It’s a Jungle out there| Inclusion in the Grocery Store

photo credit: Swamibu 2006 Aaron, my son with the labels of autism and developmental disabilities, had a doctor’s appointment so I brought him late to his adult day program. A Visit to the Jungle—Jungle Jim’s that is. Thanks to cell phones, I connected with his group...

Hope for Families of People with Disabilities|Bob Perske

Robert and Martha Perske Today I was thinking of Martha and Bob Perske. Martha’s beautiful sketches of children with disabilities are in frames over my desk and in buildings all over this country. Bob is now gone, but as we each get older and wonder if our lives...

Language of the Heart| Heartaches and Heartsongs

photo credit: qthomasbower In the post: Caring Community| People First Language we talked about the power of labels, negative stereotypes and the paradigm shift of looking at all people as PEOPLE First! Today, on Valentine’s Day, I am asking you to think about...

What makes you special?

photo credit: jpellgen My granddaughter, Isabella, brought home a paper where all her classmates wrote a sentence about what they liked about her. It reminded me of this story. God Bless her third grade teacher, Mrs. Link. This anonymous story is titled simply,...

Test Questions| Segregation or Inclusion?

Test Questions | Segregation or Inclusion? Friends and family members send me newspaper stories about people with disabilities. Some stories make me shout with joy and others make me want to cry and give up. Often my friends can’t figure out which ones are which. For...