The Women’s group meets the first Thursday of every month.
February 6, 2025
March 6, 2025
April 3, 2025
May 1, 2025
June 5, 2025
July 3, 2025
August 7, 2025
September 4, 2025
October 2, 2025
November 6, 2025
December 4, 2025
Women’s Group focused on literary endeavors, self-improvement and created social opportunities. This club allows women to share ideas, empowering one another to make positive changes in their lives. There may be a cost for certain activities.
Contact Blagica at 201-996-9100 ext. 29 to sign up!
hipcil Holiday Party – New Location, Same Holiday Fun!
While it rained outside on the afternoon of Sunday, December 10th, the ballroom at The Elan in Lodi was warm, inviting, and festive for the hipcil holiday party. The room was beautifully decorated for the holidays and filled to the brim with over 130 hipcil consumers, staff, board members and friends.
The attendees danced, socialized, and enjoyed a delicious 4-course plated meal, complete with cake and holiday treats. Prizes from many generous donors were given to the lucky winners and the 50/50 take home was a whopping $248!
Longtime hipcil friend Christopher Gagliardi closed out the party by gracing everyone with his lovely voice, singing “Silent Night.” We hope everyone had a very happy holiday season and a wonderful start to 2024!
In my job it is critical for me to remain up to date on current trends, legislative issues, member concerns and the opinions that are being voiced by our constituents. In my early years as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor my interviews focused on an individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities to learn the most about their career ambitions, desired environment, and job goals. Together the consumer and I would develop a plan with employment as the goal based on all the collected information.
Lately I’ve been hearing the term “lived experience” which essentially gathers all the aspects of a person’s life and what they are currently presenting to the world. Decisions are made based on what has gone before and what is anticipated in the future. We are trying to build programs and develop activities based on the needs and preferences of the people we serve in the hipcil family. We want to provide meaningful experiences that will capitalize on the progress that we have made to be fully included in our community.
Let’s declare 2024 as our year to be full participants in our surroundings by attending a community event, interacting with our neighbors, and most importantly exercising our right to vote to live the Independent Living experience, “Nothing about us without us”.
Cooking Corner. Seriously, The Best Healthy Turkey Chili
Healthy turkey chili made with lean ground turkey, kidney beans and corn. This famous recipe is perfectly spiced, packed with plenty of protein and fiber, and is simply the BEST. Make it on the stovetop or in your slow cooker for an easy, delicious weeknight dinner.
Ingredients: • 2 teaspoons olive oil, • 1 yellow onion, chopped, • 3 garlic cloves, minced, • 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped, • 1 pound extra lean ground turkey or chicken (99%), • 4 tablespoons chili powder* (I used McCormick chili powder, which is very mild. Do not use spicy chili powder, and if using a different brand, start with 2 tablespoons), • 2 teaspoons ground cumin, • 1 teaspoon dried oregano, • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, • 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste, • 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes or crushed tomatoes, • 1 1/4 cups chicken broth; • 2 (15 oz) cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained; • 1 (15 oz) can sweet corn, rinsed and drained; • For topping: cheese, avocado, tortilla chips, cilantro, sour cream;
Instructions:
Place oil in a large pot and place over medium high heat. Add in onion, garlic and red pepper and sauté for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add in ground turkey and break up the meat; cooking until no longer pink. Next add in chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper and salt; stir for about 20 seconds.
Next add in tomatoes, chicken broth, kidney beans and corn. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until chili thickens and flavors come together. Taste and adjust seasonings and salt as necessary.
Garnish with anything you’d like. Makes 6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each.
After 22 years of working at hipcil, Maria Valentin retired in January. She ran many programs at the Bergen office, including Leadership, Advocacy, Education and Determination (LEAD) years ago, the Modification Access Project (MAP), Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP), and was always the 50/50 raffle go-to at hipcil events! All of us at hipcil thank you for your hard work and send best wishes for a future filled with lots of beach time!
• 6.1% of American children are being treated for ADHD with medication.
(healthline.com)
• An estimated 25.7 million adults are limited in their usual activities because of arthritis. That number is expected to grow to 35 million by 2040.
(cdc.gov, Center for Disease Control)
• As many as 28% of children born to a parent with fibromyalgia will eventually develop the disease, according to a Centers for Disease Control in 2009 study.
(Fibromyalgia-symptoms.org)
• Approximately 15% of American adults (37.5 million) aged 18 and over report some trouble hearing.
(nidcd.nih.gov)
• Children have a 50% chance of having dyslexia if one parent has it, and a 100% chance if both parents have it.
