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Last weekend, The Ability Center took some youth on an adaptive ski trip with the assistance of TAASC (The Adaptive Adventure Sports Coalition), a non-profit organization. TAASC works to enhance recreation opportunities for people with and without disabilities.
Below are some photos from the ski trip. If you wish to become involved with TAASC, please visit their website for more details on their programs. To see more photos, visit our Facebook page.
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TARTA Bus (image courtesy of Toledo Free Press)
Below are the upcoming dates for the community to learn about potential changes in the local public transportation system in Toledo and outlying communities. Please plan to attend one of these important meetings.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Maumee Public Library 501 River Road, Maumee, OH 43537
Tuesday, February 7, 2012 6:30 to 8:00 PM
Way Library 101 East Indiana Avenue, Perrysburg, OH 43551
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 1:30 to 3:00 PM
Sylvania Senior Center 7140 Sylvania Avenue, Sylvania, OH 43560
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 6:30 to 8:00 PM
The Ability Center 5605 Monroe Street Sylvania, OH 43560
Thursday, February 9, 2012 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Rossford Community Center 400 Dixie Highway, Rossford, OH 43460
Thursday, February 9, 2012 6:30 to 8:00 PM
Way Library 101 East Indiana Avenue, Perrysburg, OH 43551
• Meeting facilities are wheelchair accessible.
• Light refreshments will be served.
Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA) recognizes that coordinating transportation services is essential for older adults, individuals with disabilities, individuals and families living below the poverty level, and the general public to access employment, education, health services, and community programs.
Come and provide your input and insights to discuss unmet transportation needs, gaps in transportation services, and recommended strategies to improve transportation and mobility options in and around Toledo.
Applicants for Section 5316 (Job Access/Reverse Commute) and 5317 (New Freedom Initiative) must participate in the planning effort.
Imagine…if political campaigns openly addressed the issues of Ohioans with disabilities
Community Based Long-term Care Supports and Services
Community Based Employment
Accessible, Affordable Housing
Better Transportation
Imagine…if politicians voted in ways that reflected the concerns of Ohio’s disability community
Imagine…if Ohioans with disabilities had as much power and political clout as the senior population!
A recent television ad for AARP addressed threatened cuts to Medicare and Social Security.
The ad’s speaker pointed out that there are over 50 million seniors in the U.S. and said to Congressmen and Senators:
“You’ll be hearing from us today AND on election day!”
Seniors have power and use it! Politicians know it and listen!
You can help Ohioans with disabilities to become such a powerful voting bloc!
Build the bloc by distributing the ODVC Voter Registration Campaign 2012 Form (pdf)
Return forms to:
The Ohio Disability Vote Coalition
670 Morrison Road, Suite 200
Gahanna, Ohio 43230
Or
Fax to: (614) 861-0392
The mission of the Ohio Disability Vote Coalition is to maximize the political power of Ohioans with disabilities through nonpartisan voter education, registration and participation of all people with disabilities at all levels of the election process. For more information call (866) 575-8055 (toll free).
The National Center on Physical Activity and Disability’s (NCPAD) mission is to promote the substantial health benefits gained from participating in regular physical activity. As a center, we believe that every individual can gain some health benefit as a result of being more physically active. Our goal is to provide people with disabilities options and information to assist them in pursuing whatever kind of activity they think they may enjoy. We have information and resources for everyone, from guidelines to consider before beginning an exercise program to factsheets on many popular activities, games, recreational pursuits, as well as sports that have been adapted to allow people with disabilities to participate to the extent that they desire.
However, NCPAD has recognized that for most people with disabilities, barriers to physical activity programs such as cost, transportation, and inaccessible features prohibit them from participating in sports, fitness, and recreation programs. In response, the National Center on Physical Activity and Disability has developed a free, online health promotion program for adults with disabilities which individuals can utilize from home with use of little to no equipment. The NCPAD 14-Week Program to A Healthier You is a personalized, web based exercise and nutrition program primarily for people with mobility limitations, chronic health conditions and physical disabilities.
