2024 Virtual Conference and Convention Audio Recordings

Come Back To The Future with CCB!
Celebrating 90 years of achievement In the blind and low vision community.

Pre-Conference and Convention Events

Friday, March 1, CCB Membership Committee Pre-Convention Kickoff Event

Listen to a thrilling kickoff event — CCB Trivia and Game Night! Hosted by the CCB Membership Committee.

dive into a night filled with fun, shenanigans, and a chance to test your knowledge of California Council of the Blind history.

Click here to listen to the Pre-Convention Kickoff event.

Saturday, March 2, California Diabetics in Action

Listen to Our special presentation all about nutrition, what we can eat to help and heal, strengthen and vitalize us. Enid Velasco, LCSW, has a wealth of knowledge you won’t want to miss. Followed by our business meeting.

Click here to listen to the CDA program and annual business meeting

Wednesday March 6, Let’s Zoom with Deb

Join our guide, Debee Armstrong for a deep dive into all things Zoom.

Click here to listen to the Zoom workshop

Friday March 8, Inclusive Diversity of California Annual Business Meeting

Listen to the Inclusive Diversity of California annual business meeting, Celebrating unity, honoring diversity! We will elect new board members and plan for the rest of our year.

Click here to hear the IDC Annual Business Meeting

Friday March 8, Inclusive Diversity of California "Who Am I Anyway?" Trivia Game

Have some fun listening to the Inclusive Diversity of California trivia game, "Who Am I Anyway?".

Click here to hear the IDC trivia game, "Who Am I Anyway?".

Saturday, March 9, CLUA Program and Business Meeting

Listen to the California Library Users of America program and annual business meeting, Celebrating Our love of books and all our different technologies. We will elect new board members and plan for the rest of our year. We will have a few other surprises
As well.

Click here to listen to the CLUA program and business meeting.

Sunday, March 10, Getting From Here to There and Back Again

Listen to a discussion lead by Daveed Mandell about public transit. Is public transit working well for you? If so, tell us how. If not, what are some of the concerns you have? What are the general issues you’re facing, how would you improve public transit and make it more accessible and easy to navigate? What might we in CCB do to move public transit forward?

Click here to listen to the “Getting from here to there and back again discussion.

Sunday, March 10, Golden State Guide Dog Handlers, Inc. Annual Business Meeting and Program

Listen to GSGDHI members as we hold elections, conduct other important business and share useful information for guide dog handlers and others interested in the guide dog lifestyle.

Click here to listen to the GSGDHI program

Tuesday, March 12, CCB Housing Committee Listening Session

Learn how the CCB Housing Committee is working to improve housing opportunities for blind and visually impaired Californians, and tell us about your housing concerns.


Click here to listen to the CCB Housing Committee Listening session.

Saturday, March 16, Tips for Birding by Ear
It's Singing Season: Learn The Joys and Science of Birding By Ear

For blind people and people with low vision, birds can be our most familiar neighbors. They are a direct path into the natural world, and you need go no further than your back patio to find them.

Susan Glass guides us as we explore what the birds in our neighborhoods are telling us, as well as how to identify them.

Click here to listen to Birding by Ear tips

Saturday, March 16, Untangling Vision Terminology

Join Lorise "Rise" Diamond, curious mind and member of CCCLV, ACB Students, and CCB ABIV Chapter, for a captivating exploration of vision terminology in CCB’s pre-conference warm-up event

Click here to listen to the "Untangling Vision Terminology" discussion.

Saturday, March 16, California Alliance on Aging and Vision Loss Annual Business Meeting and Program

Join with CAAVL members as we hold elections, conduct other important business and devise strategies to increase the quality and availability of services for older blind and visually impaired Californians.

Click here to listen to the California Alliance on Aging and Vision Loss annual business meeting and program.

Sunday, March 17, The Power of the Word

Cathy Schmitt Whitaker believes in the power of the brain and our thoughts. Blending knowledge of self-improvement and meditation in this session, you will learn strategies to create empowering thoughts that will energize you to action.

Mission statement: E3 Coaching and Speaking LLC empowers you through tools and strategies to design your true life and be your best self!

Click here to listen to "The Power of the Word" presentation.

Thursday, March 21, Writers Workshop

What book has most profoundly affected your life? This could be a book that shifted your worldview, or opened you up to the joy of reading, Perhaps it set you on a course for the rest of your life.

Please join us to discuss and write about this life-affecting literature.


Click here to listen to the Writers Workshop

Main-Conference and Convention Sessions and Events

Wednesday, April 3, Opening of the Main Conference and Convention Session
President Gabe Griffith, Presiding

  • Welcome: President Gabe Griffith
  • Pledge of Allegiance
  • Adoption of 2024 Convention rules
  • A look back at CCB History; Celebrating CCB in the book, “People of Vision”: Christy Crespin & Nelly Emerson
  • Credentials and Nominating Reports: Frank Welte, Chair of Credentials and Nominating
  • Bylaws Committee Report: Steve Bauer, Bylaws Committee Chair

Click here to listen to the complete opening session of the 2024 CCB Conference and Convention.

Or use the following links to listen to specific segments of this session.

