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April/May/June/July The Florida Reporter1
Advertising Special Contact to advertise in 8 issues(2 years) of this magazine andget a special 15% discount ontop of our low rates! Call FCRAHeadquarters today at407-774-7880.MARK YOUR CALENDAR!Needful PeopleNeed a job? Need a reporter,agency owners? ContactPlacement Chairman SandiNargiz at 850-878-2221 or Fax:850-878-2254 orsnargiz@comcast.netFCRA IS NOW ONTWITTER!FCRA 2019 Annual ConventionNaples Grande Beach ResortNaples, FloridaJune 28-30, 2019Search for the Twitter handlebelow and follow us!@FCRA OfficialOrder Your Florida ManualDON’T MISS E-FLASHES!Stay up to date on Florida Rulesand Procedures. Call 407-7747880 to order your electronicversion of the Florida Manual orvisit www.fcraonline.org to order.Be sure your email address iscurrent. Call FCRAHeadquarters and give themyour email address today (407774-7880) or email your changesto ebaxter@kmgnet.comJust 75.00 for members!Be on the Lookout forUpcoming FloridaProfessional Reporter(FPR) Test Dates!WEBSITE WANTED!Your stories to share with otherreporters.Submit an article and receive .15CEU points if published in TheFlorida Reporter. Email your storytoeditor@fcraonline.orgARE YOU ONFACEBOOK?If so, join the FCRA Group bylooking up Florida CourtReporters Association all thelatest updates right at yourfingertips!Stenograph Special Get last-line pricing withStenograph supplies, as amember of FCRA receivesa rebate.ARE YOU MOVING?CHANGING APHONE NUMBER?CHANGING A FAXNUMBER? CHANGINGOR GETTING AN EMAILADDRESS?If so, let FCRA Headquartersknow right away. Simply fax407-774-6440 today to makeany necessary changes to theinformation we have on filefor you!April/May/June/July The Florida Reporter2
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvFCRA OFFICERS & DIRECTORSPresidentSharon Velazco, RPR, CLR, FPRscribe3159@aol.comPresident ElectAmy Marie Yarbrough, FPRmadamcourtreporterjax@comcast.netVice PresidentRichard Scire, RPRrscire@jud12.flcourts.orgDEPARTMENTSBulletin Board. 2President’s Message: Tapestry . 4Editor’s Message: Our Long and Winding Road.5TreasurerTracy Finan, RPR, FPRreportertrace@gmail.comSecretaryCathy Carpenter, FPRcathylcarpenter@gmail.comNorthern DirectorTiffany Treffeisen, RPR, FPRTref0109@gmail.comCentral DirectorLaura Landerman, RMR, CRR, FPRrmrcrr@aol.comSouthern DirectorJessica Donnelly, FPRcreporter@bellsouth.netDirectors at LargeMichael Scire, RPR, CMRSmichaelscirefcra@gmail.comShari Smargon, RDR, CRR, CRC, MA, FPRstenorpr@gmail.comImmediate Past PresidentLori L. Bundy, RMR, FPR, CRRloribundy@yahoo.comASSOCIATION BUSINESSIt’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. . 6What I s the Value of a Registry, Anyway? . 7A Modern Day Fairytale . . 9Student Corner: Convention Time is Approaching!. . 14Court Reporting & Captioning Week 15Classroom & Career Day Demonstrations Around the State . . . 16Twinspiration: Conquering Jury Selection One Presentation at a Time .17Becca’s Boot Camp: 7 Foods & 3 Habits . . 18FCRA Stenographer Flyer . 20FCRA in Tallahassee . . 22The Diamond Vault: The Fourth Decade, Part I. 23Editor and PublisherRichard Scire, RPRrichardscirefcra@gmail.comAssociate EditorMichael Scire, RPR, CMRSmichaelscirefcra@gmail.comExecutive DirectorLynn Hupp222 S. Westmonte Drive, Ste. 111Altamonte Springs, FL 32714lhupp@kmgnet.comW: 407-774-7880 FAX: 407-774-6440Statements of fact, opinion, and all advertisementsare made on the responsibility of the author oradvertiser, alone, and do not imply an opinion orendorsement on the part of anyone connected withFCRA. Materials may not be reproduced withoutwritten permission. Address all correspondenceconcerning content of the magazine to the editor. Allcorrespondenceregardingmembershipandadvertising should be sent to FCRA Headquarters,222 S. Westmonte Dr, #111, Altamonte Springs, FL32714. Phone: 407-774-7880, Fax: 407-774-6440;www.fcraonline.org.FCRA WELCOMESConvention Registration . . 31Membership Application . 33Membership Pre-Authorized Payment Plan Form . 34April/May/June/July The Florida Reporter3
TAPESTRYFor My Court Reporter Friendsand StudentsThere is definitely a monetary gratificationthat comes with what we do, which is why weinvest so much of ourselves, our time, and ourenergy into preparing for such a challengingcareer. We are always cultivating the discipline ittakes to get through the demands of school inorder to be qualified to enter this honorableprofession. It's not unusual that we tend to focuson the reality of being able to comfortablysupport our families and provide for their future,and sometimes that is the goal that gets usthrough to passing our 225s.But, I urge you to expandyour mission to include theprivilege of service to yourcommunity and world. Youhave been given this drive andtalent for a reason, and it goesbeyond the immediate needand reward of taking care ofyour loved ones. You have somuch to offer, and your