Convention
2024 OCB Convention will be in Lawton this year on September 27, 28, and 29th, 2024.
Registration is now closed.
The Hilton Garden Hotel located at 135 N.W. 2nd in Lawton. The sleeping room rate at the hotel is $119 a night plus taxes for up to one to four people. Reservations must be made by September 8 to guarantee the $119 room rate. For reservations call (580) 280-2100 and choose 0 to talk to a person or use the website below.
https://www.hilton.com/en/attend-my-event/okcouncilofblind2024/
The group code to use when making your reservation is 2509B.
The convention theme is OCB, the place to “Bee”, which explains all the “buzzing around” throughout this message.
The convention will be buzzing with fun activities including networking with speakers, learning about new technology, enjoying delicious foods, collecting more bee friends, laughing like you have a bee in your bonnet, a live and oral auction, and a whole bunch of other hive events.
Activities begin on Friday morning with the annual professional/consumer seminar in partnership with Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired (SBVI), a division of the Department of Rehabilitation Services (DRS). Our keynote speaker will be Michael Garrett and wife Peggy. Michael and Peggy are long-time American Council of the Blind (ACB) members, and Michael is the current ACB Treasurer. Michael and other presenters will discuss current employment trends, possibly how artificial intelligence influences employment, the ten most common job skills, techniques on climbing the corporate ladder, and much more. Seminar registration will be at 9am and the seminar will start at 10am, with a tentative wrap-up around 4:30pm. Information will be geared to SBVI counselors and other professionals within the agency, SBVI clients, the OCB membership, and others.
The OCB Conference and Convention will begin on Friday night with registration beginning between 4-6pm, followed by dinner provided by the Lawton Council of the Blind, and a fun game called “Buzz Word” designed to entertain, spark your funny bone, and you may actually learn something new.
The convention will begin early on Saturday with breakfast, welcoming words from Lawton’s Mayor, a presentation of the colors, and a short address by OCB President Kay Love.
Exhibits will be open from 8am to 5pm on Saturday. We will have a variety of vendors showcasing various products.
The silent auction will open early Saturday morning and close before the Saturday night banquet.
Sessions will include agency updates, the latest happenings at ACB, pertinent legislation, AI technology, recreational activities, and personal care (like makeup application), … just to name a few.
The banquet on Saturday night will feature the presentation of awards and the story of how the Garretts view their blindness and how they interact with different facets of the community. Immediately after the banquet, come and be entertained, laugh, and prepare to bid up at our annual oral auction. You might even bid against yourself for that coveted item!
On Sunday morning we will start the day with breakfast, a nondenominational church service followed by our Annual Membership Business Meeting. This is an extremely important meeting, as the membership will hear what OCB accomplished during the past year, elect the next Board of Directors, and listen to and vote on resolutions affecting our membership and others who are blind or have low vision.
Registration for the seminar only is $65, which includes lunch. Registration for the convention only is $100, which includes five meals, and registration for both events is $120, which includes six meals. If you arrive on September 26 or early on September 27, your breakfast will not be included in the registration/meals.
Please keep in mind that you must register for the convention by September 1. You must make your hotel reservations by September 8 to guarantee our special sleeping room rate.
Please fly with us and create a flurry of buzzing at our 2024 OCB Conference and Convention.