Brevard Town Hall Autism-Disabilities VOICE
The forum’s goal is to create a positive atmosphere
for discussion & generate ideas on how
professionals & providers in our Brevard community
can strengthen and develop services for
individuals and families dealing with Autism
Spectrum Disorder & Disabilities as a whole.
Communication & Collaboration is the
Key!
Recap of the last Town Hall Meeting:
Our last Brevard Town Hall Autism–Disabilities
Meeting was hosted at the Space Coast
Health Foundation in Rockledge on Dec 19th,
2019. The event opened with a few of our local
young adults with disabilities sharing their success,
obstacles and overall experiences here in
Brevard County. Thank you to Betsy Farmer &
Diane Dickson for their insight. Special thanks
to Candice Whiting, Remington Brown, Ashley
McGraff, Tim Cravin, Mary Cohen, and
Elyssa Sagall for being such an inspiration. We
were also privileged to have in our attendance
State Representatives Randy Fine & Rene
Plasencia (Coach P), both of whom were very
accommodating and willing to answer questions
about our local community. In addition
there were a number of our local community
partners on hand to answer questions and give
updates and/or suggestions about the state of
affairs in Brevard County. In particular I would
like to thank our Space Coast Transit (SCAT)
team, Carmen Baez & Lance Parker for their
participation. We would also like to thank Tiki
Fiol for her updates regarding the Medicaid
issues related to services & treatments (ABA,
Speech, & O/T).
Issues Identified Within Our Local
Community: • Transportation Shortage
• Sub-Minimal Wages • Lack of Housing Options
• Mental Health Programs & Supports
• Respite, Afterschool, Summer Program Options
for Kids & Teens • Employment, Training
& Programs for Adults with Disabilities
Over the Age of 22 • Medicaid Issues Related
to Services and Treatments • ABA, Speech
Therapy, Occupational Therapy
Call to Action:
• “Follow My Lead” campaign—Calling for
local leaders to create opportunities for people
with disabilities & modeling an inclusive
community • Working with SCAT to develop
a better dialogue with our disabilities community,
need for increased funding to access
transportation • Setup a Task Force comprised
of cross sector stakeholders to identify # of
individuals impacted, funds needed & community
solutions
-We want to know what’s on your Mind-
Follow us on Facebook:
Brevard Town Hall Disability Advocacy
Every Vote Counts, Our Disabilities Community
has a VOICE that is worthy of being
heard
Know who your political officials are, for
more information: http://bit.ly/2J1U6v6
Disability Rights Florida: disabilityrightsflorida.
org
Medicaid iBudget Redesign: Official Comments
from Disability Rights Florida http://
bit.ly/397wwrw
To RSVP or get involved contact: Jackie Yearby
631-807-2974 Joseph Werner 321-768-6800
Diane Dickson 321-355-4222
Space Coast — Summer/Fall 2020 13
/2J1U6v6