February 2008 FREE BOOK – How to Create a Trust by Laurette Yellevcpgv.vcn.bc.ca/uploads/4u/8P/4u8PmGMlesVhLI5XMAtAhg/Tone-Fe… · By Laurette Yelle In early 2005, TransLink started

Newsletter THE VOICE OF THE CEREBRAL PALSIED OF GREATER VANCOUVER Newsletter

February 2008FREE BOOK – How to Create a Trust

by Laurette Yelle

The Voice of the Cerebral Palsied of Greater Vancouver received a grant from theLaw Foundation of BC to update our popular resource guide, How to Create aTrust, a book for British Columbians receiving PWD Benefits (and their families).You can now order copies of it for yourself or – if you are a member of anorganization – for your clients.

If you are receiving PWD Benefits and you suddenly come into money (for example,through an inheritance or court settlement) you can lose your benefits – includingmedical coverage! To help avoid this situation, you can put that money into a trust.This book is the first step to finding out what a trust is and whether it is right for you.How to Create a Trust will help you be well-informed so if you decide to create atrust, you will be able to use your time with a lawyer more efficiently. (Families withchildren who have disabilities will also want to learn about trusts.)

There are two ways to pick up copies of the book:

(1) visit the Voice of the Cerebral Palsied of Greater Vancouver and pick up as manybooks as you need for free, Monday – Friday, 12:30-4:00pm, or,

(2) send a cheque for $4 per book (to cover our postage fees) and we’ll mail them toyou. Make cheques out to the VCP and send to: The Voice of the Cerebral Palsied ofGreater Vancouver, #103 – 577 East 8th Avenue, Vancouver, BC V5T 1S9.Remember to give us your full mailing address and indicate how many Trust booksyou’d like.

**PLEASE NOTE: How to Create a Trust is aimed at anyone receiving PWDBenefits, not just people with CP. We welcome orders both from individuals, and fromorganizations who wish to distribute copies to their staff, clients, and membership.


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HandyDART to UndergoMajor Changes

By Laurette Yelle

In early 2005, TransLink started the “AccessTransit Project” which was a major reviewof the entire transit system, including boththe public buses and handyDART, or “customtransit.” The goal of this review was to givepeople the broadest range of travel choicesby working toward a 100% accessibility inthe public transit system, and improving theway that custom transit is operated.

The results of this review are contained in adocument entitled, “Access Transit: YouSpoke, We Listened.”

The recommendations in this reportregarding handyDART are as follows:

1. Create an Access Transit Officewithin TransLink to make usingcustom transit simple and to overseethe implementation of therecommendations in this report. Itwill provide a single contact point forusers and manage eligibility,registration, bookings andinformation for handyDART. It willalso monitor system performance,review unresolved complaints,provide travel training for the entiretransit system, and standardize andintegrate service across the wholeregion.

For example, currently, each area within theregion has its own handyDART provider withits own hours of operation and eligibility

requirements. This situation can maketravelling across boundaries challenging.

A Users’ Advisory Committee will be struckto work with the Access Transit Office toensure that customer needs are consideredin the planning and delivery of services.

2. Increase the number of trips andservice hours to provide longer, moreconsistent hours of service and morenon-medical trips. In 2008,handyDART service will have 30more vehicles offering 60,000 morehours of service and 130,000 moretrips.

3. TransLink should work with theprovincial government to find waysto better manage demand for medicaland social service trips so there ismore service available for otherkinds of custom transit trips.

Because of a growing senior population,there is an increasing demand for medicalbookings, including on-going bookings fordialysis. People are finding it increasinglydifficult to book trips for social outingsbecause the spaces have been filled formedical trips which have priority over socialtrips.

4. Reduce the number of service areasfrom eight to three. Therecommended service areas are:South of the Fraser, Pitt Meadowsand Maple Ridge, and North Shore/Richmond/Burrard Peninsula (Westof Pitt River).


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The rational behind reducing the numberof service areas is to decrease theamount of money spent on administrationand lessen the need for riders to crossboundaries. It will also mean that therewill be a huge change in operators.

