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December, 12, 2006

On December 12, 2006, Abilities, Inc. hosted its Annual Employer Appreciation Breakfast. Representatives from more than ninety corporations with operations in the New York metropolitan area were on hand to be recognized for their outstanding efforts to increase employment of people with disabilities. This year ‘Above and Beyond’ awards were presented to Verizon and Town of North Hempstead for their collaborative project to upgrade the Abilities, Inc. computer laboratories. The Gap, Inc. was also recognized as Tina Petallides-Markou, a Gap Associate Store Manager in Bayside, NY, recently won the second annual Gap Founder’s Award. The award provides a $50,000 grant and 80 hours of paid volunteer time off, which will be utilized to renovate Abilities, Inc.’s retail training facility. Adding to the excitement, OSI Pharmaceuticals was presented with the 2006 New York State Rehabilitation Association Award.

This year’s keynote speaker was Mr. James Brown, New York City Department of Labor, Economist and Labor Market Analyst. His comprehensive presentation included data collected on employment trends and projections of future availability of labor for the New York metropolitan area. His remarks included national and regional labor market trends; statistics on employment rate including individuals with disabilities; growth and decline of industry on Long Island and the Tri-state area; and forecasted worker shortages.

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