The U.S. House of Representatives released its draft of the 2018 Farm Bill, and AgrAbility is included. The bill also clarifies the veterans with disabilities are eligible for AgrAbility services if they, "are engaged in farming or farm-related occupations; or are pursuing new farming opportunities.’’ (emphasis added)
Click here to see a copy fo the bill. AgrAbility is called the ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM FOR FARMERS WITH DISABILITIES and is noted on pp. 431-32 of the PDF.
Please note that the 2018 Farm Bill still has a long way to go before it becomes law.
Submitted by Paul Jones
A reminder to all SRAP personnel who are involved with demographics collection and/or reporting that there will be an AgrAbility Demographics interactive webinar next Wednesday, April 18, 2018 at 1:00 PM Eastern, 12:00 PM Central, 11:00 AM Mountain, and 10:00 AM Pacific time.
The goals of the webinar are:
(Please note that the last bullet-point is for those who are not familiar with, or who want a refresher on, the NAP Excel Collection Tool. Those who are experienced with the tool may feel free to leave the webinar prior to that demonstration.)
The URL is https://purdue.webex.com/meet/baldwi19 . You can choose "Call Me" or "I Will Call In" for phone use or "Call Using Computer" for Internet audio. (You may need to click More Options at the bottom of audio icon to get those options.) If you choose, “I will Call In,” you will be prompted to enter a toll-free number, access code, and attendee ID#.
Submitted by Chuck Baldwin
AgrAbility National Training Workshop 2018 – A Success!
Portland, Maine, the Westin Portland Harborview, and our Maine AgrAbility Team set the stage for a great 2018 NTW.
With almost 100 individuals that spoke or presented, over 55 educational sessions, 5 tours, and 241 attendees representing 35 states and two countries, there was an abundance of knowledge shared!
The event kicked off on Monday, March 19th with a pre-conference tour highlighting the IRIS Network and Goodwill of Northern New England’s Neuro Rehab Center, as well as two pre-conference training sessions. Tuesday and Wednesday were packed with classroom sessions and our outdoor AT Show-and-Tell. A highlight for many was hearing retired SGT Travis Mills tell his story of thriving as a quadruple amputee. Following Travis’ talk, the annual auction took place. Through the generous donors and bidders, we were able to raise funds that will bring farmers to future events.
Look forward to news on the 2019 NTW soon!
Submitted by JoBeth Rath
The NAP recently completed a mailing to all APRIL member centers for independent living and affiliated organizations. Now would be a great time to reach out to the CILs in your state for networking and collaboration. The mailing included:
Find your state's CILs at http://www.ilru.org/projects/cil-net/cil-center-and-association-directory