1984 MARYLAND CONVENTION
The 1984 Convention of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland took place the weekend of October 12, 13, and 14 at the Ramada Inn in Hagerstown. Convention activities began with a Parents Seminar on Friday afternoon, October 12, ably conducted by our state affiliate Secretary, Judy Rasmussen. A more complete report of this seminar will be found later in this article.
Saturday's activities included a report from Blind Industries and Service of Maryland. about its programs to provide blind Marylanders with sufficient orientation training so that they may lead productive lives. Of course, Blind Industries and Services of Maryland operates one of the few workshops in America which pays the minimum wage. We heard a report from BISM President, Ralph Sanders about the operation of this workshop to provide blind Marylanders with meaningful and remunerative employment.
The director of the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped reported that plans are underway to expand the library significantly. The organized blind movement will be included in these plans.
Dr. Ralph Pacinelli, the Regional Commissioner for Region
III of the Rehabilitation Services Administration told us about the history and prospects for the federal/state rehabilitation program from the federal level. Mr. Richard Batterton, the Director of the Vocational Rehabilitation Program for the State of Maryland spoke about the prospects for rehabilitation in our state. Mr. James Gashel, the Director of Governmental Affairs for the National Federation of the Blind, provided balance to their remarks. As Mr. Gashel pointed out, very few people leave the rehabilitation process with a feeling of pride and joy in their accomplishments. In short, this entire process needs review. Mr. Gashel's remarks will be carried in their entirety in a future edition of the SPECTATOR.
Equal treatment under the law was a major theme of the Convention. The Maryland Attorney General's Office reported that it had cooperated with the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland in obtaining resolution of a discrimination case in which a blind physical therapist had been denied the opportunity to practice her profession. The Maryland Commission on_ Human Relations informed the Convention that the Human Relations Commission stands ready to assist with discrimination problems. The Convention was informed about the complaint process and the way in which to bring discrimination complaints to the Commission.
State Delegate Elijah Cummings, Chairman of the Maryland Black Caucus, addressed the Convention on the subject of discrimination and equal treatment. He promised us that, as in the past, he would assist with the fight to prevent discrimination. Delegate Cummings and the organized blind combine to bring a particularly blatant form of discrimination to the attention of the public, the press, and appropriate law enforcement agencies. As a result of this effort, blind persons in Maryland have a greater opportunity to participate fully in our society. Two blind Marylanders had sought the opportunity to exercise at a health spa. They were denied this opportunity. They now have full and free access (as do all other blind Marylanders) to the health spa in question. To prevent repetition of this discrimination, Delegate Cummings promised to introduce a bill in the legislature to consider revision of antidiscrimination legislation designed to protect the rights of Maryland's blind citizens.
At our Convention banquet, we awarded the Distinguished Service Award to Phyllis Shelton of Channel 13 television for her outstanding willingness to listen, to understand, and to take action to make her understanding felt. Because of the efforts of Phyllis Shelton, the story of the organized blind movement and our program to gain full equality is known throughout the state.
As a highlight of our Convention, we heard at our banquet an inspiring address by Rami Rabby, Secretary of the National Federation of the Blind. Rami was on hand throughout the Convention to provide information and assistance.
The following people were elected to office in the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland:
Marc Maurer, President
Althea Pittman, First Vice President Ted McKean, Second Vice President Judy Rasmussen, Secretary
Al Maneki, Treasury
Members of the Board of Directors are:
Brenda Williams Willie J. Thompson Dick McBee
Al Saile
Carlene McKenzie Pat Winebrenner
PARENTS OF BLIND CHILDREN WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE NFB OF MARYLAND
By Judy Rasmussen
This year, prior to the Maryland State Convention, we decided to hold a seminar for parents of blind children. Parents from several areas of the state attended the seminar which featured a variety of topics including a discussion of the pros and cons of the concept of mainstreaming a child into the public schools.
The conference opened with a greeting from our state President, Marc Maurer, who related some of his experiences as a blind college student. Mr. Maurer said that he had always wanted to be a lawyer. With the help of the NFB, he fulfilled this dream.
