OCDAC Newsletter September 12, 2005

Dear Friends,

Disaster preparedness information all seem to dominate most of the
disability advocacy news channels this month with September 11 just
passing by and the Katrina recovery still dominating the news. We
have our own resources on disaster preparedness available to you.
They are;

Guide To Preparing For And Dealing With Terrorism
http://www.deafadvocacy.com/terorism.htm

What To Do When An Earthquake Happens
http://www.deafadvocacy.com/quake.htm

Disaster Preparedness for Service Animals Owners
http://www.deafadvocacy.com/sanodp.htm

Dealing with California Rolling Blackouts
http://www.deafadvocacy.com/blackout.htm

It's very important that you spend some time once in a while preparing
yourself and your household for a disaster.

We got more invites to do educational booths at 2 more health fairs in
Orange County in October! People really loved our Orange County fair
booth!

We have an educational booth at the Fountain Valley Job Fair at the
City Center this coming Thursday and we're prepared for it! Our
materials will heavily focus on helping deaf workers co-exist well
with their hearing co-workers.

We've finished up preparing for the Deaf festival that's taking place
in Van Nuys later on this month. We will have a lot of information
and resources in many different languages. Los Angeles is a very
diverse county and we will have our information available in diverse
languages.

We've added a new section to the newsletter that lets you know what's
happening in the deaf communities in California in the current month.
They could be events, conferences, or educational presentations.

OCDAC Communications

-------------< INSIDE NEWS >

This Thursday and Friday our our bowling nights fundraisers at
Westminster lanes 6pm to 9pm.

We still need a volunteer coordinator who will help us keep in touch
with volunteers and to contact them and make sure they are given the
opportunities to participate in our activities. Our volunteer list has
grown dramatically during the fair. We really need help managing them.

We have decided to eliminate our Rose parade fundraiser and replace it
with a bigger times square like event at the Orange County
Fairgrounds.

We also need committees for the Pirate's festival, Silverado Festival,
and Winter Festival fundraisers as well.

We have also started on our Deaf Expo (Mata.tv) planning for the event
in November in Long Beach.

-------------< OUTSIDE NEWS >

Hearing-Impaired Victims of Hurricane Katrina to Receive Free Hearing
Aids
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=
104&STORY=/www/story/09-07-2005/0004102431&EDATE=

Deaf Students Protest at Fresno City College
http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=local&id=3429612

Help For the Hearing Impaired
http://www.kfyrtv.com/showNews.asp?whatStory=4128

St. John's more accessible to the disabled
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/travel/3343959

Dedicated teachers give disabled children a future
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-09/10/content_3469769.htm

Former local woman aids the hearing impaired in Texas
http://www.dailypress.net/community/story/098202005_com01-c0908.asp

Delray non-profit clinic caters to hearing-impaired and deaf
http://www.bocaratonnews.com/index.php?src=news&pr
id=12410&category=BUSINESS%20NEWS

Disabled persons call for level playing field
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=89768

Miss Deaf America Visits La Crosse
http://www.wxow.com/news/publish/articles/article_2790.shtml

Disabled Workers Love Their Jobs
http://www.challengernky.com/articles/2005/09/11/f
aith-values/doc4320882fda74f403478226.txt

Unable to hear, many were left lost
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/3348415

Hearing impaired cry out for help
http://www.gov.bw/cgi-bin/news.cgi?d=20050906&i=He
aring_impaired_cry_out_for_help

-------------< CALIFORNIA DEAFIE HAPPENINGS >

Spike Out VII National Deaf Prep Volleyball Tournament / Homecoming

Hosted by California School for the Deaf

September 23-24, 2005

-Friday, Sept. 23 -

SPIKE OUT VII VOLLEYBALL
Round Robin Pool Play
All day starting at 9:00 AM

-Saturday, Sept. 24 -

SPIKE OUT VOLLEYBALL

First Round - 8:00 AM, 9:15 AM
Semi-Finals - 10:30 AM, 12:00 PM
5th/6th Place Game - 1:30 PM
3rd/4th Place Game - 3:00 PM
Championship - 3:00 PM

