Bluegrass Gospel Benefit Concert

From the Stephens Chapter of Georgia Council for the Blind:

BLUEGRASS and GOSPEL BENFIT CONCERT
For The Georgia Council of the Blind
(Scholarship Fund and Operating Fund)

February 7, 2010
12 Noon

Shiloh Fire Department, Toccoa, GA

Directions:
Highway 17 or I-85 to Exit 173 (Toccoa/Lavonia)
Hwy. 17 N go 15 1/2 miles to Toccoa First Baptist Church, turn at light on Prather Bridge Rd. (Hwy. 184). Go 2 miles, Shiloh Fire Dept. on left.


Bands to Perform:

• Jerald Lanham & Band


• Brandy Rock Mtn. Bluegrass Band


• Eli Rousey


• Next In Line


• John Oliver and Carmel Ridge


• Al Camp and Night Owls


• Ed Teague, Lawton & Friends

Sound: Max Buckner
Emcee: Liz Moore


Raffle Tickets for Various Items
Tickets $1 each of 6 for $5

Refreshments, Hot Dogs, Hamburgers and MORE!

For more information contact
Al Camp 706-866-3894

Free Admission
DONATIONS APPRECIATED

"The Eyes of Me"

The Eyes of Me
Directed & Edited by Keith Maitland

How do you see yourself, when you can't see at all? At the Texas School for the Blind, students juggle all the usual pressures of high school along with the added struggles of growing up blind. Spend a dynamic year with four blind teens learning how to fit in and live independently. Forced to confront the world without sight, they share their inner-visions of the outer world. Ultimately, you cannot understand their perceptions without challenging your own.

Come see this riveting new film at the Athens-Clarke County Library on Thursday, February 4 at 7:00pm!


If you cannot attend the film, it will be shown on PBS in March 2010. Check your local listings.

Walton Co. Resource/Transition Fair

Walton County Resource/Transition Fair
Saturday, January 30
9:00am - 1:00pm

Walton Career Academy
212 Bryant Rd
Monroe, GA


The Walton Co. Resource/Transition Fair is designed for students with disabilities and their families. There will be over 50 vendors with information on support groups, independent living, employment options, service providers, estate/will information, financial options, respite care, summer camp, and much more!

There will also be breakout sessions on:

• Medicaid COMP/NOW waivers


• Estate planning, wills, and trusts


• Vocational Rehab/Roosevelt Warm Springs Rehab Center


• SSI Benefits Navigator


• Self-determination/Student-led IEPs


• Project Search


• Get It Together Forever


• Summer camps/Respite


• Medications for Autism

ADMISSION IS FREE!!!!

For more information, please call Sandra MacDonald or Teresa Johnson at 770-207-3166.

Free Training for Parents of Disabled Children Today

This article was taken from the Athens-Banner Herald website, www.onlineathens.com.

http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/012510/liv_554074593.shtml

Free training today for parents of disabled

By Staff Reports - living@onlineathens.com

Published Monday, January 25, 2010


Parent to Parent of Georgia will offer free training for parents of students with disabilities from 6 to 8 p.m. today at the North Oconee High School Fine Arts Auditorium, 1081 Rocky Branch Road in Bogart.

The two-hour session will teach effective communication, good listening skills, tips to defuse conflict, how to organize and plan for meetings, and includes training for the IEP Buddy program.

IEP Buddies are parents of children receiving special education services who want to give and receive support during the IEP process.

Register at (706) 769-3506 ext. 1210 or (800) 229-2038.

Paratransit Operations Events

Easter Seals Project ACTION to launch four-week Paratransit Operations Series

http://www.easterseals.com/site/Calendar/291939437?view=Detail&id=30481


Project ACTION, in Partnership with the ADA National Network, will present a free online conference series for four weeks in February. Promising Practices and Solutions in Accessible Transportation: Paratransit Operations Series will begin Feb. 3 and continue Feb. 10, 17 and 24. While the series does not begin until next month, the deadline to register is Jan. 29. The one-hour sessions will feature nationally renowned experts addressing the topics of Origin to Destination; Personal Care Attendants, Companions and Visitors; Scheduling; and the Appeals Process. Each session will be presented via Webinar and teleconference. Connection information will be provided to registered participants.

Author Robert B. Parker Dies

Robert B. Parker, author of the popular "Spenser" mysteries, died Monday, January 18, of a heart attack. He was 77 years old.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/books/20parker.html

2010 Special Needs Summer Recreation & Respite Fair

2010 Special Needs
Summer Recreation and Respite Fair



Sponsored by:

All About Developmental Disabilities (AADD)
Formerly Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities

Developmental Disabilities Council of DeKalb County

Metro East Georgia Learning Resources System
(Metro East GLRS)

Dogwood Chapter, Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
Providing limited camperships for DeKalb County special education Students
Gwinnett Chapter, Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
Providing limited camperships for Gwinnett County special education students


Date: Saturday, January 23, 2010*
*Snow/ice alternate date is Saturday, January 30
The news stations will report if DeKalb County
School events are cancelled

Place: North DeKalb Mall
2050 Lawrenceville Highway
Decatur, Georgia 30033

Time: 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Who? Parents of children with special needs
are invited to drop by the fair to meet
with representatives of camps, respite
care, recreation and other activities

Enter to win one of 4 additional camperships provided by AADD - Details at the registration table

TBC Closed Monday, Jan 18

The Talking Book Center will be closed Monday, January 18 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr Day. We will reopen Tuesday at 9:00am.

