Boise Bowlers Score Six-Peat
Five Boise, Idaho, area blinded veteran bowlers and members of
the Gem State Regional Group are the Bowlers to Veterans Link
(BVL) national gold medal winners in the blind division for the
sixth consecutive year.
World War II veterans Jim Near and Robert Schaney, Korean War
Veterans Art Motz and Carl Blush, and Vietnam Veteran Jerry Praegitzer
successfully defended their title once again. They also again
attribute their success to others who support and cheer them on,
most notably VIST Coordinator Valerie Duffy and loyal pin spotter
Linda Motz (Art’s wife).
"Val is always on hand to give us an emotional lift and
make sure we have all of the needed good luck charms—coffee,
VA T-shirts, and the right words of encouragement," said
Art. "We also couldn’t get it done without Linda’s
reliable spots."
Participants bowl three games per week for three weeks. They
are judged on their four highest games out of nine, which means
that each team of five bowlers submits 20 scores to be judged.
The BVL/VA tournament attracts veterans from VA hospitals, outreach
centers, and outpatient clinics throughout the country. There
are seven divisions that make the tournament competitive. The
divisions are based on veterans’ level of play, age, and
size of home facility.
KCBI-TV Channel 2 in Boise also did a recent news segment on
the bowling quintet, three of whom once again participated in
a local senior league at the 20th Century Lanes in Boise. The
senior team, appropriately named "Three Blind Mice and Minnie,"
took first place in the league despite varying degrees of blindness.
The threesome consisted of Art, Jim, and Robert as the Blind Mice
and Linda as Minnie.
BVA Flags Available
A limited number of full-sized BVA flags are currently available
from BVA National Headquarters.
The ceremonial nylon flags, three by five feet in size without
pole or stand, are being sold at cost for $64.91, including shipping
and handling. The flags were secured through the efforts of Region
IV-B Field Service Representative Earl Ivie, who provided five
of the flags to the Los Angeles VA Medical Center for permanent
display.
Contact Communications Coordinator Stuart Nelson at BVA for more
information, or to order a flag. If the current stock of flags
depletes rapidly, an additional supply will likely be purchased.
New Office for Larry Martinez
The BVA Assistant National Director of the Field Service Program
and Regional VI-A representative recently moved his office to
Fresno, California, from the Sacramento area (Mather).
Effective July 28, the office can be reached by addressing correspondence
to Larry Martinez, Blinded Veterans Association, Fresno VA Medical
Center, Building 11 Room 3, 2615 East Clinton Avenue, Fresno,
CA 93703. The direct line office phone number is 559-228-5316.
Faxes can be sent to 559-241-6437.
The new office e-mail address is not yet confirmed and will be
given in the next issue of the Bulletin.
Executive Director Note
Dr. Robert Roswell, Under Secretary of Health for the Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA), sent a letter in May to the Chairman
of the Visual Impairment Advisory Board. The letter stated that
Don Garner, Director of Blind Rehabilitation Service (BRS), had
advised Roswell of his intention to relinquish his position as
Director of BRS, effective September 30, 2003.
VA Secretary Principi and Roswell have stated their wish that
an aggressive national search be undertaken to identify and hire
a highly qualified candidate to fill the vacancy.
A national search committee is now being assembled. VA is actively
seeking highly qualified candidates for this position. Since the
precise timing of the formal recruitment announcement was not
known at press time, interested individuals should contact Cindy
Wade, Executive Program Officer. She can be reached at 202-273-8485
or via e-mail at cindy.wade@hq.med.va.gov.
Dr. Lucille Beck, chief consultant for the Rehabilitation Strategic
Healthcare Group, will chair the search committee. The Director
of BRS reports directly to Beck. In turn, Beck reports to the
Chief Patient Care Officer, Dr. Thomas Holohan.
Don Garner assumed the position of BRS Director in August of
1979. He also served as Chief of the Eastern Blind Rehabilitation
Center (EBRC) in Connecticut, and as a BVA Field Service Representative
and National Director of the BVA Field Service Program.
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