Life and Independence for Today

A Lift in the Right Direction

Spring / Summer 2001 Issue

NTAG

By: Tom Wenner, Accessibility Counselor

The Pennsylvania Access Grant Program was developed by Governor Ridge's Disabilities Agenda Housing Work Group, part of PA's first government-wide program to identify and implement ways to make all parts of the community accessible to Pennsylvanians with disabilities.

The Northern Tier Access Grant program (NTAG) is a consortium of agencies and organizations in Cameron, Elk, McKean, and Potter Counties that funds home modifications to empower low- and moderate-income renters or homeowners (including families with children) with permanent disabilities to live independently. Funding for NTAG comes primarily from Pennsylvania's Departments of Community and Economic Development and Public Welfare.

Grants awarded through NTAG provide housing modifications such as ramps, wider doors, accessible bathrooms and visual doorbells. These are a few possibilities that can vastly improve the quality of life for Pennsylvanians who have permanent disabilities. For some, a simple home modification may be all that's needed to avert a move into an assisted living or residential care facility.

Homeowners and renters that have a household member with a disability and household income at or below 80 percent of the median in their county are eligible to receive NTAG funds. The income guidelines vary from year to year. LIFT is the primary contact for NTAG.

From the Editor

As usual, the LIFT Staff and Board of Directors have been very busy working on outreach events and fundraisers in our six county service area. We would like to take this opportunity to share with our readers all the exciting events that have taken place over the spring and summer months.

Not that summer is over just yet!

History of PABAM!

By: Bob Mecca, Executive Director

Pennsylvania Barrier Awareness Month, otherwise known as PABAM! began a few years ago when Governor Tom Ridge declared a day in May as Barrier Awareness Day. Then, at the request last year of Jack Neale, the former Advocacy Specialist of LIFT, Governor Ridge declared a week in May as Barrier Awareness Week. Finally this year Kelly Valdez, LIFT's new Advocacy Specialist asked that the entire month of May be declared Barrier Awareness Month. In February, she received a Proclamation in the mail from Governor Ridge declaring just that.

LIFT used this opportunity to educate the general public on the barriers that people with disabilities face every day. We accomplished this in the past by setting up activities where business owners, politicians, members of the local media, and other prominent members of various communities throughout LIFT's service area would simulate various disabilities while doing some predetermined activities. This allowed people who have the power to make or influence decisions to see, if just for a few hours, some of the barriers that need to be removed from our communities to give people with disabilities the same opportunity to follow their dreams.

Throughout this newsletter you will find thoughts and articles on some of the activities LIFT Staff and Board did to make this year's PABAM! a huge success!

Matt Cartwright Wheelchair Basketball Fundraiser

The Allegheny Mountain Rollin' Thunder Wheelchair Basketball Team was at it again in May playing against some very competitive athletes in a fundraiser for LIFT and Matt's Camp Fund in Ridgway.

Merri Burkhouse, Independent Living Coordinator of LIFT, as well as Mary Lou & Alan Cartwright organized this fantastic fundraiser which was held at the Ridgway High School. There were over 250 spectators present to watch the Thunder roll! The "Quincy Crushers" gave AMRT a run for their money using 3-point shots; only losing by a few points. The "Athletic Personnel" also did very well, learning that playing wheelchair basketball looks much easier than it really is.

All in all, everyone had a great time and all proceeds were split between LIFT and Matt's Camp Fund. We are looking forward to this fundraiser again next year.

WALK N" ROLL

By: Kelly Valdez, Advocacy Specialist

On Saturday, May 12th, I woke to the sound of rain at 6 a.m. I usually enjoy this kind of thing, but on this particular morning, it struck terror in me - this was Walk N' Roll Saturday! It could not be raining!!

But it was. When I arrived at CARPark in Coudersport two hours later, it was still raining. With nearly 150 fliers posted on every vertical surface within a 50+mile radius, canceling the event was not an option. We set up in the rain, hoping for the best, though everyone's spirits were as soggy as our surroundings. By the time we were ready for business, the rain had slowed to a light mist, and we allowed ourselves to hope for the best.

Slowly, people started to arrive, and by 10:00 a.m. Board Vice-President, Linda Sears announced that we were ready to Walk N' Roll! Roughly two-dozen hearty souls had braved the weather, coming out to support us. Most brought pledge sheets and donations they had collected, some just came to socialize and see what LIFT is all about.

We had walkers, rollers (with both manual and power chairs), and one hot rod with a three-wheeled bike (more about her later). One by one, they made their way around the ¼ mile track as the sky threatened to dump on us again.

Art Hibbard kept us all moving with The King's 50's & 60's Rock 'n' Roll Road Show, and his own vocal tributes to the King. Yogi the Clown delighted the children and adults alike with his balloon animals and hats, greeting each participant as they passed him.

Volunteers from surrounding communities came out to make sure that our 1st Annual Walk N' Roll was a success.

