The TAPING RECORDER January, 2005 News from & about Taping For The Blind, Inc. www.tapingfortheblind.org HAPPY NEW YEAR--If the year is new, it must be almost time for the HP Houston Marathon! (The following is quoted from the HP Houston Marathon website.) "Houston's first marathon took place in December 1972 on a five-mile loop with a parked station wagon marking the turn. 113 participants, 40 volunteers, and approximately 200 spectators made up the inaugural event. Thirty-three years later, the HP Houston Marathon, Half Marathon, Houston Press/ METRO 5K, and Kids' Race rank among the world's best. In addition, with almost 20,000 weekend participants, 250,000 spectators, and 5,000 volunteers, the HP Houston Marathon is acclaimed as Houston's largest single-day sporting event." "Participants in the HP Houston Marathon, Half Marathon and Houston Press/METRO 5K are encouraged to "Run for a Reason"... to raise money for local Houston charities. Begun 16 years ago, the charity program aims to raise $750,000 for participating non-profit groups this coming year. The HP Houston Marathon, Half Marathon and 5K provide established fund-raising vehicles that allow all money raised to go directly to charity program services." HOOPLA BRIGADE--"Professional and not-so-professional performers ranging from Jump rope squads to jazz bands to belly dancers encourage runners to keep their feet moving in the right direction. The HP Houston Marathon pioneered the concept of "hoopla," and now other races have duplicated its success." And Taping For The Blind has brought the Hoopla Brigade to a finely turned edge with some seriously noisy people cheering for the Taping team as well as the rest of the field. Taping For The Blind needs SPECTATORS who are loud and energetic to help us cheer our Taping Team runners to the finish line! Join us at the corner of University and Auden, by the West University City Hall and police station, to help us cheer the Taping Team. WE NEED YOU! WHERE: In West University at University Blvd at Auden St. Houston, TX 77005 WHEN: Sunday, January 16, from 6:30 a.m. to 12 noon Please call Ginger if you want to attend. She will be heading a caravan, complete with coffee, bagels and donuts, from the Taping parking lot to our "hoopla" spot. We will be leaving the Taping parking lot at 6:30 a.m. Directions from Taping's parking lot: take a right onto Essex Lane. Turn right onto Weslayan. Continue on Weslayan past 59 freeway and Westpark. Turn left onto University Blvd. Turn left on Auden and park in the police station lot or on the south side of the street so you do not get caught inside the Marathon loop. Please note, traffic will be closed along the route so all SPECTATORS need to be in place before 7:00 a.m. Please help us in supporting our runners who are working so hard to raise awareness of Taping For The Blind. If you cannot come out and cheer, please make a pledge in support of their efforts. There is a pledge sheet for the marathon beside the volunteer sign-in book. While all of our runners are considered volunteers, wish the following readers good luck in their training if you should happen to spot them: Joan Katz, Ted Pfister, Anita Simpson, and Dena Marks Sokolow. Other runners who have pledged to support Taping For The Blind are: Whitney LaRocca, Gilbert Flores, Alan Ping, Brad Hoton, Cynthia Laidlaw, John Castillo, Tara Truett, Kendall Cockrell, Michelle Bailey, Dr. Kimin Kim, and Cathy Kalmus. GOOD LUCK walking or running, everyone! CLIENT'S NIECE RUNNING FOR TAPING--We welcome Michelle Bailey to the Taping Team this year. Michelle is long-time listener Nancy Davis's niece. Michelle works for Koala Health Care, a large sponsor of the HP Houston Marathon. She has gathered her co-workers Cathy Kalmus and Dr. Kimin Kim to walk the 5K with her on behalf of Taping For The Blind. Thanks so much! RUNNING FOR A REASON--Participants in marathon events are encouraged to "Run for a Reason" in order to raise money for a lot of different not-for-profit charities. Here is an example of a solicitation letter that we found particularly moving: Dear friends, Once again I will be soaring through 26.2 miles of Houston's scenic streets in the HP Houston Marathon on January 16, 2005. Well, maybe not soaring. I am also participating in the "Run for a Reason" charity program which raised $602,000 in 2004 for worthy charities. This year I am running to benefit Taping For The Blind, Inc. of Houston in honor of the memory of Capt. Andrew Houghton, USMA Class of 2001. Andy died as a result of injuries suffered during Operation Iraqi Freedom. During his education at Strake Jesuit College Prep, Andy spent many hours volunteering with Taping For The Blind, and dedicated his life to the service of others and our country. Please consider making a donation to this charity that provides valuable services to many Houstonians. Although experiencing funding shortfalls, the Taping For The Blind staff of 4, working with 200 volunteers, continues to provide access to the printed word. Please check out my Personal Donations Page (),wh\ ich contains a link to Taping For The Blind. Or give me a call and I'll gladly come pick up any contribution. Thanks for considering my request to honor a Houston hero, as well as the heroes that did everything possible to save Andy. For more information on Andy's life and the Foundation created in his honor, please visit http://www.andyhoughton.org. God Bless all our Soldiers. Alan Ping Thanks for your Commitment, Alan, and thanks for reminding us about Andy's sacrifice for all of us. BOTTOM LINE--Let's conclude our Marathon information by saying that the HP Houston Marathon is important to Taping--we need the money it generates. We encourage you to support it with your participation, or by sponsoring a team member or the whole team, and we hope you know what a wonderful group of people we have running for Taping! LIGHT THE CANDLES--We offer birthday greetings to each of the Taping volunteers celebrating in January: 01/04 Lyn Green; 01/05 Robin Rice; 01/11 Joan Katz; 01/12 Lila Lerner, Robert Weinberger; 01/15 Fred Dawson, John Deming, Tom Milburn; 01/19 Bob Bartlett, Scott Goddard; 01/28 Shelia Finch; 01/30 Nadine Saffell; & 01/31 Brian Rodgers. If you celebrate your birthday in January and do not find your name here, please notify Ginger Gish so we can get your record updated. THANKS, KARL--A special note to thank Karl Seibert who did a special ice run for the holiday party, thus saving our bacon and giving us cool beverages. That was much appreciated, Karl! BOARD OFFICERS--It occurs to us that we haven't mentioned our Board Officers for 2005. They are: President, Bob Bartlett; Vice President Planning & Technology, Bill Canning; Vice President Development, Randy de la Garza; Vice President Client Services, Nadine Saffell; Secretary, Janet Parisi; and Treasurer, Ulyesse Legrange. Chris Kiersted continues as Immediate Past President. Thanks to David Gillmore and Dr. Ed Bradley for their service as Officers in 2004. We will give you more information on the Board of Directors in our next edition of the RECORDER. GET WELL SOON--We hope the following volunteers will heal soon and return as quickly as possible: Sue O'Dell who had recent surgery; Josephine Tarr who had surgery; Marty Ryan who bruised a hip; Dick Hokenson who is trying to get his doctor straightened out; Sarah Roush who is having continuing health problems; and Carolyn Babb who broke a finger recently. Heal up and hurry back! CONGRATULATIONS--Our congratulations to Otto Schlamme who welcomed a new great-granddaughter, Layla, to the family in December. WELCOME BACK--We welcome Kay Schill and George Thomas back after their summer/fall retreats. GOOD LUCK--We wish a successful trip to David Halliburton as he travels to Nigeria for a video shoot. Sounds like quite an adventure! BEST WISHES--We bid adieu to Donna Young and Katherin Demetriou who departed recently for Australia and London, England respectively. Your quality work will be missed! OUR SYMPATHY--The sympathy of the entire Taping family is extended to Mary Pedersen who lost her mother in December. Let's all pull together for a successful 2005! RLB