Hello Everyone, First of all, I want to thank all of the instructors that are offering to provide their time and teaching skills to the Cane Walk this year. This is an especially challenging year as all of you are aware, and your willingness to participate in this event, with its many unique aspects and potential benefits for our youngest Federationists, is truly appreciated. As soon as you have been matched with a participating family, please feel free to contact them to schedule a lesson, and to determine whether they will be needing canes, learning shades, or assistance with any part of the process. I wanted to put together a single e-mail that will provide each of you with the information you'll need to participate in the Cane Walk. Below should be all of the contact information and directions you will need to make this a successful experience for you and the families you are serving. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns. *** For those of you that may have families in your area that are interested in participating in the Cane Walk, there is a twostep process that they need to follow. First, they need to register for the Parents of Blind Children conference at the link below: http://nopbc.org/2020-nopbc-confere Next, they need to register for the Cane Walk itself at the link below: http://www.nopbc.org/canewalk Michell Gip has been assisting me with matching instructors with families, and some of you have already received contact information to begin arranging schedules with the families you will be working with. I do not know how many families will be participating at this point, and therefore I do not know if all of you will have the opportunity to provide training, but the number of families registering is growing. *** For some of the families there will be a need to assist them with fitting, and obtaining a cane for their child, and likely a teaching cane for themselves. Please follow the directions below. For Teaching Canes: Instructors should email freecane at nfb.org With NOPBC Teaching Cane as the subject line. They will need to include the parent's name and address, and, of course, the length of cane. If a cane is needed for a child, the parent should fill out the Free White Cane Request Form on the NFB website. (The instructor could do this on the parent's behalf, if the parent agrees. The NFB wants to make sure we get accurate information about the child who is receiving the cane.) If the instructor knows a Free White Cane form was filled out for a child, and the parent also wants a teaching cane, the instructor should include this fact in the email when he or she orders the teaching cane. The instructor might say something like: John Smith is the parent of Lindsay Smith, and he filled out a Free White Cane form for Lindsay this morning. We would appreciate it if these canes could be shipped together. We cannot guarantee that they will arrive together, but we will do our best to make this happen. One of our board members, Kimberly Banks, will be making learning shades for families who need them. If your instructors could ask families if they need learning shades, or if they already have them, that would be fantastic. Some families may already have a pair or two. If they do, great! If that is the case though, the instructor should send a quick note to Kimberlybanks1984 at gmail.com If Kimberly does not hear a family does not have shades, she will automatically send each family two-one for the child, and one for the parent. *** The following Cane Walk activities will be taking place during the time leading up to National Convention. July 6th, at 7:00 pm Central Time, the Zoom conference call for the introduction to the Cane Walk will be held. If you do not have the Zoom app loaded onto your phone, it is highly recommended that you do so. This meeting can be linked at: Join this meeting https://zoom.us/j/94239536647?pwd=NnZJcG5xcVJlMEdZUlNXZWp6Q2gyUT09 via the Zoom app on your computer or mobile phone, Or call +1 646 558 8656. Meeting ID: 942 3953 6647 Password: 891056 Following the Cane Walk experiences with families, there will be two follow-up sessions, during which families can ask questions and provide feedback. These sessions will be held on the evening of July 13th and the morning of July 15th. I recognize that many of you will be busy with other commitments during this time; however, if you can work it into your schedule to attend these follow-up sessions, your presence will be very much appreciated. The Zoom links are listed below: Monday, July 13, at 8 pm eastern time. Join here https://zoom.us/j/91449245971?pwd=WUQ0M3EzKzBnUlhxKy9TQ0VBNWNlZz09 , Or call +1 646 558 8656. Meeting ID: 914 4924 5971 Password: 412114 Wednesday, July 15, 11 am Eastern Time Join Here https://zoom.us/j/92042391665?pwd=c1A0ZWZzVG5EeGdqN0N1SHppSTk2UT09 Or call +1646-558-8656. Meeting ID: 920 4239 1665 Password: 283583 Please do your best to have your first lesson completed during the week before convention; however, our format does allow for the flexibility for you to have this lesson after this time if the family's schedule does not permit, and also you are certainly welcome to arrange for more than one lesson with the family, as time will allow. If you should have any questions, or concerns, please contact me at: debandjeff at allophone.com Or (402) 489-9458 After normal working hours, or on the weekend please. Thank you, Jeff Altman MA NOMCT CVRCB