ADA Day celebrations

Wow! Weren’t you just OVERWHELMED yesterday by the festivities to celebrate the 17th anniversary of the most expansive civil rights legislation supporting the rights of people with disabilities? The ADA greeting cards, 10 feet-tall inflatable Justin Dart figures, the candy curb cuts, the endless accessibility party invitations……OK so maybe I just DREAM of a little more society-wide celebration of ADA and other dates marking the passage of civil rights. I tried to get a little enthusiasm rolling by calling some family and friends with “Happy ADA” messages, but can’t we just get a tad of the commercialization America jumps to attach to our other beloved holidays! While they weren’t ONLY for ADA, I baked my first batch of cupcakes AND icing from scratch. Magnolia’s vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting complete with little candy stars! Aren’t they cute? Adam’s taking them to his internship site tomorrow for his very last day of free labor! He’ll be an official graduate in only a few days (not sure of the exact date, but I’m going to find out because more celebrations are definitely in order).

Last but not least, we ended our Day O’ ADA with some collaboration on a presentation aimed to spread some awareness. Next week out of the goodness of his little wheeler heart (and because what agency can’t use a little disability sensitivity training?!?) Adam will be going back to his site to give a little chat about basic etiquette. He’ll be presenting and I’m going to watch with my trusty Bailey by my side. He threw in some information on service dogs, so she’s an excellent prop! She’s also going to visit some of the residents. Their regular therapy dog is of the white and fluffy variety, so Bailey is practicing holding her underbite back and hiding her teeth! She considered a wig, but I’m sure they’ll love her just the way she is!

If you’re interested in putting together a similar talk on disability sensitivity, e-mail me or leave a comment and I’ll send you his Power Point presentation. I tried to upload it like the other one (that worked!) but no matter what I try-it’s too big. He addresses people first language, invisible/visible disabilities, do’s and don’ts of interacting with people with disabilities, and ways to respect the dignity of patients in medical settings.