March 2000
Dick A. Greco, Mayor
Tampa, Florida

MEETING DAY BACK TO WEDNESDAY FOR MAYOR'S ALLIANCE.

By popular demand the meeting day for the Mayor's Alliance has been changed back to the 2nd Wednesday of the month. The meeting was moved to the 2nd Tuesday during the month of February. However when Chairperson Mallory polled those present at the meeting it was decided to move the meeting back to Wednesdays. The meetings will continue to be held at the Sandy Freedman Tennis Center on Davis Island.

SPORTS DAY FOR CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES.

The third annual "No Limits" Sports Day will be held at Shriners Hospital for Children Friday, April 21 from 9am to 4pm. Hospital staff organizes the event each year to introduce sports to children with disabilities. It is open to all youth ages five and up who use orthosis, prosthesis or wheelchair and there in no charge to participate. Participants receive hands-on instructions in several sports, while meeting local sports celebrities and having a great time with new friends. If you know any children who may be interested in attending, registration can be completed over the phone by calling Debbi e Cold at (813) 975-7139.

FAAST/TGH HOSTS NATIONAL VIDEO CONFERENCE ON AUGMENTATIVE COMMUNICATIONS.

Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology and The Tampa Bay Chapter ALS Association will host a Teleconference Thursday, March 16, from 2 to 4 pm at the MacInnes Auditorium in Tampa General Hospital. The Video conference will deal with reimbursement strategies for those requiring augmentative communication support. For more information on the conference and registration call FAAST at 813-251-7591.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THE DISABLED.

Yes, it does exist! If you need help because of domestic violence or know someone who is disabled and a victim of domestic violence call the Bay Area Legal Services office. Susan Whitaker is available to help persons who have this problem, she can be reached at 813-232-1343.

ESTATE PLANNING FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES.

Planning For The Future, an introduction to estate planning for persons with disabilities, seminar will be held Thursday, March 16, 6:30pm at the Van Dyke United Methodist Church, 5620 Lakeside Drive, room 210. The seminar is being presented by the USF Early Intervention Program and United Cerebral Palsy of Tampa Bay. For more information or reservations call Nancy Garcia at 813-239-1179.

FREE EYE EXAM AND PRESCRIPTION EYEGLASSES.

The City of Tampa is accepting applications for its vision program, which offers free eye exams and a pair of prescription glasses to qualified residents. Applications are available at the Office of Human Rights/Community Services, 102 E. Seventh Avenue between 8am and 5pm Mondays and Thursdays only. For more information call 274-5835.

MAYOR'S ALLIANCE BOARD MEETS

2nd WEDNESDAY
EVERY MONTH, 2pm.
Freedman Tennis Complex
59 Columbus Dr. Davis Island.

EVERYBODY WELCOME.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR FLORIDA YOUTH LEADERSHIP FORUM.

The Able Trust (Florida Governor's Alliance for the Employment of Disabled Citizens) is seeking people with disabilities with an interest in youth to serve as volunteers for the Florida Youth Leadership Forum. The YLF, which will take place July 20-23 in Tallahassee, is a leadership conference of high school juniors and seniors with disabilities. For more information contact Kristen Knapp at 888-838-2253.

2nd ANNUAL PATHWAYS & PARTNERSHIPS TRANSITION CONFERENCE.

The Exceptional Student Education Department of Hillsborough County Public Schools is sponsoring the 2nd Conference on Accessing Developmental Services. The conference will be held March 17 & 18 at the Holiday Inn City Center, 111 West Fortune Street, in downtown Tampa. For more information regarding this conference please call 276-5555.

COUNTY CITIZENS ACTION CENTER HAS NEW TDD NUMBER

The Hillsborough County Citizens Action Center has a new dedicated phone line for TDD users. The new number is 813-301-7173.

ACCESSIBILITY COMMITTEE MEETING.

The Accessibility committee meets the third Wednesday of the month at the Sandy Freedman Tennis Complex, 59 Columbus Dr., Davis Island. Everybody is welcome to attend, for more information call Norm Mallory at 988-4985 or Ben Ritter at 935 6540.

DATES TO REMEMBER

2ND. MON. OF THE MONTH, 7pm, THE MAYOR'S HOUR, live cable telecast on CH-15 Time-Warner in Tampa and Hillsborough County and CH-17 on Adelphia cable. Your chance to ask Mayor Greco a question or express your concern, live in the studio or by phone. To call in a question to the Mayor call 274-8328. To be part of the studio audience call Mindy Snyder at 274-7033. Program repeats on Sundays pm, Mondays at 7pm and Fridays at 3pm.

1ST. MON. EVERY MONTH, 3pm, EMPLOYMENT & JOB FAIR COMMITTEE MEETING, Promus Hotel Reservation Center, 7920 Woodland Center Blvd. for more info call Cindy Stephens at 251-2407 or Kathy McGlone at 243-7522.

3RD WED. EVERY MONTH, 2:00pm, ACCESSIBILITY COMMITTEE MEETING, Sandy Freedman Tennis Complex 59 Columbus Drive, Davis Island.

3RD TUES. EVERY MONTH, 7pm, FLORIDA COUNCIL FOR THE BLIND, GREATER TAMPA CHAPTER. USF Westside Conference Ctn. Section B.

3RD TUES. EVERY MONTH, 6:30pm, Tampa Self Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH) Group, Jefferson High School.

1ST THUR. EVERY MONTH, THERAPEUTIC FOCUS GROUP, All Peoples Life Center, call 744-5978 for more information.

4TH WED. EVERY MONTH, 2pm, COUNTY ALLIANCE MEETING, Tampa Lighthouse for The Blind, 1106 W. Platt St. For more information call Elizabeth Mueller at 273-3611 or Debra Guest at 871-7878.

3RD TUES. EVERY OTHER MONTH, 2pm, HARTLINE'S PARATRANSIT ADVISORY COUNCIL, Tampa Lighthouse for the Blind, 1106 W. Platt St. For more information contact Vasti Amaro-Dallas at HARTLINE 623-5835, ext.1171.

SUPPORT GROUPS

Hillsborough County Information Line 272-5900;

Self Reliance Cross Disability Support Group, 975-6560, Bill Renje;

VA Spinal Cord 972-2000 ext 6388 Heather Mahoney;

Brain and Head Injury Support, 288-0225 Jenny Paloumpis or Lisa Lowe; Multiple Sclerosis Self Help Group 287-2939 or 800-922-0170;

Statewide Advocacy Network on Disabilities, Inc. (STAND) offering education and resource services to persons with disabilities. 258-5700 Patricia Miller

Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology (FAAST) learn about assistive technology 251-7591;

Amputees Together, 870-3323;

Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), 935-6540 Ben Ritter; All People's Life Center 6105 East Sligh Avenue (east of 56th St.) fully accessible recreation center.Call Al Orr at 903-2248 for more information.

OFFICERS AND
COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS

Chairperson: Norman Mallory, (813) 988-4985
  Treasurer: Connie Hayden-McPeak, (813) 276-5555
  Secretary: Kelly Hickman, (813) 974-8927
  Past Chairperson: Chuck Porter, (813) 276-2029 ext 7659
  Advocacy and Accessibility Co-chairpersons: Norman Mallory, (813) 988-4985
  Bob Ellis, (813) 974-2002
  Employment Committee Chairperson: Cindy Stephens (813) 984-6840
  Awareness Committee Chairperson: Chuck Porter (813) 276-2029 ext 7659
  Mayor's Representative: Herb Gold, (813) 254-1111

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