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.