Mandy Smith

RCIL’s Annual Trunk or Treat

By Mandy Smith | October 11, 2019

RCIL will be hosting it’s annual Trunk or Treat on October 30th from 5:00pm-6:00pm.  It is held at our Osage City office (1137 Laing).  As always we will have candy, goodies, and FREE hot dogs! Bring your family out to enjoy a fun filled evening. If you would like to donate to this effort or…

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Kansas Health Foundation Grant Received

By Mandy Smith | August 28, 2019

The Resource Center for Independent Living, Inc. (RCIL) is pleased to announce that it has received an $826 grant from the Kansas Health Foundation-El Dorado Fund through the El Dorado Community Foundation affiliate of Central Kansas Community Foundation. The organization will use the funds for Resource Library Technology Improvements at the El Dorado RCIL office.…

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Two Blind Brothers

By Mandy Smith | August 9, 2019

Bradford and Bryan Manning, were diagnosed with Stargardt’s  (a form of macular degeneration) at a young age.  They have since started a clothing company, “Two Blind Brothers” that profits help with finding a cure for blindness.  Something I thought was awesome, is they have Braille incorporated in all of their clothing. Here is a clip…

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Update from Mandy

By Mandy Smith | July 18, 2019

I thought I would switch things up a bit and instead of posting about what other places were doing or events going on, I’d talk about myself.  This week I celebrated 10 years at RCIL.  Crazy to think how far I’ve come in those 10 years professionally and personally.  The older blind program that I…

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NCIL hosting training for Campaign Training for People with Disabilities

By Mandy Smith | June 26, 2019

Follow the link to Time Magazine’s article- People With Disabilities Face Challenges Campaigning for Office. This Group Wants to Change That.  This article discusses how the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) is hosting webinars to help people with disabilities became strong leaders and enter politics.    

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2019 Chiefs Tickets Fundraiser

By Mandy Smith | May 14, 2019

RCIL is participating in the Chiefs Ticket Fundraiser again this year.  This year is a little different as the tickets range in price but RCIL will receive $10 per ticket! There are 10 home games to chose from this season. New this year you can purchase tickets to Monster Jam and International Champion Cup both…

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South Central Kansas Employment First Summit

By Mandy Smith | April 25, 2019

Employment First Summit is an opportunity for professionals, employers, job coaches, caregivers, people with disabilities, family members, students, etc. to learn about raising awareness, increasing opportunities, and sustaining competitive, integrated employment for people with disabilities. This event is FREE thanks to our sponsor Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities and will be held Friday, May 3rd. …

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Autism Summit 2019

By Mandy Smith | April 4, 2019

Friday April 26, will be the 2019 Autism Summit from 8:45am-3:00pm.  This conference is for anyone who supports a child with autism (parent, teacher, caregiver, etc.) . You can register for free at Autism Summit.  The Summit will include a keynote speaker in the morning about building social skills from childhood to young adulthood. The…

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Older Blind Program: iKan-RCIL

By Mandy Smith | March 13, 2019

As I get ready to get in the car for today’s appointments, I thought I would take this rainy morning to remind everyone of iKan-RCIL.  iKan-RCIL is a program for those who are 55 years and older and have a vision loss caused by such conditions as Glaucoma, Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Diabetic Retinopathy, and many…

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2019 Ms. Wheelchair Kansas Crowning Cermony

By Mandy Smith | February 22, 2019

The Ms. Wheelchair Kansas (MWKS) crowning ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, March 3, 2019, 2 p.m. at the DoubleTree Hotel in Lawrence, Kan. The ceremony will be open to the public and free of charge. It will include platform speech presentations by the contestants; a keynote speech from Ms. Wheelchair Missouri, Hilary Muehlberger; farewell from…

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February Low Vision Awareness Month

By Mandy Smith | February 1, 2019

February is Low Vision Awareness month so I’d like to share some knowledge on this topic. 1.) Low vision is a vision loss that makes it difficult to accomplish visual tasks even with the best possible correction, but with the potential for use of available vision, with or without optical or non-optical compensatory visual strategies,…

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Kidzfest El Dorado

By Mandy Smith | January 24, 2019

Macy Collins, ILS in our El Dorado office, attended the Kidzfest on Saturday, January 5th.  This was held at Blackmore Elementary School and included fun activities, exhibits, and information about community resources.  If you’d like more information about Kidzfest you can follow them on Twitter @eldokidzfest or KIDZFEST El Dorado on Facebook.