5. Give existing service providers andtheir employees the opportunity toform new entities to deliverservices within the new serviceareas starting January 2009. Tofacilitate this transition, existingcontracts should be extended toDecember 2008.

Current operators will have to decidewhether they want to bid on the expandedareas on their own, join with otheroperators to submit joint bids, or notparticipate at all. Added to the mix isinterest shown by other companies,especially large bus companies, to submitbids. The date for submitting Expressionsof Interest was January 11, 2008. Aformal Request for Proposals will beissued in mid-February with proposalsdue by May. The new operators are to bein place by January 2009.

6. Make service easier to use bycreating a more responsive andflexible booking system. Thissystem should offer shorteradvance booking times, extendedcall-in service hours, onlinebooking and trip managementsupport, and better in-vehiclecommunications with drivers andpassengers.

7. TransLink should establishpermanent storage andmaintenance facilities for customtransit vehicles by 2010 andactively seek and test bettervehicles to improve the comfort ofpassengers.

This report was issued in the summer of2007. The recommendations will bephased in over the next three years andreviewed in 2010.

As a point of interest, since this reportwas issued, Translink has changed itsname to the South Coast British ColumbiaTransportation Authority.

Airlines ordered to dropextra fares for the disabled.

January 10, 2008CTV.ca News Staff

Canada’s major air carriers have beenordered to offer the disabled travelerssame fares as everyone else.Under a Canadian Transportation Agencyruling, travelers who need additionalseating because of their disabilities willno longer have to pay more than a singlefare for domestic flights.Air Canada, Air Canada Jazz andWestJet have one year to bring in a“one-person-one-fare” policy for peoplewith severe disabilities – including the


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severely obese – who require two seatsto accommodate them.The ruling also applies to disabled peoplewho need a medical attendant seated withthem on flights.The CTA stresses that the ruling appliesonly to people with severe disabilities.“It’s not for persons without disabilitieswho might, for example, feeluncomfortable in an aircraft seat,” CTAsenior communications advisor JadrinoHuot told CTV Newsnet on Thursday.The CTA estimates the new policy willcost Air Canada about $7 million a year,and WestJet about $1.5 million a year.That amounts to about 77 cents a ticketfor Air Canada, and 44 cents forWestJet.But Huot told Newsnet it would be “veryhard” to predict exactly what will happenwith air ticket prices, as it’s up to theindividual air carriers on how they wouldimplement the one-fare policy.“Air carriers will be the only ones thatcould answer that question” said Huot.A complaint was brought against AirCanada, Air Canada Jazz, WestJet andthe Gander International Airport Authorityin 2002 Joanne Neubauer, Eric Norman,and the Council of Canadians withDisabilities.Neubauer said the ruling means that shecan finally hold her “head up high”.“I’m an equal Canadian now” she toldCTV News.Linda Mckay-Panos, who had fought formore than 10 years for the obese, wasunable to fly because she couldn’t sit inone seat.“I’m really looking forward to being ableto say to my husband, ‘let’s go on a

holiday where we don’t have to drive. Wecan actually fly somewhere.”‘Slippery Slope’Some in the airline industry, meanwhile,are complaining the industry is now facedwith making some complicated decisions,including who is obese enough to qualifyunder the ruling.“They are imposing new regulatoryobligations which also add to the cost ofdoing business” Air Transport Associationpolicy vice-president Fred Gaspar toldCTV News.“Our check-in agents are not nurses. Ourflight attendants are not doctors, so wethink it’s a slippery slope.”Most Canadian bus, ferry and traincompanies already have policies toaccommodate disabled travelers.People travelling with attendants or whohave equipment or mobility aides thattake up more than one seat do not haveto pay additional fares while on boardmost buses, trains or ferries.Currently, Air Canada offers a 50 – percent discount for some attendantstravelling with disabled customers onflights within North America.The CTA’s decision could have far-reaching implications as Canada’spopulation ages. The case has alsosparked the interest of advocates forobese travelers who are often chargedextra fares for additional seating.In December 2001, the CTA ruled thatsome obese passengers could beconsidered disabled. In its ruling, theagency said complaints issued by obesetravelers should be considered on acase-by-case basis.With a report from CTV’s Roger Smith inOttawa


