Thank You Open House Sponsors!

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THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR WONDERFUL SPONSORS FOR OUR MOST RECENT GAINESVILLE OPEN HOUSE!

Amelia’s
Ballyhoo Grill
Best Western Gateway Grand
Blue Agave
Blue Gill, Bert Gill
Blue Highway A Pizzeria
Bonefish Grill
Burrito Famous
Café C
Chili’s
Chuy’s,
Conestoga’s
D’Lites Emporium
Dave’s New York Deli
David’s Real Pit BBQ
Gainesville Community Playhouse
Gator Cinemas
Great Outdoors
Hair Plus
Jersey Mike’s
Main Street Pie Co
Napolatano’s
Newberry’s Backyard BBQ
Pepper’s Mexican Grill
Publix
Red Lobster
Red Mango
Red Onion Grill
Satchel’s
Sweet Dreams
Sweet Frog
Target
Thornebrook Chocolates
Vine Bread and Pasta
Wahoo Seafood Grill
Wal-Mart Supercenter
Wine and Cheese Gallery

Social Secuirty’s Vision 2025

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Embarking on its 80th Anniversary of being a key piece of the Nation’s fabric, Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, officially released Vision 2025. The vision will serve as a “North Star” to guide Social Security and show how the agency will accomplish and deliver three key priorities: superior customer experience, exceptional employees, and an innovative organization over the next decade and beyond.

Vision 2025 reflects Social Security’s full commitment—now and in the future—to offering customers choices in how they do business with us. This commitment includes sustaining a field office structure that provides face-to-face service and is responsive to members of the public who need or prefer face-to-face service.

Learn more about Social Security’s Vision 2025

Help HSHT’s Josh Fight Freidreich’s Ataxia

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Screen Shot 2015-03-10 at 11.37.34 PMTo all of our CILNCF consumers and friends: Please read this message from the parent of one of our High School High Tech students and join us in supporting a great cause!

​Dear Friends,

I wanted to invite you to a fundraiser we are hosting on April 11, 2015 from 7:00pm to 10:00pm at the Town of Tioga Club House. It is a Wine, Cheese and Silent Auction Fundraiser to benefit the UF Foundation and specifically a gene therapy clinical trial that Josh is a part of. We are very excited about this research because it could be a potential cure but, sadly it is underfunded at the moment.

The tickets are $50 and all proceeds go directly to this research headed by Dr. Barry Byrne and Dr. Manuela Corti. We are limiting the number of guests to 100 due to space and wanted to make sure you had the chance to order tickets if you were able to attend. Please email me if you would like tickets and I will deliver them! Checks can be made out directly to the UF Foundation.

If you are unable to attend this event please consider a tax free donation to help with this cause. You can give directly online at https://www.uff.ufl.edu/OnlineGiving/FundDetail.asp?FundCode=019567&AppealCode=GMG9O or visit https://www.facebook.com/joshsfight to find out more information. We are all very optimistic and hope you will share in our excitement. Please help keep this research going. Your donations have the potential to save our children’s lives.

 

Here’s a little more information from HSHT Director, Melissa Merrill

“Josh is a senior at Buchholz High School and he was diagnosed with Freidreich’s Ataxia at the age of 10 which affects his heart and nerves. This is a progressive disease that has drastically affected Josh’s ability to walk without falling and to use his hands to write, tie his shoes, or open doors. Josh use to be very athletic, but is no longer able to play sports and this year got his first wheelchair. This disease can also cause more severe problems like diabetes and heart problems which will most likely shorten his life span. Despite all of this, Josh is the happiest person you will ever meet. He never complains, he’s always positive and enthusiastic, and is always looking for ways to help others. Josh works part time at TJ Maxx and is a fantastic student. He is hoping to go on to be an engineer and completed an internship last year with a civil engineering firm who praised him for his wonderful work on their CAD programs. I can’t say enough about what an amazing person Josh is and how excited he and his family is at the potential for a cure that will allow Josh to be more independent. Please take some time to check out Josh’s video and pass along to your contacts. Thanks so much!!”

