convenience of supplies delivered right to your home. To learn more, and to find a diabetes mail-order supplier, visit https://tinyurl.com/jqtluc2. ** Other Durable Medical Equipment for Diabetes Some people with severe diabetic disease will qualify for an external insulin pump. When your doctor prescribes an insulin pump, Part B will cover the pump and the pump supplies, including the insulin used in the pump. This is an important distinction because people with Medigap plans that pay 20% can get this insulin at no cost. Medicare covers 80%, and your Medigap plan pays the other 20%. This can sometimes be very cost-effective compared to insulin you inject yourself, which you must purchase under your Part D coverage. ** What Medicare Part D Covers for Diabetes Medicare Part D covers many different anti-diabetic drugs for maintaining sugar levels. This is perhaps the most important coverage to many diabetics, especially if they are insulin-dependent. Part D covers both oral diabetes medications and insulins. For some people, the medications can still be quite expensive. Many diabetes medications are still under patent, which means there is no generic drug available. If a medication has a retail cost of $600+, it will usually fall under Tier 5 for specialty drugs. Your coinsurance for these medications is usually 25% or more, so while Part D covers the larger share, the meds are still costly to you. Medications like Lantus, Victoza, Novolog, Trulicity and others, especially in pen form, may cause you to spend more than you like. However, it’s important to remember that just 10 years ago, there was no coverage at all for retail prescription drugs. At least with Part D, you pay less now than you would have back then. ** Donut Hole Expenses for Diabetes Meds In recent years, the high cost of these drugs has put people into the donut hole as well. During this part of the year, you will pay 40% of the cost of your brand name drugs in 2017. Working with your doctor to identify any generic drugs that may be alternatives will help. Although some medications cost more in the donut hole, you can look forward to the coverage gap going away in 2020. Medicare is phasing it out. This is welcome news for many diabetics on insulin. While currently there are no generic insulin medications on the market, diaTribe.com reported that several drug manufacturers were actively working as early as 2010 to produce biosimilar insulin products that could be brought to the marketplace less expensively in the future. Lastly, be aware that Part D also covers syringes, needles, alcohol swabs and gauze. A Part D plan will help you to manage costs and protect you from catastrophic drug spending on all of these items. ** Diabetes and Medicare Supplement Open Enrollment When you are first eligible for Medicare, you will have a 6-month window to join any Medigap plan without health questions. During this window, the insurance company cannot turn you down for coverage due to diabetes. If you have diabetes, this may be an important window for you. Here’s why: Once you are past your initial six-month window, you must answer health questions and go through medical underwriting to qualify for a Medigap plan. The severity of your diabetes could affect your eligibility. For example, it’s relatively easy to pass underwriting if you simply take oral medications. However, if you take medications and/or insulin and have risk factors such as obesity, neuropathy, cholesterol or high blood pressure meds, Medigap companies may turn you down. You can easily avoid this possibility by signing up for Medigap during the first six months after your Part B effective date. TIP: Every insurance company asks their questions a little differently. If you have missed your open enrollment window, our team can help you evaluate if you have a better chance of approval with one over the another. BONUS TIP: Some people are unaware that their medical records include a diabetes diagnosis. Their doctor may have used the word “pre-diabetes.” However, if he noted in your medical record that you have diabetes, this can affect your eligibility for Medigap. Be sure to ask your doctor if you are unsure of your diagnosis. ** Diabetes and Medicare Advantage Plans If Medigap carriers decline to cover you, don’t panic. You can still qualify for Medicare Advantage plans. Also called Part C, Medicare Advantage plans have only one health question. If you do not have end-stage renal (kidney) failure, you can qualify for Medicare Advantage coverage. Medicare Advantage plans cover all the same services that Original Medicare Parts A and B cover. However, your cost-sharing may be different. Be sure to review the plan’s summary of benefits to learn what your copay or coinsurance percentage will be for your Medicare diabetic supplies and durable medical equipment. You can only join or leave Medicare Advantage plans at certain times of the year. Once enrolled, you cannot change mid-year unless you have a special circumstance like moving out of state. ** Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans for Diabetes In many areas of the country, insurance companies offer Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans