« October 2026

Welcome to the ACB Maine newsletter for October 2026.

October is Blindness Awareness Month. See this official declaration from the Governor

The newsletter is designed for accessibility and contains very few graphics. In the lower left hand section of the page is an accessiblity icon to change elements of the page.

Please forward the newsletter to any interested people or relevant agencies.

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Check us out on the web - ACB Maine

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President's Message

Hello everyone, welcome to the month of October! Many awesome things are happening this month. The brochure has been printed and has been distributed to many locations around the state of Maine. Thank you Roger and Julie for all your hard work. We are wrapping up final details of our convention being held Saturday November 7, 2026. We will have some great guest speakers, a wonderful noon meal, a business meeting, a college scholarship recipient and a Bud Lewis Community Service Merit recipient at the convention. I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has pulled together to make the convention happen this year. I appreciate all of you! \

Below will be additional information about the convention. Please have a wonderful fall!

The Convention

American Council of the Blind of Maine
2026 Annual Convention
November 7, 2026…9:00 AM to 3:45 PM

Embassy Suites

1050 Westbrook Street

Portland, ME. 04102

You are cordially invited to join the members of ACB of Maine at our annual day-long convention. This year’s hybrid gathering will be held both on Zoom and in person at the Embassy Suites.

A separate message with the Zoom link will follow.

Here is our convention schedule.

8:00 - 9:00 AM Registration.
9:00 - 9:45 AM Welcome and Introductions, including
1st reading of proposed constitution and bylaw amendments,
annual scholarship award.

9:50 - 10:20 AM Report on Transportation advances in Maine.
Zoe Miller, Executive Director, movingmaine.org.

10:20 - 10:30 Mid-morning break.

10:30 - 11:00 Updates from DBVI.
Sharisse Roberts, Assistive Technology (AT) Specialist.

11:05 - 11:55 AM Are you looking for technology answers? We can help.
Mary Beth Walsh, Mainely access *Lani Carlson, Maine CITE (Community Inclusion Through Technology)
Jeff Bishop, President, BITS (Blind Information Technology Specialists)

12:00 - 1:00 Lunch
Including time for sharing inspiring or funny stories about our lives as blind and low vision Mainers.

1:00 - 2:10 PM Annual Business Meeting
2nd reading and vote on proposed amendmments to the Constitution and ByLaws,
Important elections of officers and board members.

2:15 - 2:45 PM Listening to the Birds of Maine.
Jerry Berrier, Birding by Ear.

2:50 - 3:20 PM Traveling while Blind
Ally Echevaria, Founder, Beyond Sight Tours

3:20 - 3:45 PM Closing remarks.
Amanda Frost, with gratitude and enthusiasm for our future.

Conference and Dues - You can pay for the conference ($10.00) and annual dues ($20.00) at the same time.
Use this link and pay online - ACBMaine Conference and Dues
Total payment - $30.00

The system allows multiple ways to submit payment, including Apple pay, Amazon pay, and credit cards.

For this year, we have swag bags for conference attendees, a 50-50 raffle, and a second raffle for a dinner at Olive Garden.

Proposed Changes to ACB Maine Constitution and Bylaws

Please find below some recommendations to the ACB Maine constitution and bylaws.

The proposed changes were reviewed by the board on October 8, 2026. The committee making these recommendations consisted of Amanda Frost and Linda Richards.

The proposed changes will be presented at our annual business meeting held at 1P.M. on November 7 2026 at Embassy suites 1050 Westbrook St. in Portland.

Please join us learn from the guest speakers, eat some good food, have fun catching up with old buddies and more. Thank you and hope to have you there with us.

Proposed changes to the ACB Maine constitution and bylaws for 2026
Constitution

Delete 2.1.2 By providing a forum for the views of the BVI from all corners of the state and from all walks of life.
Delete 2.1.4 By improving recreational and rehabilitation facilities.
Delete 2.1.5 By educating, encouraging and assisting the BVI, especially one who is newly BVI to develop their full potential and abilities through the use of braille, assistive technology mobility, skills, training, networking, and more.
Delete2.1.6 by broadening recreational opportunities

Proposed change to 5.1 is to separate the second half and delete the second half will state

"Any voting member of this organization may make and second motions, propose nominations, and choose to serve on committees at each annual convention."

