Southern Tier Independence Center awarded health-care grant

BINGHAMTON—The Southern Tier Independence Center (STIC), a community-based advocacy and service nonprofit that provides assistance to disabled individuals, has been awarded a grant to aid individuals with the state’s new health benefit exchange.

“It’s hard to raise money as a nonprofit,” says Maria Dibble, executive director of STIC. Currently, the nonprofit holds just one big fundraiser a year, a Halloween event featuring a haunted maze through the 7,500-square-foot basement of STIC’s 62,000-square-foot building at 135 Frederick St. in Binghamton. Dibble was amazed how excited her staff gets about the event. “I’ve never seen people so into Halloween,” she says.

In 2012, STIC’s third annual Haunted Halls of Horror drew a crowd of more than 2,500 people and netted the nonprofit $32,198. It was the best year so far.

 STIC generated $8 million in revenue in 2012, up from $6.5 million in 2011. With Medicaid as its largest revenue source, and only one fundraiser, what else does STIC do to supplement its income? “We do a lot of grant writing,” says Dibble.

STIC was recently awarded a grant to assist individuals in obtaining insurance through the New York State of Health, the state’s health-insurance exchange. The nonprofit will receive approximately $815,000 a year for five years to provide this service. The grant funding will help pay for staffing, training, equipment, the start-up money for rental offices in each county.

The project, called the In-Person Assister Navigator Program, will work to provide information to consumers about their health-insurance options, assist them in selecting the best plans for their needs, and finally enroll them in the plan of their choice.

STIC will offer this service in nine Southern Tier counties, but not Broome County, where STIC is based. Another Binghamton nonprofit, Mothers and Babies Perinatal Network, was awarded Broome County for this program, according to Dibble.

As the lead agency of the program, STIC will cover Cortland, Chenango, Tioga and Tompkins counties. Two subcontractors will support the other counties. Catskill Center for Independence in Oneonta will cover Schoharie County and the AIM Independent Living Center in Corning will serve Allegany, Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties.

The three agencies will conduct outreach to all parts of the nine counties by offering daytime, evening, and weekend hours at a variety of locations, including a designed office in each county. Consumers will be able to enroll beginning in October, with the health plan going into effect in January.

STIC has one person on staff so far who will work on this program, but will also hire six additional staff members. The other subcontractors will also hire more staff specifically for this program.

“Plenty of work to go around. Sure of that,” says Dibble.

STIC’s role

STIC believes individuals should have no barriers to independent living, that their disability is a part of who they are, not something that should hold them back.

Dibble, an advocate who has led protest rallies, lobbied the government, and written papers, explains that in the past disabled people have had their dreams deferred or ruined by skeptics. It’s rather degrading for people to assume that you can’t do certain things because you’re disabled, says Dibble. STIC’s job is to provide assistance for disabled individuals so that they can achieve what they want without having to jump through hoops.

One of STIC’s priorities is to help consumers with disabilities move out of institutions such as nursing homes, developmental centers, group homes, as well as help divert people from these placements.

In 2012, STIC’s efforts prevented 102 individuals from entering in an institution and helped 64 people move from an institution to the community. On average, STIC assists between 3,000 and 3,500 people each year.

STIC manages these services with 400 employees based in Broome County. To serve on the STIC board, an individual is required by law to have some type of disability. Many of the management staff also has a disability, including Dibble. She’s been blind since she was 7 or 8 years old, a result of glaucoma.

Dibble’s twin brother, who is also blind, recently began working for STIC.

Three decades of service

In 1983, four individuals started STIC with a single grant from the New York State Education Department for $100,000. Dibble was one of the original co-founders.

Dibble isn’t just an advocate of the integration of disabled people into the community, because “it’s the right thing to do.” It was also something she was taught growing up.

“I was raised to believe that there wasn’t anything I couldn’t do just because I was blind,” says Dibble.

The Binghamton University graduate has been executive director since the organization’s inception and now she leads it into its 30th year.

On June 1 of this year, STIC celebrated its anniversary by holding a free community carnival at its location on Frederick Street. About 700 people attended the event, according to Dibble, including Binghamton Mayor, Matthew Ryan.

On Dec. 12, the nonprofit is planning an open house event with hallway displays of pictures and articles to show how the organization has changed and grown over the years. This date closely coincide with the organization’s official opening date of Dec. 16, 1983.

Contact Collins at ncollins@cnybj.com