Supporting Our Community in Uncertain Times – An Important Message from Cass Isidro, President and CEO
February 7, 2025
Less than a year ago on April 1st we were beginning Limb Loss Limb Difference Awareness Month and celebrating the fact that we had received notification that we were awarded a 5-year federal grant for the National Limb Loss Resource Center through the Administration for Community Living (ACL) to support the limb loss and limb difference community, a population of over 5.6 million people in the United States. We had turned a corner and were proud and ready.
With the current volatile federal environment, we are, however, uncertain this agreement will be honored and as an organization we are faced with making difficult decisions. While the federal funding freeze was rescinded, we know from our nonprofit, government, and corporate partners that nothing is certain at this time and some programs, funding streams, and organizations are already in crisis.
With a firm commitment to our core services, today we have implemented a reduction in staff to shore up our sustainability until we know more. Earlier today we laid off 4 staff, furloughed an additional 2 positions, and reduced the hours and salaries for nearly everyone else, affecting 22 people overall. Frontline information and referral staff will remain full-time and support service staff have changed the hours, but the team remains intact. Our senior team has both been reduced in number and hours. Given our success in 2024 and our momentum coming into 2025, this is particularly difficult news to share.
We have known for the last two years that our core services are critical and there is no other organization to take over. We know that we have regained trust, and we maintain that trust by showing up. We will continue to serve information and referrals, we will continue peer visits and support groups, we will continue to facilitate community connections, and we will always be a champion for the health and wellness of those living with limb loss and limb difference.
We have initiated fundraising support from the Orthotic & Prosthetic industry and welcome ideas and connections to increase donations. Feel free to reach out to me directly. We will also be launching our 2025 individual fundraising campaign in the next few weeks to ignite interest in giving as we head into our spotlight time of the year, Limb Loss and Limb Difference Awareness Month in April. While we typically receive most of our individual donations at year end, there is no benefit to giving in December versus giving in February from a tax or most any other perspective. Most, if not all, we need the year end giving support in the first quarter of the year as it would benefit the AC as well.
In addition to curtailing expenses and aiming to boost revenue, we are also actively working with federal and state representatives to champion continued support. It’s a full court press monitoring the environment and communicating with our bipartisan supporters across the nation every day.
Until further notice we will increase our messaging and sharing to have transparency with you as the community we serve. We may ask for your help with your time and talents, and I hope you will say yes. We may need you to help us provide more services, we may need you to donate, we may need you to make a connection and raise your voice. Thank you in advance for your support.
Two years into this job it pains me to share this message with you, but I am also proud that we have the volunteer and staff team to get through this. Be sure to read our weekly newsletters and follow our social channels to stay informed.
Thank you and take care.
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