The TAPING RECORDER November, 2004
News from & about Taping For The Blind, Inc. www.tapingfortheblind.org

CONGRATULATIONS!--The Texas Baseball Hall of Fame is doing its best to
develop “…standards that honor both native sons as well as those that have
come to Texas and made some contribution to the excellence of baseball in
our state,” according to Bill McCurdy, current volunteer director of the
Texas Hall. We are so very pleased that Taping volunteer, Taping Advisory
Director, and Astros television play-by-play announcer Bill Brown will be
inducted to this Hall of Fame on November 12, 2004, at a banquet being held
at the J.W. Marriott Houston Hotel here in town. Bill is joined by some
spectacular company as Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell, current Astros
players, Kenny Rogers, Texas Rangers pitcher, and Jim Gilligan, 27-year
baseball coach at Lamar University will also be inducted. Two deceased
players will also be honored. They are former St. Louis Browns player,
Debs Garms of Bangs, Texas, and legendary Negro League founder, Rube Foster
of Calvert, Texas. Bill is in very distinguished company and deservedly
so. We are proud to have him as one of our volunteers!

CONGRATULATIONS!--yes, more congratulations. The Mayor’s Disability
Advocate of the Year Award was presented for the third year and we are very
pleased to report that Dr. Ed Bradley, Vice President of Client Services on
the Taping Board of Directors and a Taping client, was selected as a winner
of this award. The award was presented October 19, 2004, at City Council
chambers by Mayor Pro Tem Carol Alvarado. Mayor Bill White was there to
offer his congratulations as well. We offer our congratulations on this
very significant award for Dr. Bradley!

HOLIDAY PARTY--Please join your fellow volunteers as we celebrate the
holidays on Wednesday, December 8, 2004, from 5-7 p.m. at 3935 Essex
Lane. Fun, food, and fellowship will be the order of the day, so join us!

DON’T GET SCAMMED--The following article is from the Texas Credit Union
League electronic newsletter, the Lone Star Leaguer:

HOW NOT TO GET HOOKED BY A ‘PHISHING’ SCAM--Today’s scammers don’t have to
go dumpster-diving to get your personal information, as they have found a
more sophisticated way to lure unsuspecting victims, they go
‘phishing.’ Phishing is a high-tech scam that uses spam or pop-up messages
to deceive unsuspecting consumers into disclosing their credit card
numbers, bank account information, Social Security number, passwords, and
other sensitive information. According to the Federal Trade Commission
(FTC), phishers send an email or pop-up message that claims to be from a
legitimate business or organization, and the message usually asks that the
recipient “update” or “validate” his/her account information.

The FTC, the nation’s consumer protection agency, suggests these tips to
help consumers avoid being hooked by a phishing scam:

Don’t respond to email or pop-up messages that ask for personal or
financial information, as legitimate companies don’t ask for this
information via email.

Never e-mail personal or financial information because e-mail is not a
secure method of transmitting personal information. If you initiate a
transaction and want to provide your personal or financial information
through an organization’s Web site, look for indicators that the site is
secure.

Be sure to review credit card and account statements as soon as you receive
them to determine whether there are any unauthorized charges.

Use anti-virus software and keep it up to date.

Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading any files from
e-mails you receive, regardless of who sent them.

Consumers should immediately report suspicious activity to the FTC. If a
consumer receives a spam that is phishing for information, they should
forward it to spam@.... Consumers who suspect they've been scammed,
should file a complaint at www.ftc.gov, and then visit the FTC’s Identity
Theft Web site at www.consumer.gov/idtheft to learn how to minimize the
risk of damage from ID theft.

Our thanks to the Texas Credit Union League for this article. And remember
that as a Taping volunteer you are qualified for membership at the Greater
Houston Federal Credit Union (www.ghfcu.org).

LIGHT THE CANDLES--We offer happy birthday wishes to the following
volunteers with November birthdays: 11/01 Linda Gibson, Charles Tigner;
11/02 Kim Prescott; 11/10 Resa Dunn; 11/12 Lisa Foronda, Carl Hess; 11/15
Christopher Hart, Scott Ward; 11/17 Sandra Reid; 11/19 Stan Crawford, Anita
Simpson; 11/20 Mathilda Cochran; 11/22 Bunny Cherin, Dan Downey, Barry
Okin; 11/23 Chris Bell; 11/24 Tina Atkins; 11/25 T. Hoch; 11/26 Dan
Parsons; 11/27 Dee Weaver; 11/28 Diego Demaya and Margaret Huron. If you
celebrate your birthday in November and do not see your name in this list,
please contact Ginger so your record can be updated.

GRAPEFRUIT & ORANGES--Our friends at the Bellaire Lions Club are selling
citrus fruit from the valley again this year. If you would like to place
an order you can ask any staff member to take the order. These orders will
be turned in as a group, and when the fruit is delivered, a Taping
representative will bring it to Taping so you can pick it up here. If you
place your order by November 16, 2004, the prices are:
Grapefruit--40 lb. Box--$20.00; 20 lb. Box--$15.00
Juice oranges--40 lb. Box--$20.00; 20 lb. Box--$15.00

If you place your order after November 16 and before December 1, $5.00 will
be added to the price per box. December 1 is the cutoff for ordering.
Orders will be available December 9 and will be available at Taping that
day. This is a great opportunity for some delicious Texas citrus fruit and
it is from a terrific organization, the Bellaire Lions Club!

THANKSGIVING--We will have holiday hours (7 a.m. to noon) for the entire
Thanksgiving weekend--Thursday, November 25 through Sunday, November
28. We wish you and your family a bountiful and happy Thanksgiving!

RLB