for people with diabetes. Special Needs Plans (SNPs) are a type of Medicare Advantage plan that limits enrollment to specific chronic or disabling conditions. Medicare Advantage SNPs for people with diabetes will have comprehensive diabetic care. This care is specifically tailored to meet the needs of people who have diabetes. This may include richer benefits, provider choices or medication formularies. It might also offer comprehensive care management of your condition. Care management involves a care coordinator and/or a group of doctors work together to provide you the best possible care. All special needs plans come with a built-in Part D drug plan. You can check the plan’s formulary to see if it covers the medications you need. SNPs also have a unique feature which allows people with the qualifying health condition to be able to enroll mid-year. This means you can join if you have the qualifying condition even if it is not during the annual election period. If this sounds like a suitable plan for you, contact us. We’ll be happy to search your county for any qualifying plans. There are lots of great coverage options for people with Medicare and diabetes. We’d be happy to help you with your questions so that we can find you the right plan. Give us a call at 1-855-732-9055. ***** Reaching Blind and Visually Impaired Seniors compiled by the ACB Membership Committee Seniors often don’t want to identify as “blind” people, so it’s necessary to reach them where they are. Below are some suggestions you and your chapter members can try. • Make friends with your state’s older blind coordinator and suggest they advertise your meetings, and add your information to their website. • Leave brochures and business cards with ophthalmologists, audiologists, and sight/hearing impairment centers offices (especially those that specialize in cataracts and macular degeneration) and suggest distributing your meeting information and any resource lists. • Contact your local senior centers, assistive living facilities and senior apartments, state or county aging and blindness committees, support groups, and eye-related conferences to suggest speakers from your chapter to explain the purpose of your group and the resources you can provide. • Find the Department on Aging and deaf-blind agency in your community and offer to assist them with blindness or low-vision resources (including chapter contact information). Your chapter could offer tip sheets with a list of resources that would interest those losing their sight. This information could be disseminated to social workers on staff at any agency. • Contact Ears for Eyes (1-800-843-6816) and order some of their audio recordings to distribute to newly blinded older people. • Ask some of your older members to choose one older newly blinded person to contact by phone and suggest helpful ideas for independent living learned from ACB. • Ask your local Lions Clubs for help locating newly blind people and finding transportation to meetings. • Give an award to a noteworthy visually impaired senior in your community. • Host a happy hour at local senior center. • Have an annual appreciation breakfast. • Have members try to get on radio interview shows. For an updated resource list for people losing their sight, contact membership committee chair Ardis Bazyn via email, abazyn@bazyncommunications.com. ***** I Love to Fly by Larry P. Johnson (Editor’s Note: Larry Johnson is an author and motivational speaker. You can contact him via email at larjo1@prodigy.net or visit his website at www.mexicobytouch.com.) The first time I went up in an airplane, I was scared to death. I was just 12 years old. I had joined two fellow Boy Scouts on board a navy training plane in Chicago as part of a Boy Scout field trip. We had to put on parachutes and wear headsets. The noise was so loud I couldn’t understand a word of what the pilot was saying as we took off and circled the air field for 10 minutes before safely landing. I’m sure that if he had given the order to “jump,” I wouldn’t have heard it. Even if I had, I’d have been too paralyzed by fear to move. But now I really love to fly. First of all, because you get where you want to go pretty quickly — well, most of the time anyway. I remember one Labor Day weekend waiting on the tarmac in San Antonio for almost 8 hours before we could take off to Houston. But, while waiting, we did have free access to the bar. (Ah, but that’s a story for another time.) Another reason why I love to fly is the people you meet – the airline crew, the airport personnel and fellow passengers. On a recent trip to Chicago I met a skycap named Ernie. He told me he had been a prison guard for 21 years. After assisting me in navigating the security checkpoint at 4:30 a.m., he bought me a cup of coffee and a doughnut, then sat and chatted with me for 10 minutes before escorting me to my gate. During my layover in Dallas, a flight attendant named Cindy kept me company for over half an hour with friendly conversation about her family and mine while I waited for my connecting flight. On my way to a national convention in Reno earlier this year, I met a middle-aged couple from New Braunfels who