Greetings | The Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida welcomes you! If you have any questions about the center or the services we provide, please contact us at 352-378-7474. Our number again, is 3, 5, 2, 3, 7, 8, 7, 4, 7, 4.
Kevin and Sada attended the Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony and Open House for the Bradford Community Partners Health & Wellness Resource Hub towards the end of last month. The kickoff went perfectly, and it was amazing to see all of the hard work that went into planning this collaboration project come to fruition. CILNCF will be represented at the Resource Hub on the third Thursday of each month from 10:00 AM-2:00 PM. The Resource Hub will be housed in the Bradford County Faith Community Center until the new location is ready. We hope to see you there!
Please join us this February for both in-person and online classes at the CIL! We are still offering one online class per week for those of you who prefer that option.
Independence Hacks (ILS) classes will be on Tuesdays in Ocala, Wednesdays on Zoom, and Thursdays in Gainesville. All classes will be from 10:30am – 12pm.
Youth Leadership and Social Group classes are still on Tuesdays from 3:30-5pm. So far, they will continue to be conducted online until further notice.
For every online class, the meeting username is 352-378-7474 and the password is cilclass
Please be sure to share this with anyone who would like to participate, and contact Terri Poucher at 352-378-7474 or tpoucher@cilncf.org with any questions. We look forward to seeing you soon!
ID: Graphic with light pink background with heart designs all over. Black bold text heading that reads, “February Calendar”. Below header are three heart graphics graphics, each labeled “Tuesdays”, “Wednesdays” and “Thursdays” respectively. Each correlating day’s class titles and meeting times are written beneath its respective weekday. The meeting ID and password is written on the bottom of the image. The CIL logo is at the top left.
Earlier this month, Project Looking Ahead students at Hernando High School, participated in a fun, teamwork building activity. The objective was to work as a group to build the tallest free-standing structure possible using only dry spaghetti and marshmallows. The activity not only helped students build their structures, but also helped them build essential communication and leadership skills. The winning team was composed of Ethan, Omar, Richard, and Alex.
ID: There are total of 5 photos. Each are of students sitting and standing around a circular wooden table, participating in team building activities described in the caption.
Although the holiday season has passed, we wanted to still send some holiday cheer in January! After three years of virtual events, our High School High Tech (HSHT) students were finally able to celebrate their Annual Holiday Party in person this year! In mid-December, students from all of our HSHT counties in Alachua, Levy, Marion and Putnam were able to come to the CIL and celebrate the holidays together. Everyone enjoyed yummy snacks, door prizes and fun holiday games that included, Face the Cookie, Holiday Pictionary and Holiday Reverse Charades. They also had a special surprise guest crash the party…Santa! All of the students had a great time and were grateful celebrating the holidays in the CIL activity room after such a long time.
ID: There are a total of 8 photos of the HSHT students celebrating their Annual Holiday party in the Activity Room at CIL Gainesville. The photos show everyone playing games, eating delicious snacks, and having a great time together.
Last month, during our Staff Appreciation Luncheon, we were finally able to honor staff members in person, who achieved specific work anniversary milestones of 5, 10, 15, 20 and even 25 years! This past year, we had seven staff members to celebrate and they are all listed below.
Colleen Metcalf, Consumer Specialist – 25 years, wow!!!! Steve Grant, Office Receptionist (Retired) – 20 years!!! Kathy Elkins, Sign Language Interpreting Program Manager – 20 years!!! Amy Feutz, Associate Director – 20 years!!! Terri Poucher, ILS Coordinator – 15 years!! Lucinda Haile, Ocala Office Receptionist – 15 years!! Kevin Towles, Consumer Specialist – 10 years!
You all have made such a huge difference in the lives of people with disabilities throughout the years, and we are so grateful to have you on our CIL Team! Thank you so much for your dedicated service, commitment and all that you do for the CIL, our community and our consumers!
ID: There are 6 images. Each image is a Poloraid graphic with a picture of each of the staff mentioned receiving their award from their supervisor. The photo of Terry does not include Tony, her supervisor. There is not a photo of Steve Grant because he retired a few months earlier. The background color for each image is a different color of the CIL logo: purple, blue, green, turquoise. The name of the staff member and their supervisor is written on each image.
All of us here at the CIL would like to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. and honor his legacy through continued commitment to service for our community. Let us join together to reflect on MLK’s life, memory, and ability to spread love and kindness to all. Let us recommit to building a better, fairer, and more equitable world.
ID: Image is an illustration of Dr. Martin Luther King with the written quote: “We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
In collaboration with Caption Call AND Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology, The Center for Independent Living presents Mobility Express Presentation.
This presentation will cover information and equipment that helps accommodate for communicating with the Deaf & Hard of Hearing
Friday, January 27, at 10:00 AM via Zoom Meeting ID: 352-378-7474 Passcode: cilclass
For questions, contact Brandon Palermo: The Center for Independent Living 2760 SE 17th Street, Suite 300 Ocala, FL 34471 (352) 368-3788 ext. 1012 BPalermo@cilncf.org
ID: Graphic includes the information provided above in black and purple text. The FAAST and Caption Call logos are displayed at the top of thee image. The CIL logo is displayed on the bottom left of the image. Blue, light green, purple, turquoise, and green geometric shapes are displayed as the background of the graphic.
Our Wheelchair Ramp Building Program continues to make a difference in our consumer’s lives! Debbie was in dire need of a ramp, as she was in jeopardy of having to go into a nursing home due to her disability. But thanks to our new program for modular ramps, we were able to secure a ramp for Debbie this past month, and ensure that she is able to continue living independently in her own home. Debbie is thrilled and still can’t believe she has a new ramp! She now has access to the community and is able to go to important doctor appointments and therapy, without needing assistance from neighbors or relatives to help her go up and down stairs in her wheelchair. Debbie said the best part of her morning is now sitting on the front deck of her ramp, enjoying a hot cup of coffee, the fresh clean air and sunshine. She is forever grateful for this blessing and for the Center for Independent Living!
Special thanks to our CORE Services Director, Mark Brisbane, for continuing to make this happen for our consumers with disabilities in need of a ramp and better access to their community!
ID: Post has two images. Image #1 has two polaroid graphics; the left polaroid is a “before” photo of the home with no ramp and the right polaroid is a photo of the home with a newly built ramp. Image #2 shows an up close photos of the home at the door entryway of before and after images; the left photo has no ramp at the entryway and right photo shows the ramp built at the door entryway. There is text at the bottom of each image displaying “WheelChair Ramp Building Program”.
Our Director Tony at the Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida shares a message of deep gratitude and wishes for a happy, healthy, and independent 2023! Our staff work with so much heart and dedication to empower people with disabilities to live independently. We’re absolutely thrilled for what this year will bring.
VD: Tony stands in front of the Center for Independent Living office in Gainesville, sharing his new year message
