News from Fedcap

Contact: Tavish Donahue / Fedcap / 212.727.4324 

Fedcap to Hold Its Annual Meeting and Celebration of Work on November 30, 2009 Launching Its 75th Anniversary Year of Service to the Community

Dick Traum, Founder of Achilles Track Club; Tina Ballard, Executive Director of the AbilityOne Program; and Colonel Elspeth Ritchie, M.D. to be Honored for Their Work on Behalf of People With Disabilities

Special Performance by Tshidi Manye from The Lion King

Click here for photos from the event and Guardian Angel Gift Auction items.

November 30, 2009. New York, NY: Fedcap will host its Annual Meeting and Celebration of Work on Monday, November 30, 2009 at Ten on the Park, Time Warner Center in Manhattan. The fundraising gathering will include over 200 Fedcap board members, staff, supporters and clients. Cocktails will be served at 5:30 p.m. followed by a dinner and program at 6:30 p.m.

Fedcap’s mission is to empower people with barriers to move towards economic independence as valued members of the workforce. Each year Fedcap’s evaluation, training, employment, support, counseling services, and advocacy programs help more than 2,000 Americans overcome obstacles, rebuild their lives, and find and keep meaningful employment.

Fedcap is a nonprofit organization founded in 1935 by three men with physical disabilities who shared a powerful vision of achieving independence for themselves and for others. “We are beginning our 75th Anniversary Celebration at our Annual Meeting,” said Mark O’Donoghue, Chairman of Fedcap’s Board of Directors. “We salute and honor the tens of thousands of men and women upon whom Fedcap has had a positive impact. Fedcap also remains committed to the spirit of innovation that our founders and leaders have shown over the years and look forward to an exciting year ahead as we seek creative solutions to some of the country’s most perplexing problems surrounding the goal of sustainable economic independence for people facing barriers.”

This year’s Celebration of Work recognizes the following individuals for their work on behalf of people with disabilities:

  • Dick Traum Ph.D., Founder and President of Achilles International, a worldwide organization, represented in sixty countries and six continents whose mission is to enable people with all types of disabilities to participate in mainstream athletics, promote personal achievement, enhance self esteem, and lower barriers.
  • Tina Ballard, Executive Director of the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind and Severely Disabled, a federal agency that oversees the AbilityOne Program, the largest employer of people with severe disabilities in the country.
  • Colonel Elspeth Ritchie, M.D, MPH, Medical Director of the Office of the Army Surgeon General’s Strategic Communications Department. Colonel Ritchie is an internationally renowned expert with a unique public health approach to the management of disaster and combat mental health issues.

Also featured at the event will be a special performance by Tshidi Manye, who plays Rafiki in Broadway’s The Lion King.

“Fedcap’s Celebration of Work honors three individuals who have truly changed lives,” said Christine McMahon, President and CEO of Fedcap. “Their work integrating athletics into the lives of people with disabilities, ensuring meaningful work for people with severe disabilities, and providing mental health services to returning veterans all represent different parts of Fedcap’s mission. Economic independence cannot be achieved without work, recreation, and the necessary supports that make those possible for people facing barriers.”

Fedcap’s Development Committee for the Celebration of Work are: Diane Shaib, Chair; Michael Brenner; David Carpentier; Robin Cerrati; Sal Daddaro; Joseph Fabrizi; Diana Glass; Diane Kenney; Terry O’Neill; Chris Portera; Stephen Powers; Ralph Tafuri; Chrles Wardell; and Paul Wolf.

Fedcap’s Celebration of Work is expected to raise money for Fedcap programs and services focused on vocational training and employment, youth in transition, and services for returning veterans. For further information, please call 212.727.4244 or e-mail jbertrand@fedcap.org.