The Sweden Valley Strollers, a local Relay for Life team, were busy at the concession stand providing lunch and homebaked goodies; Leon Kaple, from the Office of Human Services in Roulette, was on hand with the Mobile Family Center; Tina Main of Port Allegany donated the procedes from candles she sold during the event to LIFT; Mr. Dave Costano of Coudersport donated his time to help us with setup and came to the rescue with film when we needed it; and the Coudersport ambulance crew were on hand to deal with any medical emergencies. The event was a true community effort!

Time flew by, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves: resting when they felt the need, rounding the track when the spirit moved them. There was even a little bit of friendly competition in the air, with Bob Mecca, LIFT's Executive Director, often eating the dust of 13-year-old Jenni Lawton and her three-wheeled bike! Bob kept up as best he could, completing 40 laps, but Jenni was not to be bested! By 1 p.m. the track was empty except for Jenni on her bike. It seems that she had set a goal for herself to complete 50 laps, and nothing was going to stop her! When Jenni received her 49th lap sticker, Bob rejoined her for the last lap in a show of support. I don't think that anyone present will ever forget the smile on Jenni's face when she crossed the starting line for the 50th time!

It was then time to award the medals for monies raised and number of laps. The winners were as follows:

After the medals were awarded, Jenni took off for one last lap, and the rest of us began to pack up. Even though the weather undoubtedly kept many people at home, Walk N' Roll had turned out to be a big success: donations totaled $1,981, people were connecting, and there were no injuries to spoil anyone's fun! Maybe it should rain for all fundraisers!

RATs In Review

By: Kelly Valdez, Advocacy Specialist

As I previously reported, I am now a member of the Statewide Action Team (SWAT). I am a Community Organizer or SWATCO. Kind of catchy, huh? Now comes the tricky part - the former Consumer Advocacy Groups are now Regional Action Teams (RATs), or if anyone is terribly offended by this, I will refer to the groups as Community Action Teams (CATs). Anyway, this is what everyone has been up to:

BRADFORD RAT:

This group continues to work with the city Streets Department to improve curb cuts and sidewalks at a rate of 3-4 per month. Several group members participated in the Walk 'N Roll held this May in Coudersport, volunteering with set up and tear down.

BROOKVILLE RAT:

Members continue to do outreach and advocacy for the Pilot Program, and have identified several goals for the coming year. As always, we're looking for new members!

CAMERON COUNTY RAT:

The Cameron County folks have been advocating for the Pilot Program to go statewide, starting a petition to that effect. The group has also hosted several bowling outings with the money they raised at ArtFest 2000.

CLEARFIELD RAT:

The Clearfield group has put their plans for a fashion show on hold until spring, as they are concentrating their advocacy efforts on the Pilot Program's success. Several members of the group are using the program on a regular basis and have agreed to speak on the record with Bob Schmitt from the Transportation Alliance for a booklet he is doing about the program. Member Bonnie Maines successfully completed the ACES program at Temple University, and is becoming quite good with her Dynovox!

DUBOIS RAT:

This group continues to work with ATA for increased service between DuBois and Brockway, as well as advocating for the Pilot Program to go statewide. Efforts are still being made to start a "Snow Buddies" program with area church youth groups performing volunteer shoveling services for persons with disabilities who are unable to clear their own walks. The group has also been working with city council to have an audible traffic signal installed at the dangerous intersection of 219 and Long Avenue.

KANE AREA RAT:

The Kane group has been focusing on increasing membership and identifying issues on which they need to focus. One of the primary concerns is the need for the Pilot Program to go statewide, which will create more educational and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.

ELK COUNTY RAT:

This group is working on several local accessibility issues, but the primary focus is the Pilot Program and the advocacy efforts needed to ensure that the program goes statewide. Several new issues have been identified through Information & Referrals at the office, and the group will be working on them in the months to come.

POTTER COUNTY RAT:

Since the Walk 'N Roll, this group has really been cooking! With a core of six members, recruitment goes on, and issues are being identified for advocacy efforts. The entire group attended the recent PCIL Mini-Conference in Clarion to get the statewide perspective of the Pilot Program and the Ticket to Work /Work Incentives Improvement Act and the Medicaid Buy-In. They also had the opportunity to network with advocates from around the state.

PUNXSUTAWNEY RAT:

Once again, my efforts will be focused on building membership of this group through intensive outreach with county agencies, etc. Moving the meeting to the daytime should help meet this goal. More outreach in the Jefferson County area for the Pilot Program is also planned.

SMETHPORT RAT:

For one reason and another, this group has not met since the end of the school year, but will pick up where we left off in September with advocacy for better accessibility and for the Pilot Program to go statewide.

Full Circle Disability Simulation

LIFT conducted a disability awareness program for the students at Full Circle, a residential program in Jefferson County. As part of this PABAM! event, LIFT asked the students to simulate various disabilities, including blindness, deafness, amputation, and paraplegia. The students had to move around the house and yard with their mobility limited by the disability. They played volleyball while using wheelchairs or crutches, and watched as Bob Mecca explained how he drives his car with hand controls. LIFT staff also demonstrated other Assistive Technology devices that people with disabilities use to overcome some of these limitations. The final simulation illustrated schizophrenia to the young women.

