On Thursday, March 23rd, 2023, the Disabilities &Conditions of Aging Network, hosted by Advocates Personal Care, met virtually to discuss events impacting the Disability community in central Indiana, throughout the State, and beyond. To focus in on a conversation that began during the February meeting, we invited Karly Sciortino-Poulter from the ARC of Indiana to help us better understand the …
Strength of the Body, Knowledge of the Mind, & Honesty of the Heart – Adaptive Martial Arts for People with Disabilities
The story below is the original, unedited version of the article that was published in the Indiana Disability Justice Hub earlier this month. That article, and many others focused on preventing violence against people with disabilities can be found at: Disability Justice and Violence Prevention Resource Hub – Created by Survivors of Violence with Disabilities for People with Disabilities & …
National Disability Employment Awareness…why a month?
We’re fast approaching the 18th anniversary of my survival day; the day I lost both of my legs to severe burns sustained in a car accident during my commute home from work but did not die. October 22nd marks that life altering event for me. It’s been 18 years, and the irony that this happened during National Disability Employment Awareness …
Delivery Day (Phase 3 Actual)
Due to a trick of timing, I actually received the new legs about 3 days before I wrote my previous blog post “The Trial (Phase 3 Dawning)”. As I alluded to in that post, life has been exceptionally busy, and I am focusing most of my effort on growing Walking Spirit and better defining and promoting our services. This hasn’t …
The Trial (Phase 3 Dawning)
So much has been going on over the past few months that I’ve not been able to find time to write. This post is long overdue. The month of May was dominated by multiple Graduation ceremonies and celebrations. Two college and one high school…all in different locations with varying degrees of accessibility, but that is a story for another time. …
Disabilities & Conditions of Aging Network, April ’23 Session
It has been and continues to be an honor to facilitate the Disabilities and Conditions of Aging Network focused on issues and activities that impact the Disability Community in Indiana. April’s session had a loose agenda, giving each organization present the opportunity to share their updates. Included in the video is information pertaining to upcoming meetings where you can get …
Hotels & the ADA (supporting the Civil Rights of People with Disabilities)
Towards the end of March, I noticed a headline about a Civil Rights Activist suing a Hotel for ADA violations who was arguing her case before the Supreme Court. I read the article and found myself, once again, realizing how much my perspective on our world has changed since I lost both of my legs. When I worked in the …
Dating With a Disability (a Disability Awareness Month post)
Starting off the last week of Disability Awareness Month, I give you a glimpse into what dating with a disability looks like… The picture below, taken 8 years ago, shows Irena and I in a lazy river, with her youngest son floating nearby. She had taken her kids to the Abe Martin Lodge for the weekend, I drove down to …
Disabilities & Conditions of Aging Network, February 2023
February’s meeting began late, as a result of technical difficulties. For some reason it took 20 minutes to get zoom to recognize that I was clicking on the “sign in” button! As a result, we started 15 minutes late with an important question about the stability of paid parental Caregiving as a permanent feature of Attendant Care services through the …
Disabilities & Conditions of Aging Network, January 2023
On Thursday, January 26th, 2023, the virtual Disabilities & Conditions of Aging Network, which is comprised of organizations and individuals who are part of the disability community in Indiana and hosted by Advocates Personal Care, gathered for our first meeting of the year. Rather than focus on a few spotlight organizations for the month, we had an open agenda with …