told me that they had spent their honeymoon in Reno. Jokingly I asked them if the reason they had picked Reno was in case they might have had second thoughts while on their honeymoon. On the final leg of my trip I sat between two fascinatingly interesting people. One was a young lady from Milwaukee with a beautiful guide dog named Fifer. She said she was studying creative writing, wanted to write young adult fiction, and was attending her first national convention. The other was a young grandmother and airline ticket agent, retired after 21 years. She was eager to learn about the life experiences and viewpoints of blind people. On my way back home from Reno, an airline maintenance employee named Carl befriended me and decided that my spirits needed a little lift. He gifted me with two one-shot bottles of Jack Daniels. Talking with fellow passengers or crew members on a long flight helps you to forget about the cramped seating, the stale pretzels and the wait for your luggage at the baggage claim carousel. It helps pass the time and gives you the chance to meet some really interesting people. There is not a person that I meet from whom I cannot learn something, and there is not a person that I meet to whom I cannot teach something. And that’s how I see it. ***** Phoebe Catlin: A Humble Centenarian by Greg Lindberg A lot can happen in 100 years. Many wars can be fought. New technology can transform the world. The global population can skyrocket. But remaining humble for more than a century is quite an accomplishment. And that’s the perfect description of the life of Phoebe Elizabeth Carter Catlin. Born at home on March 9, 1917 in Williamson, W.Va., she was the only child of John Patton Carter and Lydia Ethel Olinger Carter. Both parents hailed from Virginia, and her mother was from a town called Olinger. The family’s roots can be traced back to England, Scotland, and Ireland. “I was home-schooled at an early age,” Catlin recalls. “I wasn’t sent to public school until I reached third grade. That grade school was in Kentucky, so I had to cross the bridge over the Tug River to get there each day.” That school was in Chattaroy. Before she entered seventh grade, the family moved to Bristol, Va. They later relocated to Kentucky, where she graduated from Corbin High School in 1934. She then attended Sue Bennett College in London, Ky. She earned a master’s degree in education with a specialization in guidance counseling. The Great Depression hit while they were living in Corbin. “Everyone in town did business with the same bank. Your money wasn’t protected in those days. When the stock market crashed, the bank said they had no money left, so people got nothing back from the bank. I also remember that the church in town padlocked its doors shut. We had moved to a farm, so fortunately we had enough to eat. We had seven cows on the farm and sold their milk. My parents milked the cows, and I washed the milk bottles.” With a degree in education, Catlin pursued a teaching career. She started off teaching in Ferriston, Ky., and later taught in Corbin. She began teaching kindergarten through third grade and was later promoted to teach fifth and sixth graders. Many of these classes were either held in a two-room schoolhouse or in a church. “We put up curtains in the church’s auditorium and planned it so that one teacher would teach at a time,” she explains. “One school I taught at didn’t have any textbooks or even a building. My attic was full of Sunday school papers and reading materials, which I brought in to use. Our free books finally arrived 6 weeks into the school year. The funny thing is that they had a big section on all the boroughs in New York because they were shipped from a school district up there. So, all these kids in Kentucky were learning about these boroughs.” With summers off, Catlin kept busy by working at the DuPont Laboratory in Louisville. “I helped make synthetic rubber out of materials we got from South America. The people there worked swing shifts around the clock. We all worked very hard.” In addition to her education career, Catlin spent three years working as a civilian in the U.S. Army in the Office of the Quartermaster General during World War II. “I helped supply the Army with food, blankets, and other supplies they needed,” she says. “When the war ended, I transferred to the U.S. Geological Survey. Both of these positions were in Washington, D.C.” It was around this time when Catlin met the man who would become her first husband. “A friend from my hometown in Kentucky introduced us. … He was working on his law degree at the time and then became a federal attorney in D.C. later on.” She and Paul Beath were married in 1947 in Louisville. They had one daughter, Mary Elizabeth. The couple was married for 35 years until Paul’s passing. Mary was born in Washington, D.C. She later attended Duke University and “was really good in math and science,” according to her mom. She majored in botany and zoology there. She then went on to the Rhode Island School of Design where she earned a master’s in art design. She made a career out of being a nature artist. It was Mary who organized her mother’s 97th birthday party in Williamsburg, Va. “We got 10 timeshares for a whole week for all of the family and friends who came in for it. Everyone said, ‘We’ll see you in three years for your 100th birthday, but please don’t have it in Williamsburg again.’ That’s because we got 2 inches of snow while we were there. So, everyone was right about seeing me in three years, and we had my 100th birthday party in May of this year at the Hilton here in St. Petersburg. We had 85 people come for it.” For 25 years, Catlin worked in the Washington, D.C. public school system. She was a teacher and guidance counselor, and some of these years were around the time when integration was taking place. “They sent me to the main large high school in Washington,” she recounts. “They said we needed to have 50% black students at the school, and we only had one at the time. They chose me to be a guidance counselor because I had experience working in lower-income schools in the past. At the time, a judge ruled that higher-income black students be sent to us, but we actually wanted lower-income black students. Some of the lower-income students had never even seen a $20 bill before. Many of them were hard to handle. But we had a wonderful black principal, and I met many very professional blacks who worked in the school system.” She recalls one troubled student who went on to become quite successful. “As a counselor, I had a special button in my office that I could press for security if something ever happened. There was a big black boy who came charging into my office one day. He told me that he had started to kill his father that morning because he had been beating up the boy’s mother, but the mother never reported it. I referred him to a psychologist. But they wouldn’t see him because his father was in the Army and was undergoing his own psychiatric treatment. Eventually, Walter Reed Hospital took the kid at just 16 years old. He played a cello that his brother had stolen. Years later, I found out he was playing in an orchestra in Boston and was doing quite well for himself.” She remarried in her sixties to Glenn Catlin in 1984. The two were married for 24 years; Glenn passed away in 2008. For most of her life, Catlin had good eyesight. Upon turning 93, she was diagnosed with macular degeneration. Three years later, she founded the Visually Impaired Persons Group in her retirement community. She invited speakers from the Lions Club, the Lighthouse of Pinellas and other organizations to come out and present information to the residents. They also had a talking book club, where people would get together and talk about what books they were reading. The VIP Group was formed in May 2013. After a while, Catlin became aware of ACB and wanted to make a connection with the organization. “I was interested because we have quite a few visually impaired residents here at my retirement home,” she said. “I called them up and asked how we might be able to get a speaker to come out to talk about vision loss and other topics of interest. They said ACB has chapters within states and local communities, and they referred me to the Pinellas Council of the Blind.” The VIP Group then became a satellite affiliate of the Pinellas Council of the Blind. While Catlin doesn’t have as much eyesight as she once did, it certainly doesn’t hold her back. “I say you just have to deal with it and move on,” she says. And how has this humble girl from West Virginia reached the century mark? “When people ask how I’ve lived 100 years, I say you have to be able to accept change. Some people don’t want to change the way their furniture in their house is arranged or anything else. Then they catch some disease and are gone before you know it.” ***** Amy Salmon Seemingly Does the Impossible by John M. Williams (Editor’s Note: John Williams can be reached at jwilliams@atechnews.com.) Amy Salmon is an unusual woman, with unusual skills working in a field dominated by men. She is not intimidated by the men she works with. She is certain she is just as good as they are. They know she is. They marvel at her skills and confidence. Even though she is legally blind, she can compete with anyone in making websites, kiosks and other technologies accessible to people walking through an airport terminal. All her life, Salmon has been driven to be the best she can be. At a young age, she realized the value of an education. As a result, she earned an undergraduate degree in mass communication and journalism from the University of Wisconsin. A few years later, she went back to school and earned a master of science degree in rehabilitation for the visually impaired from Northern Illinois University in 2004. Today, her vision and education have paid off. She is a senior accessibility consultant with Tech for All (www.tfaconsulting.com). For 16 years, Tech for All’s international accessibility and universal design consulting firm has served small companies, Fortune 500 corporations, educational institutions, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations representing people with disabilities. Its sole mission is to help its clients successfully address the challenges of making their products, services, websites, kiosks, and mobile apps