Volume LXIV April 2026 No. 8
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, 6200 Shingle Creek Pkwy., Suite 155, 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.
Tune in to ACB Media at www.acbmedia.org.
Learn more about us at www.acb.org. Follow us on Twitter at @acbnational, or like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/acbnational.
© 2026 American Council of the Blind
Scott Thornhill, Executive Director
Sharon Lovering, Editor
225 Reinekers Ln., Suite 660, Alexandria, VA 22314
Table of Contents
- Pertinent Convention Information, by Janet Dickelman
- Soaring to Success: Apply Now to Be an ACB Scholarship Mentor, by Amanda Selm
- Summer Auction Celebrates 20th Anniversary, by Leslie Spoone
- Introducing Our Banquet Speaker, by Janet Dickelman
- Giving as We Gather, by Cachet Wells
- My Personal Journey from Inclusion to Belonging, by Michael E. Garrett
- It’s Not Okay!, by Debra Trevino
- From Being Counted to Being Heard: Moving from Inclusion to Belonging with Low Vision, by Dee Ann Hart
- Symbiosis Is the Key, by Deborah Armstrong
- Moving from Inclusion to Belonging, by Peter Heide
- Belonging, A Fragile Thing, by Sharon Strzalkowski
- My Understanding of Belonging and Inclusion, by Pamela Metz
- The True Meaning of Belonging, by Melody Holloway
- Orienting Yourself, by Deborah Armstrong
- Beings from the Planet VentureQuest, by Beth Terranova
- Here and There, edited by Cynthia G. Hawkins
- ACB Officers, ACB Board of Directors, ACB Board of Publications
- Accessing Your ACB Braille Forums
How to Submit Articles to the Forum
If you wish to submit an article to “The ACB Braille Forum,” please send it via email to slovering@acb.org as part of the message, or attached as a Word or ASCII text file. Articles should be between 500 and 800 words. Language should be family friendly. Longer articles may be divided into two or more parts.
Upcoming Forum Themes and Deadlines
June 2026: Theme: Mentors in Our Lives; Deadline: April 24, 2026
July-August 2026: Theme: TBA; Deadline: May 22, 2026
If your committee or affiliate would like to claim an issue of the Forum, please contact Sharon Lovering, slovering@acb.org.
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 update the database.