Florida Independent Living Council 1018 Thomasville Rd., suite 100A Tallahassee, FL 32303-6271 Toll Free (877) 822-1993 (850) 488-5624 V/TDD (850) 488-5881 Fax Volume 1, Issue 3 March 2006 Academy Award nominated documentary “Murderball” An interview with Bob Lujano Individuals from all over the United States recently had the pleasure to hear an inspiring speaker at the 2006 SILC Congress hosted by the Florida Independent Living Council in Orlando, Florida. Bob Lujano is an inspiring athlete who appears in Murderball, a documentary about Quad Rugby, a fast-paced full-contact wheelchair sport played indoors on a modified basketball court. Mr. Lujano has a B.A. in Pre-Law and a M.S. in Sports Management and is the Coordinator of Athletics at the Lakeshore Foundation, an official US Olympic and Paralympic Training Site. He is also a quadruple amputee. In 1979, Mr. Lujano lost his limbs below the elbow and above the knee due to a rare blood disease called Meningococcemia, a rare form of meningitis. In Bob’s 10 years of playing Quad Rugby he has won: 1 Bronze medal (2004 Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece), 1 Gold Medal (1999 World Wheelchair Games in Christchurch, New Zealand), 1 Silver Medal (World Championships of Rugby in Gotenburg, Sweden), 5 US Quad Rugby National Championships with the Lakeshore Demolition of Birmingham, Alabama, and 3 medals playing Rugby for Team USA. Murderball tells the story of a group of world-class athletes unlike any ever shown on screen. It crushes every stereotype about individuals with disabilities as it touches on the real lives of the players and their families. Wheelchair Rugby is played in over 19 countries and is a Paralympic sport. The Paralympics are the second largest sporting event in the world following the Olympics, taking place 2 weeks after the Olympics in the same venue of the city that has hosted the games. The Florida Independent Living Council is proud to provide this incredible documentary to each Florida House Representative and Senator to promote awareness and education supporting full inclusion of individuals with disabilities into each and every community within Florida. We hope that this inspiring video will promote responsible policy decisions by our Legislators that promote the best interests of all Florida citizens….including those with disabilities. -Contributed by Rose Lee Archer A Call for Responsible Legislation What can the Governor and Legislature do to promote financial responsibility while developing a balanced budget and sound policies supporting medical care and services to Floridians living with disabilities? Avoid caps or fixed allotments of Medicaid dollars for catastrophic health care needs; Support the development of managed care that makes provisions for long-term assistive, rehabilitative, and service needs that meet the needs of individuals with disabilities including further exploration of “carve out” and “money follows the person” programs; Include provisions for individuals with disabilities to “buy in” to Medicaid so they may obtain/regain employment and contribute to the public’s tax base without losing the medical services needed to maintain independence in the community; Provide for active participation of individuals with disabilities and advocates in developing programs that impact the scope, frequency, and duration of services and the evaluation of the Medicaid transformation pilot; Assess the fiscal impact to local communities for loss of providers and services that would cease to exist with elimination of a fee for service structure. What else can the Legislature do to help individuals with disabilities? As requested by the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, approve 1.5 million dollars in general revenue to increase service capacity for Centers for Independent Living; Support legislation for emergency shelters that meets the medical and support needs of individuals with significant disabilities; Support legislation promoting affordable housing for individuals with extremely low incomes; Support legislation that promotes employment opportunities for individuals with significant disabilities. Independent Living In Action SportsAbility dates set for April 21-22, 2006! SportsAbility is the premier event of the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association (FDOA). This two day event is about enhancing the lives of people with disabilities by promoting active living. SportsAbility provides first hand access to resources and demonstrations of activities designed to encourage participation regardless of age or ability level. For more information regarding SPORTSABILITY, please contact the Florida Disabled Outdoors Association (FDOA), David Jones (850) 668-7323, info@fdoa.org. See