A ONE OF A KIND LEGACY
Nancy Lieberman was a beacon of courage who led with determination and inspired us all. After her spinal cord injury, she was determined to get “back to life” and live it to its fullest.
Nancy returned to her position as a partner at one of the nation’s top law firms, Skadden Arps, where she specialized in mergers and acquisitions. She and her family started travelling again, with vacation destinations to safari in Botswana; to Morocco, where she rode a camel; and to London, India and the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, where she ascended the 62 marble steps in her power wheelchair by resourcefully using the stone dividers as ramps.
Nothing stopped her.
However, Nancy understood that not everyone could figure out how to go forward after such a traumatic injury. She often expressed frustration that so many people with spinal cord injuries never returned to work, school, or travel and lived unnecessarily limited lives.
OUR FORWARD THINKING VISION: A ONE OF A KIND CENTER FOR INDIVIDUALS LIVING WITH SPINAL CORD INJURY
Nearly eighty percent of individuals who sustain a spinal cord injury do not return to work. In Nancy’s honor and with your support we would like to establish a Back to Life Center that will provide comprehensive services to facilitate a personalized path forward for individuals with spinal cord injuries by helping them identify barriers to independence, access existing augmentative and adaptive technologies to overcome those barriers, and enjoy more independence and empowerment in their daily life. We can only create this center of the future through philanthropy.
Please join us in raising funds to establish the Nancy A. Lieberman Back to Life Center, which would be allocated to support:
•An inpatient assistive technology lab and loan bank: This type of loan bank would provide the latest technical options and adaptive devices (including adaptive mouses, keyboards, switches, eye trackers, voice activated technology, and smart-home technology) for patients to explore, to instill hope and a positive attitude for what is possible by making their world accessible and inclusive.
•A dedicated outpatient assistive technology lab: Upon discharge, patients could be referred to this outpatient lab where they would progress beyond basic technology trials and receive additional hands-on education and training. An outpatient lab would include a more extensive array of state-of-the-art technology best suited to meet the needs of each individual, allowing them to reach their goals of greater independence and the capacity to return to work or school sooner.
•Back to work and/or school services: These additional services would offer programs like resume building, interviewing with a disability, navigating the return to office and/or school, addressing benefits and other financial-related matters, education regarding advocacy, understanding disability-friendly higher education options, and other resources and support programs.
•Leisure and recreation programs: This level of dedicated staff support would educate and promote the participation in activities designed to maximize joy (for example, travel, adaptive sports, adaptive gardening, driving, etc). A dedicated rehabilitation psychologist would also assist with adjustment and adapting to life after a spinal cord injury.
THE BACK TO LIFE CENTER IS A BIG VISION, BUT WE CANNOT DO IT WITHOUT YOUR PARTNERSHIP.
To learn more about how to support the Back to Life Center, please contact Sarah Trimmer, Director of Development, Mount Sinai Health System at 929-647-5166 / Sarah.SeredychTrimmer@mountsinai.org.