HOMECOMING FOOTBALL GAME
CSD vs. CSD-Riverside - 4:00 PM

Friday Ticket -

Adult - $5 Students (thru 12th grade) - $3 Children 6 and under -
FREE

Saturday Ticket -
Adult - $7 Students (thru 12th grade) - $4 Children 6 and under -
FREE

COMBO Ticket (Friday and Saturday)
Adult - $10 Students (thru 12th grade) - $5 Children 6 and under
- FREE

SPIKE OUT VII Participating Schools:

Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and Blind, California School for
the
Deaf, California School for the Deaf-Riverside, Indiana School for the
Deaf, Maryland School for the Deaf, Model Secondary School for the
Deaf

Check out our student-developed website for more information about
Spike
Out VII and the Homecoming Football Game at:

www.csdf.k12.ca.us <http://www.csdf.k12.ca.us/>

For more information, email or call:

Mark Burke, Athletic Director
California School for the Deaf
39350 Gallaudet Drive
Fremont, CA 94538
510-794-3766
510-794-2422 fax
[email protected]
===============================

Paddy Ladd - Deaf Author of "Understanding Deaf Culture"
A lecturer & MSC Co-coordinator at the Centre for Deaf Studies in
University
of Bristol, UK

Phd in Deaf Culture
Writer, Editor & Contributor of numerous publications
International recognition for his writings and Deaf activism

Friday, September 16th, 2005
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
CSD Little Theatre
39350 Gallaudet Drive
Fremont, California 94538
FREE Admission

Tickets will be available at the Outreach Division
First Come, First Served (345 seats limited)

Lecture will be presented in ASL

The book will be sold and Paddy will be available to sign the book
upon your
purchase.

For more information, contact Cheryl L. Boyd, [email protected]
<mailto:[email protected]> or 510-794-3707

Sponsored by California School for the Deaf, Outreach Division & Deaf
Counseling And Referral Agency
Barbara Morrison
Community Education Coordinator
California School for the Deaf, Fremont
[email protected]
-------------< DEAF GRAPEVINE >
World Deaf Day, September 21 to 24, 2005
http://www.wdd2005groningen.nl/mambo/index.php?opt
ion=com_content&task=section&id=17&Itemid=44

Europe New Year Festival for Sign-language Users 2005/2006
http://www.visualbrain.net/visualnews/visualnews.php?artikel_id_url=65

-------------< BULLETIN >

REMINDER THAT VIDEO RELAY SERVICE (VRS) PROVIDES ACCESS TO THE
TELEPHONE SYSTEM ONLY AND CANNOT BE USED AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR
"IN-PERSON" INTERPRETING SERVICES OR VIDEO REMOTE INTERPRETING (VRI)

The Commission issues this Public Notice to remind VRS providers,
consumers, and businesses that Video Relay Service (VRS) cannot be
used as a substitute for "in-person" interpreting services or for
Video Remote Interpreting (VRI).

VRS, as a form of telecommunications relay service (TRS), is a means
of giving persons with hearing disabilities access to the telephone
system. The obligation of telephone companies to offer TRS is required
by Congress under Title IV of the Americans with Disabilities Act of
1990 (ADA). VRS allows people with hearing disabilities whose primary
language is American Sign Language (ASL) to use the Internet or
another broadband connection to contact a communications assistant
(CA) via video equipment. The CA then makes an outbound telephone call
to a hearing person and relays the call between the two parties.
Currently, the costs for VRS calls are reimbursed from the Interstate
TRS Fund, which is overseen by the Commission, making VRS calls free
for consumers.