Kindle Litigation Resolved

Press release from the National Federation of the Blind (NFB):

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



CONTACT:

Chris Danielsen

Director of Public Relations

National Federation of the Blind

(410) 659-9314, extension 2330

(410) 262-1281 (Cell)

cdanielsen@nfb.org



Mitch Pomerantz, President

American Council of the Blind

(626) 372-5150 (Cell)

mitch.pomerantz@earthlink.net



Department of Justice

Office of Public Affairs

(202) 514-2007



Sharon Keeler

ArizonaStateUniversity

(480) 965-4012 (Office)

(602) 540-8453 (Cell)

sharon.keeler@asu.edu





Blindness Organizations and Arizona State University

Resolve Litigation Over Kindle



Phoenix, Arizona (January 11, 2010): The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), the American Council of the Blind (ACB), and Arizona State University (ASU), today announced a settlement agreement resolving litigation filed by NFB and ACB against the Arizona Board of Regents (ABOR) and ASU. The lawsuit arose from the university's participation in a pilot program using the Kindle DX, a dedicated device for reading electronic books, or e-books, developed by Amazon.com, Inc. The NFB and ACB alleged that the Kindle DX was inaccessible to blind students and thus violated federal law. ABOR and ASU denied and continue to deny any violations of the law.



The settlement agreement among the parties was reached in light of several factors, including: (1) ASU's commitment to providing access to all programs and facilities for students with disabilities, including students who are blind or have low vision; (2) the fact that the pilot program will end in the Spring of 2010; (3) Amazon and others are making improvements to and progress in the accessibility of e-book readers; and (4) the university's agreement that should ASU deploy e-book readers in future classes over the next two years, it will strive to use devices that are accessible to the blind.



The United States Department of Justice is also a party to the agreement, which does not involve the payment of any damages or attorney's fees or costs.



Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "The National Federation of the Blind is pleased with this settlement, which we believe will help to ensure that new technologies create new opportunities for blind students rather than new barriers."



Mitch Pomerantz, President of the American Council of the Blind, expressed support by commenting: "I believe this settlement between ArizonaStateUniversity and the two major national consumer-advocacy organizations of blind and visually impaired persons will encourage the industry to develop fully accessible e-book readers in the near future."



###

Blood Pressure Drug Might Aid Eyes

A new study suggests the blood pressure medicine candesartan may prevent diabetic retinopathy, a vision disorder which strikes people with diabetes. In trials on mice, the drug blocked about 70% of the protein which causes vision changes.

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/diabetes/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100252266

Accessible Devices' Medical News Center

Accessible Devices now has a section on their website completely dedicated to news articles about medical research and breakthroughs. There are links to stories about diabetes, retinitis pigmentosa, retinal implants, stem cell research, and much more.

www.accessible-devices.com/medical.html

TBC Public Forum

PUBLIC FORUM
to discuss the future of Georgia’s Talking Book Centers

Saturday, February 6
1:00pm
Athens-Clarke Co. Library


The Georgia Libraries for Accessible Statewide Services (GLASS) will be hosting a public forum to discuss changes that have been proposed for Talking Book Centers in Georgia. Representatives from GLASS and the Georgia Public Library System will be in attendance.

Join us for the forum and learn how the proposed changes will impact you. You are also encouraged to share your opinion to help develop the future service plan.

Don’t miss this important opportunity!!

BARD Support

A reminder to all TBC patrons using the BARD program:

Many patrons are emailing NLSDownload@loc.gov with questions about using the digital player or selecting books. These questions should come to us in the Talking Book Center. You are only to email NLS with technical support questions.

Public Hearing

There will be a public hearing to discuss the Vocational Rehabilitation State Plan and the State Plan for Independent Living. If you are interested in attending, it will be held

Friday, January 15
1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Georgia Department of Labor Career Center
Oglethorpe-Oconee Room
150 Evelyn C. Neely Drive Athens, GA

Contact for directions: 706-354-3900

Blind Day at the Capital

Blind day at the capitol
January 13, 2010

Colverdale Legislative Office Building
18 Capitol Square SW
Atlanta, GA 30334

Tentative Room: #307
Time: 8:30-3:00

Program plans:

Training on how to work with our legislators
Possibly a governor candidates forum
Visiting your senators and representatives and talking to them about the bill.

Guide Dog for Epilepsy

Guide dogs are for more than just the visually-impaired. They can also be used to sniff out oncoming seizures in epileptics so the person has time to prepare.

26-year-old Athens native Josh White's epilepsy affects his everyday life, making it impossible for him to enjoy even walking to the coffee shop. His seizures are no longer as controlled by medication as they once were.

Josh's family and friends are fundraising to try to purchase a guide dog for him, so he can return to normal activities. The average cost of a specially-trained guide dog is about $15,000.

To read Josh's story, please visit www.onlineathens.com/stories/120609/liv_532395075.shtml or http://wake.mync.com/site/Wake/news/story/44699/man-raises-money-for-seizure-alert-dog.

Josh now lives in Raleigh, North Carolina. If you are interested in contacting him or contributing to his cause, you may contact him directly at joshw80@mindspring.com.