RECIPE SWAP
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Welcome to a new year! The holidays are over and a new year has arrived. The National Federation of the Blind of Kansas has already begun its busy schedule for the year. We have lots of projects and plans for the New Year.
By the time you are reading this we will have attended the Washington D. C. Seminar the first week in February. We have several members scheduled to attend along with them will be two students attending the student's seminar just prior to the Washington Seminar. We are looking forward to the opportunity to present our issues to our Congressional Representatives. We are asking Congress to give consideration to the Passage of the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act; the Passage of a Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind; and Passage of the Blind Persons Return to Work Act.
The legislative committee is already at work in this new legislative year. The NFBK has supported a state quiet car bill. The committee is also hard at work raising legislative support for the reinstatement of funds for News line in the state Library budget.
The NFB of Kansas was also in attendance at the state stakeholders meeting for Services for the Blind on January 14, 2010. This meeting was a compilation of Venders, organizations, agencies, individuals and interested parties in the defining of future services of Services for the Blind in Kansas. NFBKS representatives stated the philosophy of emphases on "Informed Choice" and quality employment outcomes. Emphases were also placed on qualifications of staff and venders. NFBK believing that a demonstrated knowledge and skill of blindness techniques under conditions of blindness was the best test for providers of services to blind persons in Kansas.
We will continue working on the issues mentioned previously and we have up coming projects that you may be interested in. In February we mailed out the national and state scholarship applications. Students remember your applications are due into national and state scholarship committees by March 31, 2010. If you have questions about the application process please contact Dianne Hemphill at (316) 201-1323. In April 2010 NFBK will be holding a Leadership/Membership recruitment seminar in Lawrence Kansas. NFBK will also be focusing on fund raisers this year to help raise money for different projects the chapters have in mind. The NFBK is also looking forward to the National Convention in Dallas, Texas July 3-8, 2010. October is meet the blind month and we will have chapter events planned for that month. Of course we will be looking forward to seeing everyone at the State Convention in Lawrence, Kansas in the fall. To keep up with what is happening in the Kansas affiliate you can log onto nfbks.org and get further details on up coming events.
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Meet Donna Wood, president of our state affiliate
Editor's Note: Thanks to Donna for helping out by writing her own profile!
Hello! My name is Donna Jaynean Wood. I am the National Federation of the Blind of Kansas state President. I have served as President since October 2006. Prior to that I served as first Vice President for approximately 2 years and served as second Vice-president since 1999 and prior to that served as a board member. Through out these years I also served as my local chapters President, Vice-President Secretary and treasurer, since I became a member of the National Federation of the Blind in 1991.
At the same time I held these positions in the NFBKS, I also worked from 1988 to 2004 as a Rehabilitation Teacher for Kansas Services for the Blind. In June 2004 I accepted a position as a Special Investigator II with the Kansas Human Rights Commission. I worked there until October 10, 2008 when I was forced to leave my position do to a serious health condition. After leaving my position with the KHRC I have been able to work on taking care of my health and dedicating more time to the NFB
.
I grew up in Haysville, Kansas, a small town just south of Wichita. I attended the Haysville public school and was only the second visually impaired child to be mainstreamed in that school district. I developed a progressive eye disease at the age of two years old. But since I still had residual vision while attending the Haysville school system (although I lost vision every year) I was told I did not need Braille. After graduating high school I began college at Friends University in Wichita. My sophomore year eye had a sudden and dramatic loss of vision. At that time I began using a white cane that came to my sternum. I also decided I better learn Braille. I contacted the Independent Living Center in Wichita and spoke to the receptionist who was blind. It was arranged that she would teach me Braille. Lo and behold, it was Donna Bros, the first blind student to be main streamed in the Haysville school district. I did learn Braille and it has served me well since. I would not have been able to perform my job duties in either position I held with out my Braille skills.
