Alphapointe Hosts AbilityOne Award Event for Seattle Lighthouse and the GSA Heartland Region on August 16

Seattle Lighthouse President and CEO Kirk Adams (pictured at right of Jason Klumb) presented a plaque to Jason Klumb, who accepted the award on behalf of the GSA Heartland Region for strengthening their commitment to the AbilityOne Program through the addition of the entrenching tool, or “e-tool,” to the Procurement List. The e-tool, also shown in the photo, is a lightweight, foldable shovel commonly used by the warfighter.

The team at Alphapointe Association for the Blind in Kansas City, Missouri, led by President and CEO Reinhard Mabry, hosted a special event at Alphapointe on Monday, August 16 for representatives from GSA Heartland Region, Seattle Lighthouse and NIB. The event provided the opportunity for the Seattle Lighthouse to present an award to the GSA Heartland Region. Attendees also met with Jason Klumb, the Regional Administrator for the GSA Heartland Region, to discuss future partnership opportunities, and the GSA team was treated to a tour of the agency.

Also attending the meeting were GSA Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) representatives Mike Brincks, FAS regional commissioner; Tom Brown, director, Customer Accounts and Research; Nathan Stewart, deputy director, Heartland Supply Operations Center; and Gary Jenkins, business management specialist; and from Seattle Lighthouse, Pat O’Hara, general manager of operations. I attended the meeting along with NIB colleagues Steve Heinecke, vice president, Product and Online Marketing; Shawn Spengler, director, Product Management Jan/San and MRO; and Ken Murphy, director, Communications.

For more information, contact Dan Carson at 703-310-0509 or dcarson@nib.org

Tim Sanders Keynote Speaker at Opportunity Forum June 14, 2010

Tim Sanders believes that social responsibility and sustainability are hotbeds for business innovation. Companies that focus on these areas will attract new customers as well as boost the morale of employees and partners. Along the way, they’ll save money too!

Tim has deep experience in cutting-edge businesses and marketing. He’s weathered the quality movement as well as the dotcom crash and emerged with precious insight. He was the Chief Solutions Officer at Yahoo! and later its Leadership Coach. Prior to his senior positions at Yahoo!, Tim created and led the Yahoo! ValueLab, an in-house “think tank” that delivered futuristic insight on technology and human behavior.

View/listen to one of Tim's speeches.

Tim Sanders: Mojo Rising Keynote from Tim Sanders on Vimeo.

2010 NIB/NAEPB Opportunity Forum
June 13-15, 2010
Westin Kierland
Scottsdale, Arizona

Join us at the 2010 NIB/NAEPB Opportunity Forum in Arizona! Focused on the theme, “A New Decade: Get Ready to Engage,” the event will provide excellent networking opportunities among NIB associated agencies, customers, suppliers and contractors with the goal of increasing business that creates more jobs for people who are blind.

The forum will include a spacious indoor supplier exhibit area, informative and motivational speakers including: Susan Brita, Deputy Administrator, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and Rear Admiral Mark F. Heinrich, Supply Corps, United States Navy Commander, Fleet and Industrial Supply Centers, and practical skill-development sessions from Tom Cross, University of Virginia Darden School of Business faculty.

Click on the following links for more information:
View the draft agenda
Register for the Opportunity Forum
Make hotel reservations

Note: NIB’s conference rate expires May 21 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time -- so make your reservation now!

National Industries for the Blind (NIB) is a Central Nonprofit Agency (CNA)authorized under the Javits Wagner O’Day Act (JWOD) – now called AbilityOne by The Committee For Purchase from People Who are Blind or Severely Disabled. NISH is another CNA that operates under the AbilityOne Program. SKILCRAFT products are produced and sold through the AbilityOne Program by people who are blind or severely disabled.

Washington Post Story Creates Demand for SKILCRAFT U.S. Government Pens

The Sunday, April 18, 2010 Washington Post front-page story about SKILCRAFT U.S. Government pens is generating a lot of inquiries on where to buy these American icons. Fortunately, SKILCRAFT U.S. Government pens available online at http://www.abilityone.com.

SKILCRAFT U.S. Government pens come in black or blue ink (the casing color is the ink color). Refills are also sold.

Interested in becoming a distributor, visit http://www.skilcraftsales.com/

National Industries for the Blind developed the U.S. government from 1967 to 1969, then received a GSA contract to produce the U.S. government pens under its SKILCRAFT brand in 1969.

Irving R. Dickman, in his book “Creating Jobs, Changing Lives,” which covers the history of the Wagner-O’Day Act 1966-1988, the GSA sought NIB as a producer of a new pen for government sale because it had 13 million defective pens on hand. [Note: the book does not name the producer of those defective pens].

The book says: “If there was a single key to government acceptance and the success of the [SKILCRAFT] ballpoint pen project, it was the quality of the product.”

NIB was created in 1938 to produce jobs for people who are blind through the sale of products and services to the U.S. government and Department of Defense. Today, nearly 6,000 Americans who are blind or visually impaired are employed by NIB and its 89 associated agencies. Most products and services are sold through the AbilityOne Program (JWOD Act).

Every purchase of a SKILCRAFT product or other products on the government procurement list through the AbilityOne Program creates or sustains economic independence for people who are blind or visually impaired.

National Disability Employment AwarenessMonth (NDEAM)

October 2009 is National Disability Employment AwarenessMonth.

In an effort to educate the American public about issues related to disability and employment, Congress designated October as National Disability Employment AwarenessMonth (NDEAM).

What is NDEAM all about. It's about educating and informing the world that people who are blind or have other severe disabilities are capable of participating in today's competitive economy.

DID YOUR KNOW:

• Employment is the key to economic security and personal independence of all Americans, especially those with disabilities.

• According to a national survey, 92 percent of consumers feel more favorably toward companies that hire individuals with disabilities.

• To stay competitive, both public and private employers must seek quality employees from non-traditional employee pools, including the 54million Americans who have disabilities.

• People who are blind or have other severe disabilities remain one of America’s greatest untapped labor resources, with more than 60 percent of this population not employed.

Learn more about AbilityOne online at www.abilityone.org or contact communications@nib.org.