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One of the exciting ideas in our initial support networks project that looked at how people with disabilities make friends and allies and how they and their networks might provide leadership for their communities and supports was the idea that "what if we had more friends than we needed? what if we had 101 friends - an abundance of friends?" For our agency, this clarified our organization's ongoing interest in partnerships, networks, communities and alliances - we're not competing with anyone and our goal of an inclusive world can only be furthered by making more friends. We've been lucky enough to travel most of the province doing workshops and meet a lot of people, but here our some of our friends, neighbours and allies.The e-newsletter and blog of our Support Networks project is here.
Ernie, our E.D., is actively involved with the Burns Bog Conservation Society.
PosAbilities, the Burnaby Association for Community Living, BACI, and Community Living Society, CLS, are all local agency-friends of ours. One of our favourite models for organizing supports around individuals is the microboard, an idea which has contributed a lot around the world through the Vela Microboard Association.
Inclusion Press are an always creative, generous and resourceful group who publish and produce amazing materials that much of the best in Community Living is founded on (or should be using more of).
We have a few favourite people to talk to about what we do and how the world might look. One of them is Michael Kendrick, another is David Pitonyak and, last but not least, Norman Kunc and Emma Van der Klift.
We live in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Some of the folks we support live in the surrounded areas but we're proud to be one of the last service providers who has a presence in the city. Our office is in the Collingwood area and we have a nice relationship with the folks at Collingwood Neighbourhood House.
That hospitality is so much attached to food and eating together was one of our earliest lessons in community. Put a pizza on the table and everything changes for the better. In our neighbourhood we love the Chilli Pepper Restaurant (tell Paul or Sarah that you know us) and Roman's Ristorante (tell Haskel that Spectrum sent you) and we take special friends to Burgoo, which specialises in comfort food from all over the world and never fails to satisify.