Events Archive
RSVL an AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND affiliate. ACB
2012
Sagebrush Conference
The RSVA 2012 Business Enterprise Program Training Conference Las Vegas, Nevada February 13-17, 2012.
RSVL board meeting for March 23, 2012 in conjunction with the Elected Committee Meeting.
To: RSVL Board Members From: Kim Venable Re: RSVL Board Meeting
President Reado has scheduled a board meeting for March 23, 2012 in conjunction with the Elected Committee Meeting.
The meetings will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Kenner. We have some rooms blocked if you will be staying
over night the room rate is $99.00 per night. You will need to call the hotel and book your room directly with them.
RSVL will meet from 6p.m. until 9p.m.; this will be a boarddinner meeting. Please let me know ASAP if you will attend
and be bringing a guest so that we plan the dinner. Also ifyou have any agenda items to add please let the president know.
Crowne Plaza Hotel, 2829 Williams Blvd, Kenner, LA 70062, 504-467-5611 or 800-227-6963
2012 RSVL & LCB Annual Convention:
August 3 - August 4, 2012, at the Hilton Capital Center 202 Lafayette St, Baton Rouge LA 70801. For room reservation for the convention please call 225-344-5866, room rates are $109.00 per night single or double, make your reservation early, the deadline is July 3, 2012.
2011
• ELECTED COMMITTEE MEETING. FRIDAY. DECEMBER 9th•
The Elected Committee will be holding their quarterly meeting from 9:00am-5:00pm at the Crowne Plaza New Orleans Airport 2829 Williams Blvd in Kenner for room reservations call 504-467-5611 the room rates are $99.00 per night for one to four people. Identify yourself as a member of the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of Louisiana Group to get the group rate. The hotel reservation cut off date is November 9, 2011.
• CHRISTMAS FOR KIDS. SATURDAY. DECEMBER 10th•
Come feel the true meaning of Christmas, you will be truly touched by this event. RSVL's Annual Christmas Party for handicapped children will be held again this year at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Marrero. If you have attended in the past you know what I mean, if you have never attended, come and see for yourself. RSVL would love to have as many members as possible participate in each of these events. Please come and support RSVL and be a part of your organization. If you will be attending any of the events please contact Kim or Danny @ the RSVL Office. The following is our official mailed invitation:
YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO ATTEND OUR 21st ANNUAL “CHRISTMAS FOR KIDS”
RSVL is pleased to host this party again this year for handicapped children. It will be held on Saturday December 10, 2011 from 10:00am till 2:00pm, at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 566 Avenue D, Marrero, LA 70072. Please call Kim or Danny to confirm your reservation, leave your name, groups name, phone number, number of attendees male, female, their age and number of chaperons that will be attending. Attendance is by invitation only and requires that you RSVP. This is required so that we can plan for the party accordingly. We will only plan for those attendees who are confirmed. So call, fax or e-mail our office today to get your name put on our attendee list, as seating is limited.
• DIRTY SANTA. SATURDAY. DECEMBER 10th•
Now that I have your attention, get your mind out of the gutter, Dirty Santa is a gift swapping game played by adults. RSVL & LCB will be hosting the 2nd annual Christmas Party for their members at the Crowne Plaza New Orleans Airport. If you need a sleeping room call reservations at 504-467-5611 the room rates are $99.00 per night per night one to four people. Identify yourself as a member of the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of Louisiana Group to get the group rate. The hotel reservation cut off date is November 9, 2011. Refreshments will be served at 5:00pm, Dirty Santa (rules below) will begin at 6:00pm and we will have a DJ from 7:00pm-10:00pm.
Each participant that brings a gift of your choosing at a cost of $20.00 or more can play the game. Be sure to wrap your gift and mark if it is for a female, male or either. You can get anything you want the more unique the item the more fun the game will be. The good news is everyone that brings a gift to swap will also go home with a gift.
“Dirty Santa Game Rules”
Individual participation. The game consists of everyone bringing a gift valued at $20.00. At the end of the night, each participant ends up taking a gift home. Gift-wrapping should be first class as it helps folks decide which gift to select. If it is a gift best for a man or woman it can be labeled as such. What kind of gift works well? Something fun, unique, gag and in good taste.
So how do we play the game? Let's assume we have 10 players. Someone writes the numbers 1 through 10 on ten little pieces of paper, places the 10 little pieces of paper into a bowl, and everyone draws a number. Before the game begins, if you and another player agree, you may exchange numbers if you wish. There is no need to keep who has which numbers a secret. In fact, it might help the game move faster if everyone knows who is next in sequence; and, it gives the players a chance to plan their strategies. Whoever is next is usually ready to jump in and start playing the game so it is usually not a problem with folks forgetting their numbers. A hidden advantage of knowing the sequence of the players is it gives those later in the sequence time to make a bathroom stop, get a drink refill or get seconds on desserts.
• The 10 gifts are put in the center of the room or on a table where everyone can easily pick-up, shake, inspect and select a package.
• Late arriving game players can add their gift to the pile of gifts when they come in and become number 11 and so on.
• Player #1 picks a gift and opens it, shows it around, models it, reads it or demos it (depending on what it is of course).
• The person with slip of paper #2 is next. That person can either select another unopened gift or take the gift #1 had opened.
• If #2 takes #1’s gift, #1 must select another unwrapped gift.
• Next it is #3’s turn. #3 has two choices. #3 could select a new unopened gift, or take an already opened gift (#1’s gift or #2’s gift).
