IN TOUCH
Fall 2006
A Publication of Independence Now, Inc
The Center for Independent Living
for Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties
IN Awarded Christopher Reeve Foundation Grant to Support Nursing Home
Outreach
Much to our delight IN was notified in late June that we had been awarded a
grant for outreach to younger individuals living in nursing facilities by the Christopher Reeve
Foundation.
The Reeve Foundation grant has enabled IN to provide a monthly stipend
to two (2) people with disabilities who will regularly contact people living in
nursing facilities who have said they want to move to the community and also
arrange monthly “happy hours” at these facilities. Lorraine Nawara, IN’s
Director of Independent Living Services, who will supervise this project, said
recently, “Thanks to this grant, we will be able to have more frequent
contact with the residents and staff at these facilities. As a result, people will not become as
discouraged while they wait for affordable housing.” IN has recently chosen Ellen Archie and
Michelle Kersey to serve as the Nursing Facility Outreach Coordinators from
among numerous people with disabilities who applied for the part-time outreach
positions. Each coordinator will
have regular contact and arrange activities at nursing facilities with large
numbers of younger residents.
7th
Maryland Youth Leadership Forum Held
Twenty-four (24) high school juniors and seniors participated in the 7th
Annual Maryland Youth Leadership Forum held July 18 – 21 at Bowie State
University. As usual, they were a
talented and charming group of teens eager to learn about the history of the
disability rights movement and determined to make a favorable impression on
Delegate Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore County, who led the Legislative Activity in
Annapolis. This year’s group
met with both Governor Robert Ehrlich and his Lt. Governor running mate,
Kristen Cox, Secretary of the Department of Disabilities. The presence of CNN cameras added to the
excitement while they filmed the meeting with Secretary Cox and the
Governor. CNN is preparing a news
segment on Secretary Cox and the Lt. Governor candidate in New York who is also
blind. It is expected to air prior
to the November election.
The MD-YLF students had thirteen (13)
excellent role models in the alumni volunteers who returned as small group
co-facilitators, peer counselors, residence advisors, speakers and mentors. The alumni volunteers are rapidly
learning the intricacies of the YLF and undertaking considerable
responsibilities for it.
New
Board Members Elected
At IN’s Annual Meeting on June 15, the following
individuals were elected to a three year term on the Independence Now Board of
Directors.
Bobby Bobo, Silver Spring, is returning to
the Board after a four year hiatus.
Bobby, a former IN President, is an Assistive Technology Trainer with
Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind.
Marissa Johnson, Rockville, is one of the
leaders of the National Youth Leadership Network and is the Director of
Training with the ADA Information and IT Center for the Mid-Atlantic
Region.
Missy Perrott, Bowie, spent thirteen years of
her life at Great Oaks Center, an institution operated by the State until it
closed in the late 1990’s.
Since leaving Rosewood Missy has been one of Maryland’s most
effective advocacy voices promoting community services for people with
disabilities.
Robert Watson, Brandywine, is the Director of DateAble, Inc., a nonprofit
organization that operates a dating service for people with disabilities and
also coordinates the Ms. Wheelchair Maryland and Ms.
Wheelchair America pageants. Cindy Buddington and Bob Herman were
each elected to another term on the Board.
More
Grants Awarded
to IN
Social Security Administration: IN was
fortunate to be chosen by the Social Security Administration for a three year
cooperative agreement to continue providing benefits planning and assistance to
SSI and SSDI beneficiaries. The
program name has changed to Work Incentives Planning and Assistance. More emphasis will be placed on benefits
counseling and follow-along services for people who are currently seeking
employment. Another change is the
requirement to collect extensive data so that employment outcomes can be
tracked. The Maryland Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS)
will supplement the SSA grant in order to assure the provision of adequate
services for DORS consumers and local office staff.
