News - LIFTT

Join LIFTT for Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys August 1

Join LIFTT at the Columbia Club in Billings on Saturday, August 1, for “Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys.” The evening will feature a catered dinner, live and silent auctions, and opportunities for engagement with LIFTT’s mission and programs.

Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys: An Evening of Opportunity for LIFTT

This special fundraising event will take place on Saturday, August 1, 2026, at the Columbia Club in Billings, Montana. Designed as both a fundraiser and a community gathering, the evening will feature a catered dinner, live and silent auctions, and opportunities for engagement with LIFTT’s mission and programs.

More Than an Event: A Community Experience

“Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys” is more than a traditional fundraiser. It is a curated experience that invites participants to explore a wide range of auction items, from unique thrift-store finds and handcrafted jewelry to high-value travel and experience packages.

This layered approach ensures that everyone can participate, whether through small discoveries or larger contributions, while reinforcing a shared purpose: supporting independence and access for individuals across our region.

Supporting RideWell ADA Rural Transportation Program: Opening Pathways to Independence

Proceeds from the event will directly support the RideWell ADA Accessible Rural Transportation Program – A Program of LIFTT, which will provide critical mobility services to aging and disabled individuals in Southeastern and South-Central Eastern Montana.

Access to transportation is often one of the greatest barriers to independence. Through RideWell, individuals will be able to attend medical appointments, access essential services, and remain connected to their communities. This event helps ensure that those pathways remain open.

A Growing Community Effort

LIFTT is working closely with local businesses, community members, and partners to bring this event to life and ensure its success. There are many meaningful ways to be involved. Community members are invited to attend the event and take part in the evening’s activities, while businesses and organizations have the opportunity to participate through table sponsorships. Donations of auction items, including goods, services, or unique experiences, are also welcomed and play an important role in the event’s success. In addition, simply helping to share information about the event within personal and professional networks can make a significant difference in building awareness and encouraging participation.

This collaborative effort reflects the strength of our community and the shared commitment to supporting individuals in living independently.

Building Connections That Last

In addition to raising funds, the event is designed to strengthen relationships and increase awareness of LIFTT’s work. Through storytelling, community engagement, and shared experiences, “Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys” will highlight the real impact of supporting mobility, independence, and access.

With an anticipated strong return and growing community interest, this event has the potential to become a signature annual gathering for LIFTT and its supporters.

Join Us

We invite you to be part of this meaningful evening. Together, we can open pathways to independence, one connection, one contribution, and one journey at a time. For more information about, to sponsor, donate, or attend “Hidden Treasures & Grand Journeys: contact Tina Carter, LIFTT RideWell Transportation Coordinator at (406) 939-4569 or tinac@liftt.org

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

upLIFTT hosts Eagle Mount “Out & About” Scavenger Hunt

upLIFTT Thrift recently hosted Eagle Mount’s “Out and About” program for a scavenger hunt designed to teach participants budgeting and decision-making skills. (Photo Courtesy of Eagle Mount Billings)

Eagle Mount, A Scavenger Hunt & upLIFTT Thrift Store by Theresa Sand, upLIFTT Thrift Store Manager

What do you get when you host the Monday Out & About crew from Eagle Mount Billings at upLIFTT Thrift Store? A Scavenger Hunt! upLIFTT Thrift Store opened its doors to the Out & About Crew on Monday, March 23rd.

Callie with Eagle Mount had a lively and educational scavenger hunt planned for the participants. Teams of 2 headed off with a themed list of items to find – the funniest outfit, items for a cozy night in, items to use at Eagle Mount to get moving, and many more. The teams were given a budget and Eagle Mount bucks with which to “purchase” the items they picked out.

Not only was fun had by all, but learning happened. I had a great time assisting teams in their hunt to find the perfect items. I saw participants work as a team and practice their decision-making skills while they worked to stay within their budget. It was so much fun watching the teams as they “checked out” with their finds. The excitement in the store was palpable.

The quest helped teach critical budgeting skills, something so many of us struggle with. It was a fun way to learn a real-world skill. As Eagle Mount put it, “Real-life skills. Real joy. All wins.”

upLIFTT Thrift Store looks forward to hosting Eagle Mount again in the future.

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

Community Garden Kickoff is May 15

Everyone is invited to the LIFTT Community Garden Kickoff on Friday, May 15, beginning at noon

A New Season of Growth, Connection, and Possibility Awaits in the LIFTT ADA-Accessible, all-inclusive Community Garden!

