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Community Heroes: Announcing the Community Living Fund for North Bay Families

Community Heroes
ANNOUNCING THE COMMUNITY LIVING FUND FOR NORTH BAY FAMILIES

By: Marin Center for Independent Living (Marin CIL) | June 20, 2024

Marin Center for Independent Living (Marin CIL) is a 45-year-old peer-led, community-based disability rights and services organization that promotes individuals of all ages with all types of disabilities to achieve their maximum level of sustainable independence as contributing, responsible, and equal participants in society.

Marin CIL provides person-centered, one-to-one care navigation and other social services. Our Strategic Operating Plan includes six areas of focus: Meaningful Access to Care, Housing Support & Preservation, Youth and Family Supports, Community Resilience, Digital Equity, and Sustainable Caregiver Pipeline. We are currently deep in an internal, organizational development process to provide an “accessible path for life,” which includes our “one door” access and accommodations approach to intake and a “continuity of service” model to serve North Bay residents of all ages and their families.

Part of our work in delivering community support and enhanced case management dictates that we center our work around the lived experiences of disabled people. Culturally, disabled people lack not just representation but also real opportunities for employment and advancement. The obstacles disabled people face are not because of their disabilities: these obstacles are present in a culture and systems that do not adequately account for or include the “joyous spectrum” of human bodies and experiences. Rather than see disabled people as a collection of obstacles or limitations, we celebrate the whole person capable of informing and directing their own life at every age through inclusion in a robust support system and access to accommodating service delivery.

For children and youth with disabilities, including intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) or those requiring long-term services and supports (LTSS), fostering age-appropriate independence is crucial as they transition into adulthood. The Community Living Fund (CLF) supports this by offering up to $5,000 per qualified individual to aid transitions from care facilities to community living. Funded by the Department of Rehabilitation and administered by Marin CIL, the CLF benefits those at risk of or transitioning from institutional settings, who have low incomes and cannot afford associated costs. This work advances the governor’s Master Plan for Aging (MPA) and the Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) No Wrong Door model, was recommended by the MPA Long Term Service and Supports (LTSS) Stakeholder Subcommittee, and is modeled after the State Plan for Independent Living goals related to transition and diversion.

Eligible expenses covered by the CLF include assistive technology, household necessities, moving costs, physical therapy assessments, rent, utilities, and more. Since its launch, Marin CIL has served 70 community members through the CLF program, promoting individual choice in services and supports. Available through 2025, the CLF serves families in Marin, Solano, Sonoma, and Napa counties.

For enrollment or eligibility information, contact Marin CIL’s Transitions Navigator, Armin Damani, at 415-459-6245 x19 or armin@marincil.org.

Community living empowers individuals, regardless of age or disability, with full access to our community and the freedom to make choices about their lives. This includes decisions about their homes, managing personal resources, and accessing community services. SMMC is an organizational sponsor of Marin CIL’s caregiver support efforts, including our caregiver open house held this past March with 60+ attendees and included a follow up resources workshop. For SMMC members interested in supporting this and other critical community programs, contributions can be made at marincil.org/donate.