In 1991 Dianne Hemphill invited me to an NFB chapter meeting. I attended at the time because I was invited and I was looking for things to do in my life. I attended my first state convention and our national rep. was Dr. Fred Schroeder. He spoke of his blindness and how he obtained his blindness skills. One thing I noticed at this convention was that most everyone had a different cane than I did. I asked Dianne about this and she borrowed Susie's cane and explained to me that it was lighter wait, rigid and taller than mine for various reasons which I wasn't sure I believed, since my cane had been serving me well for several years. I had a heavy aluminum folding cane with a nylon tip. I continued to carry this cane for a couple more years. Then I attended a national convention and stopped off at the independence market to buy a new cane since mine was worn out by now. A very nice person assisted me. He asked how tall I was and I told him. He brought me out a cane that came to my chin, was rigid and made of fiberglass. Of course I said, "Oh no, it's too tall." He said, "No, it will be even better if it came to your nose." He said, "give it a try. I think you will find that it will work better for you." I did and it did. I found that I received more and better feedback from my cane and with the extra length I could move faster and more confidently and lo and behold, the lighter weight was wonderful.
The NFB has made so many positive differences in my life I can't detail them all. What I can say is that after joining the NFB I realized blindness was not the great tragedy I was expecting it to be and I also found a family that would mentor and support me as I travel life's journey.
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Resolution 2009-1
The necessity for Braille certification for teachers of the blind
Whereas the state of Kansas passed the Braille bill in 1991;
And, whereas teachers (or TVI) of blind Kansans are essential for success, employment, and independent living of blind Kansans;
And whereas a Braille crisis exists in the nation today;
And whereas while the unemployment rate among the blind has soared, Braille literacy has declined;
And whereas based on our experience, research and observation, we believe that Braille touches our lives in vary elemental ways such as:
basic contact with language, spelling, composition, syntax, reading, or even the gender designations of restrooms (reading Braille signs);
And whereas among the working blind, 90 percent are Braille readers;
And whereas the vast majority of blind children are not receiving appropriate Braille education;
And whereas we believe the most appropriate education for children with vision loss requires a substantial amount of Braille instruction;
And whereas many teachers of the blind (or TVI) are not effectively trained or motivated to deliver appropriate Braille education;
And whereas the library of congress standard (literary Braille certification) is the appropriate certification for a teacher of the blind;
Therefore be it resolved in convention assembled this eighth day of November, 2009 in Salina, Kansas, we the National Federation of the Blind of Kansas insist that the Kansas department of Education take immediate action to draft a strong and positive policy to require teachers of the blind to be certified in literary Braille;
And be it further resolved that a plan be developed and implemented to dramatically increase Braille instruction and motivation to teach Braille to blind Kansans;
And, finally, be it resolved that teacher incentives and program standards be implemented to ensure blind children receive literacy education equivalent to all children.
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Resolution 2009-02
Regarding access to rehabilitation services for non working blind persons
Whereas the Vocational Rehabilitation Services is moving towards compliance with RSA standards and guidelines:
And whereas eligibility for services is contingent upon a client's seeking employment;
And whereas formally, all blind people could receive rehabilitative services;
And whereas the current changes exclude many in the population of blind Kansans from these vital services;
Therefore be it resolved, in convention assembled in the eighth day of November in Salina, Kansas that blind seniors and blind adults not seeking work, deserve access to blindness skills, training, and support services;
And be it further resolved that social rehabilitation services be called upon to develop quality programs to serve these populations.
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Resolution 2009-03
Equal access to timely weather radar information for the blind
Whereas the National Weather Service within the National Oceanic in Atmospheric Administration operates a large number of automated weather radio broadcast stations across Kansas;
And whereas the National Weather Service and other sources provide nearly instantaneous radar information about current conditions of rain, snow, sleet, hail, tornadoes and other weather conditions;
And whereas tornadoes destroy, kill, and maim across the state of Kansas and even simple rain can be an inconvenience; And whereas this visual information is now conveniently available on handheld internet devices to sighted people.
And whereas the national weather service provided current radar summaries under all precipitation conditions prior to complete automation of its network;
And whereas for safety and daily planning, blind people need equal access to current radar information;
And whereas the weather channel similarly provides inaccessible visual information from current radar;
And whereas automated technology nearly exists to provide real time translation of radar into verbal summaries which then can be broadcast and transmitted on the internet;
Therefore be it resolved in convention assembled on the eighth day of November in Salina, Kansas that the National Federation of the Blind of Kansas call upon the National Weather Service to expeditiously develop a program to produce an automated verbal radar summary to be broadcast every fifteen minutes;
And be it further resolved that these summaries provide accurate location of precipitation and direction of travel of apparent risk or hazard.