The program will provide information on how to exercise and eat nutritious foods in a way that meets each individual’s needs and goals, as well as provide motivational tools to help participants initiate and maintain healthy behaviors. Additionally, the 14-Week Program offers an interactive interface uniquely designed to every participant’s ability level and interests.
Included in the program are the following features:
o New, personalized weekly exercises
o Physical activity and nutrition tips
o Motivational resources
o Weekly recipes
o Features to help you track your activity and what you eat
o Optional reminders and alerts
o Opportunities to connect with other participants
o Access to knowledgeable 14-Week coaches
What past participants have said about the 14-Week Program:
“I am a 62-year-old, T-5 paraplegic, female. This was just the exercise program I was looking for. I love the cardio workouts most of all! I am now moving and feeling so much better than before I started this program.”
“I thought the program was very good, especially for those who are intimidated by starting a program. It allows you to work at your own pace and you can see your progress as you gradually increase in strength and endurance. I had given up on exercising because of fibromyalgia pain but have found that movement actually helps me to feel better and it challenges me at the level I am currently at.”
“I have lived with MS for almost 30 years and the program provided me with the encouragement and incentive to get more active in accordance with my abilities.”
To join, please visit NCPAD and click join in the upper right hand corner.
Two of the region’s most high-profile service providers for people with disabilities announced a strategic partnership that brings The Ability Center of Greater Toledo and Assistance Dogs of America, Inc. (ADAI) into a single organization.
Under a new collaboration, Assistance Dogs will become a program of The Ability Center and move its headquarters to a renovated building on The Ability Center’s campus on Monroe Street in Sylvania.
“Our organizations share a strong common mission that focuses on helping people of all ages to live and work independently and in fully accessible communities,” said Pam Howell-Beach, board chair of The Ability Center.
“Combining resources also creates greater operational efficiency, eliminates duplication of functions, and makes an even stronger community impact,” she said.
“The new partnership benefits the region by training more dogs to serve a greater number of people,” said Cheri Budzynski, board chair of Assistance Dogs. “It will also increase public awareness about the possibilities and value of full accessibility for all citizens, and promote internal discussion and planning about new kinds of services and delivery.”
The Ability Center is seeking private funding to renovate the current Housing Resource Center to accommodate the Assistance Dogs programs and move the resource center to a new facility on Skelly Road in Sylvania. The Ability Center expects the completion of both projects by next spring.
The new partnership benefits our community by training more dogs to serve a greater number of people. Governance of Assistance Dogs transfers to The Ability Center Board of Directors immediately, and financial and operational management will be absorbed into The Ability Center’s current staff. Ten current staff members of Assistance Dogs will become Ability Center employees.
A grant from the Strategic Alliance Partnership supported the planning phase of the merger process. The Strategic Alliance Partnership is a collaborative funding pool created by the Toledo Community Foundation, the Stranahan Foundation, and the United Way of Greater Toledo.
The Ability Center of Greater Toledo provides a variety of programs to assist people with disabilities to live, work and socialize within a fully accessible community. Established in 1920 as The Society for Crippled Children, it served as a hospital/rehabilitation facility for children (and later adults) with Polio until the advent of the Salk vaccine in the mid-1950s. It evolved to provide comprehensive services to people of all ages living with disabilities – with an emphasis on independent living. Today, The Ability Center serves seven Northwest Ohio counties and has regional offices in Defiance and Port Clinton.
Assistance Dogs of America, Inc. has helped children and adults with disabilities achieve greater independence by training and placing service therapy dogs to assist with an individual’s daily needs. It has served more than 250 people in more than 25 years of operation. It also launched the PUPPS program, which teaches inmates at the Toledo Correctional Institute to raise and train dogs for ADAI placement.
Want to learn more about how to advocate for and get services for your sibling with a developmental disability?When: The Toledo event will be on Monday, September 19, 2011 from 7:00-8:30 PM
Where: Lucas County Board of Developmental Disabilities
1155 Larc Lane, Toledo 43614
Toledo Flyer
Questions? Email Michelle Truby or call (614) 571-4542.
