Dela, on her wheelchair, taking a walk through Chinatown with a friend
In This Issue
Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness
Tools for Self Advocacy
Toolkit for Returning Veterans
Survey for PWD
Attn Bay Area Wheelchair Users!
Summer Camps for Children with Disabilities
Help ILRCSF provide Community Access Tickets to PWD
ILRCSF Benefits Workshop Schedule
Quick Links
  
DELA

The Advocacy Newsletter of ILRCSF

 

Due to circumstances beyond our control, our scheduled profile is not ready for this month's newsletter. Rather than delay distribution, we've decided to go to "print" without it. There are a few items in this month's newsletter which are time-sensitive, and which are too important not to share.

 

This issue includes information about  Borderline Personality Awareness, Disability Rights North Carolina's toolkit for self advocacy, summer camp options for children with special needs, and a new advance taxi reservation service for Bay Area wheelchair users.

 

DELA will be back with a full feature article in June. ILRCSF welcomes your feedback, and sends thanks to all the readers who commented on last month's feature.

 

 

NOTE: ILRCSF will be closed on May 25th, as staff participate in California Disability Capital Action Day. If you're in Sacramento for this event, please join us on this great day of disability advocacy.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Borderline Pesonality Disorder Awareness

 

May is Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness Month. Here are some interesting links about this psych disability - what it is, what resources are available for people living with it (and for their loved ones) :

  
  
The Psych Files : An article about BPD, and a list of valuable links
  
  
  
 

Tools for Self Advocacy

 

Diane Rovai's career at ILRCSF started with the desire to advocate for her right to a reasonable accommodation when renewing her driver's license. She knew what she wanted, and did what she had to do to find the information she needed to make it happen.

 

The Independent Living Philosophy states that people with disabilities are the best, most informed experts on their own needs. Advocating for one's self makes sense, and it's empowering. But how and where to start?

 

Disability Rights North Carolina has compiled Resources for Self Advocacy - a very useful toolkit for people with disabilities who have questions about their rights and legal entitlements regarding ADA issues, benefits, community services, or employment. It's a good place to start.

 

http://www.disabilityrightsnc.org/pages/161/self-advocacy-resources/ 

 

 

Valuable Resource for Returning Veterans

Service members transitioning to civilian life can now receive online career counseling and training through a new service recently launched by the Department of Defense. 

DoD's
Career Decision Toolkit was developed by the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy to assist service members who are wounded, separating, demobilizing, or retiring as they seek jobs or educational opportunities.

The Toolkit includes an array of assessment tools and information regarding career paths, financial planning, job search skills, and other subjects of interest to service members transitioning to civilian life.

For more information on the online Career Decision Toolkit, visit
http://www.turbotap.org or contact the Office of Wounded Warrior Care and Transition Policy at 703-428-7649 or [email protected].

 

People with Disabilities: Your Opinions are Needed!

Please take 5 minutes to fill out this brief survey. A team of researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a short "snapshot" survey of people with disabilities to ask them about their identities and their experiences.

Go to: http://tinyurl.com/RottensteinLab

Your input will help us to better understand how people with disabilities view their lives and the society in which they live. Together, these surveys may lead to positive change for people with disabilities in a number of different ways. We appreciate you taking the time to participate in this important research effort, and please feel free to pass along this information to anyone you think may be interested!

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns at [email protected]

You can also learn more about who we are and this project at the following website: http://www.psychologyofdisability.org

 

Attn Bay Area Wheelchair Users!

Luxor Cab is offering a new pilot program for wheelchair users to make advance ramp taxi reservations one week ahead of time. 

 

Customers can call (415) 401-1414 on Saturdays between 8:00 am and 1:00 pm and prearrange their trips for the coming week.  

 

 

   

 

Summer Camps for Children with Disabilities

Summer is fast approaching, and parents are scurrying to make summer plans for their children. The National Dissemination Center for Children With Disabilities has compiled a comprehansinve list of links to camps for children with disabilities/special needs. There's even a link to camp opportunities for adults. 

