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Executive Director's Message
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Happy New Year! We hope your 2021 is off to a good start!
Please join us in January for our Private and Pubic Zoom Meetings and mark your calendar for more exciting public zooms over the next 9 months leading up to our big main event, Skills for Life 5 1/2: Still Connected. Sponsor information is included below and event registration will be coming over the next few months.
In other news, make sure you check out our updates on the Adaptive Equipment Publication below, we can't cross the finish line and get the document published without your help! And please wish Ronnie well on his third annual bowling tournament fundraiser benefitting ESFL. We will share photos/updates in February's newsletter. Last but not least, don't forget, financial assistance is still available for those dealing with COVID-19 hardships.
We are looking forward to seeing everyone more often and we are counting down the days to October 2022 when we will meet in Houston, TX and be together in person again!
Enhancing Skills for Life, 501c3, was formed in 2016 to support those missing both arms or all four limbs. Please stay subscribed to these emails and bookmark our website to keep up to date with the latest information in our organization. Please forward this email to friends, family and colleagues.
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Private Monthly
Zoom Meetings
We have been hosting Tips n Tricks Zoom meetings since May 2020 and have covered kitchen gadgets, technology hacks, dressing, bathing, toileting, taking care of your caretaker, coping & grief, as well as make-up & hair. Please join us on February 17, 2021 at 4pm central for a Caregiver's Only Meetup, moderated by Judy Benitez and Mike Lentz. Contact us for login information, if you are not a member of the Skills for Life Facebook closed group.
Public Quarterly
Zoom Meetings
Starting in 2021 we will hold public informational Zoom sessions. Please mark January 27 on your calendars for COVID-19 and Bilateral Upper Limb Loss moderated by Skills for Life's medical director, Danielle Melton, MD and Mike St Onge.
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Ronnie Hindsman's 3rd Annual Bowling Tournament Fundraiser
Ronnie lost both his arms in a work accident on June 29, 2004. He attended his first Skills for Life workshop in 2008. Ronnie described this event as life changing because he learned so much from meeting with others like him. He wanted to ensure that these Skills for Life workshops continued so he began hosting a bowling tournament fundraiser in 2019. To date, Ronnie has raised over $21,000 benefiting Enhancing Skills for Life, 501c3. The third annual tournament will be held February 6-7, 2021 in Livingston, TX. Ronnie is currently looking for donated items to be raffled off or bid on in the silent auction. Monetary donations are also welcome so that raffle and silent auction items can be purchased. Contact us if you are interested in donating anything.
For more information about Ronnie's annual bowling tournament click here.
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Adaptive Equipment Publication - We Need YOUR Photos!
We have received quote a few inquiries about when this document will be ready. Just to clarify, we are unable to use the current placeholder images from Amazon
as they are copyrighted. Please send your photos by clicking on the below link. We can not complete or publish this document without your help.
In case you have not heard, Enhancing Skills for Life is working on bringing to life a comprehensive publication that outlines the various pieces of adaptive equipment individuals living with bilateral upper limb loss or quad limb loss utilize for activities of daily living (ADL's). As part of this ambitious project we are seeking to crowdsource photos from you the end users of these items. From bidets to cutting boards. From back scrubbers to wireless charging pads. Whatever you use to make your life easier send us a photo and we will include it in the publication as well as an acknowledgement in the list of contributors. The photos can either be of you using the device or just the device itself and the device can be commercially available or homemade.
CLICK HERE to upload your images. When you submit, we would like you to include the following: 1) your email address in case we have any questions about the image 2) your name as you would like it to appear in the photo credit or acknowledgment section and 3) description of your image(s). Please contact us if you have any questions.
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SFL 5 1/2: Still Connected
Sponsors Needed for our Virtual Event
Skills for Life 5 1/2: Still Connected will take place online October 15-16, 2021 - SAVE THE DATES! After careful research of the various virtual event vendors, we have found our home for this event, more information on this coming soon. We would love to make this online event as similar to the in person meeting with breakout rooms, chats, exhibitor booths, presentations and Q&A. These various virtual event vendors each offer their own unique features and each come with a price tag. Our planning committee and board of directors have unanimously voted to make this online event FREE to ALL attendees. That being said, we are hoping to at least be able to cover the costs associated with an online platform. Please consider becoming a SFL 5 1/2 sponsor to helps us keep our community connected. Please contact us with questions or to discuss opportunities. Click here for additional information about sponsorships or the below button to become a sponsor. Be on the lookout for program/schedule as well as event registration in the coming months.
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Financial Assistance
Limb loss individuals may apply for scholarships to attend Skills for Life workshops or other events where there are opportunities for face to face interaction with individuals missing at least both arms or all four limbs (Amputee Coalition National Conference, Quad Squad Muster, Camp No Limits, etc). Financial aid requests need to be completed and submitted online.
COVID-19 financial aid is also still available for those in need. Please be as thorough as possible in your applications and provide good contact information as follow up emails or phone calls may be necessary. Please contact Kristi Turner or Shawn Johnson with any questions.
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ESFL is an AmazonSmile Charity
Consider choosing Enhancing Skills for Life as your 501c3 charity on AmazonSmile! When customers shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to Enhancing Skills for Life. When first visiting AmazonSmile, you will be prompted to select a charitable organization. Why not choose Enhancing Skills for Life? OR click here to change your current AmazonSmile charity to ESFL today!
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Contact Us | 713-240-8336 | Email |
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Enhancing Skills for Life, 501c3
Board of Directors
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Rod McCracken, Chair
| Harold Sears, PhD | Samoana Matagi | | Jeff Mulvogue, Treasurer | Gerry Stark, CP | Karen Lundquist | | Mike St Onge, Secretary | Annae Jones | Mara Hersbach |
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Skills for Life Planning Committee
Shawn Swanson Johnson, OT (co-chair)
Kristi Turner, OT (co-chair)
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Diane Atkins, OT
| Scott Hosie, CP
| Levin Sliker | | Jon Batzdorff, CP | Rod McCracken | Fanny Schultea, CP
| John Dombo
| Danielle Melton, MD
| Mike St Onge
| Wendy Hill, OT
| Eric Nelson
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Patricia Tully, OT
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