CILNCF Executive Director Receives 2014 ABLE Trust Leadership Award

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The Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida (CILNCF) is extremely proud to announce that our Executive Director, William Kennedy has been selected as The Able Trust’s 2014 recipient of the Dr. George Spelios Leadership Award.  Also known as the Florida Endowment Foundation for Vocational Rehabilitation, the Able Trust’s mission is to provide Floridians with disabilities opportunities for successful employment.  This award is a recognition of Mr. Kennedy’s many years of advocacy and leadership as a model of excellence to the business and disability communities.

After over 20 years of involvement with the CILNCF, with 14 of those years spent as its Executive Director, Mr. Kennedy has recently announced his retirement.  This award is a wonderful opportunity for the organization to say farewell to Mr. Kennedy and to thank him for many years of dedication to the CILNCF.  Mr. Kennedy’s presence and vision are largely responsible for making the CIL the force for disability rights that it is today.

Those familiar with Mr. Kennedy are aware that he leads the CILNCF consumers and staff by his example.  Mr. Kennedy is a person living with quadriplegia resulting from a spinal cord injury in his youth.  His desire for empowerment and independence led him to the independent living and disability rights movement and its goal to enable all persons with disabilities to fully participate in society.

During his tenure as Executive Director, the CILNCF has faced budget cuts from government grant programs, the unprecedented sequestration funding reductions and changes caused by the downturn in the economy.  Throughout that time, the CILNCF has continued to advocate for and serve people with disabilities in the community of North Florida and indeed has expanded its role wherever possible.  The CILNCF’s enduring success in advocacy and support is due in large part to the perseverance and determination Mr. Kennedy has exhibited throughout his life.

The Able Trust’s 2014 Dr. George Spelios Leadership Award is not only an opportunity for the community to recognize William Kennedy for his many years of service, it is also a chance for the CILNCF Board, Mr. Kennedy and the community as a whole to praise the CILNCF staff for the important work that happens at the Center every day.  The CILNCF will continue to provide their many important services like sign language interpreting, employment services, paratransit support, awareness training, wheelchair ramp construction and their High School High Tech program for teens for many years to come.

For more information, contact CILNCF Business Manager Colette Gromoll (cgromoll@cilncf.org) or Interim Executive Director Amy Tharpe (amy@cilncf.org) or by phone (352) 378-7474.

Thank you!

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We’d like to thank our sponsors who have made donations for our recent fundraisers.  Thank you all so much!

Gainesville Sponsors

Alachua Restaurant Group (Flying Biscuit, Heavenly Ham)
Amelia’s
Ballyhoo Grill
Beef O’Brady’s
Best Western Gateway Grand
Blue Gill
Blue Highway A Pizzeria
Bonefish Grill
Bubbaque’s
Burger King
Café C
Carrabba’s
Chili’s
Chuy’s
Clock Family Restaurant
Cody’s
Conestoga’s
D’Lites Emporium
David’s Real Pit BBQ
Edible Arrangements
Father Phil’s
Firehouse Subs
Genghis Grill
Great Outdoors
I Love New York Pizza
Ivey’s Grill
Jason’s Deli
Krystal’s
La Fiesta
Macaroni Grill
Main Street Pie Co
Manuel’s
Maui Teriyaki
Napolatano’s
Newberry’s Backyard BBQ
Northwest Grill
Ocala Drive-In
Olive Garden
Pepper’s Mexican Grill
Pita Pit
Pomodoro
Publix
Red Lobster
Red Onion Grill
Regal Royal Park Theatre
Reggae Shack Café
Sarkara Sweets
Satchel’s
Simply Delightful Confections
Sonny’s
Sweet Frog
Target
Tasty Buddha
The Fresh Market
Trader Joe’s
UF Performing Arts Center
Wal-Mart Supercenter
Wendy’s
Wine and Cheese Gallery
Wing Zone

Ocala Restaurants
Bonefish Grill
Feta Mediterranean
Firehouse Subs
Harry’s Seafood Grill
Mojo Grill
Olive Garden
Outback Steakhouse
Red Lobster
Scrambles Café
Sonny’s
Sweetbay
Terry’s Place
The Lunchbox Café

Citrus Restaurants
Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
Moschello’s Pizza
Riverside Crab House
Sportsters
Sugarmill Restaurant

 

Emergency Preparedness Expert Panel | Save The Date

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Together with area Partners, the Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida and Alachua County’s Office of Emergency Management, will be holding an Emergency Preparedness Activity for residents of Alachua County who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing.