Montgomery County Community Enhancement
Grant: IN will receive a much needed grant to pay for
various equipment through the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human
Services. These one-time only
grants for capital expenditures have been made available to nonprofit
organizations by County Executive Doug
Duncan since 1996. IN will
use the grant to purchase a new server, several computers, a color laser
printer, accessible software and a new reception desk.
Ellen
Receives Volunteer Awards
IN’s
Board member, Ellen Archie, received
two prestigious awards in April as a result of her efforts to assist other
individuals who want to move from nursing facilities to the community. The first recognition was a Marriott
Corporation Spirit to Serve Award presented during a ceremony at the Marriott
Hotel on Pooks Hill Road by Stephen Marriott.
The award was accompanied by a $500 donation to IN.
Ellen’s
second award was presented by Governor
Robert Ehrlich during the annual Governor’s Volunteer Award
ceremony in Crownsville. On hand to
applaud and photograph this presentation were Ellen’s daughter, Gabrielle, IN’s Volunteer Maryland Coordinator, Andrea Umbach,
Lorraine Nawara, Director of Independent Living Services and Cathy Raggio,
Executive Director.
Great
Website
Have you looked
at the website of the Maryland Department of Disabilities? This great website has a wealth of
information of value to people with disabilities, their families, advocates
& service providers. Check it
out: http://www.mdod.state.md.us/
A
Year of Mentoring
The partnership
with the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council on its federal Grant of
National Significance called Youth Empowerment Alliance has taken a new
turn. This year 15 students who attended
the 2006 Maryland Youth Leadership Forum are matched with young adult mentors
for a period of one year. The
mentoring pairs will stay in contact via instant messaging, e-mail and phone
calls each month. The students will
“job shadow” their mentors in October and get together with them
for lunch or a movie a few times.
The pairs will participate in three group social events during the
year. The kick-off social event was
held September 9th at the ESPN Zone in Baltimore.
Transportation Action Group
Independence
Now’s Transportation Action Group (TAG) has been very active this past
summer. It has met three times
since May. Denise Thomas, from Project Ride at SEEC, came to speak at our May
meeting about their new project for individuals with developmental disabilities
learning about local public transportation. In June, TAG had another guest speaker,
Kathleen Walsh from the Equal Rights
Center, who talked about the importance of keeping a ride log for all
MetroAccess trips experienced by a MetroAccess user. One of our members, Regina Lee, has been
volunteering much of her time over the summer. She attended a Project Action conference
and later gave a successful training workshop in August about sharing ideas,
transportation and the ADA, and advisory committees, using her knowledge gained
from the conference. Independence
Now thanks Regina for her volunteer commitment. If you would like to become involved
with the Transportation Action Group by keeping MetroAccess ride logs,
attending various group meetings and responding to transportation issues in our
area, please call Tonya Gilchrist at 301-587-4162.
Maryland
Disability Caucus
Are you ready to be involved in a statewide grassroots effort? Are you a person with a disability? Will you commit to advocating for the
important issues that affect people with disabilities? If so, we want you! The Maryland Disability Caucus has
begun. Independence Now is
recruiting persons with disabilities who want to help make a difference for the
Maryland disability community.
Using your power to vote and take action on disability issues creates
strength in numbers. Together, we
can make our community a better place for people with disabilities. If you or someone you know is interested
in becoming a part of the Maryland Disability Caucus, please contact:
Tonya Gilchrist at 301-587-4162 or <tgichrist@innow.org>.
DONATIONS-
Thank you for your generosity!
Received
March 14- September 30
INMEMBERS
We thank the following
individuals who renewed their membership or became new members of IN:
Investor ($100 or more)
Joanna Clarke
Leo J. Knighton
Patricia Laird
Carolyn & Jerry Post
Maggie Roffee
Joseph Ryan
Karen Saba
Frank H. Serene
Kathleen Wolf
Instigator ($50)
Judy Gilliom
Harold & Jeffrey Krauthamer
Laurel James
Doris M. Olds-Eck, in remembrance of Karen Johnsen
Melissa Perrott
Catherine & Jim Raggio
Beatrice Rodgers
Dan & Jill Wingard
Insider ($25)
Terezie & Norman Bohrer
Debbie Chiarello
Kay Harris
Kriegsman, PhD.
