'A VOICE for the Eastern Triangle' (ADVOCACY for a VOCATIONAL OFFENSIVE for INDEPENDENCE through CHOICE & EQUALITY for the EASTERN TRIANGLE (A Region from Lexington to Ashland to Williamsburg to Lexington).
Funded By
KY Office of Vocational Rehabilitation
People who are significantly disabled and residing in the Eastern Region are finally having a opportunity to increase the quality of their lives by learning from fellow peers as Role Models and from one another.
IP will be operating in the "Eastern Triangle" providing independent living(IL) Services beginning October 1, 2010 and concluding September 30, 2011.
The ARRA stimulus grant was awarded to Independence Place, Inc. based on the following 3 initiatives:
1. To develop a database of and build positive rapport with regional media to promote the positive truth about disability and to help spread the word of events and activities, service providers in the local communities, youth and parents to help eliminate natural and negative emotions (helplessness-hopelessness) to minimize an attitude of "Learned Helplessness", Churches, local governments, private organizations and others having a genuine interest in the development of Eastern KY through the active and productive human resource that does lie within the individual with a disability;
2. To provide Peer Counseling and establish Peer Support Groups throughout the region, which is believed to result in a perpetual development of IL Services in the region after the grant project has expired - based on the successful Group Dynamics approach utilyzed by IP in Lexington and surrounding counties over the past 7 years (Groups of people with disabilities come to the realization that they are not the only one in a "tragic" situation, bonds of isolation are broken by people becoming friends and helping one another, new resources and techniques are identified to help overcome barriers and obstacles to community inclusion, peers challenge one another to do better and dream greater, which always results in the formation of other groups in the areas of vocational, emotional and social growth.); and
3. To recruit local community professionals, along with IP Staff, to provide regular IL Skills Training Classes & Leadership development which will also feed the perpetual motion to further establish Independent Living Services in the "Eastern Triangle".