skills arevital to others who, because ofyou and your selfless dedication, will have theability to be part of an activity or event fromwhich otherwise they are excluded. Imagineyourself seated in the booth of an auditorium orplace of worship, captioning and letting thataudience and the whole world read the inspiringwords of political and religious leaders, There aremany variations on that theme, all of whichcenter around you, the court reporter, being theconduit for the spoken word.Perhaps you would prefer to give back ona more personal level, such as one-on-one with astudent. There are many gifted, hard-of-hearingApril/May/June/July The Florida Reporterpeople who aspire to do so much moreacademically, but who are limited because theydo not have access to the verbatim words of theteacher. An example is someone who wishes tobecome a doctor. There are words spoken dailyin the classroom for which even the changing ofan "o" to an "er" would seem to be a subtledifference, but the meanings are entirelyopposite; hypertension, hypotension. It may beextremely challenging, if not impossible, for thatstudent to hear the nuanced distinction. Yourbeing there makes all the difference in the world.If you, a court reporter,CART provider, captioner,are seated beside thatstudent during the class,they are able to read andfollow along, word forword, all the way tograduation.And,because you shared yourtalents, those others maynow share theirs.So, realize your worth and potential, andalways keep in mind that you are an important,supporting thread in this beautiful tapestry ofhumanity. Not only do you reveal the beauty thatmight go unnoticed, if it weren't for yourpresence, but the texture of your willing strengthcan enhance and magnify the qualities of others,enabling them to stand out and be recognizedwhere otherwise, their brilliance would fade intothe background.4
By Richard S. Sciré, RPR, FPRThe Florida Reporter Editor, FCRA Vice PresidentOur Long and Winding RoadHappy Spring from your editor andpublisher. What a busy year it has been. I cannotbelieve the convention is right around the corner.In this issue, we will update you on oursuccessful legislative attempts at getting a registrypassed. Government Relations Committee Chair,Rosa Naccarato, explains the importance of such aregistry and the work and effort that went behindour success.Court Reporting & Captioning Week wassuper successful this year!We promotedstenography like never before, and we aren’tfinished yet! The PR Committee Chair, SandraEstevez, is hard at work with the committee on acampaign to get the word out that we are strongerthan ever. Please see the flyer in this issue and infuture e-blasts to share with your attorneys andanyone and everyone who needs to know theimportance of a stenographer.Our Convention Chair and Immediate PastPresident, Lori Bundy, is unveiling just some of the funwe have in store for attendees during this year’sFCRA Convention – Waves of Change: Oceans ofOpportunity.What has become to be my favorite read isthe next installment of Donna Kanabay’s “TheDiamond Vault.” We are now moving into the 1990swith this installment.Those were the years Iattended court reporting school.My courtreporting instructor was Carol Coblentz back then.It brought back so many memories watching hervideos and former students, some of which arefriends of mine, giving their congratulations to her asshe won the Arlene P. Sommers Award forOutstanding Achievement in Education. Carol wasan amazing teacher. I could not be where I amtoday without her.While “The Diamond Vault” touches uponfond memories and history, Donna reminds andeducates us on some of the tumultuous times. AsGeorge Santayana wrote, “Those who cannotremember the past, are condemned to repeat it. IApril/May/June/July The Florida Reporterwas reminded of that when I learned of FCRA’sefforts of a certification and anti-contracting andturmoil between officials and freelancers. We oftenforget how climates change that warrant us to takea different direction at times, which takes me fullcircle back to Rosa’s article on our bill for a courtreporter registry.Speaking of full circle moments, I smiledwhen I read the former name of this magazine.Before it was renamed to FCR Online, it used to beThe Florida Court Reporter, which isn’t too differentthan our new name, The Florida Reporter.Sometimes what’s old is new again.In closing, when we think about our present,and ponder or worry about the future, let us learnfrom the past instead. As Billy Joel sang, “ thegood ole days weren’t always good and tomorrowain’t as bad as it seems.”Let’s stay steno smart and strong because ofthe steno stars we are. I look forward to seeing youall at what will be an epic convention!The Florida ReporterDeadline Dates(WINTER) DEC/JAN/FEB/MARArticle Submission – November 5Online Publication – December 12(SPRING) APR/MAY/JUNE/JULYArticle Submission – March 5Online Publication – April 12(FALL) AUG/SEPT/OCT/NOVEMBERArticle Submission – July 5Online Publication – August 125
