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LAUREN’S WELCOME

I want to personally welcome you to Freedom Village, a wonderful expansion of the American Dream. I am a part of a team that you can join to give people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as Asperger’s and Down Syndrome, a chance to live independently in a safe connected community.
Freedom Village will have “state of the art” affordable condominium units we can own or rent and ….best of all, a social life with friends and fun things to do that goes way beyond the “9 to 5” world that so many of us are limited to now

There isn’t anything like Project Free today; if there were my Aunt Kim would have found it for me. Project Free is raising the bar and taking the lead in providing “Opportunity”. Opportunity for us to own our own condominium at half price because all the units will be identified as workforce housing by HUD. Opportunity to apply for financial aid because as a private “Trade School” we will qualify for tuition as well as receive a marketable certification, along with experiencing dorm living !! And ‘Opportunity” to choose employment and not be placed in meaningless jobs. I am psyched about earning minimum wage instead of working in a Training program that pays us pennies on a dollar.

Meet the Project Free Team and help Make it Happen!!
We need your ideas, your energy and financial
Support.

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What’s Cooking??!!

Project Free, in conjunction with Freedom Academy’s Culinary Program is excited to announce its 2011 “What’s Cooking” Special Chef’s Challenge! So put on your hats and aprons and show us your favorite kitchen creation.  Several of our lucky contestants will appear on our Project Free Cooking Show!!

Tell your friends!  Project Free is giving you the chance to appear on a Project Free Cooking Show!   All you have to do is email us your favorite recipe and a short video (3 minutes or less) of yourself preparing or just explaining your dish.  (Videos could show the ingredients necessary and the finished dish, for example.)  Submissions without a printed recipe included in the email or with videos longer than 3 minutes cannot be entered.  You may enter as many different recipes as you like.

Categories for this year’s contest will be:

• Salads
• Entrees
• Desserts

Please sign on to the profile page to enter the contest. Entries will be posted on our website.  The winner will be determined by how many people visited your recipe, the rating it received and the originality of your video!  So have fun, get cooking and tell your friends and family to go to myprojectfree.org to rate all the delicious dishes!!!

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Freedom Village

is the dream of a group of committed individuals united in a common goal to provide cuttting edge tools to make independent life possible for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities: relevant education, competitive wage jobs, and appropriate, affordable housing.  To deliver on our mission, Project FREE has developed Freedom Village: a new concept of supportive and community living for high functioning adults who have the ability and the desire to be active in planning, directing, and enriching their own lives.

Freedom Village will include:

• Freedom Academy Post-Secondary Trade School/Academy
• Project FREE Businesses/Training Centers
• Affordable, appropriate housing available to lease or own
• Community Support Network and Services
• Organized community events, leagues and activities

In addition to providing a real pathway to independence for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Project FREE is committed to being a vibrant community partner.  Freedom Village, with its inviting design, will provide housing, employment and entertainment in a village/community setting that bolsters every individual’s opportunity for a satisfying and connected life.  Project FREE shops, restaurants, and entertainment centers are self-sustaining businesses; bringing much needed jobs to the communities we serve. Project FREE affordable housing will be state-of-the-art, with a mix of owner and renter occupied units.  Freedom Village will be centrally located within walking distance of lively commercial districts and direct access to public transportation and the world beyond.

It takes the synergy of all the elements of Freedom Village to provide the full “springboard” of resources to launch and integrate each individual into an independent life beyond the boundaries of its safe, supportive community.  There is no way that independent living in isolated units or in a small number of supported units within a larger development can provide the opportunities, choices, community involvement, secure future  and overall  life enrichment that residents of Freedom Village will experience.

Project FREE is a 501(c)(3) entity.  It is seeking funding through both public and private sources. The principals involved in Project FREE are actively seeking United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 811 funding, state and local funding, as well as support from both private investors and corporate donors.  If you would like to help the Project FREE team deliver on its mission to make independent life possible for persons who so desperately want it, continue through our web site to see how!

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The engines that help drive the Freedom Village concept are the Project FREE Businesses. These self-sufficient businesses will provide real employment opportunities for persons with disabilities as well as skilled positions for our communities at a time they are so desperately needed.

The key to sustainable independence for people with disabilities is the opportunity to earn a livable wage. Yet, in January 2010, the percentage of people with disabilities in the labor force was 21.8 percent compared with 70.1 percent for persons with no disability, (United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)). What’s more, nearly 424,000 individuals are earning subminimum wages and 74 percent of these workers are people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, (Government Accountability Office (GAO)).

Project FREE stands firmly against sub minimum wage pay for any working persons. Sub-minimum wages are exploitive and do not allow persons to live independent lives.  At a time when some organizations are fighting against legislation that would require them to pay minimum wage to their employees with disabilities, Project FREE is developing businesses which will never pay sub-minimum wages to any of its employees.