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MEET CHIKAKO MOCHIZUKI
By Susie Stanzel,
Associate Editor
I remember with great fondness the date of September 16, 2006 because this was the day the Douglas County Area chapter of the National Federation of the blind of Kansas was born. This was the last accomplishment Dean and I, as a couple, saw come to fruition. We considered ourselves the parents of this wonderful active chapter. Seeing our new members flourish was a sight for sore eyes. Little did we know we would see a National Scholarship winner emerge from our efforts? I wish Dean were here to see Chikako Mochizuki walk up to receive her award on July 7th, 2009. Please let me tell you a little bit about Chikako.
Chikako's blindness was caused because of her premature birth. She was born in Japan and received her secondary education in her country at the school for the blind. As early as middle school Chikako loved English and when she was 16 she had dreams of studying in the United States. When she was 18 her dream came true and she came to Madison Wisconsin for a year and studied in regular public high school where she gained many valuable learning experiences from computer operation to horseback riding. She holds these memories very near to her heart.
Chikako returned to Japan but never gave up on her new dream of attending college in this country. Her chance came in 1988 when she entered Georgia College (currently known as Georgia College and State University) located in Milledgeville Georgia. She majored in General History and achieved her Bachelor of Science degree in June of 1991. She continued to study in the same school and after two more years received her Master of Arts in General History. Chikako, like many, many other blind people wanted to find employment. However, after searching and coming up empty, she returned to Japan in 1994 and worked for the Evangelical Center for the Blind in Shizuoka city where she grew up.
In 2003 finally the chance came around again for her to come back to the United States to continue her schooling. She was successfully able to enter the University of Kansas where a doctoral degree in East Asian History is within shouting distance.
In May of 2007 Chikako attended her first chapter meeting and joined the National Federation of the Blind Douglas County Area chapter. We can thank Lynda Canaday for introducing her to us. Chikako strongly believed that establishing a network with other blind people here in the United States would be beneficial. She is also impressed with the determination of the organization for achieving the equal rights and opportunities for all blind people and agreed with the mission and purpose of the organization. That led her to join the chapter. Naturally the fact that she is an international student was very interesting to everyone. As it turned out this was the last meeting Dean attended. Chikako remembers with fondness that dean offered her a ride home. He was always willing to help everyone.
Chikako strongly believes people in general who are working to complete an education program and desire employment need to be self sufficient and persistent to accomplish the goal. Overall, one must be willing to work to become an active contributor to the society with the best of one's ability.
I hope all of you have enjoyed getting to know Chikako as much as I have. I'm sure we will be seeing great accomplishments from her in the future. We are lucky to have her in our fold.
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MEET DANIEL ALOYSHA MOORE
By Susan Tabor
Editor
Something about him stood out when I met him; I couldn't figure out what it was though. And then it struck me: He was interacting with us as if we'd all known one another for years!
Granted there was a teensy bit of shyness at first, but it quickly melted away. And it soon became clear that there was a lot to admire about Daniel Aloysha Moore.
Daniel came from his native Russia to the United States as a young child where he was adopted by a family in Cheney. As a matter of fact, Aloysha, which is now his middle name, was his Russian first name.
Daniel graduated from high school last spring, having received all of his education in public school. He began his studies Butler County Community College this fall and his long-range goal is to attend law school.
In his spare time, Daniel loves to spend time with his horses. He has found that one of the big adjustments to his post-high school life is that he doesn't have as much time to ride and be with his horses which he misses, but he also appreciates it even more when he gets to be home and spend some quality time with his family and with his horses.
He has also been active in church youth activities. He really is enjoying college life and is enjoying being challenged in his studies.
Daniel is a charming, confident and competent young man and has persevered with strength, common sense and humility through not only adjustment to visual impairment but also to life in a new country. We wish him every goodness as he pursues his goals and dreams, and we look forward to following his progress and to a continuing relationship as NFBKS brothers and sisters to him!
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By Alfonso Aronowitz, Pseud.
I begin from the premise that blind Kansans and our families are as deserving as are citizens of any other state of high quality orientation and adjustment services for the blind.