A Message from Your Convention Chair:It’s the Most Wonderful Timeof the Year It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!It’s convention time!! Your FCRA conventioncommittee is in full swing with planning, and wehave LOTS of great speakers and a few surprisesthis year.Check out the agenda onFCRAonline.org and sign up soon! Naples isbeautiful. I hope you’re planning on joining us fora weekend of seeing old friends and learningnew things.The theme this year is Waves of Change:Oceans of Opportunity. Amy Yarbrough is theincoming president this year, and her vision is alegendary weekend with life-changing speakers.Yourconventioncommitteehasnotdisappointed with the lineup this year. Check outour Facebook page, website, and the FCRAeFlashes for a more in-depth view of the agendaand speakers.Here’s some highlights to what’s going tobe happening this year. FCRA is going to themovies! Friday afternoon we’re watching For theRecord: A Court Reporting Documentary by MarcGreenberg, complete with popcorn and soda.After a long day of learning, let’s wind down andenjoy some of our fellow court reporters and talkabout this crazy profession. You will see the starsof our profession on the big screen.This year we are planning something a littledifferent for the networking happy hour on Fridayevening. We’re hopping on the Naples Trolleyand taking a trip downtown. Don’t want to stayout all night? Don’t worry! We have two trolleysrunning, one coming back to the hotel afterdinner. We’ll be stopping for dinner, sightseeing,dancing, and more, so hop on for all the fun!Saturday night will be Amy’s night! We’rehaving a dance party with great food, live music,and a photo booth. Keep court reporters quietApril/May/June/July The Florida Reporterall year, and we know how to have fun on thedance floor at the President’s Party. What’s thedress code? You decide! It’s an Under the Seatheme. Be creative!This year’s convention is going to help youthink outside the box with your career. Want helpwith your CAT software? We have training classesfor Stenograph and Eclipse. Want to edit faster?There’s a class on Sunday for you. Want to proofperfectly?Margie Wakeman Wells will bespeaking on Saturday morning. Tired of doingtranscripts? Don’t miss Sunday’s seminar.Make your hotel reservation today so youdon’t miss the room block deal. On the beach inNaples for 159 a night? Unbelievable! Registernow for the convention and get the early birdpricing. Already signed up? Great! We will seeyou in June. Spread the word because thisseminar is going to give you new insight to thecareer we all love.6
By Rosa Naccarato, FPRFCRA Government Relations Committee ChairSo What is the Value of a Registry,Anyway?Much more than you might imagine. Nomatter what your aspirations are for the future ofour profession or what your expectations are fromFCRA, it all starts with a number. There are anumber of reporters who want certification.There are a number of reporters who don’t wantcertification. There are a number of reporterswho believe electronic recording is our biggestthreat. There are a number of reporters whobelieve contracting is our biggest threat. Thereare a number of reporters who believe that youcan’t even entertain the idea of certificationwithout adding anti-contracting. There are anumber of reporters who believe there is anextreme shortage of stenographers, and otherswho believe that there is actually a surplus. Butthe most important number of all is how manyreporters are there in Florida? To this day, everyinitial legislative effort has been met with thatbasic and yet unanswerable question.For those of you who know our history well,you know that FCRA has been pursuing thecertification unicorn for more than 20 years.Setting aside the many changes that have takenplace in the last 20 years, one constant has beenthat our membership is only a small reflection ofthe stenographic reporter population in our state,because for every member we have, we all knowthree or five or more stenographers who are notmembers.Something as simple as a mandatoryregistry affords us all an opportunity to finally getthe answer. A registry will compel all reporters tocome forward and finally be recognized for theprofessionals that we are and the unique skilllevels we possess. A registry will also create atleast the most basic level of accountability byApril/May/June/July The Florida Reportercausing reporters to mandatorily register with theState to be able to work as a reporter in Florida.I know the question on everyone’s mind iswill all methodologies be included. The answer isyes. All methodologies that have been adoptedby the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration,specifically Rule 2.070(a), would be reflected inthe registration criteria. While many will see this asa negative, the ability to identify differentmethodologies and being able to