Welcome to the Lehigh Valley
Center for Independent Living

Located in Allentown, Pennsylvania and serving all of
Lehigh and Northampton Counties

Last updated May 2009

The Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living, Inc, (LVCIL) is proud to be one of Pennsylvania’s 18 Centers for Independent Living. We were founded in 1990 through the efforts of Operation Overcome, a dynamic, local grassroots advocacy group comprised of persons with disabilities, their families and friends. Operation Overcome is credited with ground-breaking action to force schools to increase accessibility, and the famous Roll On The Mall, at which government leaders and local politicians used wheelchairs to try to negotiate Allentown’s inaccessible main shopping district on Hamilton Street. The Roll On The Mall gained national attention and led to increased public access in the Lehigh Valley, before access was mandated by law.

LVCIL is a private non-profit organization. We are both staffed and governed, at all times, by a majority of persons with disabilities. This is called Consumer Control, meaning that because we are people with disabilities, we never forget the rights and needs of those we serve. In other words, persons with disabilities control all of our services and operations. All Centers for Independent Living place the greatest emphasis on consumer self-determination, we are not here to make decisions for our consumers, but to provide information and resources to allow consumers to make independent decisions. We also work to increase inclusion in our community whether it is in housing, transportation, voting rights, employment, or many other areas.

LVCIL is located in Allentown, Pennsylvania and we serve persons in Lehigh and Northampton Counties. We serve persons with any type of disability and/or his/her family. We are the area’s only cross-disability organizations. LVCIL is a membership organization, although consumers do not need to be members to receive services. Members of LVCIL CMO (Citizen’s Membership Organization) nominate and elect fellow LVCIL CMO members to the Board of Directors.

Members of staff and Board of Directors are eager to hear from you-citizens of our Lehigh Valley community and fellow disability advocates throughout Pennsylvania, across the nation, and throughout the world. Together, we can build a network for giving people with disabilities better opportunities and a stronger voice. Together, we can build inclusive, understanding communities and work to strengthen the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.)

Independent Living is a state of mind.
It has to do with exercising options, making choices, self-determination, and the right to control your own life.
 (Westside Center for Independent Living, Los Angeles, California)