For years, those who have offered judgments about the activity of the RCBVI have concentrated on the numbers; there is agreement that the numbers are unfortunate. The ratio of clients who have gone to work to those who began training to prepare for work is not nearly good enough.
I submit that no matter how focused and uplifting the orientation and training clients may receive the portion of those who find work is unlikely to improve substantially unless the job placement component of the program is changed drastically.
Currently, job placement specialists proceed with very little training. As a result, regardless of the acumen and motives they may bring to their work, their incentive is to try to place clients as sighted people who don't see well.
The lack of thoroughly trained placement specialists is the most blatant, but certainly not the only, example of seriously flawed policy within this program.
Blind Kansans share ability and ambition in equal measure with our peers in other states. The closure of RCBVI is primarily caused by both bad policy and a failure of SRS leadership. The conduct and rhetoric of some of those near the point of policy formation for this program calls to mind an epigram by a British poet who wrote: "The good old rule sufficed them; the simple plan that they should take, who have the power, and they should keep who can."
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Press Release:
* Editor's Note: In typical NFB style, the following press release is being printed in its entirety.
Governor Parkinson assembles Blind and Visually Impaired Committee
For immediate release
Seth Bundy, Press Secretary
May 6,2010
785.368.8500
Governor Parkinson assembles Blind and Visually Impaired Committee
Governor Parkinson has named 13 appointees to the Kansas Advisory Committee for the Blind and Visually Impaired. The committee was formed by the governor through Executive Order 10-02, following a recommendation from the Facilities Closure and Realignment Commission.
"Protecting and upholding our vulnerable citizens, including those who are blind or visually impaired, is part of our duty as Kansans," said Parkinson. "I am proud to form this committee with some of the most dedicated and experienced individuals in our state for the blind and visually impaired community to ensure their prosperity."
Appointed to the committee were:
Ann Byington, a representative of the Kansas Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired;
Donna Wood, a representative of the National Federation of the Blind of Kansas;
Dr. Joan Houghton, a representative of the Kansas Department of Education;
Christine Owens, a representative of the State-wide Independent Living Council of Kansas;
Three representatives of a not-for-profit organization serving the employment of independent; living needs of Kansans who are blind or visually impaired:
Linda Merrill-Parman, Reinhard Mabry and Mignon Luckey;
Kendall Krug, a representative of the low vision sub-committee of the Kansas Optometric Association or an optometrist or ophthalmologist with low vision speciality;
Three consumers of programs or services designed for individuals who are blind or visually impaired: Jeffrey Day, Cheryl Miller and Marilyn Lind;
Michael Donnelly, Director of Kansas Rehabilitation Services serve as ex-officio representative;
Martin Kennedy, Secretary of the Kansas Department of Aging as ex-officio representative.
The Kansas Advisory Committee for the Blind and Visually Impaired will provide advice and counsel to the Secretary of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) on issues that improve opportunities for employment and independent living of Kansans who are blind or visually impaired. The Committee will also advise the Secretary and the staff of SRS in matters affecting policies, programs, priorities and a long-term, strategic direction for the state's services to Kansans who are blind or visually impaired.
Ann Byington
Byington, Topeka, has served as the president of the Kansas Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired since 2006. She has over 50 years of experience in activities and services pertaining to those who are blind or visually impaired in Kansas. This includes numerous leadership positions with the Topeka Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired and currently as their treasurer. Byington also operates a small Braille publishing company, providing proof-reading services, bus schedules, maps and loan applications to various Kansas entities. She was a member of the original Advisory Committee for the Blind and Visually Impaired that was created in 1977.
Donna Wood
Wood, Wichita, serves as the state affiliate president of the National Federation of the Blind and has been active with the federation for almost 20 years. As a Kansan with a visual impairment, she has a unique perspective on the needs of Kansans who are blind, having received rehabilitation training and attained employment as a rehabilitation teacher. Wood has also served as a special investigator for the Human Rights Commission and as a rehabilitation specialist for Services for the Blind at SRS. She received her bachelor in human service psychology from Friends University.
Dr. Joan Houghton
Dr. Houghton, Lawrence, is currently the education program consultant in the special education services division at the Kansas Department of Education. She has also served the Department of Education as an education consultant to the Kansas Assessment of Modified Measures and as the director of the Kansas Project for Children and Young Adults who are Deaf-Blind. Dr. Houghton has earned her post-graduate degrees in special education, both her master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Kansas.
