| Volar CIL Board of Directors and Staff | History |
Our Philosophy…the ideas of Independent Living and I. L. Centers…
The independent living movement advocates for full integration of people with disabilities into community life. Independent living is based on the philosophy that people with disabilities have rights and responsibilities as first class citizens that control and direct their own lives. As adults or elderly persons with disabilities, we believe that we have the right and responsibility to choose where, with whom, and how we will live.
The independent living movement developed from several prior social upheavals including the civil rights movement, the self-help movement, and the consumer rightsmovement. Along with these came new ways of viewing people with disabilities: peoplewith disabilities have equal rights to live in their communities, not in institutions or nursing homes; also, people with disabilities are not “broken” and needing to be “fixed,” but rather they are people with their own individual abilities, especially the ability to runtheir own lives; additionally, society is the one in need of “fixing” due to the pervasive barriers that it imposes upon a person with a disability trying to live his/her own life. These barriers or obstacles to independent living could generally be physical or attitudinal in nature.
Thus, in the 1970’s the independent living movement began with the work and leadership of many people and continues into the present, some of the more well-known leaders including Ed Roberts in California, the Rev. Wade Blank in Colorado, and Justin Dart in Washington, D.C. Independent livingcenters began throughout the country and now there are nearly 600 nationwide including 21 in Texas. Volar CIL, in El Paso, TX is one of these. All of these independent living centers are devoted to dealing with societal obstacles and empowering persons with disabilities. All centers, including Volar, actively develop, promote, and utilize consumer advocacy and community-based services to get the job done.
Centers for independent living are private, non-profit corporations controlled by peoplewith disabilities. A majority of the members of their governing boards are people with disabilities, and people with disabilities work in management and service provision. Consumer control applies to both control of a CIL as well as control of one’s own life.
The Volar Story…we weren’t always Volar, but we’ve been around…
In 1981, the West Texas Association for the Handicapped, a grassroots advocacy organization of persons with disabilities, applied for a grant from the Texas Rehabilitation Commission to establish a center for independent living.
El Paso Opportunity Center for the Handicapped, or EPOCH as it was known then, began with a budget of $75,000, an executive director and three staff members providing information and referral, peer support and independent living skills training.
EPOCH incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 1986 under the name of Disabled Ability Resource Environment, or DARE. The acronym epitomized the mission of the center - a double dare - to challenge other persons with disabilities to accept the risks and enjoy the freedom of an independent lifestyle, and to challenge the El Paso community to accept us as equals with access to the opportunities, products and services in our community.
Ten years later, in 1991, we changed our name to Volar CIL, indicating a new era in the growth of the center and the disability rights movement. Volar CIL’s mission, as we begin the 21st century, is to challenge persons with disabilities to soar to even greater heights and never be satisfied with a mere subsistence level existence or a second rate citizenship. Volar, Spanish for “to fly" or “to soar,” is our metaphorical goal for our people.