Thursday, April 4, 2nd General Session, Technology Committee
2nd Vice President Rob Turner, Presiding

Join CCB’s Technology Committee, Co-Chaired by Rob Turner and Andrea DeKlotz for a technology presentation covering old time radio, the Leasey program, the new BT speak device and an open forum discussing various topics.

Click here to listen to the CCB technology committee presentation.

Friday, April 5, 3rd General Session
1st Vice-President Sarah Harris, Presiding

Topics of this session include:

  • Welcome: Sarah Harris
  • Department of Rehabilitation Updates
    What’s new at the Department of Rehabilitation?

    Over the past year there have been so many new programs developed to increase the opportunities for people who are blind or have low vision. Come hear from the team. There may be something that could help you or someone you know.

    • Jake Johnson, Deputy Director Information Technology Division, Chief Information Officer
    • Sue Pelbath, Deputy Director, DOR SSD
    • Peter Dawson, Regional Director, DOR BFS
    • Laura Rasmussen, District Administrator, DOR BFS
    • Jay Harris, Manager, DOR Older Individuals who are Blind Program
  • Dr. Mark Humayun, University Professor of Ophthalmology at USC

    The Initiative to Cure Blindness: A new frontier in therapy for age-related macular degeneration.

    In 2008, Dr. Mark Humayun, University Professor of Ophthalmology at USC and a 2015 National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipient, launched a research effort with an extraordinary premise, What if we could restore sight to people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), one of the world’s most common eye disorders?

    A Stem Cell-Based Treatment To End Blindness:
    To achieve this, Dr. Humayun and his team developed a novel stem cell-derived retinal implant, and the results have been groundbreaking. Following one successful study after another, Dr. Humayun is now on the cusp of the final stages required to bring this transformative therapy to market and to AMD patients worldwide.

    The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has invested more than $50 million in this program since 2008, leading to funding of a Phase 2b clinical trial; this is an integral step toward the development of this promising cure for blindness due to AMD.

    Our recent paper shows:

    • That people who are even legally blind can show evidence of improvement in vision on a standard eye chart, the patient with the best improvement showed greater than 3 lines of improvement on an eye chart
    • that the effects of the implant are durable and safe - the response to the implant is durable - at 3 years, people can still maintain the gains they achieved
    • The data reported in this paper positions us to do more extensive clinical trials in a broader range of patients (for example patients with less vision loss) to determine efficacy
    • This is important because there are currently no drugs or treatments approved by the FDA that show improvement for AMD
    • Patients were not on long-term immune suppressive therapy

Click here to listen to the complete 3rd general session.

Or use the following links to listen to specific segments of the session:

Friday, April 5, 4th General Session
Treasurer Lisa Presley-Thomas, Presiding

  • Welcome: Lisa Presley-Thomas
  • Invocation: Gabe Griffith
  • Rememberances: At this time we will take the time to acknowledge our fellow CCB Members who have passed away over the last year.
  • Governmental Affairs Report: Alice Turner and Ardis Bazyn, GA Co-Chairs
    Jeff Thom, Director of Governmental Affairs
    Regina Brink, Deputy Director Governmental Affairs
  • CCB Elections

Click here to listen to the complete 4th General Session.

Or use the following links to listen to a specific segment of the session.

Saturday, April 6, 5th General Session
Secretary Steve Bauer Presiding

  • Welcome: Steve Bauer
  • Leslie Spoone, ACB Get Up & Get Moving Campaign
  • Resources for Smart Aging
    Tatiana Fassieux, Education and Training Specialist, California Health Advocates

    Come learn about resources that you may of heard of, but don’t know what they do. HICAP is a resource you want to have in your smart aging toolbox.

Click here to listen to the entire 5th general session.

Or use the following links to hear specific segments of the session.

Saturday, April 6, 6th General Session
1st Vice-President Sarah Harris, Presiding

Paratransit Eligibility:
Panel Moderator: Board Member Daveed Mandell

This session will outline effective strategies for filling out a paratransit eligibility application and getting the most from a paratransit agency interview. Hear the perspectives of both the paratransit industry and the independent living movement.

Panel participants:
Chenier Derrick: Paratransit Specialist, Handy Ride, Fresno;
Christine Fitzgerald: Community Advocate, Silicon Valley Independent Living Center, San Jose;
Fiona Hinze: Director of Public Policy, Independent Living Resource Center of San Francisco.

Click here to listen to the 6th general session.

Saturday, April 6, CCB Virtual Awards Banquet
Andrea DeKlotz and Sarah Harris Convention Planning Committee Co-Chairs.

During this virtual awards banquet you will hear from President Gabe Griffith, you will hear an open forum sharing fun CCB memories and you will hear all the winners of CCB Awards.

Click here to listen to the complete 2024 CCB virtual awards banquet.

Or use the following links to hear specific segments of the session.

Sunday, April 7, Convention Business Meeting
President Gabe Griffith, Presiding

The 2024 virtual convention concluded with our convention business meeting. This meeting included the 2023 Convention Minutes, Treasurer’s Report, Newell Perry Report, and voting on proposed Resolutions and Bylaw Amendments.

Click here to listen to the complete 2024 convention business meeting.

Or use the following links to hear specific segments of the session.

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