Christine Owens
Owens, Hutchinson, is the current chair of the Statewide Independent Living Council of Kansas and continues to serve on numerous other state councils geared towards rehabilitation and independent living. She has been the executive director of the Prairie Independent Living Resource Center for more than ten years. Owens attained her bachelor in psychology from Bethel College and her master in rehabilitation counseling from Emporia State University.
Linda Merrill-Parman
Merrill-Parman, Wichita, has served 25 years as the president and CEO of Envision, Inc., which provides training programs to health care facilities, nursing schools and ambulatory centres. She is also the president and chair of the National Vision Rehabilitation Association and a past president of the General Council of Industries for the Blind, among other leadership positions. Additionally, Merrill-Parman was appointed by Governor Sebelius and reappointed by Governor Parkinson to the Kansas State Use Law Committee.
Reinhard Mabry
Mabry, Overland Park, is the president and CEO of Alphapointe Association for the Blind. Prior to this position, he was the vice president of business development and base stores at the Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind. Mabry also serves on the board of directors for the National Industries for the Blind. He received his bachelor in political science and his master in business administration from Florida State University.
Mignon Luckey
Luckey, Dodge City, has held numerous positions over the past ten years at the Centre for Independent Living Southwest Kansas, including independent living specialist and targeted case manager. Previously, she was the social service director at the Dodge City Good Samaritan Centre. She graduated from Oral Roberts University with a bachelor’s degree in social work.
Dr. Kendall Krug
Dr. Krug, Hays, is an optometrist and is active with the Kansas Optometric Association, as well as the American Optometric Association, the Northwest Kansas Association of the Visually Impaired and the Kansas Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired. He graduated from Fort Hays State University with a bachelor in general science and from the Southern College of Optometry with a doctor in optometry.
Jeffrey Day
Day, Wichita, previously interned at Envision Rehabilitation Centre where he provided case management for clients eligible for legal blindness or low vision. He was also a youth services case coordinator at the Salvation Army and a hospitality specialist at Via Christi Health System. Day is active in his community, volunteering for the Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice and assisting Three Trees, Inc. as a group facilitator. He received his bachelor in speech communications from Wichita State University and his master in social work from Newman University.
Cheryl Miller
Miller, Wichita, is a former library media clerk and para educator for Olathe District Schools, USD 233. She also co-authored the book, What Kids Want, and assisted in developing other books and projects. Miller is a past secretary for former Governor Alfred Landon and a graduate of Topeka West.
Marilyn Lind
Lind, Topeka, is a member of the Kansas Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired Awards, Education, Finance, Legislative and "Eyes Wide Open" Golf Tournament committees.
Michael Donnelly
Donnelly, Topeka, is the director of the Kansas Rehabilitation Services, the vocational rehabilitation agency for SRS. Within this role, Donnelly is the supervise administrator for the Kansas Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Prior to this position, he was the director of policy and outreach for the Disability Rights Centre of Kansas, Inc. and the executive director of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Topeka, Inc. Donnelly was also the executive director for multiple independent living centres over the years.
Secretary Martin Kennedy
Secretary Kennedy has been the Secretary on Aging since August 2009 and has served at the department since 2004. Previously, the Acting Secretary served in finance and management roles, including Controller for the Kansas Insurance Department and as a Principal Analyst in the Kansas Division of the Budget. He earned his Master in Public Administration from Kansas State University.
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During my childhood, my parents joined the KABVI, which is the ACB affiliate here in Kansas. I was a part of that organization until the early 1980's.
I decided to give the NFB a try after talking with some people who were starting a chapter in Topeka and with some people from the Wichita chapter. And when Rob and I moved to Lawrence in the mid-1980, there was a chapter here at that time. I was curious. Was it really like what I'd been led to believe? Was the NFB not a democratic organization?
My opinion began to change rapidly. Never had I been associated with an organization where I saw so much Braille! Never had I received information about the contributions of blind people to history and to our culture and society. Never had I seen such thorough documentation concerning issues! If there was correspondence, the entire letters from NFB staff and those with whom they were corresponding were printed concerning the issues of the day. This was the kind of transparency that I liked seeing and I wanted to be a part of it. I found myself feeling proud to be a blind person for the first time in my life; proud to be part of a truly courageous band of blind brothers and sisters who, despite all of our rough edges, were and are working together to change what it means to be blind!