Delete the following - Members shall determine the time and place of the annual convention for the following year.

Proposed Bylaw changes

Delete article 5 - Stipends
Delete article 5.1 - Stipends for the secretary and treasurer shall be set at $150 per annum. This stipend is subject to change by action of the board of directors at the annual convention and shall be issued annually.

Recipe -

This recipe is different. It looks more difficult than it actually is. Once you understand how to do it, it is pretty easy. See the workabouts below the actual recipe.

Medieval Apple Pie

found at this link - https://www.tastinghistory.com/recipes/medievalapplepie

And that site is pretty interesting - take a few mintues to listen to it. The recipe is more complex than it needs to be. Believe me, I did this recipe and it is quite easy and very good.

Ingredients:

Filling
• 8 to 10 threads of saffron
• A few tablespoons water
• 3 lbs (1.3 kg ) apples, a mix of sweet and tart
• 1 lb (1/2 kg) pears
• 1/2 cup (80 g) raisins
• 1/2 cup (60 g) chopped dried figs
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves

Crust

• 1 cup (235 ml) water
• 1 cup (225 g) suet or lard
• 4 cups (500 g) flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg for an egg wash, optional
*The spices you use are up to you. Feel free to change the quantities or swap out or add ones you like. Galangal, black or long pepper, and mace were also popular.

Instructions:

1. For the filling: Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
2. Pour a few tablespoons of water over the saffron threads and let them soak while you prepare the fruit.
3. Core and roughly chop the apples and pears. There’s no need to peel them, but you can if you like.
4. Mash the apples and pears in a mortar and pestle (a large bowl and handle-less rolling pin also works well) or throw them in a food processor. Whichever way you choose, you want them to form a mush or paste.
5. Place the apple and pear mush into a bowl. Strain the saffron out of the water and mix the saffron water, raisins, and chopped figs into the fruit mush.
6. Mix together the sugar and spices, then mix this into the fruit.
7. For the crust: Bring the water to a gentle boil. Stir in the suet or lard and the salt and let the fat melt.
8. Place the flour in a large bowl. Once the fat has melted and the mixture is simmering, pour it into the flour and stir it together. Once it’s cool enough to handle with your hands, turn it out and knead it for a minute or two until it becomes nice and smooth.
9. You want to work with the dough while it’s still warm because it will become more difficult as it cools. Divide the dough into one larger piece that’s about 3/4 of the dough and a smaller piece that’s about 1/4 of the dough.
10. To assemble: Flatten the larger piece out into a large disc, then press that into the bottom and sides of an 9 inch (23 cm) cake pan or springform pan. This dough is very forgiving and you can mash it up the sides and patch any cracks that form, the only trick is to work with it while it’s warm.
11. Fill the pie with the filling, packing it down.
12. Roll the smaller piece of dough out into a 9 inch (23 cm) circle, then lay it on top of the pie and crimp the edges to seal. Cut a hole in the center of the top crust or pierce it a few times so that the steam can get out.
13. Beat the egg and brush it over the top of the pie if you’d like, but you can bake it as-is.
14. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until you can see the filling bubbling through the hole or cuts in the top crust.
15. If you used a springform pan, you can remove the outer ring when the pie is almost done, brush it all over with more of the beaten egg, then return it to the oven for 5 more minutes to give it a nice browned color.
16. When the pie is done, let it cool completely before slicing and serving it forth.

A couple simple workabouts.

1. Use pre-prepared pie crusts. One pie crust can cover a standard spring form pan, though you may have to stretch the crust a bit.

2. Chop the apples and pears into small pieces. Put it all in a bowl and mash with a spoon. It does not need to be a mush. Think about mince meat filling.

3. Add the spices and saffron water to the fruit. Mix and crush a bit.

4. Use honey as a replacement for sugar.