Entries from Advocates' Art Exhibit, held each year in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. | |
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Upcoming Events
Please join us for an ongoing forum entitled "Embracing the Journey through Spirituality and Mental Health" on September 24th.
Now accepting grant applications for The Fred Gaspari Fund for Families! Providing small grants to families caring for loved ones with developmental disabilities. |
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Thank you to all who made Jack Gives Back Charity Golf Scramble a success
Thank you to Eric Brickley, his family, all the golfers and the sponsors who made the Jack Gives Back Charity Golf Scramble a success! Thanks to Eric's hard work and vision, the tournament exceeded its fundraising goal and will help even more families through the Autism Alliance of MetroWest and the Gaspari Fund for Families, both programs of Advocates.
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Click picture for more Jack Gives Back photos.
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Thank you to our sponsors: Brickley & Winters Family, Telamon, Domitek, Advocates, Inc., McCoy Global Management LTD, Eric, Gretchen & Will McCoy, Goddard Insurance, Hudson Trophy Company, Parsons Commercial Group, Verizon, Myra O'Dette, LoJack, WMRC, Seaboard International Forest Products, RPJ, Applied Behavioral Associates, LLC , Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group, "Dr. Mel"- Melvin A Ehrlich, D.D.S., P.C., The Friendship Network for Children, Golfers Warehouse, Kayser Performance Golf Academy, MetroWest Engineering, Inc., Spectrum-ATC, Stretch What Matters, Virtual Towns and Schools, Ken Bates, Leslie Bois, Vincent, Antonietta & Sophia Caputo, Chris Hubbard and Chris Sanders.
Small grants now available for area families caring for loved ones with disabilities!
Thanks to the generosity and dedication of the Brickley Family, the Advocates Family Alliance is pleased to offer a second grant cycle in 2011 and to expand the geographic scope of the program.
The Fred Gaspari Fund for Families, a program of the Advocates Family Alliance, provides small grants to MetroWest area families caring for loved ones with developmental disabilities, including autism. The family member must either live at home with the family or live independently in the community.
Apply Now!
Download the application
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The time is now for essential direct service workers to earn adequate wages.
You can help!
More than 31,000 Massachusetts direct care employees make less (often significantly less) than $40,000 and have not received a salary increase in three years. In many cases this income makes every day needs extremely difficult for individuals and families to meet. Without anyone caring for our social services employees, how are they supposed to provide care for our friends, family and most vulnerable citizens?
Currently the state is deciding how to spend the Massachusetts surplus. Now is the perfect opportunity to urge your legislators to protect direct care professionals and raise their yearly salaries.
Over the last weeks, direct care workers from across the state have been sending their stories to our legislators. Here's what some of them had to say:
"I just barely made it to work tonight and have to wait till tomorrow for my direct deposit to go through so I can get gas to go home. This was a spaghetti week for us but at least we have food. The cost of everything is going up and my pay is the same."
"I'm at a point where I need to choose which prescriptions I can fill and decide what takes priority- 'ear infection or bronchitis?' A month ago, my EKG showed an arrhythmia and prolonged QTC interval. I begged not to be taken to the ER. I couldn't afford it."
"I work more than 50 hours a week, and it's not enough."
Please, share your story with your legislators about why you need direct care workers to receive fair or adequate compensation.
There are a variety of ways you can contact your legislator. Do one or all three, but do it today!
You can search for your state legislators at www.wheredoivotema.com, and complete one, two or all of the following:
- Call your legislator and speak to an aide describing how social services workers have had an impact on you and your family and why it is essential to raise their salary.
- Email your legislators briefly describing how social services workers have had an impact on you and your family and why it is essential to raise their salary.
- Write a hand written letter to your legislators briefly describing how social services workers have had an impact on you and your family and why it is essential to raise their salary.
Thank you for all that you do.
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September is National Recovery Month
This month individuals across the country are celebrating recovery. National Recovery Month raises awareness of the ideas that treatment is effective and people can and do recover from addiction and mental illness.
In recognition of Recovery Month, Advocates, together with NAMI-MetroWest is presenting "Embracing the Journey through Spirituality and Mental Health" on September 24. Visit www.advocatesinc.org for more information and to find out how other communities are celebrating recovery.
How will you celebrate recovery this month?
Learn about events celebrating recovery in your area.
Check out these helpful recovery resources:
Advocates recovery resources - a selection of resources Advocates has compiled over the years
SAMHSA's Recovery Month Page - a great resource and calendar for regional and national recovery events
MOAR (Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery) |
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Advocates' mission is to help people achieve their hopes and dreams within the fabric of their communities. We partner with people with disabilities, elders, and those with other challenges to overcome personal obstacles and societal barriers so that they can obtain and keep homes, engage in work and other meaningful activities, and sustain satisfying relationships. We work to inspire communities to create opportunities for contribution and participation by all.
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QUICK LINKS
Advocates, Inc.
Advocates South Coastal Family Support Center has a brand new website!
Check it out!
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Congratulations!
Liliana Mangiafico honored as a "Top Woman of Law"
Liliana Mangiafico, attorney and Program Director for Advocates Advocacy, Benefits and Legal Services (ABLS), will be honored at the 4th annual "Top Women of Law" for her outstanding accomplishments in the legal community. The event, presented by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, will take place on September 23rd at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston.
Advocates ABLS Program serves as a crucial safety net for community members at risk of homelessness. Liliana has helped thousands of individuals and families, like the Martinez family, to access the resources they need to obtain or remain in their own homes. "My house was in total disrepair when I went to Liliana,"Vilma Martinez said. "The landlord had totally disregarded our multiple requests for maintenance and we were afraid that if we complained we were going to be evicted. I felt desperate and very alone back then."
Read more about the Martinez family's story and how Liliana and ABLS helped them regain their legal rights in our 2010 Annual Report.
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