Convention 1991--New Orleans Style

Convention 1991--New Orleans Style

Future Reflections Convention 1990, Vol. 9 No. 4
(contents) (next)
CONVENTION 1991--NEW ORLEANS STYLE
1990 was the BIG one for the National Federation
of the Blind--the Golden Anniversary year. It
was a year for celebrating fifty years of progress
toward our goal of equality, opportunity, and
security for the blind. As to be expected, the fiftieth
year celebration at our National Convention in Dallas,
Texas, was absolutely outstanding. However,
we in the Federation are never ones to rest on our
laurels. The New Orleans convention in '91 will be
everything Dallas was, but better. The convention
will be filled with informative program items, exhibits
of the latest technology for the blind, exciting
tours, plentiful door prizes, and opportunities for
parents to make and renew friendships with other
parents, blind role models, and top educators from
around the country.
The first large gathering of the convention will
be the Parents of Blind Children National Conference
on Sunday, June 30. The theme for the
1991 seminar will be: We Are Changing What It
Means To Be Blind. After a morning of speakers
and panels, the parents conference will break up into
small group workshops for the afternoon. Participants
will be able to choose three one-hour
workshops from among these topics: Braille; Cane
Travel; AlternativeTechniques in Math/Science;
The Blind and Multiply Disabled Child; Alternative
Techniques in Physical Education; Keyboarding/Computer
Skills; and the Blind Infant/Toddler/Preschooler. Parents and older blind
youth will also have the option of attending the Job
Opportunities for the Blind Seminar (JOB) which will begin at 1:00 p.m. that afternoon (Sunday,
June 30).
While mom and dad are busy with these
workshops, the kids will be busy with their own
special activities. Watch your next issue of Future
Reflections for an announcement about these
children's field trips and activities and/or fill out and
mail in the special form at the end of this article, and
more detailed information about children's activities,
the parents seminar agenda, and general
convention information will be mailed to you as
soon as all plans are completed.
On Monday, July 1, registration for the convention
begins and the exhibit hall opens (registration
fees are $5.00 per person). On Tuesday, July 2, the
NFB Board of Directors meets in the morning, and
the Parents of Blind Children Division Annual
Meeting is held that afternoon. The first convention
session begins Wednesday morning followed that
evening, at 7:00 p.m., by a special Individualized
Education Program (IEP) workshop. After the
Thursday (July 4) morning session, conventioneers
may enjoy an afternoon of tours or whatever leisure
time activities they choose from the delightful city
of New Orleans. Friday evening, after a stimulating
day of convention program speakers, we have the
highlight of the convention--the banquet. The convention
then adjourns at 5:00 p.m., Saturday, July
6. Convention rates will be honored by the hotel for
a reasonable time before and after the convention.
The elegant Hyatt Regency, located just eight
blocks from the French Quarter, will be our 1991
convention site. A shuttle service to and from the
French Quarter will be provided to hotel guests
during the National Convention. The attractions of
the French Quarter are famous--marvelous food,
raucous night life, haunting Jazz, beautiful architecture,
street artists, and shops of all kinds--from
tatoo parlors to voodoo shops. And that is just in the
French Quarter. New Orleans has so much more to
offer--book stalls, antique stores, streetcars, the
River Walk, the Hard Rock Cafe, the Audubon Zoo,
and hundreds of quaint shops and cafes.
But one will not need to leave the hotel to enjoy
good food and shopping. The Hyatt features several
restaurants, cocktail lounges, and a large shopping
mall. The mall includes a Waldenbook store, jewelry
store, souvenir shop, a Cafe du Monde, Frank and
Stein--hot dogs and beer--and many other fast
food stalls. In addition, Macy's Department store is
adjacent to the Hyatt and easily accessible to any
hotel guest. There is also a swimming pool on the
seventh floor of the Hyatt. The convention sessions
and exhibit hall will all be conveniently located on
the third floor of the Hyatt Poydras Tower (the Hyatt
has two towers; the Poydras, with twenty-seven
floors; and the Lenai, with eleven floors).
You will want to get your reservations in soon.
We have over 1,100 rooms set aside for accommodations,
but with our unbelievable room rates
(singles, $28; doubles and twins, $35; triples, $38;
quads, $40) rooms may be hard to get as convention
time nears. An additional occupancy tax of 2% per
night will be added to the room rates, plus sales tax
of eleven percent. There will be no charge for
children under twelve in a room with their parents.
Room reservations should be made by writing to:
Hyatt Regency New Orleans
500 Poydras Plaza
New Orleans, Louisiana 70140
Phone:(504)561-1234