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14 Weeks to a Healthier You – Free program

By Mandy Smith | January 15, 2019

If you or someone you know has a mobility limitation or chronic illness and wants to be more physically active in 2019, we have you covered! The “14 Weeks to a Healthier You” program is a FREE online exercise and nutrition program for people with disabilities. Sign up now and start moving more this year!…

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Offices closed for holidays

By Mandy Smith | December 12, 2018

All RCIL offices will be closed on December 24th and 25th for observance of Christmas.  They will also be closed on January 1st, 2019 for New Year’s Day.   Thank you and Happy Holidays to All!

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Happy Thanksgiving

By Mandy Smith | November 21, 2018

RCIL would like to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!  All offices will be closed Thursday, November 22nd and Friday, November 23rd.  We will reopen Monday, November 26th at 8:00am.  

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More Games Added!

By Mandy Smith | November 15, 2018

How about them Chiefs!  If you missed your chance to see them with our fundraiser you’ll be happy to know three more games have been added for next month!  Tickets are $33.50 and RCIL will receive $10 of that! https://www.chiefs.com/tickets/ticketfundraiser Supplies are limited so get your tickets soon!  Thank you for supporting RCIL and Go Chiefs!

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Busy, busy, busy

By Mandy Smith | October 15, 2018

Fall seems like a busy time of the year for everyone and here are some more items for your list: Register to vote!  Tomorrow, October 16th, is the last day to register to vote in the election on November 6th.  The disability population holds the largest amount of voters!  Don’t forget, if it’s difficult to…

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Amazon Smile Fundraiser

By Mandy Smith | September 18, 2018

Do you shop on Amazon? If so you can donate to RCIL without spending any extra money! RCIL has registered with AmazonSmile Foundation which 0.5% of eligible purchases from Amazon are donated to a charity of the shopper’s choice.  All you have to do is when you go to www.amazon.com it will ask you to…

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HCBS Stakeholders Meetings

By Mandy Smith | September 7, 2018

The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services also known as KDADS is seeking feedback from Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) stakeholders as they are planning waiver renewals.  KDADS will be hosting regional meetings along with two options to call in.  These forums are opportunities for KDADS to hear feedback on what you think…

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KanCare Program Updates

By Mandy Smith | August 29, 2018

There will be changes made to the KanCare program but they will not affect your eligibility for the program.  The state will be hosting non-mandatory meetings next week including one in Olathe, Wichita, and a conference call.  State staff will be present at meetings to provide information on what is and what is not changing…

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Chiefs FUNdraiser!

By Mandy Smith | July 18, 2018

Support Resource Center for Independent Living, Inc. by going to a Kansas City Chiefs game!   It’s fun and easy! Click here to purchase your tickets:   KC Chiefs Tickets Choose as many tickets as you would like and enter the promo code:  RCILINC RCIL will receive $10 for each ticket purchased. Each ticket costs $33.50.  Funds raised will…

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Women’s Health and Disability Study

By Mandy Smith | May 23, 2018

Researchers from The University of Michigan Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation are doing a research project on women’s health and disability. They are interested in connecting with women with physical disabilities living in Lyon County. We are helping spread the word to women in our community! The researchers want to hear from you and…

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April – Awareness Month

By Mandy Smith | April 23, 2018

I’m sure you have seen “Awareness Month” for one reason or another from month to month.  I know April is almost over but I thought I’d share some facts and resources about this month’s observations including Autism Awareness and Parkinson’s Awareness. Autism Awareness Month http://www.autism-society.org/get-involved/national-autism-awareness-month/ Autism short of Autism Spectrum Disorder is a development disability 1 out of 68 children have…

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Kansas Renters Seminar

By Mandy Smith | April 16, 2018

Wednesday, April 18th, in Emporia attend a free seminar on everything you need to know about renting! This training is for landlords (https://tinyurl.com/EmporiaLANDLORD2018) or tenants (http://tinyurl.com/EmporiaTENANT2018) Follow link or call (785) 234-0217 for more information or to register.

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SILCK Annual Report

By Mandy Smith | April 3, 2018

Check out State Independent Living Council of Kansas’ annual report below. SILCK Annual Report (PDF) SILCK Annual Report (text only) For questions or more information contact Kathy Cooper (785) 234-6990 or Kathy.cooper@silck.org

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