A Farewell Message

Five years ago yesterday, I created this blog to inform people on various disability topics while promoting my autobiography UnabASHed by Disability (still available for purchase on Amazon and Kindle). After much consideration, I have decided to stop posting on "UnabASHed by Disability: The Blog." I plan to shift my creative energy to other forms of writing. If you'd like to read one or more of my previous blog posts, go to the Blog Archive at the right of this column. Thank you, readers, for your support over the years. I leave you with these words from the epilogue of my book:

• Focus on what you are able to do instead of what you are unable to do.
• Be courageous and persistent while pursuing your dreams.
• Remember you have the potential to make a positive difference in your family and your community and even your country and the world.

The Family Cafe: Going Virtual

Normally, this would be the third and final day of the Family Café, which is typically held at an Orlando hotel during the first weekend of June. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 22nd Annual Family Café is taking place on its Facebook page over a two-week period. I hadn't attended the cross-disability conference in five years (refer to my first blog post dated June 13, 2015, for a summary of my experience). I decided last month to register for this event since I could easily access it online. A few days ago, I received in the mail a package containing the Family Café program, exhibitor catalog, and other materials along with a tote bag.

The Family Café began at 11:00 A.M. last Friday with the Governor's Summit on Disabilities, which included remarks from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Senate President Bill Galvano. A couple of hours later, there was a Q&A session with Zack Gottsagen, an actor with Down syndrome who starred in the movie The Peanut Butter Falcon (refer to my blog post dated October 6, 2019, for more information). You can watch these and yesterday's two sessions in the Live section of the Family Cafe's Facebook page. Future sessions on various disability-related topics will be broadcast live at 11:00 A.M. and 2:00 P.M. every day except Sunday until Friday, June 19. Attorney Robert "Bobby" Silverstein, the behind-the-scenes developer of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 30 years ago, will be the keynote speaker at 11:00 A.M. this Friday, June 12. Below are links to Family Café materials:

22nd Annual Family Café Program:
https://www.familycafe.net/images/stories/pdffiles/2020-tracking-program-lowres.pdf
22nd Annual Family Café Exhibitor Catalog:
https://www.familycafe.net/images/stories/pdffiles/2020-exhibitor-catalog-lowres.pdf
Updated Facebook Live Sessions Schedule:
https://www.familycafe.net/images/stories/pdffiles/22nd-AFC-agenda.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1yIQRU_pq4065zfWzI3Wje-fnCT2nIDenoHsW6nQvkvUtCwYXh8UHAmx8

The Family Cafe logo

(image via familycafe.net)

A Century of Vocational Rehabilitation

Tomorrow, June 2, marks the 100th anniversary of Vocational Rehabilitation (VR). The organization is a result of the Smith-Fess Act (also known as the Industrial Rehabilitation Act and the National Civilian Vocational Rehabilitation Act), which President Woodrow Wilson signed into law. VR is the first federally funded program to help people whose disabilities were not caused by military service, making it possible for them to be employed and live independently.

I'm a former VR client; a job coach hired by the organization helped me become employed as a quality analyst for a call monitoring company. I still have my job almost six years later. For resources about VR's 100th anniversary, go to https://www2.ed.gov/policy/speced/leg/rehab/vr100/index.html.

Vocational Rehabilitation's 100th anniversary logo

(image via U.S. Department of Education)