Happy Spring! The CIL will be closed on Friday, April 22nd for a Staff Spring Cleaning Day! We will resume our regular business hours on Monday. Please be sure to call us at 352-378-7474 or e-mail cilncf.org@gmail.com with any immediate questions or concerns.
Have a wonderful rest of your day!
We are officially less than 24 hours away from #TheAmazingGive!
For the 7th year in a row, the CIL will be participating in the online community fundraiser, The Amazing Give, on April 21st from 7am to 7pm. Donations raised through this event are an essential part of supporting our organization, and this year we are setting a goal of $10,000 – and we know we can reach it with your help! Your generous donations will go directly towards our Wheelchair Ramp Building Program!
Please consider donating if you are able, and check out our page link below. If you are able to donate, we have an AMAZING Lunch Bunch Match opportunity from 12 – 1pm! On the giving day, all donations will be DOUBLED during that hour, through a very generous $500 matching gift from our awesome sponsor, Infotech, so your donations will make twice the difference! You can also help by spreading the word and sharing on your social media networks!
Additionally, you can help the CIL win an extra prize! Four prizes of $500 will be given throughout the giving day to participating nonprofits mentioned in a post from community supporters using #WhyIGiveGNV on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Tik Tok. The post can contain a video, a photo or a quote. The #WhyIGiveGNV must be used. Paid employees or consultants working at a participating nonprofit are encouraged to participate, however, will not be eligible to win. The post must be on an individual or business profile. This is happening now and ends on April 21st at 7pm.
Thank you so much for your support and helping the CIL reach our goal!
CIL Amazing Give Page Link: https://www.theamazinggive.org/organizations/center-for-independent-living-of-north-central-florida
Image description: Light blue background with a green, rectangular sign in the middle of the graphic. The event and time are written inside of the green sign and the Community Foundation logo is inside of a white rectangle below it. The CIL logo is in the bottom right corner.
The CILNCF recently received some heartbreaking news. Sadly, our sweet Delma lost her long-fought battle with Sickle Cell last week. She was part of our CIL family for just over 3 years. Delma had a kind and caring heart, and provided excellent service to our consumers, our ADA Paratransit Program and the CIL as a whole.
Delma was incredibly dedicated and always went above and beyond to help in any way she could for our consumers in need. While working from home, especially during the height of the pandemic, Delma often called consumers while lying down due to severe fatigue, or even worked on her laptop at lengthy doctor’s appointments.
Delma was an integral part of our CIL family, and it will never be the same without her. All of us here at the CIL are sending many thoughts and prayers to her family during this very difficult time. It is hard for us to imagine that we will not see her wonderful smile and demeanor, or hear her soft-spoken voice and caring words. We will miss you dearly Delma!
Image is a picture of Delma sitting in her office behind her desk, wearing a grey, short-sleeved top. She is holding up a massage certificate that she won in a raffle on our Staff Appreciation Day during the summer of 2019.
Happy Easter Greetings from the CIL!
Just sending a friendly April reminder that the Florida Association of Centers for Independent Living (FACIL) is still accepting applications for the James Patrick Memorial Work Incentive Personal Assistant Services and Employment Assistance (JP-PAS) Program!
The JP-PAS Program truly changes lives by providing monthly stipends to qualified Floridians with disabilities who are employed and require personal assistance services for daily living. If you or anyone you know would benefit from this amazing program or if you would like to learn more, please visit http://www.floridacils.org/pca-services-program!
Image description: Purple background with the top of the image reading: “The JP-PAS Personal Attendant Services and Employment Assistance Program” in large dark blue lettering. In the bottom center of the graphic, there is a picture of a man in a wheelchair smiling, and he is in the middle of a baseball field, with the scoreboard behind him in the distance. He is wearing an orange polo with a nametag and a black baseball cap. The FACIL logo is in the center of the graphic on the left side and the JP-PAS logo is in the center on the right side. In between them is the program’s website, written in the above paragraph.
The CIL is continuing to highlight one of our programs each month, in honor of our 40th year. For the month of April we are highlighting none other than our Wheelchair Ramp Building Program!
Check out our recent posts for success stories from consumers of this program as we gear up for The Amazing Give next week! And click the link below to listen to Executive Director, Tony Delisle, and Wheelchair Ramp Core Manager, Mark Brisbane, discuss the program’s legacy on the CILNCF podcast, The Independent Life!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2BnE6jsDZRShxlkr2PdgDO?si=UJwTwVZvQcWUNpw_H2xaDw
Background is purple and blue gradient with confetti lining the top and CIL Logo in bottom left corner wearing a party hat. Heading in top center reads: “April Highlight: Wheelchair Ramp Program” in large, capitalized, white font. Below is a collage of overlaying images of past wheelchair ramps and volunteers.
