Winter 2016

FACES
Friends, Advocates & Consumers
Volume 7, Issue 1 Winter 2016
What Makes DRAIL Unique?
Many are familiar with
the core services that
DRAIL provides in the
communities we serve.
For instance,
throughout the
motherlode and valley
counties, hundreds of
consumers have
benefitted from DRAIL’s
core services, such as
information and referral,
advocacy and
Independent Living Skills consultation. In
addition, due to the structure of DRAIL and the
Independent Living Philosophy it adheres to;
DRAIL is rather distinctive from other agencies
in the way it can connect with its consumers.
Here are a few experiences that demonstrate
DRAIL’s exceptionality.
Paul, a former fire captain and emergency
rescue instructor, recently lost his eyesight due
to complications resulting from cancer
treatment. While Paul bravely adapted to his
new circumstances and life-changing realities,
one thing that he desired most was to be able to
take his aging dog for a customary walk on a
trail near his home. Paul contacted DRAIL and
inquired if anyone there might be able to assist
him to reconnect with this simple joy that meant
so much to him. Paul’s call was received by ILS
Pierce, who had taken an Emergency Medical
Technician Course
with Paul nearly fifteen
years ago and had
great respect for the
work Paul went on to
do in the Fire
Department. ILS
Pierce was honored to
provide such a simple,
but personal service to
Paul, which required
Paul Waite pictured with Sadey. meeting him at his
home and providing him with orientation and
mobility services while they walked “Sadey”
along the old familiar trail, bringing great joy to
both dog and owner. Paul was able to
reconnect with the independence and simple
pleasure of taking his dog for a walk once
again, which really meant a great deal to him.
Another example of DRAIL’s ability to connect
with its consumer’s on a personal level and
provide unique individualized services that
other agencies might not make room for is
illustrated by the assistance that was offered
to Joe. After his beloved grandmother was
placed in a nearby long-term care facility, Joe
received kind encouragement from other
family members to work through his fears and
(continued on Page 3)
FACES
Agencies Working Together For Our Community
Imagine if you will,
living with seizures
that disrupts your
life on a daily
basis. Now
imagine living with
that while trying to
become clean,
steer away from a
crowd that can
cause you harm
and being
homeless with no income at all. That was the
life that Raquel Moreno was living. Due to her
seizures she was also living in fear out on the
streets, because she never knew when one
would come on. Thankfully she has a boyfriend
that was living this life with her and took care of
her while she was having the seizures. One
day, Raquel finally decided she was going to try
to apply for social security and came in to see
Modesto Independent Living Specialist (ILS)
Tanja Wright.
During the appointment Raquel spoke of her
struggles and the situation she was in. It was
clear she was trying her best to move forward
with her life away from drugs but was unsure of
how she could provide for herself without any
income. ILS Tanja explained the social security
application process to Raquel and suggested
that she follow through with the application
process even though it would be a long
process. After the appointment was over,
Raquel left that morning with a little bit more
hope than when she first arrived, never
Page 2
anticipating what was going to happen later
that day.
At about 5 minutes to 5 pm, ILS Tanja was
wrapping up her notes from the day, when her
office phone rang. On the other line was
Raquel sounding scared and trying to control
her emotions while feeling physically sick.
Raquel explained that she suffered another
seizure after leaving Tanja’s office and was in
the hospital all afternoon. Once she was
released, she tried to return to the Mission
where she was staying and was told she could
not stay there since she arrived after check in.
It was during a rough storm and she and her
boyfriend were out in it, with Raquel trying to
recover from her latest seizure. ILS Tanja
contacted Peer Navigator Shane Calbreath
from Turning Point and explained the situation
that Raquel was in. Because it was after hours
for Shane, he needed to get approval from his
supervisor Noel Rivas to
assist. Upon approval, he
was given Raquel’s
phone number and was
able to pick both her and
her boyfriend up and take
them to Garden Gate
Respite for the night.
From there they were
able to receive services
through Turning Point
that helped Raquel and
her boyfriend move
forward from where they
were.
(continued on page 4)
Raquel Moreno above and
top left celebrates her 90th
day of sobriety.
Friends, Advocates & Consumers
Board of Directors
President, Terry Gray
Vice President, Nick Nelson
Treasurer, Michael “Kim” Cornelius
Secretary, Adeline Bagwell
Hannah Boxell
DRAIL is now recruiting for Board
Members!
FACES
Managing Editor
Tanja Wright
Designed by:
MCO Associates
Sponsorship Advertising
Full pg. Black & White: $250.00
Full pg. Color: $500.00
½ pg. Black and White: $125.00
½ pg. Color : $250.00
Business Card: $50.00
Logo (Color): $100.00
For more information, call
Tanja at (209) 521-7260.
What Makes DRAIL Unique?
