SKILCRAFT U.S. Government Pens Features in Washington Post Story

The 41-year-old National Industries for the Blind SKILCRAFT U.S. Government Pen is being called an “American icon” in a feature story that ran on the front page of the Washington Post on April 18, 2010. Washington Post reporter Ylan Mui became interested in the “ubiquitous” pen after finding dozens of them around her house. An excerpt from her story, which has also been syndicated nationally, is below:

Excerpt: For more than 40 years, standard black pens have cluttered the desks of thousands of federal employees, hung on a chain at post offices across the country and slipped into the pockets of countless military personnel. Yet few have realized that this government-issue pen has a history to rival that of any monument.

Blind workers assemble the pens in factories in Wisconsin and North Carolina under the brand name SKILCRAFT as part of a 72-year-old legislative mandate. The original 16-page specifications for the pen are still in force: It must be able to write continuously for a mile and in temperatures up to 160 degrees and down to 40 degrees below zero.

It has been used in war zones and gas stations, and was designed to fit undetected into U.S. military uniforms. According to company lore, the pen can stand in for a two-inch fuse and comes in handy during emergency tracheotomies.

"It's the Coca-Cola of ink pens," said Richard Oliver, operations manager for Industries of the Blind in North Carolina. "Everybody recognizes this pen. It's amazing."

Read the full story, “Low-Tech SKILCRAFT Pens Endure in a High-Tech World,” in the Washington Post online. Don’t forget to read the comments by readers from around the country! Registration may be required (it’s free). Read the related story in the Herald-Tribune.com. SKILCRAFT products and services are sold to the federal government and U.S. military through the AbilityOne Program.

For more information, contact Ken Murphy at 703-310-0500 kmurphy@nib.org

2010 NIB/NAEPB Opportunity Forum: Get Ready to Engage

As anyone who has succeeded in business knows, the key to success is in developing relationships. It is my pleasure to invite you to the 2010 NIB/NAEPB Opportunity Forum in Scottsdale, Arizona from June 13 to June 15 where there will be numerous opportunities to develop and nurture important relationships.

A New Decade: Get Ready to Engage, the theme for this year's conference, was chosen by the planning committee to inspire us to envision new opportunities made possible by engaging at all levels. We encourage you to use this conference opportunity to engage with the NIB Team, Customers, Suppliers, your Colleagues and Presenters.

As you read the program, we hope you will read between the lines, because it is there that the opportunities lie.

Monday, June 14 begins the formal program with welcoming remarks from Tina Ballard and Kevin Lynch. Anyone who has been to the last two conferences knows how engaging these two can be!!

Following them you will have an opportunity to engage with two of our largest customers, Martha Johnson of GSA and Rear Admiral Mark F. Heinrich of the U.S. Navy Supply Corps.

Monday afternoon is reserved for SPEED NETWORKING sessions. The evening is open for dining with your existing, new or potential business partners.

Tuesday, June 15 our Supplier/Tradeshow Exhibit will offer opportunities to meet up with old friends and many new ones. DEMONSTRATE YOUR PRODUCTS - the new feature will afford suppliers an opportunity to introduce us to new products in a fun and entertaining way that will engage and inspire us.

Finally, the program offers an unparalleled opportunity to engage with Tom Cross, a faculty member of the Darden School of Business. In response to your concerns about your ability to respond to government bids, we have invited Tom to deliver a high-level, step-by-step program on how to design a winning proposal for business development. More and more government agencies and private companies are seeking proposals from qualified organizations to provide products or services. This unique program will provide you with the competitive edge to develop winning proposals that get noticed and lead to contracts for new business.

Even our closing reception will be different with a casual barbecue that will be relaxing and engaging.

So let's start the Teen Years of the 21st century (2010-2019) by engaging through networking and learning.

Here's how to register:
Register for the conference online here

Click here to reserve your hotel
NIB's conference rate expires May 21 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time -- so make your reservation now!

Pre-conference networking opportunity: Golf Tournament, Sunday, June 13, 7:30 a.m. This event is designed to encourage players at all levels to come out to the course and network with a valued partner, or someone new that might open up new opportunities for an unexpected partnership, while having a lot of fun. This is a "Best Ball" format so if you lose your ball, not to worry, just take one from your new-found "friend" and keep on networking! Contact Dana Clayton, dclayton@azdes.gov or 602-771-9110 if you're interested in participating.

I look forward to seeing you in Scottsdale!

Sincerely,

Dan Boucher
NAEPB Communications Committee

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.

SKILCRAFT US GOVERMENT PENS - Featured in Washington Post Story

It's taken more than 40 years on the market to become an "American Icon," that's what the Washington Post is calling the SKILCRAFT US GOVERNMENT PENS that have been produced through the AbilityOne Program since 1969.

Read Ylan Mui's, Washington Post reporter, story online: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/17/AR2010041701297.html

Note: registration to the Washington Post web site is required and free.

The online article features quotes from Kevin Lynch, President and CEO, National Industries for the Blind; Chuck Lange, CEO West Allis; pictures from West Allis Industries for the Blind in Milwaukee. The pens are also made at Industries for the Blind Greensboro, NC.

Business Management Training Participants Graduate

NIB’s Business Management Training (BMT), facilitated by University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, completed the fifth, and last, of their one-week training sessions. BMT targets qualified, high-potential employees of NIB and NIB associated agencies who are blind, motivated to succeed in a business setting and have demonstrated leadership potential.

NIB is hosting a graduation dinner and reception for the BMT Class of 2010. The group will also be recognized at the Opportunity Forum June 13-15 in Scottsdale, AZ.

