My Word!

By Raymond D. Cohen

Welcome to the National Access Awareness Week (NAAW) edition of ABILITIES. As in previous years, you will find lots of NAAW-related information and schedules of events across the country. This year, in addition to the NAAW section itself, we have divided much of our content under the six NAAW theme areas of Transportation, Housing, Employment, Recreation, Education and Communication. NAAW is an important time to celebrate achievements at your local level, so find out what’s going on (see the list of Provincial Coordinators on page 31) --and, from May 29 to June 4, get out there and get involved!

On other fronts...

Don’t miss People in Motion, Canada’s largest show of products, services, technology and transportation for people with disabilities, happening Friday and Saturday, June 2 and 3, in Toronto. Come visit the ABILITIES booth and participate in our raffle. Prizes include a QuorumVision Virtual Projection TV, clothing from Canada’s own Re-Wear, Callahan T-shirts (always in poor taste!) and more...

The Canadian Abilities Foundation, working in collaboration with the Canadian Clearinghouse on Disability Issues of Human Resources Development Canada, is also proud to announce the formulation of the most comprehensive Directory of Disability Organizations ever compiled in Canada. To register your organization in this directory, please take advantage of the Directory Registration Card inserted in this issue.

But wait, there’s more...

Numerous organizations across Canada have now joined with the Canadian Abilities Foundation in our exciting Subscription Partnership Program. This program has been bringing ABILITIES to the doorsteps of new subscribers, while raising funds for non-profit organizations. A true win-win situation!

Here’s how it works... Once an organization joins the program, individual members of that organization are given the opportunity to subscribe to ABILITIES at a discounted price of $15 for eight issues. And it gets better -- we then make a five-dollar donation back to that organization for each subscription that is purchased through this offer by one of their members. Some organizations have made hundreds of dollars, just by bringing news of this special offer to their members! And, of course, the members get a break too, because they save over 30% off the regular subscriber price (not to mention almost 50% off our newsstand price!). Even if you are already a subscriber, you can take the opportunity to extend your subscription under the same special arrangement.

If the non-profit organization you belong to has not yet tapped into this rewarding partnership, be sure to bring it to their attention. They can join us just by calling us at (416) 977-5185 and asking about the Subscription Partnership Program.

A lot of growth is happening for the Canadian Abilities Foundation, and we are pleased to make you a part of it. Don’t forget, too, that we always welcome your feedback and comments. As always, keep reading ABILITIES -- and stay in touch!