Seven members attended the joint state ACB convention. Barbara and Rhett naturally went up early, but the rest took the Campus Shuttle to the IUPUI student center and UBER to the hotel and back to Bloomington after the conference. It worked well and was a new experience for most.

Chris and Ted joined a large group of people who toured the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. After circling the track on a tour bus, they really enjoyed checking out winning Indy race cars by getting an up-close look and feel, and asking staff questions like: “Why is the tire smooth on one side and rough on the other?” Answer: the first cars were more top-heavy, so having more friction on the part of the tire that made contact on the inside track bank kept them from flipping over.

We all found the hotel to be nicely arranged and easy to navigate. We were all on the first floor facing the atrium area. We enjoyed having breakfast in the atrium and chatting with people from Indiana and Ohio.

There was business to attend to, and we congratulate Heartland ACB member Machell Philippone who we elected for a second term on the board. During the conference on Sunday, Chris Baskins also helped facilitate a workshop with researchers from Indiana University about designing accessible payment systems.

The learning part of the convention was nicely intertwined with business and socializing. We talked with people from Ohio at the great tasting pizza mixer. Beyond the casual interactions, we also enjoyed sitting with new people at the banquet, where there were fascinating talks about what the present and future hold for the Americans With Disabilities Act, innovations in accessible transportation and an inspiring account of a gold medal-winning Paralympian. The weekend was capped by a fun and successful auction fundraiser for our state and local chapters.

With full understanding that it takes many people working hard to pull off a successful convention, we want to thank our own chapter member and President Barbara Salisbury, and her husband and chapter member Rhett, for all their hard work contributing to a great and fresh convention experience.