Author Archives: CIL Marketing

Online Giving to Help the CIL

Posted on by

YOU CAN STILL HELP THE CIL WHILE PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING!

We are living in difficult and challenging times right now as the coronavirus prompts closures of businesses and schools throughout our community. However, while our offices remain closed, our commitment to our consumers has not stopped because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CIL continues to work with our consumers through all of our programs, but we still need your help!

While practicing social distancing, you can still help our consumers live independently!Shop through Amazon Smile and GoodShop, search on GoodSearch, and vote for CIL in the Sunstate Contest! Below you will find links to these sites as well as an explanation of what each one is.

You can also help the CIL by spreading the word and forwarding these links to friends and family.  Once again, we thank you so much for your continued support during these challenging times. Stay safe and healthy!

Amazon Smile donates 0.5% of your purchase back to the CIL.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/homepage?orig=Lw==

GoodShop is run through GoodSearch, so the CIL earns up to 30% of each shopping purchase! GoodSearch (powered by Yahoo!) donates a penny from each online search.

https://www.goodshop.com/

Sunstate Federal Credit Union runs a Charity of the Month contest on Facebook that allows the CIL to enter for the chance to win upwards of $1,000. You can vote every day to help us win!

Follow Sunstate Federal Credit Union on Facebook!

Important COVID-19 Information

Posted on by

Here are some helpful links that will lead you to sites that have lots of great information about how to deal with the coronavirus as a person with a disability or if you are deaf/hard of hearing. Please see below for these links and share them with others as you see fit!

Deaf and Hard of Hearing

People with Disabilities

Protect Yourself Against COVID-19

Posted on by

The CIL wanted to share this helpful information with you to spread the word about how to stay safe against COVID-19. Please see the graphics below that help you visualize some of the best ways to protect yourself and those around you.

We hope to see everyone staying safe and protecting those in your community from this spreading virus!

Blaze Pizza Fundraiser

Posted on by

Join us at Blaze Pizza on Archer Road on Tuesday, February 25th, to eat, drink and raise some money for a good cause! OT EAC is sponsoring this fundraiser and generously donating all funds raised to the Center’s Wheelchair Ramp Building Program!

The OT EAC is a speciality clinic under the UF Equal Access Clinic Network. We are a student-run clinic that offers free occupational therapy services to individuals 18 years and older in the Gainesville community every week. Our aim is to help people who have experienced illness, injury, or disability return to the activities that are meaningful and important in their day-to-day lives.

We hope to see you all there to enjoy some good pizza, good company and good fundraising!

Alachua County Disaster Preparedness Expo for People with Disabilities

Posted on by

The CIL is hosting our 1st Annual Alachua County Emergency Preparedness Expo at the Senior Recreation Center 5701 NW 34th Blvd in Gainesville on April 30th from 8:30am to 1:00pm!

Come out to learn more about how you can stay prepared for any emergency event that might happen in our community. We will be discussing things like emergency shelter locations, contacts and how to create disaster preparedness supply kits. Refreshments will be provided and ASL interpreters will be available.

Join us for this informative and free event to learn how you can prepare for our community’s emergency situations! 

To register, please go to to the following links:

English: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/emergency-preparedness-expo-for-people-with-disabilities-tickets-73469115101

Spanish: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/exposicion-de-preparacion-para-emergencias-para-pe-tickets-80938971643

Happy Retirement, Don!

Posted on by

This is a bittersweet moment, as we announce Don Barnes’s retirement after over twelve years at the CIL! Although we are sad to see Don leave us, we are so happy for him and looking back at his time here with a smile. Don has always been the sunshine on a cloudy day for the CIL staff and we all feel so lucky to have shared some time with him, whether it’s been years or just a few months.

Don’s hard work and dedication at the CIL has inspired all of us and his constant positive energy lights up the room. He puts his heart into everything he does, and we will miss him dearly.

Don said of his time here that the CIL is “an easy place to work and a hard place to leave”. He has found ease in helping people over the past twelve years and is sad to be leaving the CIL consumers and his fellow CIL staff, whom he now considers his family, but is excited to start this new chapter of his life.

His accomplishments at the CIL will not be easily forgotten and our staff and consumers will always be grateful for everything he has done.

Enjoy your retirement Don and know that we will all miss you!

CIL Art Showcase

Posted on by

The CIL is hosting an Art Showcase on December 14th from 2 – 4pm!

Anyone can submit their artwork for a chance to win a prize, but be sure to submit your work by December 13th!

Please join us to view and buy your favorite art pieces! There will be paintings, drawings, ceramics, sculptures, photography and so much more!

We appreciate your continual support and look forward to seeing everyone come out for this event!

CILNCF is Entering the Sunstate Federal Credit Union Contest!

Posted on by

The CIL of North Central Florida is entering Sunstate Federal Credit Union’s contest to win $1,000! With the most votes by liking our comments on Instagram and Facebook, the CIL will win!

Here’s how you can help us win…

  1. Log in to your Instagram and Facebook accounts.
  2. Search for Sunstate Federal Credit Union’s account.
  3. Under their most recent #GivingTuesday post, find the comment that nominates “The Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida”.
  4. Hit that like button so we can win!

Thanks for your support in spreading the word to our community partners!

Why does the CIL continue to be involved with disaster readiness?

Posted on by

CIL’s are huge advocates of emergency management and preparedness, but why do we prepare our communities for emergencies to the extent that we do? Often times, people with disabilities get lost in all the commotion during disasters and they end up placed in an environment that may appear to meet their needs, but actually doesn’t, such as a nursing home or psychiatric institution. This is why it’s extremely important that everyone is prepared beforehand and aware of all their resources. The CIL does our best to make sure these resources are accessible to everyone!

If you’d like to learn more about why it’s important to prepare for disasters, and why CIL’s will always be heavily involved with disaster readiness, this article is an informative read. The Emergency Management sector of Government Technology goes into depth on this issue and explains why this happens and how best to avoid it.

For more on emergency preparedness visit the Administration for Community Living’s Emergency Preparedness blog, and stay updated with us — the CIL will always be here for you!