Michael McMenamin
Wendy Mee, in
remembrance of Mr. Jerry H. Mee
Hussein Mohamed
Kermit B.
Mohn
Marian S.
Vessels
Michael J.
Ward
Anonymous
Initiator ($1-$12)
Janice M.
Barrett
Bobby Bobo
Cindy
Buddington
Melonee Clark
Tony Langbehn
Nancy Lee
Mauzy
Moselle
Milner
Patricia B.
Naylor-Lawson
Fernande
Saba, in recognition of Karen Saba
Sandra L. Brown
Robert Watson
Anonymous
We really appreciate the following general
donations as well.
Bowie Best Buy Store
Bowie Office Depot
Bowie Staples Store
Bowie Wal-Mart
Store
DC 101
Gaithersburg Sam’s
Club
Greenbelt Target
Store
Hyattsville Office
Depot Store
Largo Office Depot Store
Landover Circuit City Store
Jade Gingerich
Laurel
Sam’sClub
Marriott International,
Inc.
Mindy Morrell
Silver Spring Office
Depot Store
Silver Spring Staples
Store
Silver Spring Target
Store
Silver Spring Whole
Foods Market
Shoppers Food Warehouse
Wheaton Target Store
Anonymous
Radio One– Thanks to Regina Lee for entering Independence Now in
Pepsi’s, “Everyday Freedom
Heroes Award”
IN RECEIVES
MATCHING GRANT FROM THRIVENT FINANCIAL FOR LUTHERANS
We are grateful
toThrivent Financial for Lutherans of Montgomery County for
awarding IN a matching grant of $1,600 for this year’s membership drive.
We also appreciate all their assistance during the envelope “stuffing
party”. A special thanks goes to board member Kathy Wolf and IN member
Dan Wingard for helping make this happen.
MD-YLF
SPONSORSHIP
We thank the following families of YLF alumni who sponsored this
year’s Maryland Youth Leadership Forum:
Rolf & Gayle
Dietrich- Erica YLF 2000
Scott & Karen
Eberly- Matthew YLF 2005
Matthew and Kelly
Hahr- Jason YLF 2003
Richard Nelson-
Annie YLF 2003
Kathleen & George
Rahal- Brad YLF 2002
Elizabeth Vakalopoulos-
Alex YLF 2002
Thomas & Kristine
Zittle- Amanda YLF 2001
2 donations from families who wish to remain anonymous.
AID
ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND
IN thanks the
Aid Association for the Blind of Washington DC for continued supportof our
services for individuals who are blind or legally blind. Through the grant IN
serves numerous individuals and is able to produce our print materials in
alternative formats.
Nursing Home
‘Happy Hours’ Continue
IN staff
continue their outreach to the numerous nursing facilities in the two counties
through ‘happy hours’ scheduled once a month. While the mood of each happy hour is fun
and lively, the intent is serious outreach to advise residents of their right
to receive services in the community. Prior to scheduling a happy hour, IN
staff visit the nursing facility to meet with staff and identify residents who
are under age 65. IN staff then invite the residents to ‘happyhour’
and during this event, engage them in arts and crafts, games and conversation.
Through the relaxed conversations, IN staff identify people who want to move to
the community, returning to the nursing facility after the ‘happy
hour’ to meet with residents individually or in small groups to discuss
community options and develop an independent living plan with those who wish to
set goals for themselves. One result of this concentrated outreach is the
creation of a database with information about each of the people with whom IN
staff have met.
If you
want to volunteer or need our services please call:
Montgomery County
(301) 587-4162
Prince George’s County
(301) 277-2839