Happy Team Tuesday!

We wanted to give a HUGE shout out to our High School High Tech (HSHT) team members Niusha and Pepper!  During last month’s HSHT Annual Conference, Niusha achieved the Able Trust Quality Program Award for the Alachua County HSHT Program, and Pepper achieved the Able Trust Quality Program Award for the Putnam County HSHT Program!  Congratulations to you both and thank you for all of your hard work and dedication to your programs and our high school students with disabilities.  Great job!!  #FloridaHSHT

Image Description: Two pictures with light blue background. The first is at the top left of the graphic, and shows Niusha holding up her award with Joey D’Souza, Vice President, External Engagement with The Able Trust to the left, and Coleen Agner, HSHT State Director with The Able Trust to the right.  The second picture is at the bottom right of the graphic, and shows Pepper holding up her award with Coleen Agner, HSHT State Director to the right.  They are all standing in a banquet room, in front of a table with a blue tablecloth and Able Trust banner, smiling at the camera. The CIL logo is to the bottom left.    

We hope everyone is having a great day celebrating with their families.  Please enjoy some of our staff’s favorite Mother’s Day memories below!

Debbie:  My favorite Mother’s Day memories, if I had to choose, would be my first Mother’s Day as a mom to Alan. Memories of my mom was looking forward to a family dinner every year with siblings and grandkids. I really miss my mom the most. We lost her to breast cancer. Between my sister and my mom, I have learned to fight, not sit back and waste away.

Lauren:  In 2017, my daughter brought home a small plant, “Mother of 1000 Daughters” that her 2^nd grade teacher had the students put together for Mother’s Day. It is a very beautiful, unique and hearty plant that, just like its name, can produce 1000s of little baby plants in a short amount of time. We love plants at our house, so this was an amazing gift that I have to be careful with where I put it, as the babies will fall off the leaves and seed themselves ANYWHERE with the slightest movement of the plant. In the concrete, aluminum siding, porch cracks, and certainly all over the yard if I put it outside. Needless to say, I have several growing from the mother plant, and probably hundreds more that I’ve pulled up since then, but it’s the gift that’ll keep on giving, and I’m reminded of this every time I see a new one popping up somewhere random.

Drew:  My favorite Mother’s Day memory is when I made a picture slideshow for my mom with family pictures, music, etc. and surprised her with it!

Image Description:  Background includes a clear blue sky, a couple of thin, white clouds, with fuchsia and light pink flowers at the bottom growing out of green grass in a field.  The CIL logo is to the bottom left, just above the flowers.  The blue text at the top reads, “Happy Mother’s Day!! Moms deserve all the flowers in the world! With love from The CIL.”

On Earth Day, April 22nd, our CIL Team came together and enjoyed a day of spring cleaning! CIL staff from our Gainesville and Ocala offices worked hard to clean and organize their own offices, as well as the entire CIL. Special thanks to everyone for their help and making the CIL smell April fresh and look lighter and brighter! You are all awesome and appreciated!

Image Description: Includes six total pictures, three at the top of the image showing various CIL staff posing and smiling during the cleaning day, and three at the bottom showing the clean activity room and lobby.

We’re sending a BIG THANK YOU to all of our amazing Alachua County Emergency Preparedness Expo donors, sponsors and vendors, as well as our venue host, the Senior Recreation Center!!  We could not 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 Alachua County community!

Donors: Clay Electric Cooperative, Inc., Herr’s Chips, Publix, Sam’s Club, Dunkin’ Donuts, Jimmy John’s and PDQ.

Vendors: Department of Business & Professional Regulation, Shine/Elder Options, Gainesville Fire Rescue Community Resource, Community Hospice & Palliative Care, Alachua County Supervisor of Elections, UF Health Psychiatric Hospital, Alachua County Emergency Management, FAAST, Clay Electric Cooperative, Servpro of Gainesville, Gainesville Opportunity Center and Disability Rights.

Image Description:  Graphic of 4 pictures with light blue border from the Alachua County Emergency Preparedness Expo at the Senior Recreation Center.  Top left is CIL staff Sada and Mark sitting at the sign-in table, top right is CIL staff Brandon and Claudia manning the FAAST table, bottom left is an overview of the stage and podium with Anna Prizzia, County Commission, welcoming everyone to the event and bottom right is CIL staff member Eric manning the CIL table.  “Thank you!” is written in the middle in white cursive text.