As one pillar of our mission and our vision of Freedom Village, we have developed Project FREE Businesses; actual operating businesses that will offer competitive paying supported and non-supported jobs and career opportunities in fields as diverse as culinary arts, horticulture and small engine repair. These businesses will also be a key component of our state-of-the-art Project FREE Transition Program where students will receive hands on training to prepare for competitive employment. The Project FREE Business environment is designed to develop the confidence and skills for a high quality, balanced, independent life.  These Business Centers will be tailored to integrate with the communities we serve and are designed to be self sufficient.

It would be impossible to overstate the need for real jobs and vocational training for these individuals.  The numbers are inexcusable but not irreversible. The efficient Project FREE Business Center model creates jobs in our communities and is a vital component in our mission of building independent lives for our disabled population. If you would like to join us in our efforts, please take a moment to see how you can help.

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   FREEDOM ACADEMY

            PREPARING STUDENTS FOR LIFE!

Freedom Academy is at the heart of the Freedom Village Vision.   Students will enroll at Freedom Academy to experience a bold new version of relevant, real world, hands on, career development and vocational training, anchored in the life skills & liberal arts core curriculum.  The academy’s private trade school standing will open new avenues of student financial aid and provide the opportunity for students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds to experience a first class education in a beautiful college campus setting where they will form friendships and memories that will last a lifetime!

Freedom Academy will utilize the most effective strategies to ensure our students’ success including career development & training in our Project FREE Businesses.  Concentrations of studies will award trade certificates.   The central goal of the Academy is to prepare our students for a successful independent life that includes competitive wage employment.   In addition to our world-class curriculum, Freedom Academy’s innovative program components include:

 Program Components

• Marketable Trade Certificates based on chosen career and occupational selections.
•  College environment with on campus housing and supported, independent living;
• Flexible day and early evening class schedules;
• Related and support services with a multi-disciplinary team approach
• On campus and community support network
• State of the arts small classes with teachers certified in content areas and in special education
• Social Skills and Self Advocacy Development;
• Career Development and Employment;
• A full array of extracurricular activities.

Freedom Academy is dedicated to serving the educational and occupational needs of each   student enrolled and providing an arena where each student improves their quality of life and achieves post graduate success in a choice of many exciting fields. Freedom Academy is central to Project FREE’s mission to raise the quality of life for folks with intellectual & developmental disabilities.  Continue through our web site to see how!!

Continue reading »]]> A home of one’s own – either rented or owned – is the cornerstone of independence for people with disabilities.  Being part of the community and living as independently as possible are among the most important values and goals shared by people with disabilities, their families, and advocates.

Project FREE will develop attractive, affordable housing with a mix of owner and renter occupied units as part of the Freedom Village vision. All housing will be supported by a comprehensive program of educational, social and vocational services critical for self-sufficiency. Freedom Village will be centrally located within walking distance of lively commercial districts and direct access to public transportation and the world beyond!

Across the nation, people with developmental and related disabilities face a severe crisis in the availability of decent, safe, affordable, and accessible housing. Today many still live in large congregate facilities or other inappropriate places like institutions. Over 700,000 people with developmental disabilities live with aging parents (one of whom is over age 65).

The affordability gap for people with disabilities has exponentially worsened in recent years. According to Priced Out in 2008, on a national average, over 4 million Americans with disabilities who rely on federal monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for all their basic needs would have to pay 112.1 percent of their entire monthly income to rent a modest one-bedroom unit. The cost of renting a smaller studio/efficiency unit is 99.3% of monthly SSI.

Project FREE is committed to making independent life possible for persons with developmental disabilities.  Helping ease the critical need for attainable housing is an essential element of our mission.  You can be part of this worthy project.  See how you can help.

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The first season of New England’s Got Special Talent consisted of five shows on MetroCast Public Access TV aired in Southeastern Connecticut. All of the shows are posted on myprojectfree.org for family, friends and all of you, our website visitors, to continue to watch and enjoy and post your comments. Thirteen performers and eight judges along with the Project FREE volunteer production team contributed their talents to the success of the show.

New England’s Got Special Talent is a variety show, loosely modeled on America’s Got Special Talent. The show showcases the very special talents, abilities, and achievements of performers who have too often been described, defined and judged only by their disabilities. Musical performances range from hip hop to classical including vocals, instrumentals, bands, individual and group acts along with comedic and dramatic poetry readings. First season viewers were urged to post their votes for their favorite performances on myprojectfree.org. The support for all of the performers was great as hundreds of viewers cast their votes. Top vote getter was Veronica Ventura performing “Love Song” by Christine Aguilera.

We extend our heartfelt thanks and enthusiastic congratulations to all of the very talented performers, judges and crew. Please continue to visit our site for the time and place of the shows Grand Finale soon to be posted.

Take a moment now to view one or more of the shows and/or individual acts to take another look at the very special performances of our wonderful contestants!!