Mary Ellen Reihing presented an informative talk. She said that, as a blind child, she did not wish to associate with other blind persons. This all changed when she became a member of the National Federation of the Blind. Also, Miss Reihing discussed her methods for clothes selection, her way of handling appropriate hair styles and some of her dating experiences.
Judy Rasmussen discussed the importance of selecting toys for your blind child which will facilitate learning. Judy said that these toys do not necessarily have to be designed especially for the blind. We distributed a resource list of toy manufacturers, booklets for making your own toys and a variety of aids and appliances for blind persons. (This list is printed elsewhere in this issue.)
Sharon Maneki lead a discussion with educators from the Washington County school system concerning the individualized education plan. Sharon pointed out the importance of thoroughly reviewing the plan prior to signing it. She encouraged parents to come to us for assistance if they experienced any difficulty with a child's education plan.
Patricia Maurer discussed the vital need of teaching your child cane travel as early as possible. She said that children with low vision should learn Braille. Mrs. Maurer also related her experiences in the public school without the ability to read print and without the knowledge of Braille.
At the conclusion of the seminar, one of the parents said that he thought it was time for his five year old to begin to use a cane. This comment was only one of many which demonstrated the seminar was very worthwhile.
The article printed below was carried in the Hagerstown Mail on October 18, 1984. It, too, demonstrates the value of the Parents Seminar.
PARENTS OF BLIND TOLD TO EXPECT MUCH FROM THEIR CHILDREN
By Dana Williams
"Blindness is not a handicap, it's just a nuisance," members of the National Federation for the Blind told-parents of blind children at a state convention for the blind held last weekend at the Ramada Inn.
Members of the Federation told the parents at a special seminar that they should expect much from their blind children, and that they should let their children know they are capable of pursuing a multitude of careers.
·"My imagination was much too limited," Marc Maurer, President of the Maryland chapter of the Federation, told the 25 seminar participants.
Mr. Maurer, a lawyer, told parents that when he was growing up, he never knew blind people could go to college. He said that as a boy he knew of only three ways blind people could support themselves--begging, tuning pianos and making cabinets.
Mary Ellen Reihing, who works with the Department of Labor's Job Opportunity's for the Blind program, told parents to beware of praising their blind children too much for ordinary activities and accomplishments. She said that excessive praise damaged her self-esteem as a child.
"I came to distrust all compliments. The reason I got praise was because people were surprised blind people could do anything. The net result of the super praise for ordinary activity was that I believed that I could do nothing all that well because everything I did was so praised."
Ms. Reihing also stressed the importance of teaching blind children to be mobile.
Get your kids canes as soon as you can get one in their hands. Unless I had someone to go with me, I couldn't go anywhere," she said of her life before she started using a cane to sense obstacles in her paths.
"Help your kids meet blind adults that they would like to be like someday,” she said, stressing the importance of role models for blind children. "Blind adults have a responsibility to blind children."
Another member of the Federation, Judy Rasmussen, told parents how their children could learn through toys.
"Kids need to know what is a square, triangle and circle. You may think that's common sense. It's not. The ideas of shapes and sizes are important," she said. She suggested parents make cards with different textured shapes pasted on them.
Federation members, parents, and representatives from the country school system also discussed the advantages and disadvantages of "mainstreaming," or sending handicapped children to public schools or schools that are not specially geared toward the handicapped.
Ms. Reihing told parents that if their child was mainstreamed, “Make sure his teachers expect something of him. Don’t let them get the ‘B for Blind’ grade. Don’t let them get passed along.”
Raymond Faulkner of Cambridge, Md., called the seminar, 11a good experience, except for the crying."
Mr. Faulkner has a 5-year old blind daughter.
"This is the first time we've been around blind people," Faulkner said of he and his wife. "My wife and I got tears in our eyes."
Mr. Faulkner said it was helpful to see blind people making it on their own and to hear them talk about their experiences. "We found out that our five-year-old daughter is ready for a cane."