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Associated Press Writer The Associated Press
Thursday, May 6, 2010 1:30 AM EDT
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Even as audio versions of best-sellers fill store shelves and new technology fuels the popularity of digitized books, the number
Of titles accessible to people who are blind or dyslexic is minuscule.
A new service being announced Thursday by the nonprofit Internet Archive in San Francisco is trying to change that. The group has hired hundreds of people To scan thousands of books into its digital database — more than doubling the titles available to people who aren't able to read a hard copy.
Brewster Kahle, the organization's founder, says the project will initially make 1 million books available to the visually impaired, using money from foundations, Libraries, corporations and the government. He's hoping a subsequent book drive will add even more titles to the collection.
"We'll offer current novels, educational books, anything. If somebody then donates a book to the archive, we can digitize it and add it to the collection," He said.
The problems with many of the digitized books sold commercially is that they're expensive, they're often abridged, and they don't come in a format that
Is easily accessed by the visually impaired.
The collections are also limited to the most popular titles published within the past several years.
The Internet Archive is scanning a variety of books in many languages so they can be read by the software and devices blind people use to convert written Pages into speech. The organization has 20 scanning centers in five countries, including one in the Library of Congress.
"Publishers mostly concentrate on their newest, profitable books. We are working to get all books online," Kahle said.
Marc Maurer, president of the National Federation of the Blind, says getting access to books has been a big challenge for blind people.
"Now, for the first time, we're going to have access to an enormous quantity," he said.
Maurer, who is blind, said that when he was in college, he hired people to read books to him because the Braille and audio libraries were so limited.
"That has been the way most students have gotten through school," he said. "This kind of initiative by the Internet Archive will change that for many people."
Only about 5 percent of published books are available in a digital form that's accessible to the visually impaired, Maurer said, and there are even fewer Books produced in Braille.
Ben Foss, a San Francisco man with dyslexia, says having so many more books available is liberating. He compares it to a million more ramps being added
Throughout a city for a person who uses a wheelchair.
"For me, it's about access. They have provided flexibility and freedom to get books in a format that I use every day," said Foss, 36, who is the director Of access technology in the digital health group at Intel Corp.
The digitized books scanned by the Internet Archive will be available for free to visually impaired people through the organization's website. The organization does not run into copyright concerns because the law allows libraries to make book available to people with disabilities, Kahle said.
Jessie Lorenz, an associate director at the Independent Living Resource Center San Francisco who has been blind since birth, said it has been hard to find Controversial or edgy titles in a format she can use, and choices are often dictated by institutions or service groups who have selected certain books
For scanning.
"For individuals living with print-related disabilities, this is groundbreaking," she said. "This project will enable people like me to choose what we read."
Lorenz, 31, has already decided what she wants: Howard Stern's autobiography "Private Parts," Andrew Weil's "The Natural Mind," and, perhaps most importantly, her grandmother's cookbook.
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The Home-on-the-Range list is for members of, and those interested in, the NFB of Kansas. It will be used to announce upcoming affiliate events, discuss blindness-related topics, and share important information from the NFB of Kansas state president, and the National Office.
To post to this list, send your email to:
home-on-the-range@nfbnet.org
General information about the mailing list is at:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/home-on-the-range_nfbnet.org
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Be sure and save the dates of November 12-14, 2010! Mark them on your calendar now! The 2010 NFBKS state convention will be held November 12-14 at the Holiday Inn Convention Center just off the turnpike at Lawrence. The Douglas County Area Chapter will be hosting. If any of you want to help by bringing goodies for the hospitality ruite, please do so with our blessing and with our appreciation! We need your help. See you there! Watch for more details in the September 2010 issue of TAP TRACKS!
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We would like to offer our most heartfelt and sincere condolences to our state president Donna Wood, and to her family. Donna’s stepfather David Houck died on Wednesday, June 19 after a courageous battle with cancer. We offer our ongoing thoughts and prayers to you and your family, Donna, and we hope that you and yours find comfort in David's memory and strength and comfort in your relationships with each other and with others in your circle of support.
