Bay State Council of the Blind Fall Conference 2019
You’re invited to attend this year’s Bay State Council of the Blind (BSCB) Fall Conference, which will be held on Saturday, November 16, 2019 at the Carroll Center for the Blind.
Conference Program
Registration will begin at 8:45 AM, followed by the general session at 9:30. Please note, if you arrive early, the building will not be unlocked until 8:15 A.M. The conference will conclude at 4:00 PM.
The morning general session will feature speakers on a variety of topics. We will start the morning with a welcome from Carroll Center President Greg Donnelly. BSCB President Brian Charlson will talk about recent BSCB and ACB accomplishments. MCB Commissioner David D’Arcangelo will tell us about MCB priorities. Psychologist and Life Coach, Dr. Linda Bolle will discuss lessons learned related to adjusting to blindness and educating others about realities of vision loss. Hannah Fairbairn will tell us about her new book “When You Can’t Believe Your Eyes: Vision Loss & Personal Recovery.” Lou Lasher will discuss his experience doing audio description of movies and live theater. Matthew Turner, an MIT student who was awarded an ACB scholarship will also speak.
During lunch, along with socializing, we will conduct a BSCB 50 50 fundraising raffle where you can win big bucks and help out the BSCB at the same time. Raffle tickets can be purchased on the day of the conference.
Afternoon sessions will be exclusively devoted to advocacy issues. BSCB President Brian Charlson will reflect on the importance of self-advocacy. Clinical Psychologist and Life Coach, Dr. Linda Bolle, and Psychologist Dr. Jennifer Harnish, Director of Rehabilitation at the Carroll Center will identify assertiveness skills for dealing effectively with challenging situations. BSCB Legislative Committee members will lead a discussion on storytelling as advocacy after screening a video featuring attorney and deafblind advocate Haben Girma. Daniel Manning, Director of Litigation, and attorney Alexa Rosenbloom, both from the Greater Boston Legal Services, will outline GBLS activities and be presented the 2019 BSCB Community Access Award. BSCB board member Cheryl Cumings will summarize the 2018 BSCB voting survey results. Finally, Cheryl Cumings and Legislative Committee chair DeAnn Elliott will discuss the upcoming 2020 Census and its potential impact on the blindness community.
How to Pre-Register
There are several ways for you to pre-register. Registration costs $20.00. Please find the various ways to pre-register below:
- You can pre-register through PayPal at this link: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=5XSPMBN7E7GKG
- You can also pre-register by calling BSCB Treasurer Rick Morin at (617) 633-7947.
- Finally, if you wish to pay by cash the day of the conference, you can also pre-register via the BSCB phone line at (773) 572-6312. Please leave your name and phone number to confirm that we your message was received.
- Regardless of your registration method, please be sure that your registration information is received no later than Wednesday , November 13 so we can have an accurate estimate of the number of participants. You can also register the day of the conference. However, the registration fee will still be $20 and there is no guarantee that you will receive lunch.
Win Big Bucks at Our Raffle and Help Out the BSCB!
During lunch, there will be a 50/50 raffle. Half the cash collected at the door will go to a lucky winner and the other half will go to the BSCB as donations. We will also raffle a couple of gift certificates as runner-up prizes. You can purchase raffle tickets at the door. The price for a single ticket is $5.00, and you can also purchase a bundle of 5 tickets for $20.00. Only cash accepted. No refunds, especially after the raffle is over!
Event Details:
When: Saturday, November 16, 2019
Cost: $20.00
From: 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
Where: The Carroll Center for the Blind
Rachel E. Rosenbaum Technology Center
