JFS NENY is delighted to partner with Jewish Family Service Houston (JFS) Alexander Institute for Inclusion which shines a light on the lives and aspirations of individuals with disabilities in Houston and beyond. They seek to lower stigmas and increase access for individuals with disabilities in the workplace, places of faith and communal organizations through direct service, education, arts and advocacy.
This February is JFS Houston’s 10th annual ReelAbilities Houston Film & Arts Festival, which brings an array of virtual programs that promotes inclusion and celebrates the lives, stories and talents of people with disabilities, making an impact that lasts far beyond the Festival. The timing of this festival is beshert – coinciding with Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance & Inclusion Month.
JFS Houston is graciously giving JFS NENY full access to the virtual portions of ReelAbilities Film Festival, including the opening event on February 15th with a special JFS access code (a $10 value)!
Beyond the initial two programs, the 12 streaming films from February 16 to 24 provide an intimate and educational view into various disabilities including hearing loss, ALS, cerebral palsy, mental health conditions and more. These feature-length, narrative, and documentary films can be an excellent tool for the workplace or classroom to enhance awareness of people with disabilities.
Below is the full roster of virtual events and here is a link to the event brochure.
UP Abilities—An Extraordinary Evening with Extraordinary Speakers
February 15, 7:00-9:00 PM CST
Featured speakers for the evening include:
- Josh Blue, a comedian with Cerebral palsy who finished third in the last season of America’s Got Talent;
- Christine Ha, the first-ever blind contestant and season 3 winner of the competitive amateur cooking television show “MasterChef”; and
- Mike Veny, a mental health expert focused on building emotional wellness.
Use the promo code JFSNENY to attend this event for free. (Tickets are normally $10.)
Click here for registration.
ReelWorkplace
February 17, 12:00-1:00 PM CST
Meg O’Connell, CEO & Founder, Global Disability Inclusion, and Peter Rutigliano, Managing Director – Data Analytics, Mercer-Sirota will present their first analysis of new data from a multi-year study of more than 3 million employees and explore the intersection of gender, race, age and disability. This is an opportunity to enhance DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) efforts by learning how to engage—and attract—employees with disabilities. The event is free to attend.
Registration and additional speaker information is here
ReelFilm
February 20, 21, 22 and 24 from 7:00-8:00 PM CST
Each evening, there will be a virtual, hosted discussion around a variety of films depicting various disabilities, ranging from ALS to hearing loss to mental health conditions.
Here is a link to watch a film and register for the discussion.
On Demand ReelFilm
February 16-24
During this time, participants can have on demand access to a catalog of free, streaming feature-length, narrative, and documentary films covering a variety of disabilities such as traumatic brain injury, hearing loss, dating with a disability, Alzheimer’s, blindness, and so much more. All films are captioned and audio-described.
Here is the link to the full catalog of films.