By contrast, sign language interpreters facilitate communication
between individuals who use sign language to communicate and those who
do not. An interpreter may be used in many situations - e.g., in
classrooms, during medical appointments, at staff meetings, or for
business transactions - when the parties are together at the same
location. Generally, interpreters are contracted and paid for on a
fee-for service basis. Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) is a service
that is used when an interpreter cannot be physically present to
interpret for two or more persons who are together at the same
location. This service uses a video connection to provide access to an
interpreter who is at a remote location. As with "in-person"
interpreters, VRI services are generally contracted and paid for on a
fee-for-service basis.

VRS is to be used only when a person with a hearing disability, who
absent such disability would make a voice telephone call, desires to
make a call through the telephone system (or when, in the reverse
situation, the hearing person desires to
make such a call to a person with a hearing disability). VRS may not
be used as a substitute for an "in-person" interpreter or a VRI
service.

Although the Commission has previously cautioned about the misuse of
VRS as a substitute for "in-person" sign language interpreting
services or VRI, we continue to receive reports that this is
occurring. We are concerned that the misuse of VRS may be partially
responsible for the large increase in minutes of use of VRS. We
understand that VRS providers generally have procedures in place to
terminate calls where VRS is being used as a way to obtain free
interpreting services. However, we also understand that persons
misusing VRS may be doing so in ways to avoid detection, and are also
publicizing these methods via consumer bulletin boards and other
means.

We are mindful that employers, state and local government entities,
and public accommodations are required under the ADA to provide
persons with hearing disabilities a reasonable accommodation, and that
the accommodation may entail the use of a sign language interpreter.
However, VRS cannot be used as a substitute for using an in-person
interpreter or VRI in situations that would not, absent one of the
parties' hearing disability, entail the use of the telephone.

We will continue to carefully scrutinize the provision and use of VRS
to ensure that it is being used only as a means of accessing the
telephone system, not as a substitute for VRI or as a means to gain
free "in-person" interpreting services. We encourage persons requiring
interpreting service and providing interpreting services, as well as
VRS providers, to report any improper use of VRS to the Commission so
that we may ensure that the Interstate TRS Fund is compensating only
legitimate VRS calls. We will continue to closely monitor alleged
instances of the wrongful use of VRS, and take whatever enforcement
action is necessary and appropriate against such misuse.

The full text of this Public Notice and copies of any subsequently
filed documents relating to this matter will be available for public
inspection and copying during regular business hours at the FCC
Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room
CY-A257, Washington, D.C. 20554. This document and copies of
subsequently filed documents in this matter may also be purchased from
the Commission's duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc.
(BCPI), Portals II, 445 12th Street, S.W., Room CY-B402, Washington,
D.C. 20554. Customers may contact BCPI at its web site,
www.bcpiweb.com or call 1-800-378-3160.

To request materials in accessible formats for people with
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format),
send an e-mail to [email protected] or call the Consumer & Governmental
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY). This
Public Notice can also be downloaded in Word or Portable Document
Format (PDF) at: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro.

For further information regarding this Public Notice, contact Thomas
Chandler, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, Disability Rights
Office, at 202 418-1475 (voice), 202 418-0597 (TTY), or
[email protected].

-------------< ADVOCACY NEWS >

National Council on Disability Calls for Federal Disability Recovery
Plan in Response to Hurricane Katrina

WASHINGTON—The National Council on Disability (NCD) expresses its
deep
concern for the tremendous loss of life and devastation caused in the
southern part of the United States by Hurricane Katrina and urges the
Federal Government to craft a strong coordinated Federal Disability
Recovery Plan for the victims and survivors of the hurricane.

According to NCD chairperson Lex Frieden, "Current data indicates
that
people with disabilities are now most at risk in this
situation—and
will need recovery assistance for months or years. A disproportionate
number of the Hurricane survivors are people with disabilities whose
needs for basic necessities are compounded by chronic health
conditions and functional impairments. Relief agencies must prioritize
efforts and take special steps to address the unique and complex needs
of this population."

