AZCB Board Meeting Minutes
Saturday, June 20, 2015
Members Present: Carlos Paraskevas, Jeff Bishop, Barbara McDonald, John McCann, Bob Williams, Robin Paraskevas, Sharon Booker, Thom Booker and Karen Hughes.
Guest Present: David Steinmetz and Liz Whitlock.
Introduction: The meeting began at 9:05 AM. Introductions were made and a quorum was present.
Moment of Silence: Carlos took a moment to pause, reflect and recognize all the growth that AZCB has had and all that we will accomplish in the near future.
Approval of the Agenda: Carlos amended the agenda to allow David to give the BRIEF update after the Approval of May Minutes. John approved the agenda as amended and Barbara seconded. The motion was carried.
Approval of May Meeting Minutes: Carlos stated that Karen has a functional computer again and that all minutes are complete. Barbara motioned to approve the May minutes and Bob seconded it. The motion was carried.
BRIEF Report: David inquired if the BRIEF applications are submitted on the AZCB web site. Jeff said the link was set so that David would receive submissions. Barbara commented that she has been receiving the applicationsfrom ACBVI and forwards them on to David. Jeff assured the Board thathe will have Robin added to the BRIEF mailing list.
David received an application from Susan Shaw, an ACBVI client. Patty Arnold, her rehab teacher, submitted the request. Susan requested items to be more independent at home and in her community. Sherequestedthe following items: an optical device for reading, a Perkins dymo tape attachment, and anti-glare glasses to help with arts and crafts and help at home with other tasks. The total for these items from Maxi Aids, including shipping, is $100.00. John motioned to approve the request and Barbara seconded. The motion was carried.
Treasurer’s Report: Robin stated that she will send the Treasurer’s Report after the meeting. Robin mentioned that she has not made the QuickBooks purchase yet. She commented that it will take more time. She needs to gather more information.
Robin expressed the possibility of AZCB finding a new accountant. The current accountant has filed an extension and has not communicated in several weeks, makingit difficult for Robin to maintain and keep the books up to date. Robin said that AZCB received a letter from DNS regarding renewing the domain. Jeff assured Robin that its current and no action need to be taken at this time.
Robin mentioned that there will be an Annual Giving Society reception at the national convention and had asked if anyone wanted to make a donation. Jeff stated that at this time, AZCB's resources would be best spent elsewhere, John agreed. John motion toaccept the Treasurer’s Report for audit and Jeff seconded. The motion was carried.
President's Report: Carlos stated that the ACB National Convention is next Month and that he is delighted to see many attending. He is disappointed that he will not be able to attend but looks forward to listening to podcasts and ACB Radio as well as hear from those who attended.
Committee Reports:
Planning Committee: AZCB had their Community Meeting in May. The Planning Committee had a meeting after and discussed how things went. The positive and also ways to improve and make it better in the future.
Carlos mentioned that overall everyone preferred having two separate meetings. He said many found it worthwhile. Carlos remarked that several members enjoyed being able to socialize and find out what was happening in the community and with each chapter. They found it advantageous to split the State Convention into two days and also many thought the presentations were very good.
Robin remarked next year they plan on scheduling presenters and their time slots a little differently to makeit amore successful Conference for all.
Budget Committee: Bob said the committee met On June 10 to discuss the budget and how much AZCB could allocate to send some members to Convention. Bob informed that they had a budget of $4,000 and 7 members will be attending. Jeff Bishop will be the chief delegate, Karen Hughes the alternate delegate and Barbara McDonald the nominating delegate. The Budget Committee recommended that Jeff Bishop receive $1,000, Karen Hughes $750, Barbara McDonald $750 and the other four attendees $250 each. This total budget also included our silent auction donation and door prizes.
Robin motioned to approve this budget and Bob seconded. The motion was carried.
Public Information Committee: Carlos said he is collecting articles for the Foresight newsletter. Carlos publically thanked and appreciated all the individuals whom submitted articles.
Website: Jeff stated that the web site will be complete by Convention. Jeff commented that there will be many changes and that it will appear more modern. He remarked that there are many enhancements and that he believes it will be easier to use. He will need more time to migrate PayPal.
Jeff informed the Board that those members whom receive the newsletter in audio format can subscribe to it. Those individuals can have access to the newsletter on their IPhone, IPad or VR Stream.
RSA Conference: The Conference was held on Wednesday, June 17 and approximately 400 people attended. Carlos said it went well and AZCB is receiving some recognition.
