FLORIDA REGIONAL GROUP, INC.
3801 Coco Grove Avenue
Miami, Florida 33133
March, 2007
FRG
President's Message: Okay! Once again, the Ocala FRG luncheon has surpassed
all expectations. Hats off to our Blinded
Veterans (BV's) who attended our January 6 meeting in Ocala and to Bruce Davis,
Gainesville VIST Coordinator, for his assistance. This
means that the Ocala luncheon has again broken its own record set in 2004 by having 191 in
attendance. Pensacola FRG Luncheon Meeting: The first meeting the FRG has held in Pensacola
will be held on Saturday, April 7. It is to
be held at Metsquette Charlie's Steak House, 5901 North West Street, Pensacola, FL 32505. from 11:30 AM to 3 PM. Menu is steak and the cost for each BV and guest
is $5 for the meal. We need to know how many
are going to attend, so, please call Darryl Goldsmith at: (850) 554-7819 and make reservations. His email is: DANDV5@cox.net.
The
FRG State Convention will be held May 4-6. More
details will be discussed elsewhere in this Newsletter.
Our State Convention is a very important time for the membership to gather and
discuss what direction we need to be heading. Are
there items or agenda that need we could or should be taking before the BVA's National
Convention? Might there be items or agenda
that we need resolutions or action here within our own Regional Group? How can we make our Regional Group better? As it was last year, the FRG Convention will be
held at the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel in Daytona Beach.
The Plaza is a terrific place to relax and have an enjoyable time. Again, we will be asking vendors to show some of
the newest accessibility technology on the market today.
It's now all work, we go to enjoy ourselves, also.
During the town meetings, there is always a considerable amount of legislative and
benefits information discussed. Kicking off
the Convention will be a short town meeting at 3 PM on Friday, May 4, with some Guest
Speakers. A Dinner-Dance will be held from 7
to 10 PM. Saturday morning, we'll have our
Business Meeting and election of officers. Another
town meeting will be held that afternoon. Then,
Saturday evening, you are invited to our Installation Banquet. Jointly parallel to our Convention, the VA Visual
Impairment Service Team (VIST) Coordinators and Blind Rehabilitation Outpatient Specialist
(BROS), along with other involved with others involved in VA Blind Rehabilitation will be
holding concurrent training meetings. So, you
can have an opportunity to have a talk with your VA friend.
Register for a room early. With the VA
and the normal showing of Blinded Veterans, vacant rooms might go fast. This year, we are also trying to have our first
annual horseshoe pitching tournament. We are
working to having it on the morning of Friday, May 4.
If you would like to participate, you might want to check in on Thursday and enjoy
a day of
total fun. More
details will be coming. Please don't leave a
back seat empty. Find another Blinded Veteran
that lives close to you or is on your rout to the Convention, and fill up the seat. On behalf of your Board of Directors and your
Assistance District Directors, we are looking to having an enjoyable FRG State Convention, with all of you. Keep the mission alive and held one another to
help each other. Paul W. Kaminsky, FRG
President.
FRG
Auxiliary President's Message: Shortly,
we will be completing the 2006-2007 FRG meeting year with our State Convention, May 4-6. Again this year, we will be meeting at the Plaza
Ocean Club Hotel, directly on the Atlantic Ocean in Daytona Beach. It's a wonderful place to hold a meeting and one
of which you should all take advantage. After
an opening FRG meeting on Friday afternoon, a dinner dance will be held that evening. This is a good time for socializing. At 9 AM on Saturday, May 5, the FRG Auxiliary will
hold its Annual Business Meeting in the Osprey Room.
There will be reports on the FRG Auxiliary activities for the past year and
particularly our Scholarship Program. In
addition, some valuable information will be provided.
Plans for the future will be made and we will elect officers for the coming year. Get a group of friends together and come join us
at the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel May 4-6 and have a informative and enjoyable weekend. Joyce Thornton, FRG Auxiliary President.
FRG State Convention: The
Florida Regional Group State Convention will be held at the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel , 640
North Atlantic Avenue, Daytona Beach, Florida 32118,
May 4-6. It is a 190 room hotel directly on
the Atlantic Ocean. Your Convention Committee
secured the low guaranteed group rates of only $72 per day, for 1 to 4 persons per room. The Plaza Ocean Club Hotel has completed its renovations since our last
Convention and all rooms are equipped with refrigerators and micro waves . All rooms have ocean view balconies. These low convention rates will be in effect 3 days
before and/or 3 days after the Convention. So,
you may come early or stay late for an extended vacation.
The low Convention rates are guaranteed for reservations made on or before April
13th. Reservations made after April 13th,
will be at the low Convention rate but on a space available basis. We encourage you to make your reservations soon to
insure your accommodations. You may cancel
your reservation and receive a full refund
of your deposit, if you cancel 24 hours before noon on the day you were scheduled to
arrive. You will find a Hotel Reservation
Slip at the end of this Newsletter. Please
clip it off and send it to the Hotel along with your check for one night's room rate and
tax or you may use your credit card number to guarantee your reservation. Other than your deposit, the hotel will not accept checks for your
remaining charges. You must have a credit
card or cash. The Hotel toll free reservation
number is (800) 874-7420. There are a large number of hotels using that
reservation number. be sure to specify the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel and that you want the
guaranteed group rate, indicated above, for the Florida Blinded Veterans Association
Convention. If you have any problem with the
reservation clerks, call George Stocking at (305) 446-8008, evenings and weekends.
