KCB Board Meeting – August, 2014

The monthly meeting of the Kentucky Council of the Blind Board of Directors was held via conference call on Monday, August 18, 2014. President Deb Lewis called the meeting to order at 8:06 PM eastern time. Members present were Deb Lewis, Deb Trevino, Joey Couch, Rick Boggess, Carla Ruschival, Bill Deatherage, Debbie Deatherage, Patti Cox, Natalie Beyers, “Cisco” Slusher, Elaine Weisbard, Adam Ruschival, Vurah Berry and Bill Wright. Members Gerry Slusher and Donnie Parrett were absent.

President Deb Lewis called for reading of the minutes from the June 16 meeting. Since a copy had been e-mailed to board members prior to the meeting, she asked if anyone needed the minutes read. “Cisco” Slusher made a motion to dispense with the reading of the minutes and for their approval. Deb Trevino seconded the motion which was unanimously approved.

President Deb Lewis also called for reading of the May 19 Board Minutes and approval of the Board Summaries from the May 19 and June 16 meetings. Since a copy had been e-mailed to board members prior to the meeting, she asked if anyone needed the minutes or summaries read. “Cisco” Slusher made a motion to dispense with the reading of the minutes and summaries and for their approval. Elaine Weisbard seconded the motion which was unanimously approved.

Treasurer’s Report

Treasurer Carla Ruschival presented her report for July. Bill Wright made a motion to approve the treasurer’s report. The motion was seconded by Joey Couch and unanimously approved.

Chapter Reports

Eastern Kentucky Christian Council – Joey Couch reported the chapter’s next meeting will be at the Old Country Inn at 2 PM on August 23. He pointed out that the meeting had to be moved since there was a scheduling conflict with Kelsey’s Diner. Joey also reported that Central Kentucky Reading Eye has launched its reading service on two towers and should be launching service in the Hazard and Jackson areas in the very near future.

Northern Kentucky Council – Cisco Slusher reported the chapter will be having a 10-year celebration from 6-8 PM on Thursday August 21 at Rima’s Diner at 635 Madison in Covington. At the event city commissioner Michelle Williams and KCB member Gerry Slusher will be recognized for their advocacy efforts. Cisco Slusher stated that he would like to see the Michelle Williams and Gerry Slusher Awards become statewide awards. President Deb Lewis suggested that he present his ideas to the Awards Committee (chaired by Deanna Scoggins) for consideration. Anyone with questions or ideas should email “Cisco” at ciscoslusher@gmail.com. The chapter also continues planning for their upcoming White Cane Safety Day.

Greater Louisville Council – Bill Wright reported that the chapter is having a dine out from 4:30 to 7 PM on August 23 at Appleby’s at 2225 Taylorsville Road. Other upcoming activities include the quarterly meeting from 10-4 on September 20 and White Cane Safety Day on October 15. The site for the September quarterly meeting has not been determined.

Tri-state Library Users Group – Adam Ruschival reported the chapter had its monthly meeting via conference call on August 5. AT this meeting, author Peter Altshul talked about the process for publishing a book. The chapter hopes to put the recorded presentation on CD so it can be shared. The next meeting will be a dinner meeting from 6-8 PM on September 2 at Denny’s on Eastern Parkway.

Guide Dog Users of Kentucky – Vurah Berry reported the group has attended some of the movies shown at the APH Film Festival. The group is also planning a walk across the Big Four Bridge on September 28 and will be holding its monthly conference call on August 26. Carla Ruschival also pointed out that Deb Trevino and other chapter members have talked with children at the Humane Society Day Camp. Carla also indicated that Penny Reeder, the newly elected president of Guide Dog Users International, will be the guest on Sound Prints on August 31.

Other

Owensboro Support Group Update – Rick Boggess reported that 16 regulars and two guests attended the support group’s August 12 meeting. There was lots of information sharing and a demonstration of NFB Newsline. The Articles of Incorporation and check were mailed to the Kentucky Secretary of State on August 18. Rick also stated that he hopes to submit a membership list containing 18-19 names, the constitution, and a check to KCB within the next one to two weeks with the ultimate goal of being approved as a new chapter of the Kentucky Council of the Blind. Carla Ruschival encouraged Rick to submit the materials as soon as possible so the chapter can be considered at the September meeting. She indicated it would be nice to include information about the new chapter in the preconvention publicity.

Invitation – Adam Ruschival suggested that we consider inviting Sandy Isaacs, a KCB member interested in forming a chapter in the Glasgow area, to join in our next KCB Board conference call or in the KCB PR/Membership committee call. Board members felt this would be a good idea and President Deb Lewis indicated she would call Sandy if someone would give her a phone number. Carla Ruschival indicated she will give Deb Lewis the number.