When: The Cleveland event will be on Thursday, September 29, 2011 from 6:30-8:00 PM
Where: Maple Heights Adult Activity Center
14775 Broadway Avenue, Maple Heights, 44137
Cleveland Flyer
Questions? and RSVP to Barb Sapharas or call (216) 736-2742.
See the attached flyers for more information. Please invite family and friends to these events.
Don’t forget to sign up for the 11th Annual Ohio Adult Sibling Conference!
By Tammy Hubbard, Advocacy Intern, The Ability Center of Greater Toledo
Booker Brown
“I am a 51-year-old African-American male. My home was originally in Cleveland, Ohio. However, I relocated to northwest Ohio due to the medical treatment that was available in this area. I was successfully transitioned into my own apartment at the end of June 2010.
“My diagnoses were obesity, hypertension, diabetes and lymphedema. This combination of conditions is why I was admitted into a nursing home. While I was regaining my health, I learned that my home in Cleveland was being foreclosed. Not wanting to become a burden to my friends and family, I decided to stay in the Gibsonburg area, which is where I was introduced to the HOME Choice program. I was thrilled to hear of this program because I knew that in the end it would mean I could move out of the nursing home facility.
“I looked at several rental options before signing the lease where I am. I signed the first lease that was available and probably should have waited a bit longer. Living on a fixed income with rising utility costs is a rough task to handle.
“The funds that I was provided through the HOME Choice program were very helpful. I used these funds for my deposit and first month’s rent. They also helped me get the furniture I needed as well as the movers to get the furniture to me. I just love the blankets, towels and various kitchen utensils I was able to buy with HOME Choice funds. I also loved the experience of shopping for them. Without the HOME Choice program I would have been in this apartment without anything. In fact, I probably would not even have this apartment!
“I am happy with the HOME Choice program. Tiffany Tierney the Community Support Coach from The Ability Center of Greater Toledo calls me each month to check on me. I think that is such a selfless and caring act for her to do. What a great program I was a part of!”
By Tammy Hubbard, Advocacy Intern, The Ability Center of Greater Toledo
Peggy Cly
“I am a 52-year-old female living in Gibsonburg, Ohio. Living on my own is something that I had never done until September 10, 2010. Thank you HOME Choice program, for allowing me to have this awesome experience! It is such a great feeling to know that I am doing this on my own. For the 14 months prior to September 2010 I had lived in a nursing facility.
“Coming into the nursing home I was not physically able to properly care for myself. I was cared for and given guidance to get to where I could, and I wanted out of the nursing home. When I first heard of the HOME Choice program, I was wowed to the fact that there was money available for me. I just was amazed that because I was in a nursing home, I got assistance. The thought of getting out was great. I was ready to leave all the rumors that went with living with other patients.
“The process seemed to roll along pretty smoothly for me. I did get discouraged at points when I was trying to get transportation to do what needed to get done. But just as easily as I got frustrated, solutions were found and I got where I needed to be. The HOME Choice program seemed to know how to work with me to make it happen.
“The funding that was available through the HOME Choice program was so helpful. When I first started thinking about going out on my own, I kept thinking, ‘I cannot do that, I don’t have monies for all the start ups.’ Then HOME Choice went to bat. It was able to help me with my first month’s rent and deposit for the apartment and also utility deposits. What a relief it was having those taken care of.
“Then I got the opportunity to go shopping and purchase the things I needed for my apartment. I remember going to the store and getting to pick out my groceries. I loved picking out my food, which I later was able to prepare the way I wanted. I am again thankful that the HOME Choice program was there to help me with that.
“My biggest accomplishment since getting into my own apartment is [to get] my cat. I recently was able to go to the Humane Society and adopt Jackilyn. She is a beautiful black-and-gray, short-haired tabby cat. I had fun naming my cat, and I ended up naming her after both of my parents. She brings joy to me every day. I also enjoy playing cards and watching television.
“I am so thankful for all of the help that I was given from the HOME Choice program. Being able to get in the community and staying close to friends and family is important to me, and I received Community Support Coach training that helped me to get things done that I would have otherwise procrastinated. I would get in a mood and it seemed like those were the days my Community Support Coach would be scheduled to come out. Tiffany Tierney was able to encourage me to accomplish a new challenge and that alone would bring me back up and positive again.