(Dosomething.org)
The Women’s Group is back! On the first Thursday of every month at the Bergen hipcil office, we host some wonderful ladies for activities that are new, fun and exciting every time! We play BINGO, paint pictures, unscramble puzzles, make crafts and more from 11am-1pm. To learn more or to sign up, please call 201-996-9100 ext. 29 for Blagica or ext. 24 for Meaghan. We look forward to having you join us!
hipcil receives many contributions from individuals and the community throughout the year. We thank the following for their recent exceptional generosity:
Lottie Esteban and family;
Jerome Saunders in Memory of Beth Shapiro Steele;
Shapiro Family Foundation;
Karen McDowell;
Annie Been
After working at hipcil for over 10 years, Trisha Ebel is moving on! She has been a valued member of both the Bergen and Hudson staff, working with Adjustment to Vision Loss consumers during peer support groups and events. We’ll miss you, Trisha! Best of luck in your future endeavors!
hipcil is a non-profit organization holding a 501c3 designation and we follow specific guidelines to ensure compliance. One of our mandates is to hold an Annual Meeting 45 days after the close of the Federal Fiscal year. We have made that a tradition in our event schedule. This year we gathered our members, staff and Board of Trustee officers and met to discuss our achievements from the prior year and share our plans for the coming year. This year’s meeting was held at the Hackensack Recreation Center, where we enjoyed a light supper, ratified the Board members for the second half of their two-year term, reviewed our accomplishments and heard how our featured guest Kyle Kreske overcame significant barriers to earn his counseling degree.
Perhaps the best part of the evening was that it gave our members the chance to meet, renew old acquaintances and tell the hipcil leadership what type of programing they want to see us sponsor for the future.
As always, our consumers want to have more opportunities to meet for social events, field trips and seminars. We agree, so we are planning our 2024 to include:
• Monthly meetings of the Adjustment to Vision Loss groups in Secaucus and North Arlington
• Renewed hipcil Humpday Happenings – monthly Zoom meetings
• The Caregivers Group
• The Women’s Group
• Summer Picnic
• Fall Fun Festival
• A festive Gala in the Fall
Feel to add to this list by writing to us at hipcilnj@gmail.com
hipcil is pleased to be collaborating with researchers at the University of New Hampshire (UNH) to understand the impact of Long COVID on employment for people with disabilities. In the spring of 2024, the researchers at UNH will hold two virtual focus groups to allow them to speak to workers or former adult workers with disabilities who have Long COVID to understand their employment-related experiences. The focus groups will run for one hour and will include 5-8 adults with disabilities and Long COVID from around the country. The results will help federal, state, and other partners better support employment outcomes for people with disabilities who have Long COVID. Stay tuned for more information about this opportunity to share your story this spring!
We Welcome the Following New and Renewing Members of hipcil for 2024!
You can become a member of hipcil for 2024! For a membership form visit our website at www.hipcil.org/membership or call one of our offices!
Jeanne Aimone
Roselyn Altman*
Kevin Angelini
Elaine Appellof*
Carl & Janice Arnold
Paul Aronsohn*
Deborah Baumann-DaSilva
Annie Been
Joanna Benthall
Darrell & Tamiko Bethea*
Jerry Bojko
Mario Brusco
George & Mildred Bullerdick
Brenda & Jerry Calabrese
Daniel Calabrese
Tonielle Cardinalle
Mary G. Carney
Tom & Susan Carney
Trish Carney*
Kay Chase*
Elizabeth Cohen-Hittner
Rezena Colclough
Barbara B. Comerford, Esq. *+
Michael & Marie Cook*
Sonia Cordova-Chumpitaz
Jim & Jean Csaposs*
Mary Culver
Howard Craig Cutler
Carol Dass*
Martha DeYoung
James F. Dougherty
Barbara Dublin*
Dennis Dusevic
Patricia & Dave Ebel*
Austin Epstein
Lottie Esteban*
Oria Estrada
Stella Fellinger
William Fellinger*
Betty Fetzer*
Brian Fitzgibbons*
Virginia Flynn & Warren Williams
Gerardine Galvin
Laurie C. Galvin
Marily Gonzalez*
Patricia Guy
Harries Family
Elizabeth Bojane Heap
Dana Hemmings
Rick Hodgman*
Michelle Jones
Geraldine Kearns
Timothy Kerr
Joan F. Klug*
John Koch*
Lorena & Ana Kos