(Continued)
uncomfortable feelings about entering the facility. Deep down,
Joe desperately wanted to visit his grandmother at the facility, but
he was battling strong feelings of resignation. While family
offered to be helpful, Joe felt more comfortable to seek help from
an outside source. Joe contacted ILS Pierce and requested that
ILS Pierce accompany him to the long term care facility and
provide assistance to him in order manage through the sensory
overload that troubled him. ILS Pierce provided encouragement
and moral support while discussing a plan of action and that
would help Joe face and manage his feeling of reluctance. ILS
Pierce accompanied Joe on the visit and remained by his side
while at the facility. Joe was able to have a meaningful visit with
his grandmother. Following the visit, ILS Pierce remained with
Joe to provide him with the opportunity to process and express his
emotions. Joe was grateful that DRAIL was able to provide
someone to be by his side to accomplish such a personal and
emotional goal.
Other agencies might consider such services to be outside of their
scope of practice, however, DRAIL endeavors to be uniquely
suited in providing services that bring our ILS in a side-by-side
relationship with consumers while promoting and maintaining the
Independent Living Philosophy. We also endeavor to create a
welcoming atmosphere in our offices where consumers may feel
comfortable to stop by and share feelings and concerns, good
news, or goal accomplishments ,which is a regular occurrence at
the Sonora office.
We are grateful that DRAIL is an agency designed to provide
personalized services, perhaps better suited than most, to our
Consumers that increase their independence and joy.
Page 3
FACES
FACS
Agencies Working Together
(continued)
Raquel just celebrated her 90th day of
sobriety, set a goal to go back to school to
obtain her degree and is working on getting
her children back.
During a phone conversation with Raquel, she
told ILS Tanja that she is very grateful for
DRAIL and Turning Point for helping her
during one of her darkest moments. She said
both Shane and Tanja went above and beyond
to get her and her boyfriend sheltered and
then set up with goals and plans for the future.
As happy as Shane and Tanja are to assist
and be part of such a wonderful story, it was
truly Raquel’s determination and decision, that
has led her to where she is today.
2016 AT Expo Already In
the Works
Planning has started for the 2016 Abilities
Resource Fair and Assistive Technology Expo
to be held this fall in Modesto. Sponsorships
and vendors are being sought for this year’s
event. If you are a business with disability
related services or products we would love to
have you at the Expo! Businesses who would
like to support this event through sponsorships
are encouraged to contact Sandra Graham at
(209) 477-6342 or by email at
Sandra@drail.org.
Stay up to date on the latest information at the
2016 Abilities Resource Fair and AT Expo
Facebook page: Facebook.com/DRAILATEXPO
Interested in serving on DRAIL’s Board?
DRAIL is now recruiting board members to serve on our
board and assist in determining goals, set polices and budget.
Turning Point’s Peer Navigator Shane
Calbreath, teamed up with DRAIL’s
Modesto Independent Living Specialist
Tanja Wright to make things possible.
Page 4
As a group and individually, Board Members have legal and
moral responsibility for all activities of DRAIL.
Please contact Barry Smith for more information at
(209) 521-7260 or email Mr. Smith at barry@drail.org
Friends, Advocates & Consumers
Offices
Introducing Our New WIPA Coordinator
Modesto
(Serving Stanislaus County)
920 12th Street
Modesto, CA 95354
(209) 521-7260
(209) 576-2409 TTY
Stockton
(Serving San Joaquin County)
501 W. Weber Ave. Suite 200-A
Stockton, CA 95203
(209) 477-8143
(209) 465-5643 TTY
Sonora
(Serving Amador, Calaveras,
Mariposa & Tuolumne
Counties)
67 Linoberg St. Suite A
Sonora, CA 95370
(209) 532-0963
(209) 288-3309 TTY
My name is Alexandra Queen. In December 2015, I returned
to DRAIL as a Community Work Incentives Coordinator. I
worked for DRAIL’s Work Incentives Planning and Assistance
(WIPA) grant for five years under the previous grant cycle.
Now I’m back helping Social Security disability beneficiaries in
San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Mariposa counties understand
how their work plans will affect their Social Security and other
public benefits.
WIPA Offices
When I’m not at DRAIL, I like working with dogs. My Border
Collie, Ep, knows how to bring items on request, pick up the
living room, and bring clothes to the laundry room. I volunteer
at the local animal shelter with my two daughters, where we
try to help dogs have fun while learning some basic manners.
I also enjoy playing around with silly, colorful drawing, painting
and paper crafts. My artwork is terrible, but I have a great
time.