accessible for all, including people with disabilities. ** Misfortune Strikes When Salmon was 21, she learned that she had retinitis pigmentosa. It affects the retina, which is the layer of light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye. Vision loss occurs as the light-sensing cells of the retina deteriorate. She was 26 when she became legally blind. Being blind has not deterred Salmon from achieving her own goals. Rather, her blindness has motivated her to be educated, and to be successful. She believes she inspires others to do the same. An asset in achieving her goals has been the computer and accompanying technology. She holds firmly to the idea that technology is the great equalizer for people with disabilities. “Technology eliminates barriers that historically have kept people with disabilities locked in a room out of sight.” Salmon has decades of experience working with computers. When she was young, her father transferred his passion for computers to her. He was fascinated by technology, especially computers. As a young woman, she remembered her father bringing home one of the first Texas Instruments computers. An immediate bond developed between Amy and the computer. That bond grows stronger every year. After college, Salmon worked for several years as a marketing public relations consultant where she specialized in obtaining and managing coverage for her clients in local, national and international media outlets. Salmon started her career in accessibility in 2002 when she met Caesar Eghtesadi, founder of Tech for All. “Amy had the knowledge and skills that Tech for All needed,” Eghtesadi said. “Over the years she has become one of our technology leaders, involved in numerous projects. She is an inspired and dedicated consultant, an example to all of us.” Since 2001, Salmon has been evaluating technology products and websites, ensuring conformance with accessibility standards and best practices for people with disabilities. As a user of screen-reader technology, she has been a major contributor to several clients’ projects, including California State University, VitalSource Technology, United Airlines, and Verizon Wireless. Amy has published and presented several papers at the International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference. She has created and presented numerous accessibility training courses for TFA clients. She also has several articles published in “AccessWorld,” a publication of the American Foundation for the Blind. Her work is not limited to website accessibility. As a member of the Tech for All team, she assists with on-site and webinar-based training on a variety of accessibility-related projects, and in evaluating software, mobile apps and kiosks for accessibility. In 2002, Amy decided to return to graduate school. She saw an opportunity to put the knowledge and skills she had developed with computers to benefit herself and other people with visual impairments. She was being swamped with requests from blind students and blind adults to train them on how to use computers. “I want what is best for blind people,” Salmon said. “Assistive technology equalizes job opportunities for blind people.” Salmon believes that blind people must have access to a range of technologies if they are going to compete, and accessible websites have an important role in their personal and professional lives. She also believes that, given the incentive, blind people can be competitive with sighted people if they have the same resources and training sighted people do. She is fiercely determined to assist blind people in every way she can to help them succeed. When she started teaching blind people to use computers, she discovered a major hurdle confronting blind people using computers was the lack of accessibility. This roadblock was contributing to the high rate of unemployment among blind people in the country. “Seventy percent of blind people in this country are unemployed,” Salmon says. Salmon loves her work. She is overjoyed when she is making a website accessible. How long does it take to make a website accessible? “It takes from two to five weeks to complete the non-visual evaluation, depending on the complexity of the website,” she stated. Completing keyboard and low-vision evaluation and then analyzing the website code to provide accessibility remediation takes another two to five weeks. “Once we complete the accessibility evaluation and provide the results to the client, it can take anywhere from a couple of months to much longer to remediate the identified issues, depending on the company’s commitment to accessibility,” Salmon says. When evaluating a website, Salmon uses a variety of Internet browsers such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari with a range of screen reading programs such as JAWS for Windows, NVDA, VoiceOver and TalkBack. Salmon loves to teach. From 1999 to 2007, she taught adults how to use computers with assistive technology. From 2007 to 2014, she was an instructor for the Hadley Institute for the Blind, where she taught many technology courses. When she is not working, Amy spends time with her husband Patrick, her 15-year-old son Andrew, and her 