There are seasons in life when we prepare the soil, and seasons when we begin again. At LIFTT, the garden is calling us back.

After a remarkable first year, one that brought together more than 100 participants, fostered inclusion across abilities, and transformed a simple space into a living community, the ADA-accessible, all-inclusive Community Garden is preparing to open its gates once more. What began as a project grounded in accessibility and inclusion quickly became something far more expansive: a place where individuals could gather, learn, and rediscover their capacity to grow.

This new season begins on May 15 at noon, when LIFTT will host its Community Garden Kickoff. On that day, the garden will open once again to both returning participants and those encountering it for the first time. As part of the celebration, free plant starts and seeds donated to LIFTT by San Diego Seed Company will be offered to anyone in the community who wishes to take part. This invitation is intentionally open, extending beyond current garden members to neighbors, friends, and anyone curious about what this space has to offer. Whether someone arrives with years of gardening experience or simply a willingness to try, the garden welcomes them equally.

What distinguishes the LIFTT Community Garden is not only what is grown, but how it is grown. Designed from the outset to remove barriers, the garden provides an environment where people of all abilities can participate fully. Raised beds, adaptive tools, and accessible pathways make it possible for individuals to stand, sit, reach, and work in ways that honor their bodies and their needs. In this carefully designed space, gardening becomes more than an activity; it becomes a shared practice of inclusion, where no one is asked to remain on the margins.

During the previous season, something quietly transformative took place. Participants did not simply plant vegetables; they began to cultivate a deeper sense of belonging. They learned from one another, supported one another, and discovered that growth can take many forms. For some, it meant gaining confidence after years of hesitation. For others, it meant finding peace in the rhythm of tending soil and plants. What emerged was not only a garden, but a community rooted in dignity, connection, and mutual encouragement.

As this new season begins, the garden stands as both a continuation and an invitation. It invites individuals to step into a space where learning happens naturally, where relationships form without effort, and where small acts like planting a seed, watering a bed, sharing a harvest, carry meaning beyond themselves. It offers a chance to reconnect with the outdoors, to rediscover patience, and to experience the quiet satisfaction of nurturing something over time.

Looking ahead, LIFTT remains committed to expanding what the garden makes possible. The coming months will bring opportunities for learning, connection, and shared experience, as participants gather not only to grow food but to build community. Workshops, conversations, and moments of collaboration will continue to shape the garden as a place where independence is supported and inclusion is practiced daily. Yet beyond any specific activity, the true value of the garden lies in what cannot be easily measured: the sense of being welcomed, of being seen, and of belonging to something larger than oneself.

The kickoff on May 15 marks the beginning of this new chapter. It is an opportunity to step into the garden, to take part in its unfolding, and to become part of a story that continues to grow with each season. Those who come will find more than plants ready to be placed in the soil; they will find a space shaped by care, intention, and the belief that everyone deserves the opportunity to participate fully in the life of their community.

This season is also sustained by the quiet but unwavering dedication of those who believe deeply in the garden’s purpose. LIFTT extends a heartfelt thank you to Board Chair Garrett Mills, whose passion for gardening continues to nurture not only the plants themselves, but also the vision of what this space represents. His commitment helps keep both the garden and our shared dreams of growth alive.

At LIFTT, every seed planted carries with it the promise of growth. And with each new season, that promise is renewed—not only in what is harvested, but in the lives that are touched along the way.

For more information about the LIFTT ADA-Accessible, all-Inclusive, Community Garden, please contact LIFTT Nutritional Health Coach Eileen Rodrigiuz at (406) 294-5185 or eileenr@liftt.org

Plant starts ready to be transplanted to the LIFTT Community Garden (Photos Courtesy of Garrett Mills)

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

Strengthening Independence with New EVV Standards

LIFTT’s new EVV compliance policy will strengthen the PCA services delivered by LIFTT across Southeastern and South-Central Montana. (File Photo/IStockPhoto.com)

Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT) is proud to announce the adoption of a new Electronic Visit Verification (EVV) Compliance Policy, which further strengthens its Personal Care Assistance (PCA) Program and reinforces its commitment to quality, accountability, and independent living.

The PCA Program is one of LIFTT’s core services, supporting aging and disabled individuals across Southeastern and South-Central Montana to live independently in their own homes and communities. Through this program, trained Personal Care Assistants (PCAs) provide essential daily support tailored to each participant’s needs.

With the implementation of the new EVV system, LIFTT is enhancing how services are documented and delivered. The system securely records the time and location of each visit, ensuring that services are provided as authorized and that participants receive the care they are entitled to.