Diane LaForge*
Jeanne Laraia
Virginia L. Laughlin
Louise Lee
Susan & Kin Lee
Jay Levene
Marion Levine
Chili Li*
Gloria Lieberstein*
Roy Lippin*
Margaret Lusch
Joyce & Leonard Malech*
Diukesma/Dinky Padron-Marrero
Joan Martorella
Dora Meler
Ann Melone*
Abby G. Mesce
Dr. Frances Meyer*
Latoya Miller
John Mulholland
Sonia Noel
Gloria Ortiz
Margaret Papageorgiou
Chris Paraskevacos
Naaisha Pettiford
Richard Pietrzak
Marianne Pigoncelli*
Anne Marie Prendergast
Cecelia Ragland
Carmen N. Reyes
Cruz Rodriguez
Beverly & Richard Ryan*
Stephanie Seid
Doug Simon, CEO Mobility Elevator*+
Chandravati Singh
Maria E. Smith
Michael Smith*
Dana Solomon
Jeffrey St. Germain & Family*
John Stanik*
Mary S. Thornton
Janet Tolliver & Joseph Molee
Alberto & Ivis Trejo
Danny Vaca
Carol Viceconte*
Ron Vida
Anne Burton Walsh*
Philip & Linda Webster-Cennerazzo*
Joan & Richard Wechsler
Janice Willet*
Sharon Womack
Anthony Yorio*
Maureen Zurlo
hipcil is thrilled to continue being a part of the bergenPAC Arts Access Program! This program makes tickets for specific shows at the bergenPAC in Englewood available to our members free of charge. For more information on the Arts Access Program, call or email Jayne at 201-996-9100 ext. 21 or jjacobs@hipcil.org.
Our hipcil family recently lost the following:
Laurel Seidler
Lillian Oliver
Barbara Brave
Joseph Ruffalo
Jane Valenti
Phillip Gauran
William Appleman
Richard Touma
Astro (beloved Seeing Eye dog of staff member Trisha Ebel)
Noel O’Malley
AVL Support Group Meetings
Secaucus 10am (Meets at Secaucus Public Library)
March 8
April 12
Jersey City 10am (Meets at 5 Corners Library)
March 28
April 25
North Arlington 11am – 1pm (Meets at 214 Ridge Road, North Arlington)
March 12
April 9
Washington Township/Fort Lee 11am
Every Wednesday via Conference Call
Women’s Support Group
March 7 April 4
Virtual Book Club Conference Call
We’d like to invite everybody to join the book club! Come and have some fun, read some good books, and meet some new people. It’s very easy, just pick up the phone dial 945-218-0051 Access 426-6427# and you are part of the group! If you have any questions, please call Marie at 973-777-2006.
Dates TBD (always once a month)
March Book – Tom Lake by Ann Patchett
April Book – Switchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini
Caregiver Support Group via Zoom
Dates TBD (one Tuesday evening each month)
hipcil Humpday Happenings is Back!
Every other Wednesday at 6pm via Zoom – contact Meaghan at 201-996-9100 ext. 24 to sign up!
Join us at Hackensack Recreation Center 116 Holt Street, Hackensack, NJ This location is Access Link Accessible
Saturday, October 7 from 12:30 – 3:30 pm
Cost is $10 per person +$5 transportation MUST PRE-REGISTER Please return this RSVP no later than Friday, September 15th There will be limited transportation available. Complete the form below and mail with your check made out to ‘hipcil’
To: hipcil Fall Fun Heightened Independence and Progress 131 Main St. Suite 120 Hackensack, NJ 07601
For any problems on October 7th ONLY call 551-238-7696
In the Winter/Spring newsletter we talked about some of the changes that we anticipated for the new year and I’m happy to report that we have begun to operationalize them and expand our service delivery.
For the past two years the Independent Living Community has developed a new partnership with the NJ Department of Human Services’ Division of Disability Services. This new funding relationship joins our federal grant from the Administration of Community Living, fee for service arrangements with the Division of Developmental Disabilities and NJ Transit Access-Link as well as contracts with the Bergen and Hudson County Departments of Human and Senior Services. Our fundraising efforts yield us unrestricted funds that can be used for creative projects to aid consumers.
With our enhanced resources we have been able to automate the front door of the Bergen office, purchase a Driving Simulator to evaluate a person’s ability to drive, and upgrade the office furniture and equipment. In Hudson we were able to defray the cost of relocating by moving to the ninth floor in a larger and beautifully renovated space in the iconic building at 35 Journal Square.
Despite some staff turnover we can now boast of having 33 full and part-time employees, which signifies a significant growth in the agency and we plan to continue to expand.