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Shanti’s Sister

reviewed by

Jonn Olldym

Gabrielle Miller has a “blast” playingLacey Burrows, the sweet, strong-willedproprietor of The Ruby Café on the CTVcomedy, Corner Gas. But her real-liferole as younger sister to Shanti, who hascerebral palsy, has been Miller’s mostrewarding.The Vancouver based actress heads agroup of family and friends who serve onher sister’s “microboard” – the ShantiMiller Friendship Society. Shanti’smicroboard was the first one created inBC in 1989 when she was then 19 yearold, and about to be institutionalized.Shanti uses a wheelchair and requires 24hour care.Now, Shanti, 37, is thriving, with an activesocial life, and lives in her own home inVancouver, with round – the – clock care.She has a circle of family and friendswho she visits regularly.Shanti loves to socialize. She likes goingto the movies, restaurants likes to watchsports, having parties, and she reallylikes going out dancing. Gabrielle saysthat having a microboard has allowed hersister to live her life the way she wants to,with a freedom she would not have knownin an institution.Gabrielle is one of six who manage thefunds for Shanti’s support, help find andtrain her support staff, and help organizework schedules. Gabrielle and the otherson the board involve Shanti in the

decisions about her life, by talking to herabout her goals for the year, budgets,etc.Having grown up with a sister who had somany challenges has been a hugeinspiration to Gabrielle. She is still findingout ways that her sister has affected her.Gabrielle says that Shanti can get a roomof strangers talking more quickly thananyone Gabrielle knows. To Gabrielle,Shanti’s love of others is a gift.When not shooting Corner Gas, Gabrielleis a spokesperson for the VelaMicroboard Association(www.microboard.org), whose staffprovide support for the now 500microboards in B.C.See the January 2008 Reader’s Digestto read the full article written by RobinRoberts.

Report on the “EmergencyPlanning for People withDisabilities Workshop 1”.

by Jonn Olldym

An explosion has happened in yourcommunity, and the whole area aroundyou, including you’re the building you livein, is affected. Fire is raging through thebuildings, including your own.Transportation is extremely limited, andtelephone lines and electrical lines aredown. You are in your unit, in yourwheelchair, and care attendants are not


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able to get to you to help you. What doyou do?The Emergency Planning for People withDisabilities Committee held a workshopon just what to do during any kind ofmajor emergency. The Committee’s co-chairs, Karen Martin from the B. C.Coalition of Peoples with Disabilities, andKaren Van Biesen, of The Voice of theCerebral Palsied of Greater Vancouver,co-chaired this workshop that was heldon January 23, 2008. This workshop wasthe first of 3 all-day workshops beingplanned that center around enablingdisabled people to properly prepare forany kind of emergency or disaster.Funding for these workshops is beingprovided by the Provincial Ministry ofHealth, and the Public Health Agency ofCanada. This first workshop, which tookplace at the Morris J. Wosk Center forDialogue at Seymour and Hastings, indowntown Vancouver, was on theplanning and preparedness ofemergencies. The other 2 workshops,one on response and one on recovery,will be held at the same place.The workshop was organized into fivesmall groups; and the participants wereassigned to one of each of the following:Communications, Medical Supplies andSupports, Personal and DisabilityOrganizations Preparedness,Transportation and Training.Approximately thirty people attended theworkshop, some coming from theEmergency Preparedness and Planningarm of the Provincial, Regional and Civiclevels of government; some from thehealth and social service agencies

serving the disabled community, andsome from the disabled community itself.Each of the small groups was given a listof 8 – 11 questions to discuss, and makerecommendations on them to theafternoon plenary session. There were 2small group sessions in the morning,which dealt with the initial set of questionsaround research and planning for anemergency / disaster, and the last 3questions dealing with appropriateactions to be taken, and by whom, weredealt with in the afternoon small groupsession.There was time during the breaks andlunch to mingle, network, and share ideasthat were presented during the smallgroup discussions. As well, there werereport back sessions, in the morning andafternoon, where the small groupspresented the information andrecommendation each of themgenerated. A summary of the actions thatneed to be taken will be prepared as partof the report that will be produced afterthe workshops are finished. This reportwill be made available to the disabledcommunity through the EmergencyPlanning for People with DisabilitiesCommittee. For information on thisforthcoming report, and any informationon the work of this committee, please callKaren Martin at 604-875-0188, KarenVan Biesen or myself at the Voice office.


