The Auxiliary's View...

by Darian Slayton Fleming

 

Your BVA Auxiliary is busy all around the country offering activities to support our veterans. We want to share some ideas that might be useful to you in planning local activities..

Under the able direction of new President Patricia Hail, the BVAA Board has begun meeting quarterly via teleconference. We are proud to announce our new auxiliary newsletter, The BVA Auxiliary Star, available via e-mail. If you are not receiving it and wish to, contact Patricia at waya@pacifier.com.

BVAA is also gearing up for a cookbook fundraiser. You are invited to contribute recipes with short comments about their significance to you and your loved ones. Please send recipes via e-mail to Karen Teachout at sagelakesadie_2000@yahoo.com. If you do not have a computer, or if you simply wish to talk with Karen about your recipes, please call her at 989-473-2446. The cookbook will be ready to sell, in large print and on CD, at the BVA 66th National Convention.

The Board has also instituted teleconference calls to remain in touch with BVAA groups around the country. These calls will also assist me in gathering informative material for the Auxiliary’s View column in the Bulletin. The next call is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Pacific time on Sunday, April 10. The call-in number is 760-569-0100 and the participant access code is 395187#.

Here are some interesting highlights from the last call:

Many groups celebrated White Cane Day. The Northern Arizona Regional Group Auxiliary organized an obstacle course and distributed simulation glasses to demonstrate the blindness experience. In Oregon, the Auxiliary hosted resource fairs in Portland and Roseburg with representatives from several agencies that serve individuals who are blind.

The Florida Regional Group Auxiliary is on both Facebook and Twitter. The group’s website is http://frgbvaauxiliary.org and the officers are listed on the page. Some groups cater luncheons for veterans and hold their meetings afterward. In Phoenix, Arizona, for example, the group hosts a Snowflake Reception for the veterans during the month of January. The reception consists of the distribution of goodie bags, entertainment, healthy food, and fellowship—all of which have been well received in the past. Carl Hytinen of southeast Massachusetts reported that his group took a cake as part of a visit to BVA member Charlie Wolfe Wilson, who had turned 101 years of age.

Please do not forget to check out and check back often with our new national website, www.bvaaux.org.