Vision Connection
January 2026 Newsletter
Newsletter
Attendees: Rod, Amy, Austin, Kristie, Bernie, Dorothea, Judy, Lois, Marilyn, Rick, Tom, Marion, Marsha, Nancy, Linda, Phil, Dee, Jane, Dawn
Important Events:
Amy’s son, Devon is 16.5 and recently received his students pilot license. He is working towards applying for the Airforce Academy in Colorado Springs.
Austin – just found out he will be getting a guide dog in April or May from Occupaws. DVR is working with him to obtain a job and vocational training. He is looking for something in the information technology industry and is working on accessibility training on Fridays.
Rod is in the process of evaluating hearing aids. He is seeing audiologist Dr. Perry, a very good audiologist in Appleton.
New Business:
Thank to everyone that helps with the group: Marilyn, treasurer and transporter, Dawn, secretary, Webmaster and transporter, Amy for making phone calls and arranging projects and summer picnic, Bernie takes care of many things: room availability, monitors the door for entry, makes coffee, and keeps track of supplies.
If you have a hard time reading the newsletter but want to know what’s in it, Rod is willing to read the newsletter to you. Give Rod a call and he’ll read it to you over the phone. Rod will check with the talking book library to see if they can be of help with this.
Comments on the Nov. or Dec. meetings: Amy enjoyed the trivia; it helped her win a trivia contest for her family. Jane agreed to the fun and enjoying the time. Do trivia again.
Today members of the group made Valentines Day cards for the veteran’s clinic. Marilyn and Amy will deliver them to the VA Clinic after the meeting.
Rod brought up modifying the constitution to hold our elections in Nov. versus January. This will enable the new officers to start the year fresh with any projects that they want for the new year. Results: positive vote to move the elections to November. Dawn will update the Constitution and By-laws with the change.
Transportation Grant – we received another $1,000 check from Community Foundation. Rod and Dawn will compose a thank you letter to the Community Foundation. If there are outings we’d like to take we will have the funds to rent a van if needed. The money can be used to fund transportation to and from the meeting and for activities for the group. There is no expiration date on the money. The fund is not for personal use, like transportation for grocery shopping, doctor appointments or visiting friends. Jean encourages a lot of people to join us now that we have funds for transportation. See Marilyn for reimbursement if you use the Make the Ride Happen or Valley Transit. A transportation form is required to be completed prior to using the transportation fund for the first time.
During our meetings, if you want to contribute to the current discussion, have a topic to discuss or have a question, please interrupt or raise your hand so you can speak to the group. The sighted folks need to watch for visually impaired persons that want to contribute to the group and make Rod aware that someone would like the floor.
Event Suggestions for 2026:
· Annual Activities:
o Annual Picnic in July
o Anniversary Dinner in Oct. – potluck
o Christmas Luncheon in Dec. – potluck
· Gardens to tour
· MBN Activity Center – Dawn Gohlke, Executive Director, MBN Activity Center, is our speaker in February. Her presentation may result in an activity for the group at the Activity Center
· Concert series in Menasha during the day
· Technical Day:
o Meta glasses demo by Phil
o Uses of Alexa to help with daily living or other technology related topic
o Be my eyes phone app
· Soar presentation for the classes they have for differently abled persons.
· White cane safety day, October 15th. Jean offered us many ideas for promoting White Cane Safety Day. We can go over Jean’s other ideas at our next meeting.
· Here is a link that Jean provided from the Wisconsin Council of the Blind:
https://wcblind.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/WCBlind-White-Cane-Safety-Day-Toolkit.docx
· Hadley Presents Getting Organized After Vision Loss podcast:https://hadleyhelps.org/podcasts/hadley-presents-conversation-experts/getting-organized-after-vision-loss?utm_source=accessinformationnews&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=01192026&utm_content=editorial This might be a good topic for one of our meetings, given how important being organized is!
· Lions Camp:
o Applications and disability eligibility requirements can be found at www.wisconsinlionscamp.com. Each session has room for up to 150 campers. Once an application is successfully submitted, the confirmation process can take up to a month.
The 2026 application deadlines are as follows:
o Friday April 24: Deadline for Adults who are Blind or Visually Impaired
o Friday May 15: Deadline for All Youth Camps
o Monday July 13: Deadline for Adults who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
o For additional information, please visit www.wisconsinlionscamp.com. We can also be reached by calling (715) 677-4969 or emailing us at info@wisconsinlionscamp.com.
The officers are working on creating a backup plan in case something happens to any of us. Dawn is modifying Marilyns spreadsheet to update the flow of data through her accounting reports.
Treasury report 2025:
Appleton Visually Impaired Support Group
2025
Balance Sheet
Checking 830.70
Savings 1,803.94
Total Checking and Savings 2,634.67
Petty Cash 49.00
Total Equity 2,683.67
Adjusting to Vision Loss: 5 Tips for Family Members
https://viplunch.wordpress.com/adjusting-to-vision-loss-5-tips-for-family-members/
If anyone has feedback they want to share about our monthly meetings, please communicate your feedback with Rod at rmaccoux@gmail.com or 920-585-7443.
Next Meeting
The Appleton Visually Impaired Support Group will meet on Tuesday Feb. 10th at 12.30 -2.30 p.m. in the meeting room at 425 N Linwood Ave. Appleton.
Dawn Gohlke, Executive Director of the Mary Beth Nienhaus Activity Center, is our speaker in February. Mary Beth Nienhaus Activity Center
If you need transportation to any of our meetings, please contact Rod Maccoux @ 920-585-7443 or via email: rmaccoux@gmail.com.
Look us up on our Facebook page and/or our website.
Facebook page: Appleton Visually Impaired Support Group
Website: Appleton Visually Impaired Support Group
Email: appletonvisuallyimpaired@gmail.com