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Imagine Leadership 2008: Aleadership retreat on CreatingPersonalized Supports that aredesigned and governed by the

people who rely on them.

by Jonn Olldym

This retreat was held on January 11 – 13,2008 at the beautiful setting of EdenvaleRetreat Center, in Abbottsford, BC.Thanks to funding through the BCAssociation of Community Living, whosponsored me, for which I’m verygrateful, I was able tparticipate in thisevent.The main speaker at this retreat was aDr. Michael Kendrick, an independentconsultant in human services andcommunity. As well, there were twoothers presenting at this event, a JanetKlees, Author and Family Coordinator ofDeohaeko Support Network in Toronto,and Linda Dawe, a respected ParentLeader, and a founding member of theDeohaeko Support Network. Together,they offered those attending a uniqueforum for learning; dialogue and thechance to take action to better supportfamilies and people who rely on servicesin British Columbia.Families and individuals have sought outthe creation of Microboards forthemselves, or their loved ones. TheseMicroboards are a means of being incharge and taking control of theirpersonalized services. This eventpresented another option of “family anduser governed service arrangements” that

The weekend began with a time ofsocialization and ice breakers on Fridayevening, giving people a chance to “wind”down from the day and the travelling tothe Retreat Center in Abbottsford. OnSaturday and Sunday, Michael, Janetand Linda led us on a “tour” of the manydimensions of quality within family guidedservices, and their components. Therewas a determined effort to present thismaterial to us within the framework ofpersonalized safeguards as a means ofmanaging personal vulnerabilities andissues that were related to how thedelivery of quality in individualizedservices could be guaranteed.Janet and Linda have been involved withDeohaeko for over 17 years, and theyshared from their experiences with thisintentional community of families andtheir disabled adult children. Theyshared the guiding principles of thiscommunity, what they have learned in theprocess, and how important it is to haveclear, strong principles be the guide towork within the network, from thebeginning to now. They described thecreation of “circles of friends” –sustained personal networks (and theprocesses involved in building theserelationships) showing us just howintegral these circles are to the aims ofsupporting a well-lived life within thecontext of their community.This event gave me a new understandingof what’s involved in this kind and level ofcare; and, as well, just how the principlesoutlined at this event could beincorporated into the BC picture, withoutcopying the Deohaeko communityexactly.

could serve as a psossible means of meet-ing people's needs.


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DisabilityArts

Symposium - at the

Gallery Gachet

by A. J. Brown

On Friday, January 25, I attended aworkshop for artist organizations forartists with disabilities. It was called theDisability Arts Symposium. It was at theGallery Gachet in Vancouver. They wantto unite artists with any type of disabilityworking in any medium. They arecreating a disability arts network acrossBC.

In 2006 artists and organizations cametogether to Vancouver to discuss theneeds and struggles of oartists withdisabilities in BC. Now 18 months later,the BC Regional Integrated Arts Network(BRIAN) invited the community to gettogether for an inspired day long event.

‘Integrated arts practitioners’ were invitedto hear from pioneers and visionaries,create connections, debate ideas, andenjoy great food. While we work indifferent disciplines (theatre, media,visual arts, etc) many of the issues are

the same. We came to share andunderstand what unites and divides us,where we need equity and access,funding, overcoming labels, confrontingmarginalization, and realizing peersupport.

The day’s event included paneldiscussions and presentations thataddressed:

1. Does a ‘disability arts’ label help orhinder artists? There were pointsof view from Australia, the UK andCanada.

2. Report back on the results of the2007 disability arts sectorconsultations, and plans to launchBRIAN as a provincial resource forurban and rural artists.

