Your April 2025 LIFTT Connection Newsletter!

Finding the way forward amid new realities

Recent federal government decisions on the funding of vital programs such as food assistance, housing rights education and enforcement, and the breaking up of the Administration for Community Living have intensified the need for adaptation and innovation for LIFTT and many of our community partners if we are to continue to meet the needs of those who depend on us.

Read Carlos's thoughts on:

Equally Different,

Unequally Remembered:

Montana’s Disability History Demands Your Attention

LIFTT encourages everyone to visit the Western Heritage Center's new exhibit on the history of disability in our region.

With the current headwinds against equity and inclusion in our politics, stories like these on display at WHC mustn't just be told but uplifted.

This exhibition isn’t polite. It’s necessary.

Disability Resource Fairs coming to Miles City, Sidney & Hardin this May

The Montana Statewide Independent Living Council (MTSILC) is partnering with community organizations, including LIFTT, to hold "Disability Resource Fairs" in three Eastern Montana communities this May.

The fairs will allow people with disabilities, families, caregivers, and interested community members to connect with LIFTT and other regional service providers to learn more about the programs and assistance offered.

The Lowdown: Dates, Times, and Locations

Outnumbered: an interactive art protest to save Section 504!

On April 10, over 5,000 pencils, one for each Montana student with a 504 accommodation plan, were sharpened at Disability Rights Montana in Helena as an artistic protest of Attorney General Austen Knudsen's participation in a lawsuit seeking to strip people with disabilities of their right to receive accommodations to participate in federally funded programs and services.

LIFTT stands in solidarity with DRM as they work to defend Section 504 by bringing Outnumbered to communities across Montana. The movement to save reasonable accommodation is just getting started.

Find out how you can bring it to your community!

Thank you for supporting LIFTT in March!

Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT) would like to thank everyone who showed up and donated at the two fundraising events we held in March. Your generosity made the Cheesecake Luncheon in Glendive and the Pizza Ranch Night in Billings successful!

Special kudos go to the LIFTT team members who pulled together to do the planning, promotion, baking, cooking, decorating, soup serving, table bussing, and the myriad of other tasks these events require without missing a beat on their "day jobs," empowering our consumers.

Finally, a shout-out to our event hosts, Black Sheep Market in Glendive and Billings West Pizza Ranch. We appreciate you letting us come into your business.

LIFTT & Apex Fitness to hold workshop April 28

Join us at LIFTT's Billings office on Monday, April 28, at 4 p.m. for an empowering and informative event with Apex Fitness.

Personal trainer Luke McLaughlin will be on hand to offer practical tips and simple exercises to help you build strength, improve mobility, and boost overall wellness—no matter your fitness level.

Mark your calendars and bring a Friend!

Food as Medicine

Food is medicine, and LIFTT wants to show you how to make choices in the grocery store that will help you stay healthy and boost your energy!

The tips you will learn on one of our guided tour of the grocery store can make a big difference in how you shop.

A Delicious Path to Better Health!

Success Story:

Carlos, From Fatigue to Flourishing

Not only is he the executive director, he is also a consumer! LIFTT's own Carlos Ramalho recently worked with our nutritional health coaches to tackle a potassium deficiency

Food as Medicine in Action!

Holly Hanson: From Facilitator to Leader

LIFTT PCA Program Facilitator Holly Hanson is beginning an 18-month journey to become the next PCA program manager!

With years of hands-on experience in the field, she has worked directly with clients, managed teams, and ensured quality care in various roles. She knows what it takes to support PCAs and consumers effectively, and now she’s stepping up to take on an even more significant role.

Congratulations, Holly, we are cheering for you!

No More Exceptions:

Rethinking Work, Worth, and Wages

LIFTT IL Program Manager Pamela Ramirez writes about conducting career counseling with subminimum wage workers through Section 511 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act.

A required yearly Section 511 counseling is often the only time such workers learn about alternatives to their situation, and it can lead some to consider a radical change to the life they have known to date.

Planting Seeds of Independence

Support LIFTT's Mission and Vision

2025 is going to be an exciting year at LIFTT but to make it all happen we need your support. No gift is to small! so pleae follow the link below and thank you in advance.

Donate to LIFTT Today

LIFTT is partly funded through contracts and grants from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, USAging, and the Administration for Community Living, United States Department of Health and Human Services. The statements herein do not necessarily reflect the opinion of DPHHS, USAging, ACL, or HHS.

LIFTT is a Montana 501(c)3 corporation organized as a Center for Independent Living (CIL). With team members based in Billings and Glendive, LIFTT provides people with disabilities with programs and services that help empower them to break down the physical, bureaucratic, and cultural barriers that prevent them from being fully independent participants in their lives and communities throughout 18 counties in southeastern and southcentral Montana: Big Horn, Carbon, Carter, Custer, Dawson, Fallon, Garfield, Golden Valley, McCone, Musselshell, Powder River, Prairie, Richland, Rosebud, Stillwater, Wibaux, and Yellowstone.

Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT)

1241 Crawford Drive Billings, MT 59102 · (406) 259-5181

119 South Kendrick Avenue · P.O. Box 1387 Glendive, MT 59330 · (406) 948-8500

Support Independent Living in Montana by Donating to LIFTT Today!