 

Check it out at  http://nichcy.org/publications/camps  

 

Psychiatric Service Animals: 

Current Law, Experiences and Visions of Hope

 

Topics include: Therapeutic benefits and legal protections for people with psychiatric service animals in employment settings, public accommodations and housing.

 

Audience: The general public, people with disabilities, their families and friends, veterans, the legal community, and mental health, vocational rehabilitation, and social service providers.

 

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011, 9:00 am - 12:00 noon 

 

Golden Gate University School of Law

Conference Room Room 2203 (2nd floor)

536 Mission Street (between 2nd & 1st Street)

San Francisco CA 94105-2968

 

FREE ADMISSION (tax-deductible donations are appreciated) 

 

RSVP: http://seminar10.eventbrite.com OR Daniel Michael  [email protected] 

Contact Amanda Maystead at (415) 931-3070 for additional info or any accommodations needed

 

Panel and Q&A moderated by People With Disabilities Foundation

 

 

2.75 Credit Hours from the State Bar of California (MCLEs) and the Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (pending approval). Course/Seminar meets the qualifications for 2.75 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (Provider PCE 3221) 

 

Help ILRCSF provide Community Access Tickets to our consumers

Community Access Ticket Service (CATS) provides cultural, recreational and educational experiences to tens of thousands of people though partnership with hundreds of social-service organizations.  These types of experiences represent positive socialization and community integration opportunities that are otherwise unavailable.  CATS has successfully provided these experiences to over 300,000 people since 2004.

ILRCSF is trying to raise $375 to purchase a one-year membership to CATS, which would enable us to provide free tickets to museums, plays and other cultural events to consumers. To help us make the CATS program a part of what ILRCSF has to offer people with disabilities, please specify on the note section your donation check, "CATS."

Donations may be sent to:

ILRCSF

649 Mission Street, Floor 3

San Francisco, CA 9410

ILRCSF Benefits Workshop Schedule

 

ILRCSF offers two different workshops on benefits:

 

1. Basic Benefits Overview

2. How Employment Affects your Benefits - for those on SSDI &/or SSI

 

All workshops are on Thursdays at 9:30am. However, only one topic - basic benefits or employment -- is covered each Thursday.   Please attend the workshop that best suits you. For example, if you need information about applying for SSDI, SSI, Medi-Cal or other benefits, come to the Basic Benefits Overview workshop.  If, on the other hand, you already receive SSDI or SSI and are considering going to work, come to the workshop entitled How Employment Affects Your Benefits. At this Employment Workshop you will learn how to use work incentives to keep some of your benefits as you transition into a job, as well as how to use the PASS program, and Ticket to Work. To hear the schedule of upcoming workshops, call 415-543-6222 ext. 155.

 

Upcoming workshops:

 

May

 

May 19           

How Work Affects Your Benefits - for those on SSI &/or SSDI

May 26           

Basic Benefits Overview

 

June

 

June 2           

How Work Affects Your Benefits - for those on SSI &/or SSDI

June 9           

Basic Benefits Overview

June 16          

How Work Affects Your Benefits - for those on SSI &/or SSDI

June 23          

Basic Benefits Overview

 

NOTE: ILRCSF is wheelchair accessible and provides reasonable accommodations upon request. In order to be fully accessible to all people with disabilities, ours is a scent-free office.

 

When visiting ILRCSF, please do not wear any scented products, including perfumes, aftershave, hairspray, etc.

  
The Independent Living Resource Center San Francisco is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit organization. Donations from the public support our mission to ensure that people with disabilties are full social and economic partners both within their families and within a fully accessible community.
  
Tax deductable donations may be sent to:
  
ILRCSF
649 Mission Street, 3rd Floor,
San Francisco, CA 94105
  
  
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