“This is about trust, dignity, and accountability,” said Carlos Ramalho, Executive Director of LIFTT. “Our participants deserve reliable, transparent care, and our staff deserve systems that support their work. This policy helps us do both.”

The new policy aligns LIFTT with federal and state Medicaid requirements, including standards established under the 21st Century Cures Act, ensuring that services meet the highest levels of compliance and program integrity.

Beyond meeting regulatory requirements, the EVV system offers meaningful practical benefits for both participants and those who support them. It enhances the accuracy of service documentation, ensuring that the care provided is clearly and reliably recorded. At the same time, it improves coordination among participants, caregivers, and LIFTT staff, allowing for more consistent and responsive service delivery. The system also introduces stronger safeguards against errors and billing discrepancies, helping to protect both the program and its participants. In addition, it promotes greater transparency for families and person representatives, offering reassurance that services are being delivered as authorized and documented with integrity.

For participants, this means confidence that services are delivered consistently and correctly. For caregivers, it provides clear guidance and support. And for the broader community, it reflects LIFTT’s commitment to responsible stewardship of public resources.

LIFTT continues to serve 18 counties across Eastern Montana, working to remove barriers and empower individuals to live independently. The PCA Program remains a cornerstone of that mission, offering personalized, in-home support that respects each individual’s dignity, autonomy, and goals.

Community members interested in receiving services or becoming a Personal Care Assistant are encouraged to contact LIFTT to learn more about available opportunities.

For more information, please contact: Holly Hanson, LIFTT PCA Program Manager at (406) 831-0031, or hollyh@liftt.org

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

A Path Forward: Building the Future of Independence Together

LIFTT is building paths to independence across Eastern Montana (File Photo/Unsplash)

There are moments when the work we do invites us not only to look at what has been accomplished, but to reflect on where we are going.

At Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT), the past months have been filled with movement: quiet, steady, and meaningful movement. Behind every conversation, every service, and every program is something larger taking shape: a community where independence is not an aspiration, but a lived reality.

What we are witnessing is not simply growth in services, but a deepening of impact.

Each connection made through peer support, each individual who finds clarity navigating complex systems, each person who takes a step toward better health or greater stability. These are not isolated outcomes. They are part of a broader transformation. They reflect a shift from uncertainty to confidence, from limitation to possibility.

And yet, what is most compelling is not only what has been done, but what is becoming possible.

Across Southeastern and South Central Montana, the need for access, mobility, and support continues to grow. LIFTT is responding not by standing still, but by expanding its reach, strengthening its programs, and deepening its relationships with the communities it serves.

Transportation, for example, is no longer seen only as a service, but as a gateway. Through RideWell by LIFTT, individuals will not be simply getting from one place to another, but they will be accessing healthcare, maintaining connections, and reclaiming a sense of autonomy that is essential to daily life. What begins as a ride becomes something far greater: a pathway to participation, dignity, and belonging.

The same can be said of LIFTT’s educational and peer support programs. These are not just classes or services; they are spaces where knowledge becomes empowerment, and where individuals begin to see themselves not as recipients of support, but as active participants in their own lives.

Looking ahead, LIFTT’s work is guided by a simple but powerful understanding: independence is not built all at once. It is built over time through relationships, through access, and through the consistent presence of support when it is needed most.

The future, then, is not something distant. It is already unfolding in the lives of those who are choosing to take the next step, ask the next question, and engage with the resources available to them.

As LIFTT continues to grow, so too does its responsibility and its opportunity to shape that future. To expand access where it does not yet exist. To strengthen pathways where they are fragile. To ensure that no one has to navigate these challenges alone.

This is the work before us.

And it is work only possible because of the community that surrounds it: staff, partners, supporters, and participants, all contributing in different ways to something shared.

Together, we are not only responding to need.

We are building a future where independence is possible for all.

LIFTT’s Team

LIFTT Billings Office
1241 Crawford Drive
Billings, MT 59102
Phone: (406) 259-5181
Website: www.liftt.org

LIFTT Glendive Office
206 S. Douglas St.
Glendive, MT 59330
Phone: (406) 948-8500
Website: www.liftt.org

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

Expanding the Mission: upLIFTT comes to Glendive

upLIFTT Thrift is expanding to Glendive! The store at 206 S. Douglas Street is expected to open in May.

Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT) is proud to announce the opening of a second upLIFTT Thrift Store, coming soon to Glendive, Montana. Located at LIFTT’s newly acquired building at 206 S. Douglas Street, the store is expected to open in May 2026.