The Amazing Give will be here soon on Thursday, April 21st from 7am to 7pm! All donations will be used towards our Wheelchair Ramp Building Program and will make a difference in so many lives! Please show your support by sharing the CIL’s page link with your networks and donating if you are able:
CIL Amazing Give Donation Page
We are very happy to announce a Lunch Bunch Match opportunity during The Amazing Give! Thanks to a $500 match from our generous sponsor, Infotech, all donations made from 12 – 1pm on April 21st will be DOUBLED! If you are planning to donate, and would like to make even more of a difference, please consider donating during this time!
Thank you for your support and stay tuned for more updates!
Image description: Pink, orange, and yellow background with the words “The Amazing Give” written in bold white letters in the center of the graphic. The date for the event, April 21st 2022 7 am – 7 pm” is written underneath it, followed by “save the date!”. The Community Foundation logo is in the bottom left corner and the CIL logo is in the bottom right corner.
A BIG THANK YOU to all of our awesome Marion County Emergency Preparedness Expo donors, sponsors, and vendors!! We couldn’t have done this without all of your support and we are so very grateful. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of people with disabilities in the Marion County community!
Donors: Marion Champ, Dunkin’ Donuts, Jimmy John’s, Domino’s Pizza, Pasta Faire, Brookdale Chambrel Pinecastle, Herr’s Chips, City of Ocala, Sam’s Club, Developmental Service Trainers, Supervisor of Elections and Clay Electric Cooperative, Inc.
Vendors: Marion Sheriff’s Office, APD, City of Ocala, Election Center, Ocala Regional Medical Center, WAGS Animal Rescue, Ocala Police Department, Hearth of Florida, Developmental Service, Physician Partner’s, Guided Medicare, Marion Senior Services, Marion County Fire Department, FAAST, Island Doctors, Humana, Ultimate Health, Clay Electric Company and Public Works.
Image description: Pink, orange, and purple background with the words “Thank you!” at the top in a white and orange font and “to all of our awesome Marion County Expo donors, sponsors, and vendors!” written below it in a smaller white font. The CIL logo is centered at the bottom of the graphic.
The Amazing Give is now 2 WEEKS AWAY! Here is a recent story about our Wheelchair Ramp Building program that is our focus for this year’s fundraiser.
Julia is a member of the Gainesville community who uses a wheelchair due to her progressive disability. We built Julia a ramp when she stated that having one would give her the opportunity to come and go from her home as she pleases, and that she would feel much more independent and not have to rely on others to help her in and out of her home. Here is a picture of Julia’s ramp that was recently completed. She is forever grateful for the Center for Independent Living making her dream come true!
Ramps like these cannot exist without funding from people like you! Donations from The Amazing Give will go directly to assisting people with disabilities like Julia, who have been waiting months, if not years, for a ramp. Please help us spread the word and consider donating to this amazing cause!
Image Description: Light orange background with blue and green zigzag lines and the CIL logo in the bottom left corner. In the center is a photo of a small home with an extended wheelchair ramp. The photo is titled, “Julia’s Ramp” in large black letters in the bottom center.
It’s #ATAwarenessDay and the CIL is celebrating! TODAY the U.S. Senate will pass a resolution to shed important light and celebrate National Assistive Technology (AT) Awareness Day! The day honors people with disabilities who require AT to access their education, workplace, community and recreational activities. The day also recognizes the innovation of researchers and the complete dedication of AT specialists and program providers who operate AT programs across the US and Territories so that millions of individuals can acquire low-cost and often no-cost AT.
Learn more about AT programs, view the commemorative video, and celebrate AT! #ATAwarenessDay
ATAP Home Page: https://ataporg.org/
AT Awareness Day Video link: https://lnkd.in/dtqQ_fmb
AT3 Resources link (info on community living, education, employment, housing and transportation): https://lnkd.in/dX9ttQXT
Image description: Light blue background with the words “Happy #ATAwarenessDay!” in the center. The ATAP logo is in the top right corner and the CIL logo is in the bottom left corner. There are dark blue sparkles surrounding the letters in the center of the image.
For those of you in Alachua County, our first-ever Emergency Preparedness Expo for people with disabilities in Alachua County is less than two weeks away! It will take place on Thursday, April 14th, from 8:45AM-1:00PM at the Senior Recreation Center, here in Gainesville. For more information and to register, please click the link below and claim your seat for this exciting inaugural event. We hope to see you there!
