Alex and Ani Charmed by Charity Fundraiser (UPDATE: Second Fundraiser!)

On July 17th, 2014 ACI hosted it's first charity event at Alex and Ani in Red Bank. We would like to thank Elizabeth in helping us put this event together as well as the staff that evening, Danielle, Julia, AnnaMarie, Roxy, Victoria, Shelley, Nicolle and BrianaLeigh, for all of their hard work and support throughout the event. A special thank you to everyone who came to show their support, we had a great night!

UPDATE: Didn't get a chance to make it out to this fundraiser? We are happy to announce that Alex and Ani will be having another one this November!

Posted on July 22, 2014 and filed under Donate.

ACI's New Project Director, Sue Pniewski

Sue Pinewski

Meet ACI's new project director, Sue Pniewski! Sue will be implementing the new ACI Sandy Relief Project. Recently, ACI received the Sandy NJ Relief Grant to continue the good work that Portlight Strategies did in NJ, which involved assisting Sandy victims in making their homes accessible. Sue has worked for Portlight for the past year. We are happy to have her joining our team to continue this important project. Welcome to ACI, Sue!

Posted on July 11, 2014 .

Survey: Food Deserts & People with Disabilities

A message from Montclair State University:

 

Food Deserts & People with Disabilities
Recruitment Notice

Do you live in a food desert? Are you a person with a disability? Tell us your stories!!!

Hungry sign in desert

This project is part of a community-based initiative to understand how common it is for people with disabilities in the United States to experience difficulty accessing sufficient amounts of healthy, nutritious, affordable, and culturally appropriate food. In this exploratory phase, we want to know what “access” and “food security” mean to you. Tell us your stories and help us modify or “crip”* the standard measures used by Food Studies scholars, so that they include perspectives of people with disabilities.

If you choose to participate, simply follow the link below to an online survey: surveymonkey.com/s/foodanddisability. If you do not want to complete the survey, you can also submit your stories anonymously via this link: surveymonkey.com/s/foodanddisability

The survey is brief and should take less than a half hour. All information will be kept completely confidential. The findings will not be associated with you in any way. All people who participate can enter a raffle to win a $50 electronic gift card. (There will be one $50 gift card for every 50 surveys submitted.)

To learn more about this IRB-approved study and/or to participate in the survey, click here: montclair.edu/chss/anthropology/research/food-disability-research

Please share widely!!! The more perspectives and different points of view that we can gather, the better! Feel free to re-post to Facebook, Twitter, etc. Help us make this project truly representative of our disability community……

Thanks in advance to all of you!


ACI, in a partnership with Montclair State University, will be hosting focus group on food deserts and people with disabilities this August. This is your opportunity to share your concerns and experiences! Your input will help devise solutions that create greater access to healthy, affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food for all people, including people with disabilities.

Click here for more details and registration >>

Posted on July 10, 2014 .

ACI's Middlesex Advocacy Group conducts Advocacy Tour

Members of ACI's Middlesex Advocacy Group recently conducted an accessibility tour of the Shop Rite Shopping Plaza on Route 1 in Edison. The goal of the tour was to ensure that the stores in the plaza were accessible and to advocate to make the necessary changes. Armed with tape measures, door pressure scales, and the ADA Checklist for for Existing Facilities, the group looked at the parking lot, aisle space, counter tops and curb cuts. Nybil Ghanem, Christine Hines, Lois Lebbing and Luke Koppisch participated in the event.

Interested in joining our efforts? Contact Nybil, Advocacy Group facilitator, at 732-738-4388 ext. 121 or nghanem@adacil.org.
 

"The tour was a good opportunity to educate business owners about the Americans with Disabilities Act, but also a great way to ensure that they comply with it." - Lois Lebbing, Advocacy Group Participant

Posted on July 1, 2014 and filed under Advocacy.