Listen: On Day 39 of 50, we hear from Independence First, an organization with a vision for full inclusion of people with disabilities in every aspect of our community. They work to empower individuals with disabilities through education, advocacy, independent living service, and coalition building.
Independence First is one of those organizations I’ve heard about over and over again, but hadn’t directly worked with – that changes today! Carol Pritzlaff Voss, PR and Marketing Director for Independence First brings us inside their work:
-Independence First was born from the civil rights movement for people with disabilities in the 1970s and culled from this idea, amongst others, "nothing about us without us." Carol elaborates upon how they take this as a central tenet in their work:
-While words like poverty, need, and at-risk are frequently used, especially in a campaign like Meet The Need, it can be useful to pause for a moment and consider what we mean when using these words. Carol discusses the term "disability:"
-Carol shares the story of a man who suffered a spinal cord injury and what they were able to provide him at Independence First:
-As we've seen throughout the campaign, oftentimes community and peer support is an important catalyst in an individual's success:
-Independence First has a number of volunteer opportunities you can involved in, from technology to athletics to good old fashion snow removal:
This year, we ask you to adopt one or two organizations that connect with you. Want to get involved with Independence First? Donate, volunteer, or check out their work yourself. And you can start with their website.