The food distribution program in Marion County started with about 20 consumers. In a few short months, this has grown to 90 consumers per month!
CIL Consumer Specialist, Kevin Towles, also distributes food monthly to about 50 people in Hernando County and is working on starting programs in Citrus and Sumter counties.
Thank you, Kevin, and the rest of the Ocala CIL Team, for all your hard work for our consumers and the community!
The Youth Leadership Forum (YLF) is a unique leadership-training program for high school students with disabilities. Students participate in a multi-faceted series of online leadership training, role playing, mentoring, job preparation, career exploration and activities to build social and communication skills.
We’re joined this week by two previous participants of The Youth Leadership Forum, who now occupy leadership positions in the independent living network. Whitney Harris is the Executive Director for the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology, Inc. (FAAST). Sarah Goldman is the Director of Administration and Youth Initiatives for Florida Independent Living Council, Inc. (FILC). In subsequent episodes, we dive more into Sarah and Whitney’s respective roles and hear how they continue to advocate for the independent life.
To learn more about The Youth Leadership Forum and how to apply, visit: https://www.floridacils.org/youth-leadership-forum
SPEAKERS: Whitney Harris, Sarah Goldman, Tony Delisle
Continue readingMark your calendars! The Amazing Give is only 4 WEEKS AWAY!
The event will take place on April 22nd from 7am to 7pm and we need your help! Please consider making a donation through our Amazing Give platform, so we can continue to make a difference in the lives of our consumers and people with disabilities in our community!
Stay tuned for more information and success stories leading up to the event!
The CIL Deaf Services of Florida group will be conducting an online workshop about Deaf History, Deaf Culture, and the successes of Deaf individuals and movements throughout history.
Please check out the flyer for more information!
We are so happy to share our recent progress with our COVID Food Distribution, a CIL Connections service.
At our most recent distribution, we gave one hundred nutritionally balanced boxes of food and even more baked goods to over 35 consumers at Sunshine Apartments! How much did this cost? Nothing! Thanks to our partnership with Bread of the Mighty, we were able to bring a surplus of food to a community in need.
We have also reached a new neighborhood, Caroline Manor! It was a true pleasure meeting these residents and new CIL consumers, including Ms. Reynolds, pictured below. Several residents were also signed up for additional services, including Paratransit and Employment. It means so much to us to help such a lovely community meet their independence goals!
We look forward to expanding our reach even further in the upcoming months, as bringing food and other essential items to our consumers is a crucial factor in maintaining independence during this pandemic.
Ariella Bak, NREMT, pioneered and manages the Community Resource Paramedicine Program within the Gainesville Fire Rescue department. She created this program while working as a volunteer for GFS and attending The University of Florida. Her team goes into the community to address the complex needs that are present and helps to identify the needs that align with the services that CIL provides, such as, access to affordable housing, home modifications, wheelchair ramps, to name a few. It’s this level of community collaboration that allows CIL to serve the independent needs of many people within their community.
Ariella shares with us the innovative program they’re facilitating to address the access and functional needs that people are challenged with for getting the COVID vaccination. People with disabilities, the most vulnerable population to COVID, are experiencing many barriers when it comes to receiving the vaccination. The Homebound Vaccination Program has Ariella and her team going into communities with disabled people to administer the vaccination. She talks about the logistics and the challenges in getting the COVID vaccination out to the community.
SPEAKERS: Ariella Bak, Tony Delisle
Continue readingHappy St. Patrick’s Day!
May your pathway be easy,
May your spirit be strong,
And may luck always follow you,
All your life long!
This Friday, March 19th from 7pm to 8:15pm, ION Gainesville is hosting their monthly Zoom bingo night for young adults with disabilities aged 18-30ish!
If you or someone you know would like to play bingo with them, please RSVP by Thursday March 18th at 9 pm. They will then send you a link and bingo cards. If you know of another young adult with varying abilities who would like to join, feel free to share.
We wanted to share some important information about the most recent updates about the COVID vaccinations for you and your family and friends to share.
People of any age who are considered vulnerable to COVID and can get a physician to sign off on this, can get the vaccine. People with disabilities and those with secondary health conditions associated with COVID (heart disease, respiratory disease, diabetes) are considered vulnerable.
Please see attached Vulnerability Form that must be signed by a physician to get the vaccine. The second image has a QR code that can be scanned by a smart phone and will provide the same Vulnerability Form that is needed for a physician to sign.
The CIL is participating in the Amazing Give, Workday Edition, on April 22nd from 7am to 7pm! Please save the date and spread the word to help us reach our fundraising goal of $10,000!
This year, Amazing Give donations will go towards our services with the most need: Housing, Employment, and our Youth Programs.
Keep an eye out for our upcoming spring newsletter, and remember to follow and stay tuned on our social media accounts, as we will be sharing CIL success stories leading up to the event.
Thank you in advance for your amazing support!