12-year-old daughter, Madelyn. Another member of the family is Wilbur, her 13-year-old retired guide dog. Salmon and her family love the outdoors. She says, “We love to spend time in our boat as many weekends as possible water skiing, wake boarding, tubing and just enjoying the water.” She and Patrick enjoy riding their tandem bike. She also loves reading and knitting. Salmon believes companies are beginning to see that it’s the right thing to do to make their websites accessible. She wants to see more people who are blind employed and using computers. ***** Holiday Season at the ACB Mini Mall Open for business online 24 hours a day, the ACB Mini Mall is filled with gifts for everyone on your list. Techies will enjoy ACB Bluetooth headphones, ACB mega power banks, and ACB dual wall chargers. Charging cables for your Android or Apple device, the ever-popular SD card organizers, and pouches to keep your flash drives and cables neat and organized make great gifts. Be in style with ACB Silk Touch polo shirts and ACB fleece jackets by Port Authority; there are lots of colors and sizes to choose from. Make sure your busy friends never miss a doctor’s appointment, meeting, or assignment; give them an ACB 2018 large print calendar/planner partnered with an ACB pen. Other gift ideas include our handy ACB credit/ID card cases, ACB cork-backed stone coasters, ACB luggage tags, ACB color-trimmed travel mugs, and sturdy and stylish ACB tote bags with embroidered logo and the phrase “ACB Sparks Success.” And of course there are standard graphite and aluminum canes and graphite ID canes; purchase roller and teardrop tips separately. Can’t decide what to buy for your friends or yourself? Mini Mall gift cards are now available; purchase and redeem online or by phone. Extra holiday surprises! Free shipping on orders of $35 or more of eligible products, daily specials, and an end-of-year sale. Visit the Mini Mall online at http://mall.acb.org to check out all of our great items, or find us in the ACB Link iPhone app. Join our Mini Mall email list by sending a blank message to mall-subscribe@acblists.org, or give us a call during regular business hours at 1-877-630-7190. — Carla Ruschival ***** Here and There edited by Sharon Strzalkowski The announcement of products and services in this column does not represent an endorsement by the American Council of the Blind, its officers, or staff. Listings are free of charge for the benefit of our readers. “The ACB E-Forum” cannot be held responsible for the reliability of the products and services mentioned. To submit items for this column, send a message to slovering@acb.org, or phone the national office at 1-800-424-8666, and leave a message in Sharon Lovering’s mailbox. Information must be received at least two months ahead of publication date. ** 2 Percent COLA for 2018 To read this press release online, visit www.ssa.gov/news/press/releases/#/post/10-2017-1. Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 66 million Americans will increase 2 percent in 2018, the Social Security Administration announced recently. The 2 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable to more than 61 million Social Security beneficiaries in January 2018. Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on Dec. 29, 2017. Social Security disability thresholds for the blind will go from $1,950/month in 2017 to $1,970/month in 2018. Some other adjustments that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages. Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $128,700 from $127,200. Of the estimated 175 million workers who will pay Social Security taxes in 2018, about 12 million will pay more because of the increase in the taxable maximum. ** College at Perkins Perkins School for the Blind now offers College Success @ Perkins, a selective, nine-month, residential college-readiness program for high school graduates with visual impairments, including those with some college experience who need to polish their skills before returning. Up to 15 participants will live on Perkins’ campus while they earn credits at various Boston area universities. In addition to academics, they will refine their independent living skills, socialize, learn to navigate dorm living, and internalize the realities of life at college. Students will also learn how to manage coursework, organize their schedules and sharpen their focus, as well as use assistive and mainstream technologies, and try new activities that bolster self-advocacy skills so that they can take charge of their futures. Applications are available for the 2018-19 academic year at Perkins.org/college. Don’t delay – get your application in by Feb. 1! ** Summer Internship Opportunities with NASA NASA has internships for high-school students and for rising freshmen through doctoral students in STEM fields. Applicants must be U.S. citizens, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 for college and 3.0 for high school. High school students must be at least 16 years old at the time the internship begins. Internships are available at all NASA centers nationwide. Applying is a two-step process. The first step is to fill out everything in the online application. The second step is to select and apply to specific internship opportunities. Students can submit a completed application whether they apply to an opportunity or not. However, applying to opportunities has the advantage of allowing applicants to be considered by mentors who work in disciplines of interest and at a particular center. Applicants may apply to as many as 15 opportunities. Apply early, because the best opportunities are likely to be filled early. Plus, your likelihood of being selected decreases the longer you wait. You can register for an account anytime at http://intern.nasa.gov/. All material that you wish to have considered must be uploaded to the OSSI website. Emailed or U.S.