December 2017 Newsletter
Season’s Greetings from the Sonoma-Marin SCI
Support Group!
The next meeting of the Sonoma-Marin SCI Support Group will be held on Monday,
December 18, 2017 from 4 – 5:30 pm in the Clubhouse at the Azure Apartment complex in
Petaluma (5 Indigo Drive). Newcomers are always welcome! Call Stan at 707-774- 6466 for more
info.
Note that our name has changed! We have a number of members who reside in Marin
County and we thought it appropriate that our name recognize that fact. Everything else
remains the same.
Ever heard of On the Level? The San Francisco based business has as its goal to share the joys
of visiting the “city by the bay” with people of all abilities, ages and interests. They offer site-
seeing tours that are more personal, intimate, and can reveal hidden gems that are often
overlooked by traditional tours. Their excursions have no hills or steps; are a length of 1 mile or
less; provide for wide, uncrowded walkways; have places to rest and safe environments to
explore. Check them out at http://www.onthelevelsf.com , or call Marilyn Straka at 415-921-
1382.
On November 30 support group members Patrick Naredo and Stan Kosloski joined Lake Kowell
and Inga Lizdenyte from the Disability Services and Legal Center (DSLC) to conduct an in-
service training event for the rehab staff at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Lake and Inga are
also members of our support group, but for the purposes of this training represented DSLC
where they are employed. Resources available from each organization were shared with PTs,
OTs, Nursing and Social Work staff.
Save the date! DSLC has a new date for their Tech Expo that was postponed in October
due to the fires in and around Santa Rosa. The new date for the Tech Expo is Friday, May 11,
2018 from 10am – 3pm. Everything remains the same, only a different date. If you need more
information contact Inga Lizdenyte (inga@mydslc.org) or Lake Kowell (lake@mydslc.org).
Ever thought of skiing? Achieve Tahoe is based in Truckee at Alpine Meadows. If you're looking
for action and adventure, why not try snow skiing? They have adaptive equipment to
fit nearly everyone. To see all what they have to offer here's the link http://achievetahoe.org/
The Berkeley-based Center for Independent Living (CIL) has produced a second video of
assistive technology equipment for people with SCI and others with mobility disabilities. In this
episode they travel to sunny Alameda and conquer its sandy beaches with the Vipamat
Hippocampe, and the Natural Access beach wheelchair:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuGWVCe2nWA
Have you ever discovered someone illegally parked in an accessible parking zone and wished
you could say or do something? Now you can! Simply slip one of these informative reminders,
provided by United Spinal, under the offender’s windshield wiper and you’ve made your
point. https://www.unitedspinal.org/pdf/parkingpad.pdf
The below link leads to an article and photos posted by the online magazine Atlas
Obscura about the 1977 504 Demonstration in San Francisco. Many of the photos were
taken by two members of the Sonoma-Marin SCI support group, Anthony Tusler and HolLynn
D’Lil . The demonstration was a seminal event in disability civil rights history.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/504-sit- in-san- francisco-1977- disability-rights- advocacy
MISSION OF THE SONOMA COUNTY SCI SUPPORT GROUP
To assist those newly injured with spinal cord injury or disease as well as those who continue to be affected by long-standing disabilities. We meet the third Monday of the month at the Azure Apartments Clubhouse, 7 Indigo Drive - Petaluma from 4:00 to 5:30 pm.
We are here to support each other in every way possible by providing useful, up-to-date information about services and products as well as an atmosphere that allows for discussion of personal challenges and solutions to everyday problems.
Contact person: Stan Kosloski – 707-774-6466 or stankosloski@gmail.com