NCD's 2005 report titled Saving Lives: Including People with
Disabilities in Emergency Planning
(http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2005/publications.htm)
recommends immediate federal changes in emergency planning for people
with disabilities. NCD encourages Hurricane Katrina responders to
follow the findings and recommendations in this timely report.

"Saving Lives: Including People with Disabilities in Emergency
Planning, NCD's 2005 report, provides an overview of steps the
Federal
Government should take to build a solid and resilient infrastructure
that will enable the government to include the diverse populations of
people with disabilities in emergency preparedness, disaster relief,
and homeland security programs. This infrastructure would incorporate
access to technology, physical plants, programs, and communications.
It also would include procurement and emergency programs and
services."

"NCD commends the Administration and those in leadership
positions for
the issuance of the July 22, 2004, Executive Order on people with
disabilities and emergency preparedness. In addition, NCD acknowledges
the work of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) in their efforts to ensure that
Americans with disabilities are included in the developing
infrastructure."

"All too often in emergency situations the legitimate concerns of
people with disabilities are overlooked or swept aside. In areas
ranging from the accessibility of emergency information to the
evacuation plans for high-rise buildings, great urgency surrounds the
need for responding to the concerns of people with disabilities in all
planning, preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation activities.
The homeland security terrorist event of September 11, 2001, as well
as the recent energy blackouts in the U.S. Northeast and Midwest and,
more recently, the natural disaster hurricane events in Florida, the
tsunami event of 2004, and this most recent event, Hurricane Katrina,
underscore the need to pay attention to the concerns raised in this
report, Frieden said."

The decisions the Federal Government makes, the priority it accords to
civil rights, and the methods it adopts to ensure uniformity in the
ways agencies handle their disability-related responsibilities are
likely to be established in the early days of an emergency situation
and be difficult to change if not set on the right course at the
outset. By way of this report, NCD offers advice to assist the Federal
Government in establishing policies and practices in these areas. This
report provides examples of community efforts with respect to people
with disabilities, but by no means does it provide a comprehensive
treatment of the emergency preparedness, disaster relief, or homeland
security program efforts by state and local governments.

Please visit https://disasterhelp.gov/portal/jhtml/index.jhtml, the
Federal Government's Web portal for disaster information and help.

-------------< ANNOUNCEMENTS >

COME TO OUR MEETUPS! The Orange County American Sign Language Meetup
Group - http://asl.meetup.com/37/ - meets each 3rd Wednesdays of the
month. The Orange County Deaf & Hearing Impaired Meetup Group -
http://deaf.meetup.com/38/ - meets each 1st Saturdays of the month.

Our new ASL class start in the third week of August and the slots are
really being filled now as there is a limit of 8 students per class
for better quality of education and sign language training.

Please visit our iGive store http://www.igive.com/ocdac

Please visit our bookstore that has related books and different kinds
of assistive living devices at http://store.deafadvocacy.org

If you shop at Albertsons and have a community partners card, please
consider adding your card to our list of supporters. You can now
download and print our Albertsons Community Partners signup forms at
Http://www.deafadvocacy.com/AlbertsonsSignup.pdf and have your
friends, neighbors, associates, and relatives sign up as supporters
and then mail it to the address on the form. Our goal is 25,000
supporters who shop at Albertsons. And when you shop at Albertsons,
please dont forget to use the community partners card.

We recycle used cell phones, empty printer and toner cartridges. If
you have any of these to unload from your hands, please send or drop
them at our agency at 2960 Main Street, A100, Irvine, California 92614

-------------< DEAF QUOTES >

"Miscommunication is a common problem. At one Louisiana shelter, a
deaf man attempted to ask a volunteer where he could go to the
bathroom. He held his hand in front of his pelvis, and the volunteer
thought he was being sexually aggressive." Theresa Vaughn, a
volunteer interpreter in Houston

-------------< COMMUNITY BULLHORN >

Subject: HHS Release--Access To Benefits For Hurricane Katrina Victims

Date: September 9, 2005
For Release: Immediately
Contact: HHS Press Office
(202) 690-6343

