Annual Meeting
The 24th Annual Meeting will be held
on Wednesday October 19, 2011.
Location: ILCNSCA 27 Congress St, Suite 107, Salem, MA
You are invited to attend the FY'12 Annual meeting of the Independent Living Center of the North Shore and Cape Ann on Wednesday, October 19, 2011 from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM at the main office of the Independent Living Center of the North Shore and Cape Ann Inc located at 27 Congress Street, Suite 107, Salem, MA. This will be our 23rd Annual meeting. Registration, voting for ILCNSCA Board members and hors d'oeuvres will occur from 5:30 to 6:30 PM. The Annual meeting including voting results will begin at 6:30 PM and end by 7:00 PM.
Only those who disclose that they have a disability on the annual membership form can be a voting member of ILCNSCA. At the Annual meeting if you are a voting member you will have the opportunity to vote for candidates for the '12 Board.
The Board is the legal entity in the eyes of the Commonwealth for provision of the independent living services and all programs of ILCNSCA and sets policy as well as oversees the finances of the Center. 5 candidates are running for the '12 Board. Enclosed is a listing of those candidates. In addition, 1 existing Board member, Gregg Murray, is running for re-election as his term has ended and he wants to stay on the Board.
As a person with a disability who lives or works on the North Shore and Cape Ann and/or receives services from us you are eligible for voting membership of the ILCNSCA. Your participation in electing the Board is necessary to the ILCNSCA commitment to consumer control. As a voting member you select by your annual vote the Board of Directors of the ILCNSCA.
Enclosed is the ILCNSCA membership/membership renewal form. This form must be completed and submitted prior to your vote on October 13, 2011. As always, if you are unable to contribute a membership fee at this time, it will not prevent you from being a member.
As a person without a disability who supports independent living you may be a non-voting member and supporter of independent living. All voting and non-voting members receive notices of special events, such as our Annual Membership Summer BBQ, and advocacy actions. You have access to our resource materials. Most important, you demonstrate your active support to the struggle for independent living and consumer control that the Center embraces.
We look forward to seeing you on October 19, 2011 from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM at our main office, 27 Congress Street, #107, Salem, MA. Please review the new candidates for ILCNSCA Board as well as re-election of existing Board members who want to continue to serve, complete your membership form as soon as possible so you can attend and/or vote, and send to ILCNSCA, or call ILCNSCA to RSVP for Annual meeting at 978-741-0077 v or 978-745-1735 tty. We hope you will attend our Annual meeting and Board election, say hello to friends, meet new advocates for independent living, hear about our successes and challenges during '11, support us in our struggles of '12, and have a bit of fun. Thank you for your past and future support to make all of our communities accessible for all and all of our citizens as independent as they choose.
The Candidates for ILCNSCA '11 Board of Directors are:
Patricia Cox - Patricia has been coping with civil rights for those living with disabilities since she was a child, living with her own spinal cord issues. Then when she became the parent of a child living with disabilities she further became an advocate for disability rights. She has worked at the national level and her affiliation with ILCNSCA has been as a Friend of the Board, and coordinator of the ADRC of GNS of which ILCNSCA is a key leader and member. She hopes to share her expertise and advocacy with the ILCNSCA Board through her participation as a Board member. She lives in Beverly.
Betty MacIsaac - I am hoping to be elected to the Board of ILCNSCA. My interests in the world of disabilities and advocacy go back 30 years to the day my daughter Sarah was born with a form of Muscular Dystrophy. Through all the doctor's visits, hospital stays and other various appointments both Sarah and I have had to learn very quickly how to advocate in the non-disabled world to get her the services and rights she deserves as a human being. My mother and brother both had ALS and I was primary care giver for my mom and one of the caregivers for my brother until they passed away. I also worked at a nursing home for 3 years. My experience has been with all types of disabilities as well as with a variety of ages. I have always been an active participant in the Muscular Dystrophy Association, most recently with the ALS Association through fundraising and advocacy. My interests expanded to ILC when Sarah got a job as a volunteer and I got to meet and talk with all the wonderful and caring people who are part of that organization. I have served on other boards with Camp Fire of the North Shore and with mychurch St. Pius in Lynn. Both of these affiliations allowed me to work to make sure that both Camp Fire activities and church services were available to all people not just those that had no disability. Sarah was the reason I became an aide for special needs students and then went on to get my degree in education and become a teacher. At this time I am three courses away from my Masters in Special Education. I have worked in the special education field as an aide or teacher for the past 20 years. Having viewed the world of disabilities as a parent, teacher and student I feel I would be an asset to your board. My experience with a variety of disabilities both physical and otherwise is a plus as well. I hope you will consider me when you vote in the new ILCNSCA Board members. Betty lives in Lynn.
Joe Karamen - As I told the Board members present when I was first appointed right after last year's Annual meeting, I am interested in contributing my skills and support to the ILCNSCA for several reasons: Although I am not disabled, I have had the experience of being on disability after a major stroke a few years ago, and am aware of how complex accessing services and supports can be. I was fortunate in having a good support network and a great employer that helped the process; there are many who are not so fortunate, and I have seen what a difference the support the Independent Living Center of the North Shore 7 Cape Ann has made in the lives of those it serves. Additionally, my wife and I know four findividuals who are living with disabilities, including a lifelong best friend with Muscular Dystrophy who has persevered and become a college dean, a woman struck by MS in her 40's who now, in her 60's, only has the use of her finger tips yet continues to be a striving artist, an extremely successful businessman and entrepreneur who still travels the world after a debilitating stroke, and a stroke survivor turned motivational speaker who continues to change lives on a daily basis. These friends are truly heroes in every sense of the word, and show what can be achieved by all of us, despite our impediments, with caring, support, and direction. The ability to be part of an organization that ceaselessly strives to level the playing field by eliminating barriers and providing support and guidance to those who need and ask for it is an honor in and of itself. And to work with a gifted and talented ledership, Board, and staff that continue to lead the charge in the ADA arena is both humbling and energizing, and something to which I can gladly commit and continue my support. Joe lives in Salem.
Kathy Forbes - I live in Saugus and have been the chair person of the Saugus Disability Commission for fourteen years. I am also a graduate of Salem State with a degree in Nursing. I am excited to have been appointed to ILCNSCA Board last April, as I have been connected to the Center through the RASP and other advocacy for many years.
Lillith Ponticelli - She has been a voting member of ILCNSCA over the past few years, as well as a volunteer of ILCNSCA for her facilitation of a support group for the NE Transwomens Alliance (NETA) using space at ILCNSCA. She is highly committed to social justice and has recently received incorporation for NETA. She currently resides in Salem, and is in process of seeking a home in Beverly.
Candidates for election to additional terms on ILCNSCA Board:
Gregg Murray - Saugus