3. Making the arts accessible for bothaudiences and on the stage.

4. Advocating for inclusion ofdisability arts in Cultural Olympiadprogramming.

5. Video messages about rights andcitizenship.

6. How would BRIAN operate as anetwork in BC?

7. Establishing a Mentorship ndCommissioning Fund for BC artistswith disabilities.

8. Open Space – participants canself-organize into a hot topic.


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There were three panelists: BruceGladwin, Wendy Hollo, and GeoffMcMurchy.

Bruce Gladwin is the artistic director ofBack to Back Theatre, a pioneeringAustralian contemporary theatrecompany, with a full-time ensemble of fiveactors with intellectual disabilities. Theorganization has become one ofAustralia’s leading creative voices,focusing on moral, philosophical, andpolitical questions about the value ofindividual lives.

Wendy Hollo is the Executive Director ofEdmonton’s Nina Haggerty Centre forthe Arts and an educator on self-advocates learning and using their rights.Wendy was joined by some of theCentre’s Lead Artists including UllRossier.

Geoff McMurchy’s cultural leadershipcomes after a 30 year process ofpoliticization as an artist with a significantspinal cord injury. He is now ArtisticDirector of the Society for Disability Artsand Culture, which strives to empowerartists and performers with disabilities tocorrect misrepresentations by creatingtheir own narratives, and to bringdisability-controlled narratives to wideraudiences.

Taken from the brochure.

The UnrulySalon:

Presented byGreen College,

at UBC, January 12

toMarch 29, 2008.

by A. J. Brown

In the context of a burgeoning disabilityarts and culture movement in Canada andinternationally , the Unruly Salon series isan historical first at UBC. Drawing fromboth internationally renowned scholars ofdisability studies and professional artistsfrom the visual, performing, musical artssectors, the Salons will demonstrate abelief that the pursuit of equality andinclusion is a cultural task as much as itis an academic and political one. Theseries promises to further the discourseon diversity, humanity and civil society;contribute to a fundamental reshaping ofthe disability narrative; challenge ideas of‘global citizenship’; and work to realizethe full inclusion of all people.www.unrulysalon.com


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Pointingit

Out

by

Jonn Olldym

The Augmentative CommunicationCommunity Partnership – Canada is aCanada-wide non-profit organization thatsupports people who havecommunication disabilities and who useAugmentative and AlternativeCommunication (ACCPC). Thisorganization provides research,education and resources to its membersand others that need or can make use ofits services. As well, this organizationfocuses on social justice issues for itsconstituency. The following informationis about an instructional DVD and bookletcalled “Pointing it Out”, directed andproduced by Barbara Colier about safetyfor people who have communicationdisabilities and who communicate usingdisplays and devices. It is taken directlyfrom their web site, (www.accpc.ca) andis quoted in its entirety here.

Pointing it Out is about safety for peoplewho have communication disabilities andwho use augmentative and alternativecommunication (AAC). AAC includes

letter, word or picture boards and devicesthat speak out messages.

Pointing it Out contains:A DVD showing people who use AACsharing their views on ways to increasetheir safety.A booklet with information, assignmentsand resources.An audio CD of the booklet.

Funding

ACCPC is grateful to The Ontario TrilliumFoundation for funding this project. TheOntario Trillium Foundation is an agencyof the Ontario Government and is one ofCanada’s leading grantmakingfoundations. The Foundation providesgrants to eligible charitable and not-for-profit organizations in the fields of artsand culture, sports and recreation, theenvironment and human and socialservices.

Partner Organizations

ICAN: Independence Centre andnetwork, SudburyOntario March of Dimes, HamiltonThe Gage Transition to IndependentLiving


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February 2008

Documents

February 2008 FREE BOOK – How to Create a Trust by Laurette Yellevcpgv.vcn.bc.ca/uploads/4u/8P/4u8PmGMlesVhLI5XMAtAhg/Tone-Fe… · By Laurette Yelle In early 2005, TransLink started