BRC Advisors and Partners

 

Advisory Group

The BRC Advisory Group includes a number of dynamic Californians who provide guidance and constructive review of BRC training methodology and field test tools. Sharing their life experiences and connecting with community networks to survey peers and service providers, our advisors strengthen the authenticity of BRC’s work. To advance both personal professionalism and BRC innovation, advisory group members are pursuing leadership goals that add to their community networks as well as lend to BRC’s continued social relevance.

The BRC Advisory Group will expand to include representation from a range of community constituencies and clientele — families, small businesses, nonprofit corporations and financial institutions. They too will contribute to BRC’s mission, ascertainment of community needs and aspirations, and future ambition of establishing a micro-financing consortium to assist people with and without disabilities to pursue dreams of developing a small business.

Because employment is vital to self-sufficiency of all persons, the Advisory Group will evolve to provide guidance and clarity that ensures BRC is current and effective in its consulting and product development. Job opportunities remain remote to most people with disabilities and financial services needed for self-employment and micro-enterprise are typically unavailable to low income individuals. By joining the worldwide movement whose object is to provide low income households access to appropriate financial services, BRC with leadership from its Advisory Group seeks to establish micro-lending services to assist more people with few opportunities or resources. With the BRC team, the Advisory Group will lead the way to contribute to the inclusion and self-determination of persons with diverse abilities.

 

Molly Kennedy

Molly has been an advocate for persons with disabilities for over 20 years. She has a Masters Degree in Public Administration and assisted in creating policies that improved health care access for individuals with disabilities.

Molly advocates with local, state, and federal legislators on issues that impact lives of individuals who have disabilities. She received recognition from local and national organizations for leadership and advocacy efforts including the 2007 UCP National Life Without Limits Award.

 

Sam Durbin

is a member of the California Department of Developmental Disabilities Consumer Advisory Committee. As an outspoken advocate for people with disabilities, he provides BRC straight forward input about what is significant in the lives of people with disabilities and assists with product field tests and surveys. Sam is a national public speaker, and trainer with BRC team members in leadership and emergency preparedness. He is also the published author of “You’re Not the Boss of Me” and subject of a multi-award winning documentary about his life.

 

Robert Taylor

is a member of the California Department of Developmental Disabilities Consumer Advisory Committee and participates in statewide advocacy activities with a focus in Sacramento and southern California. He is a healthcare advocate at LA Care working to ensure people with disabilities have information about obtaining healthcare, being healthier and living longer. Robert is a public speaker and certified trainer for the BRC developed DDS emergency preparedness materials “Feeling Safe, Being Safe.” Robert is also a co-presenter with BRC team members teaching business people about “Managing Money” using the DDS "Leadership Through Personal Change" tools. By surveying community members, Robert brings BRC new project ideas and information about social conditions in his community and throughout the state.

 

Eugenia Jones

is a member of the California Department of Developmental Disabilities and Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center Consumer Advisory Committees. She is a vibrant and outspoken community advocate believing in the possibilities for people who live active lives. An expert at developing networks and partnerships that bring people with disabilities into everyday life, Eugenia’s interest is in healthy lifestyles and is pursuing a career as a professional caterer. She is a certified trainer in DDS emergency preparedness materials “Feeling Safe, Being Safe.” She has appeared in numerous advocacy videos produced by BRC and California advocacy agencies. Eugenia is featured in the 2010 release of "Thinking Ahead, My Life, My Choice at the End" supported by the California Coalition for Compassionate Care and DDS.

 

Michelle Gordon

is a member of the California Department of Developmental Disabilities Consumer Advisory Committee. She is active in her community, a participant in her local People First group and advisory committee to a regional peer advocacy project. Michelle has practiced public speaking and conducted numerous presentations at statewide conferences on the importance of informed decision-making and straight forward leadership strategies like Think–Plan–Do. She appeared in the BRC video CRPD "Living the Treaty" speaking about the importance of being in charge of personal medical decisions. Michelle is also featured in two DDS videos that highlight the use of Think–Plan–Do as a strategy to develop a career and public speaking. She is also pursuing her education working toward developing her own independent career.

 

BRC Partners

BRC partners with organizations and specialists who share its philosophy and complement expertise that meets needs of clients. A diverse partnership brings organizational strength and an energetic blend of technical execution to achieve success. With a qualified team, BRC is able to provide a broad range of services, making complex ideas simple.

 

The SCILS Group,

a nonprofit consulting organization, was established in 1977 to serve communities by advancing strategies and providing trainings that guide inclusive thinking and help others become contributing members of their community. The SCILS Group practices are based on a set of beliefs;

People with disabilities must be included in their communities as a requisite for personal growth and advancement of society.

People with disabilities want to be valued, seen as productive citizens and included in community life,

People with disabilities are the primary decision-makers about their services and supports,

People with disabilities should have access to supports needed to utilize opportunities to make contributions to their communities.

The SCILS Group is committed to ensuring school and community inclusion is available for children with developmental disabilities. Services include group process and facilitation, coaching and training for families, and strategic intervention with agencies and community organizations. Outcomes are the cornerstone of the group’s work. They are accomplished by identifying and initiating emerging practices that encourage use of natural communities and utilize personally designed supports.

 

Marcia Orland

began her career as a film editor after spending more than 25 years in client relationship management with the financial services business sector. She launched her own media production enterprise Afterglow Media as a mechanism to capture and tell stories that needed to be told — whether to preserve a family legacy, inspire social change, or create awareness on behalf of individuals determined to better themselves.

As an expert in pre-production, production and post-production digital video technology, Marcia conducts interviews and creates customized media for individual and corporate clients. Her specialized years in client relations and more than a dozen years of video production lead Marcia’s exceptional ability to respond to diverse clientele by producing professionally crafted video projects. Marcia is a member of the Association of Personal Historians (APH) and co-chair of APH Southern California. She also served as a Core Team member of the Westside Women's Network, affiliated with the Greater West Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.

Working with BRC gives Marcia opportunities to use her talents to inspire people through a multimedia story-telling approach that promotes social awareness and change. Contact Marcia