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It's the Season of Giving...Thanks
T'is the season for giving a year-end donation to your favorite charity. But this year we are putting a new twist on the giving season. In the next few weeks leading up to Giving Tuesday on December 1, instead of asking, we want to be the ones doing the giving.
Our staff works hard every day to advocate for people with disabilities. But it takes much more than our staff to do this work. It really does take a village. We could not do this work without financial support from our funders and individuals, the leadership of our Board, guidance from our PAIMI Council, the time and resources of private attorneys, colloboration with community partners, and many others.
This newsletter is dedicated to giving thanks to all of YOU, the members of our village!
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Funders and Financial Supporters
DRTx would like to extend its gratitude to our federal funders and to our primary state funding source, the Texas Access to Justice Foundation. We also receive regular support from private foundations and law firms.
Though the largest portion of our funding is from these sources, we're excited to see an increase in donations from the general public in the past few years.
Thank you to our funders and those individuals who have given financially or raised money for us on Facebook so we can continue to advocate for the rights of Texans with disabilities.
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Board of Directors
The DRTx Board of Directors has the critical role of governing the work of our organization. The Board includes people from across the state who are representative of the cultural and ethnic diversity of Texas. They are people with disabilities, family members of people with disabilities, and professionals with experience in disability issues.
Our Board members give many hours of their own personal time to attend meetings, participate in committees, and review and approve organizational initiatives and budgets. Their vision, expertise, compassion, and generosity are critical to our agency's success.
Thank you to our Board of Directors, both present and past, for the countless hours of time and thought you give to make us successful.
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PAIMI Advisory Council
The Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) Act of 1986 provides for one of our major federal funding sources. It requires our agency to have an Advisory Council to guide us on policies and priorities to be carried out in protecting and advocating for the rights of people with mental illness. The DRTx PAIMI Council is comprised of diverse people with lived experience, family members of those with lived experience, and mental health professionals.
We thank the members of our PAIMI Advisory Council, present and past, for how they generously give of their personal time to participate in meetings, review materials, and provide insights and advice to our staff.
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Pro Bono Attorneys
Pro bono attorneys are critical to our work. Every year we receive many more requests for our services that we can fulfill due to limited funding and staff. Attorneys who donate their time and legal expertise to our clients allow us to serve more people. They also often help defray court costs and give additional generous financial donations to us which also helps us serve more clients.
In just the past year, attorneys from several private firms have given hundreds of hours of time to assist on individual or systemic casework related to voting, special education, supported decision making, and more. We are so thankful to each one of them for their dedication to our clients.
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Other Nonprofit Disability Organizations
Included in our village are more than 50 other nonprofits that we regularly partner with in a variety of ways. Some serve as co-counsel or plaintiffs on complaints and lawsuits. Others join us by signing on to important requests sent to state and local government officials. Some work with us on educating lawmakers about policies that impact people with disabilities. Others expand our public outreach by featuring our staff in webinars and trainings. Working together, we expand our ability to educate more people about their rights and our capacity to bring large scale changes that advance the rights of more Texans with disabilities. Thank you to all of our community partners!
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Law Clerks and Advocate Volunteers
During the summer months (and sometimes at other times of the year) our conference rooms and law libraries in our offices throughout the state are filled with law students. (Of course during the pandemic, they fill our virtual offices through Zoom.) They work on research projects, reports, and other activities that support our attorneys' casework. Many of them go on to work for nonprofits, and some even return to us as employees.
We also have people who volunteer their time to help advocate for clients because of their passion for this work.
Thank you to our law clerks and volunteers!
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To all of those who support us financially or with your time, we thank you for your generosity! We couldn't do this work without you!
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Need Help?
If you are a Texan with a disability who believes any of your disability rights have been violated, please call us at:
- Statewide Intake Line: 1-800-252-9108
- Sign Language Video Intake Line at 1-866-362-2851
- Purple 2 Video Phone Line: 512-271-9391
Intake hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Also closed on major holidays.
Online Intake Available 24/7
DRTX Quick Links:
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Disability Rights Texas (previously named Advocacy Inc.) is the federally designated legal protection and advocacy agency (P&A) for people with disabilities in Texas. Its mission is to help people with disabilities understand and exercise their rights under the law, ensuring their full and equal participation in society. Visit www.DRTx.org for more information.
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