In observance of October as Disability Awareness month, the Williston Committee on Employment and the Advancement of People with Disabilities (CEAD) is sponsoring a Disability Awareness Fair 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at Williston State College, The community is invited to attend.

Nearly 30 informational booths will be on display in the old WSC gym. Some 18 presenters will provide information on such topics as services available to people with disabilities, employment, education, veterans and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, mental health recovery and the “white cane.” A panel of workers with disabilities will tell their stories. These presentations will take place in the Green Room at the college beginning at 8:15 a.m. and continuing throughout the day ending at 7 p.m. Tuesday. There will be a noon break.

Jim Hodges aka “Six Strings Stu” will give a musical performance in the Student Center at the college from noon to 1 p.m. He plays guitar and sings a mixture of country, rock, folk and blues. Jim currently lives in Crosby, but he was born in California and raised in the Midwest.

While living in Baltimore, he was assaulted and hospitalized in a coma. As a result, he is legally blind and has a seizure disorder. He is currently performing under a Music Fellowship Award from the North Dakota Council of the Arts.

The Williston Committee on the Employment and Advancement of People with Disabilities (CEAD) was established in April 2004 by the Williston City Commissioners. The group has met monthly with the purpose of promoting employment opportunities, increasing public awareness, improving physical accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of community life; all of which is believed necessary for anyone, regardless of ability or disability, to attain and/or sustain independence and a sense of productivity that comes with employment and community. The CEAD meets the third Wednesday of the month at 3:30pm in the basement of Job Service in Williston.

For further information contact Janelle Olson at 774-4345 or Penny Pozgay at 770-5408.

A NETWORK OF HELP

Among the organizations to be represented Tuesday are: Community Action, Community Options; Diabetes Prevention Program - Indian Health Services; New Town; Experience Works; Family Crisis Shelter; Family Recovery Home; Holland America; Independence Inc.; Job Service of North Dakota; Legal Services of North Dakota; MedQuest; Mercy Medical Center; National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI); North Dakota Association of the Blind (NDAB); North Dakota Association for the Disabled (NDAD); North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities- Comprehensive Employment Systems;

North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities North Dakota Disability Health Project; North Dakota Center for Persons with Disabilities - Remote Real-time On-Line Captioning Project; North Dakota Protection and Advocacy; Opportunity Foundation; Parenting Coalition; Parents Advocating for Their Child’s Happiness (Patch); Rehab Consulting and Services; Upper Missouri District Health Unit; Williston Basin Resource Coalition; Williston Council on the Ageing/Public Transit.

SCHEDULE

8:15 to 8:30 a.m.- The Committee on Employment and the Advancement of People with Disabilities.(CEAD), Mayor Ward Koeser & President Penny Pozgay.

8:30 to 9:15 a.m. - Rehab Consulting and Services, Paul Jorgenson

9:30 to 10:15 a.m. - Independence Inc., Therese Besemann

10:30 to 10:50 a.m. - What are QSP Services?, Charlie robinson

10:50 to 11:50 a.m. - “In Our Own Voices” (NAMI), Skipp Miller & Janet Sabol

Entertainment by Jim Hodges aka “Six String Stu” - Student Center

1:15 to 2:15 p.m. - Panel of workers with disabilities.

2:30 to 3:25 p.m. - Veterans Services & Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, Bob Evans & Jim Savegeau,

3:30 to 3:45 p.m. - NDCPD Promoting Work Incentives, Lisa Johnson

4:00 to 4:45 p.m. - Mental Health Recovery, Dawn Bonner

4:50 to 5:15 p.m. -It’s a white cane not a “stick!”, Janelle Olson

5:30 to 6:00 p.m. - Special Education Services, Shawn Huss, WilMac Special Education

6:05 to 7:00 p.m. - “Accommodating a Strong Workforce and More,” Vickay Gross, Protection and Advocacy