Headline: SECRETARY LEAVITT ANNOUNCES STREAMLINED ACCESS TO BENEFITS
FOR HURRICANE KATRINA VICTIMS


HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today began a two-day visit with evacuees
in shelters in Georgia, Arkansas, Texas and Tennessee to explain the
wide array of benefits that are being made easily available to those
who have been displaced in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Many victims of the hurricane no longer have the records or legal
documents to help prove their eligibility for benefits from various
government programs. The President has granted special "evacuee"
status to individuals affected by Katrina, which will simplify the
enrollment process for people who need the services of programs like
Medicaid, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Head Start.

"For those persons with evacuee status, we are stripping away many of
the eligibility and enrollment requirements normally needed to apply
for federal benefits," Secretary Leavitt said. "No one who has been a
victim of this disaster should be prevented from getting benefits they
need
because of government red tape."

As part of this streamlining process, states will be given the
flexibility to enroll evacuees without requiring documents such as tax
returns or proof of residency. Evacuees who have lost all
identification and records should be able to give their address or
other simple form of attestation to be eligible.

The special evacuee status will apply to the full range of federal
benefits administered by the states, including HHS programs that
provide services through Medicaid, family assistance through Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), child care support, foster care
assistance,
mental health services and substance abuse treatment services.

State enrollment teams are already set up in many shelters, and many
have 1-800 numbers people can call. Any evacuee can go to the nearest
state or local benefits offices to get information and get enrolled.
Evacuees staying in a home or church that has access to the Internet,
or who can visit a nearby public library with Internet access, can
also enroll by going to www.govbenefits.gov.

-------------< DEAF FRIENDLY JOB OPPORTUNITIES >

2 deaf or hard of hearing mortgage consultants needed for a
Riverside, California mortgage company.

All candidates interested in any of the job opportunities are
required to apply for our job placement services. Our intake form is
at Http://www.deafadvocacy.com/intake.htm

-------------< DEAF FRIENDLY BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES >

Become an owner of a _________.WS website for only $10 a month! All
_________.WS owners automatically become .WS website resellers and it
comes with an automatic selling program and all you have to do is lead
people to your .WS reseller website. The WS stands for 'website'! Link
has video of the program in American Sign Language and is a excellent
self-sufficiency opportunity for people
who want to be on the top of the .WS cyber real estate market. Hearing
people can participate as the reseller link also has a video for them.
Begin your journey toward self-sufficiency by sending a blank email to
[email protected] and it will auto-reply back to you with information
about this fantastic program. And you will get another email message a
few days later with the full explanation of the program.

-------------< LETTERS >

We need letters, comments, and questions from our supporters, readers,
and anyone.

-------------< EPILOG >

If you wish to contribute to this newsletter, feel free to send in
news, stories, and opinions relating to the disability community. Your
support for this effort to move the disability community forward will
be greatly appreciated. We will continue to aggressively pursue
justice, fairness, and equality for the disability community as it has
been doing since November 1996. We have chosen that EDUCATION is the
best way accomplish this objective.

Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center is a community based organization
that puts people with disabilities first in their advocacy for equal
opportunities in safety, health, and productive living.

The Orange County Deaf Advocacy Center provides services for disabled
individuals and their families in our community who need help in
navigating the social services maze go without proper food, shelter,
and essential medical care every day due to a variety of factors
including low wages, job loss, injuries, illness, age, domestic
violence, or divorce. While all of us are susceptible to hard times,
disabled individuals are at the most risk. With the generous support
of people like you, we are able to help many of these families and
individuals not only to meet essential daily needs, but to work toward
a brighter future with programs in job training, education,
counseling, elderly assistance, and temporary housing.

Feel free to forward this email message to any one and any of your
personal mailing lists so we can get the important messages out far
and wide and encourage them to sign up for our weekly newsletter.