“I cannot say enough how beneficial the HOME Choice program was for me. I am so glad I was given that opportunity.”
Stories originally published in HOME Choice Newsletter (Summer 2011) (pdf)
Casey Arroyo, of CGA Home Modification, demonstrates lift system.
This year’s theme for the 11th Annual ADA Awareness Day at Toledo Zoo was “In welcoming communities citizens look out for one another.” The need to create a welcoming community is a primary goal of The Ability Center of Greater Toledo. Everyone should have access to the community they live in. This goal is also one of the reasons The Ability Center hosts the annual information fair at the Toledo Zoo.
Vendors from all over the region participated in this important annual community event. While this event is an opportunity for vendors to provide information on their services and products, the ADA Awareness Day is also a chance for individuals with disabilities in our community to learn about local and regional resources. Sometimes just seeing a piece of machinery on display and in-use can profoundly affect the way an individual with a disability maintains independence.
The Ability Center appreciates every organization the participated in the event this, as well as the assistance of the great staff at Toledo Zoo, particularly, Jen Brassil, Special Events Coordinator.
Below are several photos from the event. For more photos, please visit The Ability Center’s Facebook page. Please leave your comments regarding the event. The center welcomes your input!
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The Ability Center’s Ottawa County Office, along with the Ottawa County Family and Children First Council, hosted the sixth annual two-week Youth Leadership Program with this year’s theme of Giving Back to the Community and Others. Focusing on young people ages 13 to 19, the program helps instill a sense of self-awareness, empowerment and pride in self.
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Among the many things achieved, the teens and young adults visited the County Jail, Justice and 911 offices, met with disability advocates, took field trips to area organizations and attractions, like Crane Creek where they learned about local ecosystem management, and animals endangered in our community. They went to Schedel’s, spent a day in Lakeside, at the Chatauqua on the Lake and received instructions on nutrition and skin care from Marcia Jess, of the Ohio State University Extension Office.
They visited Island Adventures Family Fun Center and, on June 21, 2011 they had an opportunity the learn about rescue and support service, enjoying demonstrations by the Port Clinton Fire Department, Sheriff Department SWAT Team, Emergency Medical Technicians and how to give back to the community from Port Clinton Fire Chief Johnson.
On Friday evening, June 24, 2011 from 5:00-6:30 PM, the group hosted a graduation ceremony at the St John’s Lutheran Church in Oak Harbor. The teens cooked and served an Asian style dinner for those attending. The teens received a certificate, various donated gifts, and a t-shirt sporting a design on which they collaborated with Dan Wilkins, Director of Public Relations and Community Partnerships for the Center.
“It’s amazing to be a part of young people coming of age.” said Tory Heilman, Manager of the Ottawa County office, “With all that we offer, do and share with these guys, they literally blossom in front of us. It is an honor to witness such growth.” Each summer this program is open to young people living with and without disabilities in Ottawa County.
It takes a whole community to do such good work and Ottawa County is full of wonderful people and organizations. We would like to send a special “thank you” to the following organizations and individuals, for their very generous financial contribution:
| Arby’s – Port Clinton Benner Family Buckeye Dentistry – Port Clinton –(Dr. Greunke and Diana Wahl) Crane Creek – Oak Harbor Elmore Kiwanis Club Island Adventures Kroger – Port Clinton Lakeside Association Magruder Hospital OCTA Ohio State University Extension Services –(Marcia Jess) Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department Ottawa County United Way |
Our Guest Inn – Port Clinton Owen’s Community College Pizza House – Port Clinton Port Clinton Fire Department Port Clinton Kiwanis Club Jack Rasar – Laundry Presentation Dennis Russo – Self Defense Saint John’s Lutheran Church – Oak Harbor Schedel’s – Elmore TDH Walmart – Port Clinton Wendy’s – Port Clinton Dan Wilkins – The nth Degree Woodforest Bank- Port Clinton |
You can find other photos from the event on Facebook.
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