A Promise of Hope: My First NFB Convention

A Promise of Hope: My First NFB Convention

Future Reflections Spring 1996, Vol. 15 No. 2
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A PROMISE OF HOPE: MY FIRST NFB CONVENTION
by Susan Walker
Editor's note: Reprinted from the December, 1995, Braille
Monitor, the monthy publication of the National Federation of
the Blind. For subscription information write to: Braille
Monitor Subscriptions, 1800 Johnson Street, Baltimore,
Maryland 21230.
From the [Braille Monitor] Editor: What is the impact of one's
first convention of the National Federation of the Blind? How
can one measure the benefit of meeting thousands of competent
blind people and hundreds of focused, optimistic parents of
blind children? There are no exact answers to these questions.
But the impact of the experience changes lives and sows hope
every July when the National Federation of the Blind gathers
for its annual convention. Here is what one mother reports
about her experience:
Last July in Chicago I attended my first NFB convention
with my infant daughter Moriah, who is cortically visually
impaired (CVI). Since I had been introduced to the NFB only
weeks before, I really didn't know what to expect. However, I
was primed for the convention by the contagious enthusiasm of
Dawn Neddo, Barbara Cheadle, and Loretta White, all of whom I
had met just days before at the June Lilli Nielsen Conference
in Novi, Michigan.
Just a couple of months previously, my daughter Moriah
had been diagnosed with CVI, and I was still battling shock
and hopelessness and struggling for answers. Quite frankly I
needed help. How do you teach a blind infant to crawl, walk,
talk, or be potty trained? How will I cope? My husband and I
are both firm believers that attitude affects 90 percent of
what happens in one's life. Therefore, I knew it was crucial
for me to regain a conviction of hope for my daughter's future
and confidence in my ability to raise her.
When my funding for the NFB convention fell through at
the last moment, I called Dawn Neddo to explain that I
wouldn't be going after all and to thank her for her
encouragement and help. It was then that I learned my first
lesson in parent empowerment from the guru Neddo. The lesson
is entitled "Never Give Up." Our conversation ended with Dawn
saying, "Let me make a few phone calls, and I'll get back with
you." Within minutes the phone rang, and Dawn told me to pack
my bags. A scholarship had been granted to me.
Saturday, the first morning in Chicago, I was spellbound
as I listened to Marc Maurer and Kenneth Jernigan speak. I
could feel the promise of hope welling up within me as I
listened to numerous parents and blind children give speeches
and perform skits with confidence and ease. I watched in awe
as graceful, confident people wove their way through crowded
lobbies and hallways using their canes effortlessly. (I was
greatly tempted to follow them as I tried to grope my own way
through the wall of people.)
I had planned on attending only the parents'
pre-convention weekend this year, so I really needed to return
home the following Monday. My heart, however, was yearning
insatiably for more of this thirst-quenching hope I had
received. Deep down I knew that the key to keeping a hopeful
perspective is continuing to meet with other parents of blind
children. In watching others walk the path that now lies
before my family, I see that many of the rough places have
been made smooth by these heroic pioneers. I returned home
with a feeling of peace and the promise of hope.
Are you considering coming to the 1996 convention of the
National Federation of the Blind? Chances are that it will
change your life for the better. If you can handle an infusion
of optimism, hope, and resolve to change the world, join us
for the single most important gathering of blind people to
occur in 1996. Read the following article for details.
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