Empowering Independence: The Accessible Door Button at Heightened Independence and Progress
By Blagica Jankuloska
Empowering Independence: The Accessible Door Button at Heightened Independence and Progress
By Blagica Jankuloska
At Heightened Independence and Progress, our longstanding commitment to fostering independence for individuals with disabilities is reflected in our actions both within the community and in the workplace. As an organization, we take immense pride in ensuring that people with disabilities can lead autonomous lives. Now, we have gone a step further by installing an accessible push button in our Bergen CIL – an initiative that embodies our dedication to empowering individuals and breaking down barriers.
This accessible door button serves as a testament to our unwavering commitment to inclusivity. We recognize that accessibility is not limited to physical spaces, but extends to every aspect of life, including the workplace. By implementing this simple yet transformative device, we have eliminated a common obstacle that could hinder the mobility and independence of employees with disabilities. With the push of a button, individuals using mobility aids can effortlessly navigate through our office, reducing their reliance on others for assistance and promoting self-sufficiency for both our consumers and employees.
After a short two months of planning, hipcil ventured into some new territory and held a small Gala meant to raise funds to cover activities that have no other financial support. This was a departure because the annual dinner dances had been basically designed as social events for hipcil members. This time the concentration focused more on vendors and colleagues and borrowed from the Russ Berrie Foundation by creating the “hipcil Making a Difference Award”.
The guest of honor and first award recipient of the evening was Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli, who has been a longtime benefactor through his program to donate clothing from the town’s outlets to benefit our consumers in Hudson County. He brought members of his staff and after a great introduction by Trisha Ebel he spoke about his commitment to the residents of his town.
The next three awards went to three longtime members of hipcil’s Board of Trustees, each of whom have served well over 25 years. They are:
· Anna Navatta – Board chairperson who sits on multiple Boards and committees in her three-county jurisdiction.
· Rick Hodgman – hipcil’s longest serving treasurer who has had a long career as a CPA. He is actively involved in the Special Olympics and the Knights of Columbus.
· Betty Fetzer – Board Vice-Chair who enjoyed a long career as a Nurse and who has been involved as her town historian, a longtime supporter of the Girl Scouts and a world traveler.
The evening was quite festive with a lovely buffet, a lively DJ and the opportunity for hipcil to make new friends and forge new alliances. The silent auction included many interesting items that caused some excited bidding. All of us at hipcil hope to continue this success by planning our next even bigger and better gala for the fall of 2024.
hipcil had much to celebrate at this year’s annual Bergen Bassmasters fishing outing, held Saturday, June 3rd at Darlington County Park in Mahwah, NJ. hipcil friends Chris Gagliardi, Kathy Moore, Rich Pietrzak, and Gian Pagliaro all took home prizes!
This wonderful event is something that hipcil looks forward to every year, and we thank all involved in the planning process and for continuing to make this happen!
Joanna Olmedo joined the Bergen hipcil staff in March 2023. She brings a wealth of knowledge and a strong passion for making a positive impact in the lives of others. Currently pursuing her master’s degree in clinical Mental Health, Joanna holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, which serves as a solid foundation for her work.
At hipcil, Joanna serves as a dedicated team member for case management. Her goal is to provide comprehensive support and resources to individuals with disabilities, ensuring they receive the assistance they need to thrive.
As a single mom of three boys, Joanna understands the value of empathy and compassion. Her personal experiences have deepened her commitment to helping people with disabilities. She firmly believes in the potential of every individual and strives to empower them to live fulfilling lives.
Outside of work, Joanna finds solace and rejuvenation in nature. She enjoys going on hikes, breathing in the fresh air, and taking in the beauty of her surroundings. Joanna is deeply connected to her community and actively participates in various community initiatives. Her strong ties to her faith provide her with a sense of purpose and guide her in making a difference in the lives of others.
hipcil receives many contributions from individuals and the community throughout the year. We thank the following for their recent exceptional generosity:
The Hudson picnic took place on May 19th in the picnic area of Liberty State Park. Spending a sunny day outdoors together was exactly what everyone needed after years of COVID regulations. The Hudson picnic was full of laughs, delicious food (including lunch, snacks and dessert), and fun games. There was a kiosk offering shade that allowed everyone to relax while enjoying the warm breeze.
During the picnic, the hipcil consumers had a great time participating in the different activities. Some consumers enjoyed playing basketball, baseball, skeeball, and board games while others listened to music and danced. The day was a joyful success with so many wonderful moments.
The Bergen CIL staff has been having a great time picking calendar raffle winners and mailing out prizes, including a big win of $100 on July 4th! Looking forward to a fun summer of winners!
Blindness isn’t a tragic binary — it’s a rich spectrum
When does vision loss become blindness? Writer, audio producer and editor Andrew Leland explains how his gradual loss of vision revealed a paradoxical truth about blindness — and shows why it might have implications for how all of us see the world.