page 2 for scheduled events. DAY ONE (April 21 - 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM) - INDOORS DAY at Tallahassee Community College Lifetime Sports Complex RESOURCE EXPO AND INDOOR ACTIVITIES such as…. Expo – Information booths on the latest in products, active leisure programs, and disability services; Wheelchair and Adaptive Golf; Tennis; Basketball; Goal Ball; Laser Target Shooting; Interactive Fishing Simulator; Disc Golf; Therapeutic Recreation Activities DAY TWO (April 22 - 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM) - OUTDOORS DAY – Florida State University Seminole Reservation OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES such as….Pontoon Boat Rides; Sit-down Water Skiing; Sailing; Canoeing and Kayaking; Jet Skiing; Fishing; Hand-Pedaled Biking; Archery; Target Shooting; ATV Trail Rides; Golf Clinics; Horseback Riding Florida Independent Living Council is proud to support and participate in this event. Stop by and see us! April Calendar April 4, 2006, 2:00 p.m. Personnel Committee Teleconference April 5, 2006 Planning Committee, 2:00 p.m. Evaluation Committee, 3:00 p.m. Teleconferences April 7, 2006, 1:30 p.m. Executive Committee Teleconference April 12, 2006, 10:45 a.m. Finance Committee Teleconference Tallahassee, FL April 20, 2006, 2:00 p.m. Advocacy Committee Teleconference April 25, 2006, 2:00 p.m. Nominating Committee Teleconference April 28, 2006, 2:00 p.m. Consumer Survey Teleconference Activities initiated/hosted by the Florida Independent Living Council are open to the public. For information about these or any other FILC events please contact the FILC office @ (850)488-5624. FILC 2006 Board of Directors Officers Chip Wilson President Don Dawkins 1st Vice President Peter Sachs, Esq. 2nd Vice President Wendy Herzman Treasurer Kristi Chapman Secretary Elizabeth Howe Network of Centers Board Members Rose Lee Archer William Gordon Doug Hall Darlene Maynard Carol Novak Jeff Oatley, Ph.D. Roberta Van Sickle Nancy Wilbur FILC Staff Molly Gosline Executive Director Debbie Richards Advocacy Coordinator Jenny Bopp Office/Fiscal Manager Please submit information you would like to contribute to this publication to Debbie Richards at dlr@polaris.net. Please feel free to distribute this letter to any other persons/organizations that may be interested. It is the mission of the Florida Independent Living Council to assist and advocate for people with disabilities in achieving equal opportunities. Our vision is to foster change via leadership, collaboration and visibility. Florida Centers fo Independent Living Suncoast Center for Independent Living serving Sarasota and Manatee Counties, (941) 351-9545 Coalition for Independent Living Options serving Okeechobee, St. Lucie, Martin, and Palm Beach Counties (561) 966-4288 Center for Independent Living of Broward serving Broward County, (954) 722-6400 Disability Resource Center serving Holmes, Jackson, Washington, Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Liberty, and Franklin Counties ((850) 769-6890 Center for Independent Living of the Florida Keys serving the Florida Keys, (305) 453-3491 Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida serving Hamilton, Suwanee, Columbia, Lafayette, Dixie, Gilchrist, Union, Bradford, Alachua, Levy, Marion, Putnam, Citrus, Sumter, and Hernando Counties, (352) 378-7474 Self Reliance Inc. serving Hillsborough County, (813) 375-3965 Center for Independent Living of South Florida serving Dade County, (305) 751-8025 Independent Living Resource Center of Northeast Florida serving Baker, Nassau, Duval, Clay, and St. Johns Counties, (904) 399-8484 Center for Independent Living of Southwest Florida serving Charlotte, Glades, Lee, Hendry, and Collier Counties, (239) 277-1447 Center for Independent Living of Northwest Florida serving Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, and Walton Counties, (850) 595-5566 Caring and Sharing Center for Independent Living serving Pasco and Pinellas Counties, (727) 577-0065 Ability 1st serving Gadsden, Leon, Wakulla, Jefferson, Madison, and Taylor Counties, (850) 575-9621 Victory Lane Center for Independent Living serving Flagler and Volusia Counties, (386) 671-1960 Space Coast Center for Independent Living serving Brevard and Indian River Counties, (321) 784-9008 Center for Independent Living of Central Florida serving Polk, Hardee, DeSoto, Highlands, Lake, Seminole, Orange, and Osceola Counties (407) 623-1070 Please feel free to distribute this letter to any other persons/organizations that may be interested. It is the mission of the Florida Independent Living Council to assist and advocate for people with disabilities in achieving equal opportunities. Our vision is to foster change via leadership, collaboration and visibility.