-mailed documentation will not be accepted. Internships run for 10 weeks for undergraduate and graduate students, six weeks for high-school students. All student interns get paid. You are responsible for your own housing. Students who are selected for summer internships will receive an offer letter by email sometime after mid-January 2018. They will then have five days to either accept the offer through their account. The offer will automatically expire after five days if no action is taken. If you would like to subscribe to an announcement-only list about NASA internships for people with disabilities, please send an email to nasainterns-request@freelists.org with “subscribe” in the subject field, or by visiting the list page at http://www.freelists.org/list/nasainterns. If you have questions, or need help applying, contact Kenneth Silberman at (301) 286-9281, or via e-mail, kenneth.a.silberman@nasa.gov. ** Enchanted Hills Camp Update For the last week, the extended LightHouse community has been aching to have some ground truth about what will become of Enchanted Hills Camp. Today, all roads to camp remain closed. Fires are still burning in the area, and Enchanted Hills remains in the center of the worst wildfire in recorded California history. Most of Upper Camp has survived the devastation. We have lost most of the structures in lower camp, including the 10 cabins that housed up to 120 summer campers since the 1950s. We also lost the assistant director’s cabin and some storage buildings, along with the cinder block staff house. The Foss cabin appears to be intact. The Art Barn and studio are completely intact. So are the Lodge, the Hogan, and the Kiva. We have also heard that the large dining hall is in good shape, as are the Lakeside cabins. The pool, the horse barn and the gathering house all seem to be standing. It may be days or weeks until electrical power is restored to camp. We’ll host no groups there for months to come, until the situation is stabilized and the safety from weakened trees and compromised infrastructure is inspected and repaired. We are committed to rebuilding Enchanted Hills Camp stronger and better than ever, both as a summer camp for the blind and a treasured Napa retreat center. The reconstruction of lower camp will give us opportunities to build in accessibility and modern comforts for generations of campers to come. But before that, we need to tend to our staff, our operations and the planning, reforestation and construction that will occupy us for years to come. The LightHouse has started a dedicated fund to help rebuild Enchanted Hills. If you would like to help, please follow the link: http://lighthouse-sf.org/enchanted-hills/rebuilding/?mc_cid=c93c93d7b6&mc_eid=3dfecc7ae3. ** Android Version of Be My Eyes Be My Eyes is now available for Android users! Since launching the iOS version of the app in 2015, more than 550,000 sighted volunteers have signed up to assist our over 38,000 blind or visually impaired users. The launch of the Android version is a milestone that will bring free and unlimited visual assistance to even more people around the world, further enabling the blind and visually impaired to lead more independent lives. Download your version at http://bemyeyes.com/. ** FreeStyle Libre Gains FDA Approval The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring System, the first continuous glucose monitoring system that can be used by adult patients to make diabetes treatment decisions without calibration using a blood sample from the fingertip. The system reduces the need for fingerstick testing by using a small sensor wire inserted below the skin’s surface that continuously measures and monitors glucose levels. Users can determine glucose levels by waving a dedicated, mobile reader above the sensor wire to determine if glucose levels are too high or too low, and how glucose levels are changing. It is intended for use in people 18 years of age and older with diabetes; after a 12-hour start-up period, it can be worn for up to 10 days. ** What’s New from NBP? Now available is the 2018 Peanuts “Happiness Is ...” print-braille calendar! Each month features a “happiness is” quote and drawing each month to illustrate the many ways that happiness can express itself! All your favorite Peanuts characters are here: Linus, Sally, Lucy, Charlie Brown, and Snoopy and Woodstock! The calendar is 12” x12” (hanging on the wall it’s 12” wide and 24” tall). The braille is included on clear plastic labels