Modesto
920 12th Street
Modesto, CA 95354
(866) 256-9409
Stockton
501 W. Weber Ave. Suite 200-A
Stockton, CA 95203
(866) 256-9409
Fresno
3008 North Fresno St.
Fresno, CA 93703
(800) 244-2274
San Andreas
130 E. St. Charles St.
San Andreas, CA 95249
(844) 657-0480
The thing I like best about my job at DRAIL is helping people
make their dreams real. People come to me with a hope they
could try a little work and a lot of fears about what might happen if they do try. I get to show them how Social Security’s
rules can support their dreams and their health. Then I help
them make a plan that will let them try their dreams safely. It’s
the best job in the world. If you’re getting Social Security disability benefits and have a work dream, you can get in touch
with me at 866-256-9409 or alex@drail.org.
Page 5
FACES
Systems Change Advocate Assists
with Parking Lot Design
Have You Thought About It?
Another story that also reflects the importance
of two agencies working together. It’s amazing
what can be accomplished when two agencies
collaborate together. One day last summer
Systems Change Advocate (SCA) George
Sharp noticed the Stanislaus County Clerks’
office parking lot was being redone. He began
to wonder if the parking lot would be brought to
current ADA standards for accessible parking.
After passing by for a couple of weeks the
parking lot was completed, but much to his
surprise the parking lot didn’t meet current ADA
standards for accessible parking.
With the recent wildfires in our service area
and the current El Nino weather pattern in
California, emergency preparedness has
been a topic of interest for many people.
Everyone should make basic preparedness
arrangements (three days’ worth of food and
water for your household, flashlight, battery
or crank-powered radio, etc.) For people with
disabilities, however, preparedness requires
some extra planning. We should be asking
ourselves what impact our disabilities might
have in reacting to a disaster, and how we
can plan to avoid the worst problems.
SCA Sharp then contacted Jeremy Howell of
Stanislaus County Clerks’ office to tour the
parking lot and talk about some solutions. They
both agreed the van accessible space needed
to move and a path-of-travel had to be added.
In their second meeting they both noticed a
second accessible space needed to be moved
as well. Ultimately, Jeremy and SCA Sharp
decided on two van accessible spaces,
and path-of-travel and so it was redesigned.
This is another great example of how
collaborating is a win-win for agencies and the
disability community, we live in.
Visit http://www.ready.gov/individuals-access
-functional-needs for information, or contact
your local DRAIL office for assistance from
an Independent Living Specialist in making a
plan.
Interested in serving on DRAIL’s Board?
DRAIL is now recruiting board members to serve on our
board and assist in determining goals, set polices and budget.
As a group and individually, Board Members have legal and
moral responsibility for all activities of DRAIL.
Please contact Barry Smith for more information at
(209) 521-7260 or email Mr. Smith at barry@drail.org
Page 6
Friends, Advocates & Consumers
is a nonprofit created to
benefit people with
disabilities. Our services
provide tools which assist
them to live independently.
Programs
Programs are available from
DRAIL and your local
community to increase the
independence of people with
a disability.
A life filled with possibility belongs to you. DRAIL works to
ensure that this is a reality for the members of our community
living with a disability.
Donations from people, like you, allow us to help enable
individuals with disabilities to live independently and reach
goals that would otherwise seem impossible.
Technology
DRAIL provides and assists
you to get technology that
allows you to remain in the
home setting of your choice.
DRAIL’s Six Core Services
1. Information Referral
2. Care Provider Referral
3. Housing Referral
4. Advocacy
5. Peer Advising
6. Independent Living
Skills-Training
FACES (Friends, Advocates,
And Consumer Empowered
Stories) is published
quarterly. DRAIL is a
nonprofit and accepts
donations and bequests
gratefully. For address
corrections or changes,
please contact Tanja Wright
by phone at (209) 521-7260
or via email at
tanja@DRAIL.org.
Your
LOGO
Here
Sample Business Card Ad MESSAGE
Your Name
Address / Phone / Email / Website
Page 7
Enhancing lives by empowering individuals
with disabilities to live independently
920 12th Street
Modesto, CA 95354
Support Groups
Support groups meet on the 1st and 3rd
Thursday of each month at our Modesto
location from 10am-12pm. Additional
information on DRAIL’s support groups is
online at DRAIL.org or call (209) 521-7260.
Have You Visited The DRAIL Website?
If you have not visited our website, please try
it. We’ve work hard to make it a resource for
consumers and advocates.
You’ll find the website at www.DRAIL.org.
On Facebook
You can support DRAIL by
introducing us to your friends!
We’re on Facebook. Please “like”
DRAIL at www.facebook.com/#!/
mydrail?fref=ts. Then, ask your friends to “like”
us too.
DRAIL’s E-mailing List
Join DRAIL’s email list to keep up on DRAIL news,
events and receive tips on accessing resources.
Go to the website (www.DRAIL.org) and sign up
just below the main photo on the home page or
in the left hand column on any other page.