New Business:
ACB IPhone App: Jeff stated that there is an awesome opportunity for ACB in which one of the IOS developers is developing an app specifically for ACB. Jeff mentioned members will be able to do some things such as visit all ACB web sites, send messages to affiliates and receive alerts from Board officers. He stated that apps are very expensive to develop, $30,000 but the developer is willing to design the app for only $500.
Jeff will be presenting this project at the Pre-Board Meeting at the National Convention in July.
Jeff believes this would be an incredible opportunity for AZCB and Arizona also would make a huge impact on the National level.
He said President Kim Charlson will address the IPhone project in her President's Report and then during roll call Jeff would make an announcement. Jeff said there will likely be an article in the Braille Forum as well as many will be listening on ACB Radio.
Jeff commented that the App is already being developed and that it could be available in August or September.
He stated that there will be a possible upgrade in September and that will be an additional $200. He said IOS 9 will be a significant upgrade and will make the app much easier to use.
Jeff informed that there will be a technical team that tests the app prior to it being released.
John motioned for AZCB to donate $500 for the initial funding for the ACB IPhone App and Karen Seconded. The motion was carried.
Braille Printer: Jeff updated the Board on the condition of the printer. He said the initial setup was quite challenging but he was able to configure it on his home network. Its operational but is not UEB compliant. He contacted DuxburySystems and the Board has fifty days to upgrade the software.
Jeff stated the software costs $195 to upgrade and said it's crucial to make sure its UEB compliant since all ACB documents would be in UEB format.
Carlos strongly recommended that AZCB purchase the Duxbury Systems software because it would reduce our costfor producing braille material significantly.
Barbara motioned to purchase the software for $195 and John seconded. The motion was carried.
Social Media Presence: John informed the Board that he would like to see AZCB increase their social media presence, specifically twitter. Both He and Jeff are working towards making it possible for members to utilize the existing tools that are available. Both Jeff and John will focus more on this after National Convention. They would like to see more participation on the net, capturing significant events that are happening and anything of importance to ACB members.
GDUA: Liz mentioned that GDUA had their recent Fund Raiser and raised over $1,000 at their Garage Sale. Recently there was a GDUA Breakfast at the Good Egg Restaurant in Phoenix. Sixteen people and six dogs attended.
Liz said their next event will be Diving with Dogs on august 8 at Jacque and Dan Olsen's home in Tempe.
Later in the fall will be the White Cane Day event on October 15 at the Tempe Public Library. The GDUA Annual Conference will be held on November 7 at ACBVI.
Maricopa Club: Barbara said they had their last meeting on June 10. An MCC member participates with Daring Adventures and spoke about their trip to the Grand Canyon.
Barbara stated the Maricopa Club won't have a meeting in July nor August but will have a social event. They will likely go to a museum. MCC is not sure which museum at this time.
Phoenix: Carlos stated that he would like to have a meeting with the Phoenix members by August and hopes to find a way to engage the members.
SAZCB: Sharon mentioned that the Southern Chapter will have their next meeting on June 27.
She said A Yellow Cab representative will be presenting at their meeting, informing the members of an initiative program that will enable blind customers to receive rides in a timelier manner.
Also, SAZCB is selling tickets for a performance at the Dinner Theatre. The event will be held on August 9 and Lindsay McHugh will be directing and performing. The book clubis cancelled for next month.
RSA Clients: Carlos stated that their May 13 meeting was cancelled due to only three members attending. The next RSA Clients meeting will be on July15.
VRATE: Barbara said that there will not be a meeting this month. However, last month they discussed the VRATE web site. Barbara reminded the board that the VRATE event will be held on December 11 and that more information will be available in July and August.
AZDAC: Barbara informed the board that there will be an ADA 25TH Anniversary Celebration on Saturday July 18 at the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel from 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm. She said there will be speakers, dinner and dancing. Barbara mentioned the keynote speaker will be a former Olympian, now disabled. Barbara will not be able to attend but Karen Hughes will go in her place. Karen is looking forward to it.
GCBVI: Barbara gave an update and said the next Public Information meeting will be on June 23.
The next Full Council meeting will be on July 24. Linda Montgomery, the director of the Braille & Talking Book Library, is retiring.
Announcements: John informed the Board that Charlie Hodge passed away and John commented that Charlie was both a mentor and a longtimefriend. Jeff remarked that Charlie was an amazing person.
Robin mentioned that she plans on having a garage sale and would like to get AZCB involved.
Next Meeting: The meeting adjourned at 11:40 AM. The next AZCB Board meeting is scheduled for Saturday, August 1 at 9:00 AM.