distinguishhighly skilled real-time reporters, captioners andmerit writers could be key to any futureendeavors.Thankfully, in spite of all the frustration andcriticism from nonsupporters, in spite of the smallnumber of dedicated volunteers who haveactually stayed the course, FCRA boards pastand present and FCRA committees havepersevered and persisted and have finally brokenground in ways that few can appreciate. Finallyhaving interaction with our legislators and finallyhaving a voice in Tallahassee has tremendousvalue, and an accurate reflection of our numbersis another means of having a voice.Again, no matter what our aspirations orexpectations, it’s imperative that we beorganized, even at the most basic level, and thatwe continue the dialogue with our legislators. Ifany of us feel strongly about something, it is ourresponsibility as individuals, as small businessowners, as independent contractors, and asprofessionals in an ever-evolving world to use ourvoices individually and collectively. I cannotemphasize enough the value of meeting withContinued on next page7
So What is the Value of aRegistry, Anyway?Continued from previous pageyour own state representatives and senators inyour own districts to share your concerns, and toeducate them on the importance of ourprofession and the unique, irreplaceable andvaluable ability of a stenographer.Ideally, we could just walk right in, presentall the legislation that we would like to seeenacted, and our legislators would just jump toand make it happen. But we all know that is notpossible at a time and place in our state wherecritical issues are pending, like severeDepartment of Corrections funding and staffingshortages, costly environmental cleanup issues,pending post-hurricane infrastructure repair,health care issues, newly enacted constitutionalamendment issues, and the list goes on. Becauseof that, it is truly remarkable that we have gottenthe attention and the movement that we havethis year. Our lobbyists, Corinne Mixon and DianaFerguson of the Rutledge Ecenia firm, have donea beyond-outstanding job of advancing our billsby working closely with our bill sponsors, StateRepresentative Ana Maria Rodriguez and SenatorDavid Simmons, to whom we also owe ourdeepest gratitude for taking an interest in us andfor giving their time and valuable bill filing slots toassist us.It is impossible to say what will happennext, but we do hope to see completion of thislegislation of a mandatory registry in the not-toodistant future. Our bills are still alive and movingto the next committees in both the House andSenate, and even in the event they do not makeit through the process to a full vote, bills that havepassed committee hearings, as ours have, canpotentially be treated as amendments to otherbills that are advancing. So this means that westill have options and potential for success.April/May/June/July The Florida ReporterFrom a legislative perspective, in recentyears, the Florida House has viewed professionalregulation skeptically and has brought forward aprofessional deregulation bill for the last severalsessions. Governor DeSantis has now also madederegulation a priority. This year, there is newlegislation that would make it more difficult tobring forward additional professional regulations.The current regulatory environment is one ofremoving perceived barriers to practice, andnew regulations, such as certification, face a highbar. Therefore, we must be realistic in ourexpectations and cognizant of the fact that anyfuture efforts to establish certification will be metwith some formidable obstacles and wouldmandatorily require total inclusion of allmethodologies because of the way our staterules of court are written, contrary to the originalintended goal of ments, I’m confident there will alwaysbe a small number who are unable to besupportive and unable to accept insurmountablelimitations, and we will never be able to changethat. But what we can change is our ownindividual outcomes by taking an active role inour collective efforts, and by acceptingresponsibility for educating and enlighteningevery attorney, judge, paralegal and otherparaprofessional we come in contact with aboutwhat a stenographer is, why we are unique, andhow our technology makes us unsurpassable.8
A Modern Day FairytaleThis is a VERY thinly veiled MODERNFAIRYTALE for the discouraged stenographiccourt reporter who is questioning theirinvolvement in the profession except for gettingout those transcript pages by rote because theyare being told that soon they are being replacedand they won't have a job."Once upon a time, in a land as far awayas Ocala, Florida, there was a magnificent,beautiful racehorse named Scr
the next installment of Donna Kanabay’s “The Diamond Vault.” We are now moving into the 1990s with this installment. Those were the years I attended court reporting school. My court reporting instructor was Carol Coblentz back then. It brought back so many memories w