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All of us like to eat. And many a meaningful decision or insight has been reached while sharing food together. So I thought it would be great for us to share our great recipe finds with each other!
If you have a recipe you'd like included, please feel free to contact me. You may email them to me at:
souljourner@sbcglobal.net
Or you may snail-mail them to me at
Susan Tabor
1234 Tennessee St.
Lawrence, Kansas 66044-3226
And if you can think of a better name for this column, bring it on! I'll keep all of you posted concerning any names that are suggested.
And now, this month's recipes:
Sharon Luka's Pumpkin Bread
Sharon Luka's pumpkin bread loaves are treasured door prizes at our state convention each year! So I thought I'd see if she’d share her recipe! It turns out that Sharon’s recipe originated with another Federationist! Read on for further information, the recipe and for Sharon's notes concerning the recipe.
Pumpkin Bread
Recipe by Cathleen Schroeder
Braille Monitor February 1986
3 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 cups sugar
1 cup oil
4 eggs
3/4 cup water
2 cups pumpkin
Mix dry ingredients together. Make a well and add the rest. Mix well. Use well greased loaf pans. Bake for one hour at 350 degrees. Makes one large loaf or three small ones.
Notes from Sharon: I modify it a bit; I use one teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, and the two teaspoons cinnamon instead of the cloves and nutmeg; that are my only difference. I also check the loaves after about 30-40 minutes; cover tops with foil to keep them from darkening too much. I bake six to nine loaves at once; I place them on cookie sheets.
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David's Taco Soup
From our state affiliate president, Donna Wood. This recipe was brought into my family when my mother married David Houck. Thank you David for so much more than a soup recipe.
Taco Soup
1 pound ground beef
1 onion
1 can tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
1 small package frozen corn
1 package taco seasoning
Salt and pepper
Cooking directions Saute chopped onion in a small amount of cooking oil. Add ground beef and brown. Add package of taco seasoning to ground beef. Then add tomato sauce, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, beans and corn. Stir and let simmer for approximately 1 hour. For a spicier version replace diced tomatoes with Rotel tomatoes. Corn bread goes great with this soup. See future edition for David's corn bread recipe.
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Chocolate Fix Brownies
By Susan Tabor
I received this recipe from a friend several years ago, and are these ever good! Enjoy!
Chocolate Fix Brownies
For the brownies:
One stick butter
One cup sugar
Four eggs, to be beaten in one at a time
One cup flour
One whole can Hershey's chocolate syrup
One cup nuts (optional)
Six or twelve ounces chocolate chips (however chocolaty you want them)
One tsp. vanilla
For the frosting:
4 tsps margarine
4 tbsps milk
One cup sugar
One tsp vanilla
Six ounces chocolate chips.
For the brownies: Mix all ingredients together, beating in eggs in one at a time. Bake in a preheated dg350 oven for about 30 minutes.
For the frosting: Boil ingredients except for chocolate chips for 30
seconds. Then add chocolate chips; remove from heat, stirring quickly. Mix
well and spread over brownies fast, as frosting hardens quickly. Then cut
and serve.
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Heavenly Butterscotch Brownies
By Susan Tabor
I call this Heavenly! They are absolutely delicious and were also introduced to me by a friend a few years ago. Enjoy!
Heavenly Butterscotch Brownies
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 cups (well-packed) brown sugar (light preferred but not required)
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 heaping cup of butterscotch morsels
3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mold large piece of heavy aluminum foil over outside of inverted 8X10-inch (I use 9X9-inch) baking pan. Invert pan and press foil to fit inside, folding extra foil down over outside of pan. Butter or spray foil inside pan.
Melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat and add sugar. Stir until well combined. Let mixture cool to room temperature. Beat in
eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Mix flour, baking powder and salt together and add to saucepan mixture. Stir until well combined. Add butterscotch morsels and nuts (if using nuts), and stir. Scrape batter into pan. Bake brownies for 35 to 45 minutes, or until knife comes out clean. Remove from oven and let brownies cool for about 20 minutes. Refrigerate in pan until well chilled. Use extra foil to lift brownies from baking pan. Pull foil away from sides and cut brownies to desired size (I cut 4 rows one way and 6 rows the other way, making 24 bars).
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