that go right over the print pages. It features a bonus sheet of 120 full-color stickers to mark birthdays, appointments, and other important days. Looking for a last-minute gift? Check out braille “My Wish” bracelets. They are silver-plated stainless steel, and come in your choice of message: strength; love; peace; hope; or faith. Bracelets measure 7” plus a 1” extension. Each comes in its own gift box, complete with a “my wish for you” card. For more information, contact National Braille Press at 1-800-548-7323, or visit www.nbp.org/ic/nbp/publications/index.html. ** EZ Access Kiosks at United United Airlines has incorporated EZ Access® technologies into their new self-service kiosks to better ensure that the kiosks are accessible to all travelers. United chose EZ Access because it’s not limited to a single disability; it can accommodate customers with a broad range of disabilities, including those with sensory and mobility impairments. The kiosks that incorporate EZ Access® technologies have been installed at United’s Orlando, Fla. and Hartford, Conn. terminals, with additional kiosks to be rolled out as United renovates lobbies and existing kiosks are retired. ** Follow Your Dog Now available is ACB member Ann Chiappetta’s “Follow Your Dog: A Story of Love and Trust.” It is available as an e-book and in print from Amazon and other online sellers. Follow the author as she moves from an unhappy early life and her unstoppable loss of vision to happiness and fulfillment as a guide dog user, wife, and mother who works as a V.A. counselor. This book will resonate with many people. It includes stories and photos of her most beloved dogs, past and present. For a free text preview, author bio, and links, visit www.dldbooks.com/annchiappetta. ***** Separate There are times I feel it When not invited When the conversation stops upon entering a room. At these times I don’t exist. Like the megalithic bones on display At the Museum of Natural History, I am a novelty Used for book reports And admired by gawkers. I am “the blind lady,” And “the lady with the guide dog” Coo-coo-ca-choo. Often, I am not asked by others to share Because their assumptions Prevent me from being included. Blindness Is so discomforting to others — It is easier to dismiss me Than to challenge the comfort zone. I often think, how can I be more like them Less like me? I don’t fit in. I won’t assuage their discomfort. In the ebb and flow of the work day How do I tell these folks that I matter? That while I lack vision I ache to be included. When I am in the counseling room, I ask patients to describe facial expressions, Not just feelings or thoughts Denote a change in tone, context and timbre Explore meanings Root out exceptions Grounding them Softening the scars. I am reminded that At these times, I do matter. But outside the room Well, that is another story. The forebears of family therapy would perish the thought of disability exclusion Yet, here I am, typing the prose. Expressing it, trying To make sense of the rejection and pain I feel, Knowing it is up to me to accept What I cannot change. — Ann Chiappetta ***** ACB Officers ** President Kim Charlson (3rd term, 2019) 57 Grandview Ave. Watertown, MA 02472 ** First Vice President Dan Spoone (1st term, 2019) 3924 Lake Mirage Blvd. Orlando, FL 32817-1554 ** Second Vice President John McCann (2nd term, 2019) 8761 E. Placita Bolivar Tucson, AZ 85715-5650 ** Secretary Ray Campbell (3rd term, 2019) 460 Raintree Ct. #3K Glen Ellyn, IL 60137 ** Treasurer David Trott (1st term, 2019) 1018 East St. S. Talladega, AL 35160 ** Immediate Past President Mitch Pomerantz 1115 Cordova St. #402 Pasadena, CA 91106 ** ACB Board of Directors Jeff Bishop, Kirkland, WA (1st term, 2020) Denise Colley, Lacey, WA (1st term, 2020) Sara Conrad, Madison, WI (final term, 2020) Dan Dillon, Hermitage, TN (1st term, 2020) Katie Frederick, Worthington, OH (1st term, 2018) George Holliday, Philadelphia, PA (final term, 2018) Allan Peterson, Horace, ND (final term, 2018) Doug Powell, Falls Church, VA (partial term, 2020) Patrick Sheehan, Silver Spring, MD (1st term, 2018) Jeff Thom, Sacramento, CA (partial term, 2018) Ex Officio: Debbie Lewis, Seattle, WA ** ACB Board of Publications Ron Brooks, Chairman, Phoenix, AZ (2nd term, 2019) Donna Brown, Romney, WV (1st term, 2019) Paul Edwards, Miami, FL (1st term, 2018) Susan Glass, Saratoga, CA (2nd term, 2019) Debbie Lewis, Seattle, WA (1st term, 2018) Ex Officios: Katie Frederick, Worthington, OH Bob Hachey, Waltham, MA Berl Colley, Lacey, WA Carla Ruschival, Louisville, KY ***** Accessing Your ACB Braille and E-Forums The ACB E-Forum may be accessed by e-mail, on the ACB web site, via download from the web page (in Word, plain text, or braille-ready file), or by phone at (605) 475-8154. To subscribe to the e-mail version, visit the ACB e-mail lists page at www.acb.org. The ACB Braille Forum is available by mail in braille, large print, half-speed four-track cassette tape, data CD, and via e-mail. It is also available to read or download from ACB’s web page, and by phone, (605) 475-8154. Subscribe to the podcast versions from your 2nd generation Victor Reader Stream or from http://www.acb.org/bf/.