• Then, if #3 were to select #2’s gift, #2 has two choices. #2 could select another unopened gift or select #1’s unwrapped gift. However, a gift cannot bounce back and forth between two players without someone else taking possession of the gift in between. So, #2 cannot select #3’s unwrapped gift because it was just previously taken from #2. So each player (after the first player) has two choices. When it is your turn, you take a new unopened gift from the table or you take someone else's opened gift. When someone takes your gift (let's say a “mp3 player”) from you, you cannot immediately turn around and take the “mp3 player” back from the same person who just took it from you. You either select a new unopened gift or take somebody else's already unwrapped gift. And, let's say you ended up with a “music CD”. Later someone takes your “music CD” so now you can go back to the person who previously took your “mp3 player” and take it back. When you take it back this is the second time you have had possession of the “mp3 player”.
How a Gift Becomes “Retired”
Sooner or later someone else takes your “mp3 player” away from you again. This time you take someone else's gift, a bottle of rare Scotch. Then yet another person takes your bottle of rare Scotch from you and now you can go back and get your “mp3 player” again. By this time, since the “mp3 player” was taken from you last, it might have been “owned” by several other players and in some cases more than once. Now this is the third time you have owned the “mp3 player” and this time it is yours to keep. The “mp3 player” is retired and you are now out of the game. The BIG confusion for some folks seems to be the third time the “mp3 player” is exchanged that the third owner gets to keep them. Not so. The gift is retired after the third time a single participant gets the same gift back into their possession. Using the 10-player game in this example, each player could take temporary possession of the “mp3 player” twice for a total of 20 exchanges. However, if you played by the 3rd owner rule you would only have 3 exchanges. The third time-same owner rule allows more players to have a chance at the “mp3 player”. This also has a hidden purpose in forcing everyone to keep track of who has had possession of what gifts and how many times. This makes for more active involvement rather than passive involvement and is one of the keys to the games popularity.
How the Game Ends
SO, when does the game end? Using the 10 player game in our example, when it gets down to player #10 there will be one wrapped gift left in the center of the room or on the table. Player #10 has the same two choices that everyone else did (except for player #1). Player #10 can take the last unopened gift on the table, show it around, model it, read it or demo it etc. Or, player #10 can take another participants unwrapped gift (except retired gifts).
Common Sense Rules
If the gift is a food or drink, it absolutely should not be unpackaged until the game is over and it has been exchanged for the last time. All gifts must stay in the room and all gifts must remain in sight for all players to view until the game ends in order to help each participant determines how they will play their turn out. It goes without saying that retired gifts are the exception to this rule. Each participant needs to keep it uppermost in his or her mind that, no matter what gift it is they may be holding at the moment, it isn't their gift unless it has been "retired", or until the last gift has been exchanged.
One Last Thought
I have heard from other people who host Dirty Santa parties that some folks complain about the first player only having one choice. If the gift that the first player opens is a dud (meaning nobody else wants it), the first player is out of the game before the fun really gets started. But what folks don’t seem to realize is that these can happen to any player who opens a wrapped gift and finds that it is a dud. That player is also out of the game as to possible further participation. As a result of this pity for the first player, a whole bunch of special rules (swaps at the end of the game, extra gifts added to the pile at the start or end of the game) have been suggested. This gets too complicated, involved and has its own set of problems, misunderstandings, hard feelings and surprises. The first person has the pick of the litter of all the gifts. No other player has this advantage. Any player could select a dud gift whether they are the first or last player. This is the reason the gifts should be well thought out. They need to have broad appeal to most people and be something worth stealing.
2010
January 01 Annual membership Dues became due. Please submit your application & payment to the office by Feb. 15, 2010.
Dues include membership for Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of Louisiana, Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America, and the American Council of the Blind.
January 25 - 29 RSVA Sagebrush Conference Las Vegas Nevada
For more information or to register, click on the following URL: www.rsva.biz
February 01 Dead line for submitting nominations for the Louisiana Blind Vendor's Elected Committee election.
Mr. Michael St.Julien notified Vendors by mail (dated Jan. 07, 2010) of the up coming biennial election. He provided
a list of eligible Vendors to choose from in their District and information on how to submit a nomination.
March 11 RSVL Board Meeting Thur. 5:00PM - 9:00 PM Logan's Roadhouse
6571 Bluebonnet Blvd.Baton Rouge, LA
(225) 757-9449
March 11 Elected Committee Meeting Thur. 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM LRS - Baton Rouge Regional Office
March 12 Elected Committee Meeting Fri. 9:00 AM - Till Over 3651 Cedarcrest Ave, Baton Rouge, LA
Randolph-Sheppard Managers with questions regarding this meeting please
call Mr. Michael St.Julien, Randolph-Sheppard Program Manager, at (225) 219-2415
March 31 Grand Opening of the new office building Wed 12:00 to 4:00PM RSVL-ACB-RSVA Office
940 Parc Helene Drive Marrero, LA
2009
January through October 13 to be researched and added when availabe for publication.
October 14 Elected Committee Meeting Wed. 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. 
Azalea Bingo Hall
Azalea Bingo Hall 925 Parc Helene Dr., Marrero, LA October 31 Halloween Party - Bingo Sat. 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM Azalea Bingo Hall . 925 Parc Helene Dr., Marrero, LA
Azalea Bingo Hall . 925 Parc Helene Dr., Marrero, LA November 25 Thanksgiving Basket Delivery Wed.
December 11 Elected Committee Meeting Fri. 8:30 AM Subcommittees Best Western Hotel
1:00 PM Elected Committee 1700 Lapalco Blvd., Harvey, LA
December 12 "Christmas for Kids" Party Sat. 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM Knights of Columbus Hall
Invitation Only - RSVP (Party for handicapped children) 566 Ave D, Marrero, LA
