The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) is collaborating with other disability and aging organizations on a national call-in day, Wednesday, May 13, to ensure that long-term services and supports are included in health care reform.

In coming weeks, the Senate will finalize legislation to reform America’s health care system.  Long-term services and supports are essential to individuals with disabilities and seniors, but there are many barriers that keep this population from accessing them.  It is essential that these barriers are addressed within the upcoming health care reform legislation.  Proposals exist to help address these issues,  however, they will only be included within health care reform legislation if Congress hears from those who are affected.

AUCD is asking for those across the nation to call their Senators and tell them how important it is to include long-term services and supports.  For more information about this important issue and for call-in information, please go to http://www.aucd.org/

Members of the Utah Conservation Corps' Access to Service Inclusion Crew laid the foundation last summer for raised accessible beds in the community garden.

This Saturday, people will come together and turn a good idea into a working reality.

On May 16 from 8 a.m. to noon,  community members are invited to come to the Cache County Community Garden work day and grand opening, get their hands dirty and put some finishing touches on a place where people can help plants grow.

The garden is located at 725 S. 50 East in Hyde Park. Lunch will be served immediately following the work session; a main dish will be provided and participants are invited to bring a side dish or dessert.

If the weather’s bad, the work day will be rescheduled to May 30.

Plots at the community garden are available at a low cost to people who wish to garden but who may not have the space. The  location is served by the Cache Valley Transit District, and garden tools are available.

Of special interest to the Center for Persons with Disabilities are the garden’s raised, accessible beds where people of all abilities can coax some life out of the soil. The CPD’s Assistive Technology lab has donated labor and expertise to the project.

Many other organizations and individuals have contributed to the community garden,  including St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, USU Extension, The Utah Conservation Corps, Keller-Bliesner Irrigation and Cache County Master Gardeners.

The CPD Consumer Advisory Council (CAC) is seeking new self-advocates to add to their current membership.  The CAC is composed of individuals with disabilities, family members, state agency representatives, and staff liaisons who advise the CPD director about the Center’s impact on systems change, advocacy, and capacity building. The CAC approves the CPD’s annual goals and regularly reviews progress towards their accomplishment.  We are especially in need of self-advocates from the Moab and Delta areas of the state.

Dr. Bryce Fifield, CPD Director, has this to say about the Consumer Advisory Council:  “For over 35 years, the Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State University has touched the lives of thousands of people with disabilities and their families.  Our services and programs have helped people receive state of the art services in every county of Utah.  The Center has played a major role in the development of policies, guidelines, program regulations, and laws that affect people with disabilities…. We need your help!  The input and perspective of people with disabilities is critical to our success.  We cannot be effective without your help in setting priorities.  Participating on the CPD’s Consumer Advisory Council helps us and it helps you.  You will meet new people, work with fellow advocates, and help us make a difference in every Utah community.”

Anyone interested in finding out more about becoming a member of  the CAC committee or who knows someone who would be interested, can contact Gordon Richins,  CPD Consumer Liason, at (435) 797-2832.

Gordon Richins beside the box he invented with AT Lab Coordinator Stan Clelland.

Nobody should be afraid to fly. Still, for many people with specialized mobility devices, the fear of flying is real, and it may have nothing to do with hurtling through the air. It is more about what is happening to the motorized chair in the baggage hold.

So two inventors from the Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State  set out to find a better way for a motorized chair to fly. Their solution: a big box and a patent application.  whole story

"Needles and Friends" quilters show off their work before donating it to BRASC.

On April 21, 2009, President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, a call for an expansion of opportunities for all Americans to serve their communities and our country. With the signing of the National Service Act, a website was also launched, http://www.serve.gov/, as a place for Americans to find ways to serve in their own communities.  On the website, this quote from President Obama is found:  “We need your service, right now, at this moment in history.  I’m not going to tell you what your role should be; that’s for you to discover.  But, I am asking you to stand up and play your part.  I am asking you to help change history’s course.”  (President Obama, 4/21/2009)

Volunteers who are willing to share their time and talents don’t have to look far to find wonderful opportunities to serve. Right here at the CPD we have a variety of opportunities that people can sign up to work on. To date we have had 14 individuals and 2 local groups contact the CPD regarding volunteer opportunities and do at least a one-time project. Volunteers have done everything from making quilts for the Bear River Activities and Skill Center (BRASC) participants to translating Emergency Preparedness handouts into Spanish. Some volunteers are involved directly with individuals and others volunteer from their homes doing editing, sewing, etc. Some volunteer opportunities are a one-time project and others are ongoing. We have one volunteer who has come into the CPD on a regular basis for the past several years to volunteer her time and has become part of the CPD family. Volunteering is a great way to make our community a better place.

Currently there are 7 volunteer opportunities available at the CPD. If you would like to volunteer for a task that is not on the list or if you have some more questions about volunteering at the CPD, please contact CPD Volunteer Coordinator, Jeff Sheen, at (435) 797-8133.