This new location marks an important step forward in LIFTT’s commitment to serving communities across Eastern Montana. More than just a retail space, the upLIFTT Thrift Store in Glendive is designed to be a place of access, opportunity, and community connection.

“At LIFTT, we believe that independence is built in everyday ways,” said Carlos Ramalho, Executive Director. “This new store is not only about providing affordable goods. It is about creating a space where people feel welcomed, supported, and empowered in their daily lives.”

The Glendive upLIFTT Thrift Store will offer a wide range of items for individuals and families, including clothing for all ages, new underwear, toys, furniture, seasonal decorations, kitchenware, and other essential home goods. The goal is simple but meaningful: to ensure that community members have access to items that support daily living, comfort, and self-expression. At the same time, the store will serve as an important source of funding for LIFTT’s programs and services, helping sustain initiatives that promote independence and improve quality of life throughout the region.

“This is a community investment,” Ramalho added. “Every item purchased and every donation received helps us continue our work, removing barriers, expanding opportunities, and supporting individuals in living independently.”

LIFTT looks forward to welcoming the Glendive community into the new space and invites residents to visit, donate, and be part of this growing effort. More details about the grand opening will be announced soon.

For more information about the uplIFTT Thrift Glendive location, please contact our Glendive office at (406) 948-8500 or send us a message through liftt.org/contact.

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

From the Executive Director: “A Deeply Personal Journey”

This past year has been, for me, a deeply personal journey. Approximately one year ago, I was diagnosed with cancer for the third time in my life. Like many who receive such news, I found myself discouraged and questioning how this could happen again. It is often said that lightning does not strike the same place twice, but life, as we know, does not always follow what we expect.

The months that followed were difficult. I underwent several surgeries and chemotherapy. I am now awaiting further imaging to determine the next steps in my treatment. It has been a time marked by uncertainty, physical challenges, and reflection.

And yet, I am still here.

I am profoundly grateful to the physicians and nurses who have cared for me, especially the team at the Billings Clinic Cancer Center. I am equally grateful for the unwavering support of my family, friends, colleagues at LIFTT, and our Board of Directors. Their presence has been a constant reminder that none of us walks these paths alone.

While I would never wish such an experience on anyone, I have come to understand something more deeply: there is, indeed, life at the end of the tunnel. And perhaps more importantly, there is life within the tunnel itself, moments of connection, strength, and meaning that we might otherwise overlook.

This experience has strengthened my commitment to LIFTT’s mission. Every day, we work alongside individuals who face barriers, uncertainty, and challenges of their own. What I have learned personally is what we affirm professionally: that dignity, independence, and hope are not abstract ideals. They are lived realities, often forged in the most difficult moments.

As we move forward together, I carry with me a renewed sense of purpose and gratitude for this work, for this community, and for the opportunity to continue serving alongside all of you.

With appreciation,

Carlos Ramalho, LIFTT Executive Director

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

Community in Action: LIFTT thanks Mayflower UCC for Coat Drive

Coats donated through community efforts help ensure that no one faces the cold alone. (File Photo/Unsplash.com)

Living Independently for Today & Tomorrow (LIFTT) is proud to recognize and thank Mayflower Congregational Church, a congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC) in Billings, for its generous and impactful Palm Sunday coat drive benefiting the local community.

Through this initiative, members of Mayflower Congregational Church collected and donated coats to help individuals and families in need stay warm and supported. The coats are now being distributed through the upLIFTT Thrift Store, located at 1201 Grand Avenue in Billings, where they are available to community members.

“This is what community looks like,” said Carlos Ramalho, Executive Director of LIFTT. “When organizations like Mayflower Congregational Church step forward with generosity and intention, they do more than provide coats; they affirm dignity, restore comfort, and strengthen the fabric of our community. We are deeply grateful for their partnership.”

The collaboration reflects shared values between LIFTT and Mayflower Congregational Church, both of which are committed to service, inclusion, and meeting people where they are.

“We believe that caring for our neighbors is at the heart of who we are,” said Rev. Amy M. Carter, pastor of Mayflower Congregational Church. “This coat drive was a simple way for our congregation to respond to real needs in our community. We are thankful for LIFTT and the upLIFTT Thrift Store for helping ensure these donations reach the people who need them most.”

Located at 2940 Poly Drive in Billings, Mayflower Congregational Church has long been an active presence in the community, supporting initiatives that promote compassion, justice, and mutual care.

