NAAL Newsletter
December 2006
- Letter from the President: Paul Turner
- Candidates for Office
- If You Still Need to Make Hotel Reservations
- If You Already Made Hotel Reservations
- If You Have Mobility Difficulties
- The NAAL Scholarship Fund
- The Passport Question
- Transportation to the Hotel
- Limo note from Bill Kervin
- 2007 NAAL Annual Meeting Schedule
Letter from the President
Dear Academy Members,
I look forward to seeing you soon at the annual meeting in Toronto. We begin on Thursday night, January 4, but a lot of you are coming early for pre-meeting gatherings. It will be great to see everyone again.
I’d like to extend a personal invitation to visitors, candidates for membership and the past presidents of the Academy to join me at tea on the top floor of the Park Hyatt on that Thursday afternoon at 3:30. This will bring together two generations of academy membership to meet and rejoice.
You’re going to love the Park Hyatt Hotel. Its staff is courteous to a fault. Rooms are spacious and comfortable. You’ll have free high speed access to the internet in your room if you bring your laptop. You get free overnight shoeshine service! And for a fee you can take advantage of one of Toronto’s most talked about spas in the lower level of the hotel.
Please attend the opening worship at Holy Trinity Church, which will feature jazz musician Tim Elliott. We will remember the sick and honor the dead. If you would like us to include prayers for anyone in particular, please let me know PaulTu@aol.com. The reception that night will be catered by Trinity Square Enterprises, a training program for people recovering from mental illness.
Would you like to help someone else attend this meeting? Please make a donation to our scholarship fund.
God bless you all in the holy days ahead, and grant you safe travel from points near and far.
Paul Turner
President
Candidates for Office
The Nomination Committee, chaired by Past-Past President Doris Donnelly, has nominated the following Academy members who have graciously agreed to run for Academy offices:
For Vice-President
- Jill Crainshaw
- Judith Kubicki
- Bruce Morrill
For Delegate for Membership
- Eileen Crowley
- Bill Graham
- Clay Morris
Biographies of these candidates will be sent to you separately, and will soon be posted on the NAAL website. This information will also be found in the registration folder you will receive in Toronto.
If You Still Need to Make Hotel Reservations
You can make your hotel reservations for the Park Hyatt Toronto online. Just use the following link to get the NAAL conference rate: http://parktoronto.hyatt.com/groupbooking/alit. You can also make a reservation by telephone: 416 925-1234 (direct to the Park Hyatt Toronto) or 1 (888) 591-1234 (the Hyatt toll-free reservation line). Be sure to say you are reserving for the NAAL meeting, so you get our conference rate: $155 - single rate, $165 - double rate. These rates should be available from January 3 until January 9. The rate code for the NAAL conference is g-ALIT .
If You Already Made Hotel Reservations
Double check the rates you have been quoted. There has been some confusion about the conference rates we are being charged. The NAAL conference rate is $155 - single rate, $165 - double rate. These rates should be available from January 3 until January 9. The rate code for the NAAL conference is g-ALIT. If your reservations do not reflect these rates, contact Hyatt, or be sure to have them change the rate when you check in.
If You Have Mobility Difficulties
Some of the events for our meeting in Toronto will involve travel from the hotel to other sites by subway. Toronto Transit offers a special bus service available for people with mobility difficulties, but we need to arrange for this in advance. If you think you would benefit from this service, please let us know as soon as possible, so that we can make the arrangements. Contact Don LaSalle at lasalle@montfort.org or Courtney Murtaugh at murtaughs@ameritech.net.
The NAAL Scholarship Fund
As Paul Turner mentioned in his President’s letter, the Academy Committee would like to increase the funds available for scholarships to the annual meeting. An expanded fund would enable us to help more members and visitors who do not have a school or other institution which provides funding for the cost of attending the NAAL meeting. You can make a contribution to the scholarship fund at the registration table in Toronto or by mailing a check to Glenn Byer, NAAL Treasurer, 2127 NW Irving Street #301, Portland, OR 97201-5399. Your generosity can help expand the participation of a more diverse group of members and visitors at our annual meeting.
The Passport Question
According to a recent report, the Department of Homeland Security has delayed until January 23 the new rule which requires a passport for all those traveling to the United States by air. For those entering the U.S. by land or by sea, the situation is not very clear. The following is a November 22, 2006 media note from the U.S. Department of State:
The Departments of State and Homeland Security announced today that the requirement for citizens of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda to present a passport to enter the United States when arriving by air from any part of the Western Hemisphere will begin on January 23, 2007.
This change in travel document requirements is the result of recommendations made by the 9/11 Commission, which Congress subsequently passed into law in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. These new travel document requirements make up the Departments' Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). In order to obtain national security benefits as quickly as possible, and to expedite the processing of arriving passengers, the plan will be implemented in two phases.
The first phase involves travel by air and requires all citizens of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda to have a passport or other accepted document that establishes the bearer's identity and nationality to enter or re-enter the United States from within the Western Hemisphere. The final rule for the air phase of the WHTI rule will be published in the Federal Register on November 24, where it can be viewed at www.regulations.gov . That rule is also available on the Department's consular web site, travel.state.gov and on the Department of Homeland Security's web site, www.dhs.gov.
A separate proposed rule addressing land and sea travel will be published at a later date proposing specific requirements for travelers entering the United States through land and sea border crossings. As early as January 1, 2008, U.S. citizens traveling between the United States and Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda by land or sea could be required to present a valid U.S. passport or other documents as determined by the Department of Homeland Security. While recent legislative changes permit a later deadline, the Departments of State and Homeland Security are working to meet all requirements as soon as possible
(cf. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2006/76752.htm).
However, if you are traveling to Toronto from the U.S., you may want to play it safe and take your passport anyway.
Transportation to the Hotel
There are several options for ground transportation from the airport.
The Hyatt is easily accessible by public transportation, via the TTC -Toronto
Transit Commission. The single fare is about 2.50 CDN. The
192 Airport Rocket (it’s a bus) departs from Terminals 1,
2 and 3. The bus takes you to the KIPPLING SUBWAY STOP,
and there you transfer onto the Subway – it’s the end of the
line so it only goes in one direction. Take the Subway to the
St. George Station – and exit out the St. George Street exit.
Walk ¼ block south to Bloor Street, and then walk east to the corner
of Bloor and Avenue Road where the Hyatt is located. You have to walk ¼ block
north to get to the main entrance of the hotel. Visit the TTC
Website: http://www.toronto.ca/ttc/ for maps,
directions, and schedules.
You could also take the Downtown Express Bus to Union Station and the Royal
York Hotel, and then take the subway from Union Station to the Museum subway
stop. Walk north ½ block to the Hyatt.
Other means: Limos or Taxis cost about 45-50 $ CDN, tip not included. Limo's
are set fees, while taxis are not, so if you get stuck in traffic it could
cost you. (See Limo note from Bill Kervin)
For further information, see http://www.gtaa.com/Index.aspx?Sid=Node2/Node2.3/Node2.3.5&Tpl=1).
Limo note from Bill Kervin
Limos without advance reservation can prove to be very expensive. However, Aerofleet offers a dependable rate of about $45, if called from a payphone before or upon arrival at 1-800-268-0905.
NAAL Annual Meeting - Toronto 2007 Draft Schedule
See the 2007 NAAL Annual Meeting Schedule for details for this year's meeting.