The NIB team is pleased to support the academic achievement of these future managers and leaders.

Members of the BMT Class of 2010 are:

· Andy R. Bacon, The Lighthouse for the Blind, Seattle, WA

· Pat Bishop, South Texas Lighthouse for the Blind, Honolulu, HI

· Eriq Cunningham, Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind, Winston-Salem, NC

· Kevin Daniel, Arkansas Lighthouse for the Blind, Little Rock, AR

· Chris Flynt, Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind, Winston-Salem, NC

· Gene Hubbard, Wiscraft Inc., Milwaukee, WI

· Edita Jablonskyte, National Industries for the Blind, Alexandria, VA

· Tanya Jones, ABVI-Goodwill, Rochester, NY

· Chris Ledding, Wiscraft Inc., Milwaukee, WI

· Glenn McCully, The Lighthouse for the Blind, Seattle, WA

· James Michaels, Bosma Enterprises, Indianapolis, IN

· Stephen Mitchell, Cincinnati Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Cincinnati, OH

· John Moore, Horizon Industries, Tyler, TX

· Kathy Morehead, Winston-Salem Industries for the Blind, Winston-Salem, NC

· Jamie Musson, Envision Inc., Wichita, KS

· Brian Petraits, Bosma Enterprises, Indianapolis, IN

· Mark Plutschak, Outlook Nebraska Inc., Omaha, NE

· Ted Rios, New York City Industries for the Blind, Brooklyn, NY

· Ramon Rodriguez, National Industries for the Blind, Alexandria, VA

· Emeric Rokay, Wiscraft Inc., Milwaukee, WI

· Joyce Smith, Alphapointe Association, Kansas City, MO

· Will Vaughn, National Industries for the Blind, Alexandria, VA

· Charles E. Wallace, The Lighthouse for the Blind, St. Louis, MO


For more information, contact Kristen Maines at 703.310.0349 or kmaines@nib.org.

Chairman Ed Towns Breaks Down Bureaucratic Barriers

[photo: left to right: Rick Bland, CEO NYC Industries for the Blind; Rep. Ed Towns;Kevin Lynch, CEO NIB]
Washington, D.C. ­ National Industries for the Blind (NIB) applauds Chairman Ed Towns (D-10th-New York), who recently sent letters to the U.S. Departments of Energy, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security requesting assistance in identifying barriers that may prevent the departments from purchasing qualified products and services from the AbilityOne Program as part of the federal procurement process.

“Creating jobs is one of my highest priorities and providing job opportunities to the blind through the AbilityOne Program is critical to fulfilling that goal. While NIB has made great strides in advancing job opportunities for people who are blind, there is still a great deal to accomplish in order to reduce the number of blind men and women who are currently unemployed. It is my hope that working with various federal agencies, we can define and remove barriers to create additional jobs for people who are blind,” Chairman Towns said.

NIB and its 88 community-based nonprofit agencies are the largest employers for people who are blind. These employees earn their living by providing SKILCRAFT® products and services through the AbilityOne Program to the federal government at a net cost savings to the federal taxpayer. Nearly 6,000 individuals who are blind produce products ranging from military uniforms to pens, and provide services such as call center operations and administrative services through the AbilityOne Program.

While NIB has made great strides in advancing job opportunities for people who are blind, there is still much to accomplish, as more than 70 percent of individuals who are blind are still unemployed.
“With Chairman Towns’ leadership, more federal agencies will become aware of the federal procurement requirement to purchase from the AbilityOne Program and make the right choice to help us sustain and create economic independence for people who are blind,” said Kevin Lynch, president and CEO, NIB.

About National Industries for the Blind
At NIB (www.NIB.org), our mission is to enhance the opportunities for economic and personal independence of persons who are blind, primarily through creating, sustaining and improving employment. NIB and 88 associated agencies serve as the largest employer for people who are blind by the sale of SKILCRAFT® products and services through the AbilityOne Program (Javits-Wagner-O'Day Program).

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Congressman Walter Jones Receives Prestigious

[picture left to right: Heather Broussard, LAB Communications; Rep. Walter Jones; Shelly Taylor, CEO LAB]Washington, D.C. ­ Representative Walter Jones (R-3rd-North Carolina) was recently named an AbilityOne Champion, in recognition of his efforts creating good paying jobs with excellent benefits for people who are blind. RLCB Inc. CEO Janet Griffey presented the AbilityOne Champion award to Rep. Jones at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on March 10.

The AbilityOne Champion Award is given by National Industries for the Blind (NIB) and its associated nonprofit agencies to honor members of Congress for their commitment to the creation of good paying jobs with excellent benefits for individuals who are blind at a net cost savings to the federal government.

NIB and its 88 community-based nonprofit agencies serve as the largest employer for people who are blind by the sale of SKILCRAFT® products and services through the AbilityOne Program to the federal government. The program employs nearly 6,000 individuals who are blind, who produce products ranging from military uniforms to pens, and provide services such as call center operations.

“We are so fortunate to have Representative Jones in Congress supporting our actions to create good paying jobs with excellent benefits for people who are blind,” said Griffey. “Congressman Jones understands that the current 70 percent unemployment rate in our community is unacceptable and he is willing to take action. The award honors his continued commitment to employ people who are blind.”

Congressman Walter Jones stated, “I am very pleased to have received this honor from NIB. I have always wanted to help our citizens who have endured challenges and are still eager and willing to work hard and prove themselves when given the opportunity. I was very impressed with the quality of work I saw at the Raleigh Lions Club meeting on February 8. The quality of this work proves that when people are given an opportunity, great things can happen.”