LIFTT encourages community members to visit the upLIFTT Thrift Store to access available items and to support ongoing efforts that promote independence and well-being across the region.

Together, through partnerships like this, LIFTT and Mayflower Congregational Church continue to demonstrate that meaningful change begins with simple acts of generosity.

upLIFTT Thrift is located at 1201 Grand Avenue in Billings and is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, contact upLIFTT Thrift store manager Theresa Sand at (406) 534-1147 or theresas@liftt.org

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

A Moment That Matters: Civil Rights, Community, and the Future We Choose

For the disability community, Civil Rights aren’t abstractions; they are essential (File Photo/Unsplash)

There are moments when a community is called not simply to observe, but to respond.

This is one of those moments.

Across Montana, more than 1,000 individuals and 64 organizations have come together to raise their voices in defense of something fundamental: the civil rights of people with disabilities. At the center of this effort is Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, a law that, for more than fifty years, has affirmed a simple but transformative principle: that every person, regardless of ability, has the right to participate fully in society.

To understand what is at stake, we must first understand what civil rights are: Civil rights are not abstract legal concepts. They are the conditions that make life in a community possible. They are the guarantees that individuals will not be excluded from education, denied access to healthcare, prevented from working, or isolated from public life simply because of who they are.

They are, in essence, the foundation of belonging.

In the United States, the story of civil rights has never been static. It is a history marked by struggle, by advocacy, and by the persistent effort to bring the reality of our society closer to its ideals. From the earliest constitutional principles to the movements that expanded rights across lines of race, gender, and disability, civil rights have been the means through which the nation has sought to define itself, not as perfect, but as continually striving toward greater inclusion and justice.

Section 504 is part of that legacy.

For generations, it has ensured that individuals with disabilities are not left outside the structures that shape daily life: healthcare, education, housing, employment, and public services. It has made it possible for people to live in their communities rather than be separated from them. It has been affirmed that disability does not diminish a person’s place in society.

Today, those protections are being challenged.

Montana’s participation in a multi-state lawsuit seeking to overturn updated federal regulations under Section 504 has raised deep concern across the disability community. Advocates, organizations, and individuals from every corner of the state are warning that the consequences of this challenge could reach far beyond policy, into the lived realities of thousands of Montanans.

For many, this is not theoretical.

It is the ability to remain in one’s home rather than be forced into an institution.

It is the right to access education, to raise a family, to participate fully in community life.

It is the assurance that disability does not mean exclusion.

Voices across Montana are speaking with clarity and conviction.

Leaders of Centers for Independent Living have emphasized that the infrastructure supporting independent living, transportation, access to services, and community integration depends on the protections that laws like Section 504 provide. To weaken those protections is not simply to change policy; it is to risk undoing decades of progress.

At LIFTT, we see every day what civil rights make possible.

Independence is not a single event. It is built through access to transportation, information, services, and opportunity. It is sustained by the knowledge that individuals have the right to make decisions about their own lives and to participate fully in their communities. And it is something that touches all of us.

Disability is not a distant category. It is part of human experience. It is something that may enter any life through injury, illness, or aging. Civil rights protections exist not for a select few but for all of us across the course of our lives.

What is unfolding now is not simply a legal debate.

It is a question about the kind of society we choose to build.

Do we continue the work of expanding access and inclusion?

Do we affirm that every individual belongs in the community?

Do we protect the principles that have allowed so many to live with dignity and independence?

Across Montana, the answer is being written not only in policy but also in the voices of those who believe that civil rights are essential, enduring, and worth protecting.

This moment will pass.

But the choices made within it will shape the future.

And that future, as always, will depend on whether we continue the work of building a society where independence, dignity, and belonging are not privileges but rights.

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.

March 2026 LIFTT Connection Now Available!

The January Edition of the LIFTT Connection Newsletter is now available!

View the March 2026 LIFTT Connection Newsletter Email on the Web

Download the March 2026 LIFTT Connection Newsletter Email (Adobe PDF)

In this issue of the LIFTT Connection:

You can request to join our email list and receive the March 2026 LIFTT Connection Newsletter and future newsletters by sending your name and address to jedb@liftt.org. Also, look for articles from the newsletter to be posted on liftt.org and our Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn feeds.

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 device.

Our Vision: Empowering aging and disabled individuals to LIFTT themselves above the barriers of life.

Our Mission: Living Independently for Today and Tomorrow – LIFTT’s mission is to empower aging and disabled individuals to live independently through education, support, and opportunities.

You can donate to LIFTT by clicking here.