Editor’s Note: The following is a progress report submitted by LIFTT to the Montana Statewide Independent Living Council (SILC) meeting held on May 21, 2025. LIFTT is required to submit these progress reports to the SILC before each of its four-yearly meetings.
LIFTT Progress Report
to the Statewide Independent Living Council (SILC)
May 2025
Consumer Satisfaction Survey
At LIFTT, we strongly support the State Plan for Independent Living’s (SPIL) goal of advancing meaningful consumer feedback across Montana’s Centers for Independent Living (CILs).
Timely Collection
We administer the Consumer Satisfaction Survey (CSS) immediately after services are delivered and before closing the consumer’s file. This ensures feedback is tied directly to the consumer’s most recent experience.
How We Use It
The surveys are shared with SILC via email and internally used for quality control, communication, and service enhancement.
Purpose and Impact
We say “feedback and/or concerns” to honor praise and critique. We can’t meet every need every time, but we listen, respond, and improve. Often, these conversations become success stories, demonstrating our real-world impact.
Services and Consumer Data (CIL Suite Reports – FY24 vs. FY25)
Peer Counseling
- FY24: 156 consumers
- FY25: 517 consumers (↑231.4%)
Independent Living & Life Skills Training
- FY24: 98 consumers
- FY25: 207 consumers (↑111.2%)
Information & Referral
- FY24: 519 consumers
- FY25: 556 consumers (↑7.1%)
Advocacy/Legal Services
- FY24: 91 consumers
- FY25: 423 consumers (↑365.9%)
Active Consumer Service Records (CSRs)
- FY24 (April 30): 157
- FY25 (April 30): 286 (↑82.2%)
Service Units Delivered
- FY24: 1,437
- FY25: 2,543 (↑77%)
(Service units = distinct service interactions documented in CIL Suite)
Goals Achieved in Significant Life Areas
- FY24: 743 total goals achieved across 11 domains
- FY25: 1,308 goals achieved (↑76%)
- Self-Advocacy: 570 goals
- Self-Care: 406 goals
Improved Access Achievements (FY25)
- Health Care Access: 189 consumers
- Transportation Access: 10 consumers
- Assistive Technology: 12 consumers
Demographic Highlights
Consumers Age 60 and Older
- FY24: 180
- FY25: 220 (↑22.2%)
Consumers with Multiple Disabilities
- FY24: 342
- FY25: 506 (↑47.9%)
Counties with Most Engagement (FY25)
- Yellowstone: 315
- Dawson: 155
- Custer: 45
- Richland: 31
These counties represent LIFTT’s core engagement zones, highlighting our expanding presence across rural Montana.
Closing Remarks
None of this would be possible without the extraordinary efforts of LIFTT’s team. Across programs and departments, our staff brings passion, creativity, and a deep commitment to the independent living philosophy. We have grown not only in numbers but also in mission impact and community connection.
Your work matters, your passion is felt, and your impact shapes the future of independent living in Montana.
Progress Report Submitted by Carlos A. Ramalho, Executive Director of Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT) May 21, 2025
About Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT): LIFTT is a Montana 501(c)3 corporation organized as a Center for Independent Living (CIL). With team members based in Billings and Glendive, LIFTT provides aging and disabled members of the community with programs and services that help empower them to break down the physical, bureaucratic, and cultural barriers that prevent them from being fully independent participants in their lives and communities throughout 18 counties in southeastern and south-central Montana: Big Horn, Carbon, Carter, Custer, Dawson, Fallon, Garfield, Golden Valley, McCone, Musselshell, Powder River, Prairie, Richland, Rosebud, Stillwater, Treasure, Wibaux, and Yellowstone. For more information, please visit liftt.org or download our mobile app for your Apple or Android Device.