The male students participated in the morning session and the female students in the afternoon. After each session, they discussed their experiences. LIFT's staff members were surprised at the depth and insight of the participants' comments; they showed a great sensitivity that seems unusual for that age group. Since many of the students had experienced hardship in their own lives, they were able to identify more closely with some of the struggles of people with disabilities.

Sixteen-year old student Chris Denny comments:

"I now have more respect for people with disabilities and understand a little better on how to treat people. I had an experience once with a person who is deaf. No one associated with this student - everyone was afraid of him. So one day, my friends and I stayed after school and attended classes with the students. My friends and I learned sign language and are now able to speak fluently with a person who is deaf."

What a great simulation this was!

Guiding Eyes for the Blind Training

By: Kelly Valdez, Advocacy Specialist

Have you ever seen a person with a "guide dog" or heard someone refer to a "service animal"? Ever wonder what kind of training it takes for a dog to become a service animal? Well, the staff here at LIFT had the same questions, so when Nancy Tilstone from Guiding Eyes for the Blind offered to do a training for us, we jumped at the chance!

Guiding Eyes for The Blind (GEB) is a non-profit organization located in Yorktown Heights, NY which operates on private donations from individuals, corporations, and bequests. GEB does not provide training for family pets or donated dogs. To assure that the resulting service animal is of the highest quality and has the proper personality, GEB has their own very selective breeding program of Labrador Retrievers (black, yellow, and chocolate), Golden Retrievers, and German Shepherds.

To ensure these puppies receive enough love and attention, they spend the first 14 - 18 months of life in the homes of volunteer "puppy raisers". It takes someone very special to put this kind of time and effort into an animal and then give it up, and the Guiding Eyes would not be able to operate without these "angels". There is a rigorous screening process to become a puppy raiser, including pre-placement home visits. Once puppies are placed, they are careful monitored. There is a lot of training that the puppy raisers are responsible for, including basic obedience, socialization, and travel training. Puppies are periodically tested for progress, and when they are deemed ready, they are returned to the school to be matched with a student.

To qualify, students must be legally blind, 16 or older, and pass a pre-placement home visit similar to that of the puppy raisers. The school takes much care in matching the guide dogs and students, considering such matters as the walking pace of the individual, where the individual lives (city or country setting), and lifestyle. These and many other factors go into making the perfect student/guide dog match.

Once the match has been made, the student and guide dog train together at the school for 26 days. This training includes, again, obedience, socialization, and travel training. The travel training begins on site, and progresses to more difficult situations in the community.

At the end of the 26 days, there is a graduation ceremony to which family and friends of the students and the original puppy raiser are invited. Tours of the school are available at this time, and there are always new puppies ready for the puppy raisers to take with them if they choose, starting the whole process over again.

The average working life of a guide dog is around seven years, at which time the students may retire the animal and get a new one. Original puppy raisers are offered the chance to adopt the animal at that time.

There is no charge to students for the dogs, the on-site training, or the school's follow up services; though these animals are each worth in excess of $25,000. Since the school was founded in 1954, Guiding Eyes have graduated more than 5,000 guide dog teams, providing greater independence and new opportunities to persons with visual disabilities.

If you want more information or would like to make a donation to this wonderful organization, you can visit them on the web at www.guiding-eyes.org.

Finalizing PABAM Events!

Essay Contest Winners & Senator Scarnari

The LIFT staff mailed all the schools in our six county service area informational packets on an essay contest. The contest was designed as an opportunity for students to step outside of themselves for a short while and think of barriers in their community, how they affect someone with a disability, and what they could do to remove them. The students did a great job! With very special thanks to Mrs. Cindy Aiello and her Creative Writing Class from the Ridgway High School, for judging the contest - ten students and one honorable mention were chosen and given prizes. All prizes for this contest were donated to LIFT by the community.

First prize winner received a $100 savings bond from Northwest Savings Bank, St. Marys, 2nd prize winner - a $50 savings bond from Citizen's Trust Company, Coudersport, and 3rd prize winner - a $50 savings bond from First National Bank, Port Allegany.

Senator Scarnati also gave out wonderful certificates to all winners as well as Mrs. Aiello's class for all their help. We strongly encourage students to participate in next year's essay contest. If you would like more information on how to participate in this event, please contact Kelly Valdez at 800.341.LIFT.

All PABAM! events went very well this year and we are looking forward to and establishing events even as you are reading this article! Give us a call at LIFT if you have suggestions, comments, etc. regarding PABAM!

WELCOME!

Bonnie Maines is the newest Board of Director and will be a valued asset to LIFT. In our next newsletter, we will be publishing a story that Bonnie wrote so look forward to that.

Dawn Park is LIFT's new Information & Referral Specialist. She is responsible for researching all information & referral's that relate to assistive technology and will also provide outreach to agencies, organizations and individuals in our service area. Dawn is a 1997 graduate of the Pennsylvania State University with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies. She is pleased to be part of the LIFT staff and looks forward to serving individuals to help reach their individual goals.

Traci C. Meraglia is LIFT's newest Independent Living Coordinator. She will be responsible for providing services to people with disabilities in nursing homes in LIFT's six county service area.

Opinions expressed in this publication may not be the views of LIFT.

Return to LIFT Home Page | Return to Newsletter