The Convention Late Registration Desk will open at 1 PM on Friday, May 4. If you have not pre-registered (see registration
information below), you may pay your late Registration at that time. If you have pre-registered, stop by the
Registration table in the Hotel Lobby and pick up your name tags and Convention Program.
The Convention will begin at 3 PM on Friday, May 4 with an Informational Seminar
for Blinded Veterans and their families. At 7
PM on Friday evening, a dinner-dance will be held in the Ballroom. This will be an evening for good food, good times, good fun, and good music. So, join with us and enjoy a great evening.
The Annual Florida Regional Group Business Meeting will be held at 9 AM on
Saturday, May 5, in the Ballroom. At that
meeting, reports regarding FRG activities for the past year will be made. A legislative up-date will be presented. Plans for FRG activities for the coming year will
be discussed. Any proposed amendments to the FRG By-Laws, will be
considered. The elections for FRG Officers
and District Directors for the coming year
will be held. The election of a Delegate and
Alternate Delegates to the BVA National Convention in Albuquerque, New Mexico, will also
be held. Proposed resolutions for
presentation to the BVA National Convention will be considered. All BV's in Florida are encouraged to attend this
Business Meeting and share your thoughts and concerns about our organization. Your help is needed to assist in planning the
direction the FRG will take in the coming year.
The FRG Auxiliary will hold its annual meeting in the Osprey Room at 9 AM on
Saturday. FRG Auxiliary Officers are
planning their meeting for the State Convention.
Spouses, family members, and friends of the BVA
should plan to attend this FRG Auxiliary meeting. At
that time, the auxiliary will plan their activities and elect Officers.
At 2 PM on Saturday, a second Informational Seminar will be held. The Convention will close with the Installation
Banquet on Saturday evening. There will be a
period of socializing in the Hospitality Room before and after the Banquet.
Convention Registration Fee: The Convention Registration Fee will be $35 per
person (for each BV, family member, or friend attending).
However, an early registration fee of only $30
per person will be in effect for registration received on or
before April 13th. The registration
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Clip off the hotel reservation slip on the other side and send it to the Plaza
Ocean Club)
fee will cover general Convention activities, including the
dinner-dance on Friday night, the Hospitality Room, and Banquet on Saturday night. Please make your check payable to the BVA and send
it to: 3801 Coco Grove Avenue, Miami, Florida
33133. Please include the first and last name
of each person registering, so that we will be able to make name tags prior to
the start of the Convention.
It will be helpful if you will send your registration fee in advance.
This will greatly speed up the late registration at the
Convention. It takes a lot of volunteer work
to put on this Convention and your assistance will be greatly appreciated. Remember to send your hotel reservation slip and
deposit to the Plaza Ocean Club in Daytona Beach and
your Convention registration fee to the BVA-FRG in Miami.
FRG
District Meeting: Prior to the FRG State
Convention, a FRG meeting will be held at the Flaming Pit Restaurant, 1150 North Federal
Highway (US 1) in Pompano Beach on Saturday, March 3.
The meeting will begin at 11:30 AM with a period of Socializing followed by lunch
at noon. For lunch you may have either
Broasted Chicken or Chopped Sirloin of beef and salad, potatoes, vegetable, rolls and
butter, iced tea or coffee and dessert. FRG
President Paul Kaminsky will preside at the meeting following lunch. We have invited Charleen Szabo, the new Director
at the West Palm Beach VAMC as our Guest Speaker. Since
the Florida VA Blind Rehabilitation Center is located at the West Palm Beach VAMC, her
support is most valuable. The price of the
lunch will be $5 per person, including tax and tip.
Come join us. We look forward to meeting you there.
For information about that meeting or to make reservations, write to George Stocking, 3801 Coco Grove Avenue, Miami,
FL 33133 or call George, evenings or
weekends, at: (305) 446-8008. You may also make your reservations by calling
Paul Mimms, VIST Coordinator at the West Palm Beach VAMC at (561) 422-5260, Roberta
Goldstein, Miami VAMC VIST Coordinator at (305) 575-7000 ex 3607 or April Barnes Oakland
Park VAOPC VIST Coordinator at (954)
229-7791. The restaurant needs the
number and choices of lunch desired to prepare properly for the meeting, by February 28.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hotel
Reservation slip
Blinded Veterans Association
Plaza Ocean Club Hotel
Florida Regional Group
640 North Atlantic Avenue
State Convention
Daytona Beach, Florida 32118
Name____________________________________
Telephone no. ___________________________
Street
Date of
Date of
Address__________________________________________Arrival_______ depart__________
City______________________________________________
State______Zip__________
Standard Rm $72 per day 1-4 persons____
Complete this Reservation Slip and send it with your check
in the amount of $72 plus 12.5% tax or your
credit card number to the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel before April 13th to guarantee your
reservation. Or call, Toll Free (800)
874-7420. Be sure to notify the hotel you
will attend the BVA FRG Convention at the Plaza Ocean Club Hotel, to insure the low
Guaranteed Convention Rates.