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Closing Plenary Session
By Shanti Nair |
In the closing session participants expressed commitment to carry out the goals of change in their perception of disability. Janet Perales shared that communication is needed for change. Theresa Lucotti-Bildik, IRS, announced tax benefits. There is a three-pronged plan for low-income groups, which is free tax, financial literacy, and building assets. The work of her organization entails doing outreach through volunteerism. She strongly encourages diversity training and sensitivity to the disabled population for volunteers. Feldenkrais emphasized lobbying the needs of individuals with disabilities. Frank Toraño, Work Incentives Coordinator, Social Security Administration, explained the disability programs by his organization, which was a ticket to work. Work incentives are provided through public outreach. The conference was an opportunity to connect individuals with disabilities to services needed in assisting them financially, academically, and professionally. There was never a time when people who represented several service organizations had hesitated to offer information to assist people. Living up to its theme of “Bridges to Employment”, there were many opportunities available for job seekers to be connected to potential employers. Main focus of all discussions at the workshops was the importance of mentoring and culture in shaping and guiding the disabled individual. These were considered quintessential in helping disabled individuals to become independent, and lead a meaningful life. A lot of helpful information was shared in the conference. For example, individuals with disabilities in California could learn about disability benefits from the website: www.db101.org. Like most participants, Beth Butler, Vice President, Employee Compliance, Wachovia, agreed that the cultural dimension of the conference was her main interest. She pointed out that multicultural training would teach us to respect each other’s differences and similarities. She was truly inspired at the commitment of people to come together to attend the conference from all over the world. She was particularly amazed by the story she heard of a lady who came all the way from Peru even if it meant only being able to attend a few hours of the conference. In striving to fulfill the goal of the conference, problems were turned into solutions with everyone feeling satisfied that their doubts and concerns were resolved. |