Committees

KSB Update – Carla Ruschival indicated that she and Gary Mudd, chairman of the KSB Advisory Board, met with KSB principal Debi Phillips on August 13 to hear an update on what is going on at KSB. During that meeting, Mrs. Phillips reported that Outreach Director Meg Stone had retired and Special Education Director John Roberts had recently resigned to take another position. Duties from those positions have been combined under the direction of Kristen Hammond. Since that meeting, it has been learned that Kristen Hammond has resigned. KSB started school with 75 students and several vacant positions have been filled. There is some concern that people filling some of those positions have little or no background in visual impairment. Rick Boggess questioned whether efforts were made to find someone with backgrounds in vision or whether it was impossible to find people given the shortage of vision teachers. All of this is unknown. In addition they have reinstated foreign language by offering an online course which is monitored by a faculty member. There is some concern about whether or not websites used to access this (and other online courses) are fully accessible. Carla also reported that she had inquired about the current status of policies regarding public use of KSB facilities. Since it is unknown when the policies will be updated and their final form, Carla indicated that the KCB Board needs to move on with planning future activities (including the November state convention) with the assumption that KCB will be unable to use KSB facilities.

Rick Boggess asked if Patti Cox and Carla Ruschival had looked into other options for the state convention as authorized by a motion approved at the May 19 board meeting. Patti Cox reported on her visits to five hotels: the Fern Valley Inn, the Holiday Inn on Dixie Highway, the Ramada Inn on Hurstbourne Lane, the Breckenridge Inn, and the Ramada Inn on Zorn Avenue. Room rates range from $71 to $84 per night and all of the facilities examined, except for the Ramada Inn on Zorn, require that groups use their caterers with banquet costs in the $25-35 range. The Fern Valley Inn and Ramada Inn on Hurstbourne Lane have some mobility issues. The exhibit rooms were pretty small at the Holiday Inn on Dixie Highway. The Breckenridge Inn and Ramada Inn on Zorn seem to be the best alternatives. Room rates at the Breckenridge Inn were more expensive and they require groups to use their caterer, but the meeting rooms were cheaper. At the Ramada Inn on Zorn the exhibit area cannot be secured which means that the exibit schedule might have to be altered. The Ramada does not have a caterer so groups can bring in their own food. Given these issues, it appears the Ramada Inn on Zorn offers the best deal.

Carla Ruschival made a motion that the KCB Board instruct Patti Cox to pursue a contract with the Ramada Inn on Zorn Avenue with a room rental rate of $750 a day, but that she sign for $850 a day if the hotel declines the $750 offer. The motion was seconded by Debbie Deatherage and unanimously approved.

PR/Membership – Rick Boggess reported that the committee held its monthly telephone conference call meeting on August 6. Work continues on developing a list of contacts on each of the Kentucky Community Technical College campuses. Members have encountered several unanticipated problems with accuracy of the information originally available, but it is hoped the list will be complete by the September meeting. Work continues on the next newsletter. Efforts also continue to examine ways to reach out to other groups such as four year colleges and other groups. Committee members are looking at ideas for putting together kits which might be shared with others. The main web page and calendar have also been recently updated.

KCB Convention – Joey Couch reported that the conference planning committee will hold its first meeting on Thursday August 21 at 7:30 on the conference line. Bill Wright indicated he will probably be absent due to a meeting conflict. Elaine Weisbard also volunteered to help on the committee.

Old Business

Adam Ruschival indicated that KCB is distributing about 75 copies of Sound Prints on CD. He suggested we might want to negotiate with other groups such as the Kentucky Talking Book Library to help publicize the audio magazine. Rick Boggess indicated it would be addressed at the next PR/Membership committee meeting and any ideas would be shared with the board.

New Business

President Deb Lewis asked if the board is interested in supporting the upcoming KSB Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament which will be held at Oxmoor Country Club on September 25 as we’ve done in the past. Carla Ruschival made a motion that KCB sponsor one hole at the KSB Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament. Bill Wright seconded the motion which was unanimously approved.

Adam Ruschival made a motion that KCB support the Bill Roby Track and Field Games at KSB at the same level (possibly $300) as last year. Elaine Weisbard seconded the motion which was unanimously approved.

Announcements and Adjournment

Since there were no announcements the meeting adjourned at 9:26 PM.

Submitted by Rick Boggess, KCB Secretary

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