Happy Friday!

Please enjoy this Amazing Give thank you video from our Executive Director, Tony Delisle. We truly appreciate everyone who helped make this day a huge success!

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

We made it over the hump, and in this last week of April, just sending a 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!

Our very own Mark Brisbane, Five Core Program Manager, has been utilizing JP-PAS for years, and he wanted to share a few words again about the difference that JP-PAS has made in his life:

“JP-PAS has enabled me as I’ve gotten older to sustain myself to be able to continue working full-time at the age of 55! It’s vital for me to be able to afford dependable PCA care to get up everyday to start my day off the right way and be productive! Without JP-PAS, I would struggle to remain independent and be able to work full-time!”

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: Light blue 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 2014 picture of Mark sitting in his wheelchair, in his old office and smiling at the camera. He is wearing a burgundy oxford shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. 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.

We wanted to give a BIG shout out to our awesome Emergency Expo duo, Kevin and Sada! Thank you so much for all of your preparation, hard work, and helping to make our 1st Annual Emergency Preparedness Expo for Alachua County such a wonderful success!

Many thanks also to our vendors, sponsors, venue hosts and attendees! This all would not have been possible without your support. We are already looking forward to next year!

Image Description: Picture of Sada and Kevin, both wearing grey CIL polo shirts and black pants. They are standing next the CIL sign at the Gainesville office, with green bushes in front of them. Sada is to the left and Kevin is to the right. They are both smiling and posing, leaning towards the sign with their arms outstretched, one up and one down.

Summer is on the horizon!

Hang out with us on Tuesdays for Youth Leadership & Social Group from 3:30 – 5pm and on Wednesdays for Independence Hacks from 10:30am – 12:00pm. The meeting username is 352-378-7474 and the password is cilclass for every class, every week!

Please, share this with those who may wish to participate and contact Terri Poucher at 352-378-7474 or tpoucher@cilncf.org if you have any questions.

Image Description: Dark blue background with yellow daisies on the bottom and CIL Logo in top right corner. In the top center is a bright blue heading that reads: “May Online Calendar”. Underneath are white daisies with “Tuesdays” and “Wednesdays” inside. The class titles and meeting times are next to their corresponding weekday and the meeting ID and password is written at the bottom of the image.

#TheAmazingGive has come to an end with donations totaling over $7,500 dollars!! We appreciate our donors so much for going above and beyond. You’ve helped our community and have made a huge difference in the lives of people with disabilities. On behalf of the CIL staff and consumers, thank you so much!!

SPECIAL THANKS to Infotech and their AMAZING Lunch Bunch Match donation of $500! You all ROCK and really helped us make a difference in the lives of our consumers with disabilities who need wheelchair ramps!

Also, if you missed the giving day, don’t worry! Our donation page will remain open for donations until midnight on Sunday, April 24^th! So, there is still time to make an impact by visiting our page link below!

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 confetti animation. “Thank you for your donation!” is written in large, dark blue lettering in the center of the graphic and the Community Foundation and CIL logos are in the bottom left and right corners, respectively.

#TheAmazingGive has officially begun! For the next 12 hours you can be part of one of our biggest fundraising events of the year. Your generous donations to the Center for Independent Living will help our Wheelchair ramp Building Program!

You can support us and those with disabilities by visiting our Amazing Give page link below and helping to spread the word!  Don’t forget about our AMAZING Lunch Bunch Match opportunity! From 12 – 1pm, 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! Thank you so much for your support!

CIL Amazing Give Page Link: https://www.theamazinggive.org/organizations/center-for-independent-living-of-north-central-florida

Image description: Light green background that fades into an eggshell white towards the top of the graphic. There are pink flowers in the top right and bottom left corners and the Community Foundation logo is also in the bottom left corner. The CIL logo is in the bottom right corner. At the top of the graphic, “Today is the day” is written in dark purple font and arranged in a semi-circle. Below it, there’s a large pink heart and The Amazing Give, April 21st, 2022, 7 AM – 7 PM is written inside of it.