When:      Thursday, May 2nd, 2013

Time:        Event will start promptly at 5:30 PM and will end at 7:30 PM

Where:    Center for Independent Living 222 SW 36th Terrace, Gainesville, FL    32607

Click Flyer for Full Information

Rehab Engineers Need Ideas

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The Capstone Design course at the University of South Florida (USF) plays an important role in the emerging field of Rehab Engineering.  Students progress from taking an idea that has the potential to help individuals with disabilities to designing and building a prototype.  The course, based on a 15-week semester, gives students the opportunity to work on real world problems in a structured amount of time.

Some previous projects included a “bead thrower” so a high level quad could toss beads to the crowd at Tampa’s annual Gasparilla Parade, a “piano pedal activator” so a paraplegic could use the piano pedals when he played, a “wheelchair umbrella” so users could push a manual chair without the need to hold on to the device, and a “ticket grabber” so quads could pull tickets at a parking garage.  The course is all about ideas that can be converted into practical designs to assist persons with disabilities.

If you have an idea or suggestion that students could work on, course instructors are looking for your feedback.  Email Jimmy Smith at smithj6@usf.edu with any potential project ideas.

Computer Science Exploration Project | A Promising Practice in Introducing Computer Science

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To expose high school students with disabilities to computer sciences and related careers, the CIL of North Central Florida’s High School High Tech program undertook the Computer Science Exploration Project. The Project offered a series of nine hands-on events. An event was held once a month and included visits to:

  • Florida State University’s High Magnetic Field Laboratory – During this visit students participated in hands-on demonstrations, self-guided tours, and visits with scientists to learn how computer technology related to the research being done in the lab.
  • Palm Bay High School – At this event participants were introduced to a competition robotics team. Students participating on the team explained the process they went through to create their robots and demonstrated their robots.
  • Sid Martin Biotech Incubator – Participants in this event were shown how computer science technology is used to enhance BioTech research.
  • New Horizons Computer Learning Center – Over the course of two visits participants learned about the school and the computer technology programs they offer, as well as the technology they use to implement their online classes.
  • Naval Air Station Jacksonville (NAS JAX) – During this event students were allowed to use the flight simulators that naval pilots utilize for training and to experience the amazing technology used to create real-world simulations in a safe environment.
  • University of Florida’s Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department – The University of Florida’s robotics teams and education programs opened up their lab to demonstrate their creations and explain the technology behind them.
  • GWIZ (a local science museum) – Here students were introduced to the Lego Mindstorms programmable robots. During the remaining activities in the series they programmed the robots so that they could complete specific tasks.

Evaluation results of the Computer Science Exploration Project suggest that the forty-one participants developed a greater interest in and understanding of computer science and likelihood of pursuing a career in computer science. On a Likert scale of 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest) post-event surveys 80% of the participants reported that they enjoyed the program activities and 31% reported considering a career in the computer science field. A comparison of the pre- and post-surveys revealed a 20% increase in student’s awareness, interest, and appreciation of computer science and associated career fields. The students who attended the majority of the events expressed a greater understanding of computer science. A few students reported a change in their intended career path as a result of their participation; one student who was planning a career as a professional football player changed his mind to pursue aviation after the NAS JAX trip while another student switched from the medical field to computer technology after the robotics and New Horizons events.

The Computer Science Exploration Project is a promising practice for helping students with disabilities gain a better understanding and appreciation of computer science and related career fields.

Flight Simulation

For more information about this project visit the North Central Florida High School High Tech Computer Science Exploration Project.

This activity was been funded by a minigrant from The Computer Science Collaboration Project (CSCP). CSCP is partially funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Computer and Network Systems, Broadening Participation in Computing (CNS-0940646).