December 2013 Edition - Access Press

Merrick celebrates a milestone, Pg 8

Volume 24, Number 12

December 10, 2013

www.accesspress.org

Campaign to raise care rates generates noise at capitol

Old lights recycled, get new life

by Jane McClure

That old tangled and broken pile of Christmas light strings can be recycled now through January 31. Help the environment by replacing old lights with new, energyefficient lights. Help employ people with disabilities and help reach the goal of collecting and processing 200,000 pounds of lights this season.

Recycle Your Holidays is a one-of-a-kind statewide holiday light recycling program in Minnesota created and managed by the Recycling Association of Minnesota. Drop off unwanted light strings at one of almost 500 participating locations.

Most are in Minnesota, although there are a few drop sites in northern Iowa and western Wisconsin.

The program is promoted statewide in partnership with WCCO, Great River Energy, Ace Hardware stores and CERTS (Clean Energy Resource Teams). The program employs more than 200 individuals with disabilities at vocational centers throughout the state. Every part of Recycled lights - p. 10

The 5% Campaign is making itself heard. Hundreds of supporters jammed all three levels of the capitol rotunda November 12, in a show of force before the 2104 Minnesota Legislature convenes February 25.

Self-advocates, organization representatives, families, personal care attendants and direct support providers turned out to support the call for a 5 percent rate increase for home- and communitybased services for people with disabilities. They were Donna Atherton was one of many family members at the November 12 rally. also joined by several of Photo courtesy of The Arc Minnesota their Minnesota legislative allies. ing the rally, said he and other care providers Cries of “What do we want?” “Five percannot support themselves and their families. cent!” “When do we want it?” “Now!” rang “We do these jobs because we love doing through the halls of the capitol. Many waived them,” he said. “But we cannot feed our famisigns stating “5 Percent Now,” “We Give 100 lies on our incomes.”

Percent But We Only Want 5 Percent” and Kayla Ebert, who participates in programs at “Poverty Wages for Professional Work?”

Opportunity Partners, told the crowd that a rate “Today is our day! The day we stand up and increase will help that agency and others retain shout from the walls of the capitol. The day we staff longer. She holds a job and benefits from shout from the top of the mountain and say, day treatment and habilitation services. She and ‘We need our fair share of treatment to be able others are negatively affected when staff leave. to continue to build sound foundations in our “I feel that one of the reasons that staff leave is communities’,” said Sam Subah, a direct supbecause they don’t get paid enough to do the port provider for Eagan-based Living Well job that they love,” she said.

Disability Services.

The 5% Campaign already has about 70 legSubah, who had shouted himself hoarse dur5% - p. 15

Address Service Requested

30 in 30 years

Robins fly to yet another prep championship One of the state’s oldest and most successful adapted high school sports programs has racked up another state championship, its 30th title in three decades’ play. The Robbinsdale/ Hopkins/Mound Westonka Robins won the team’s sixth straight title in the PI divisions November 16, winning 5-4 over Dakota United. The state tournament was at Stillwater High School.

Earlier this fall the Robins marked the program’s 30th anniver-

sary with a ceremony at Robbinsdale Armstrong High School.

Athletes from the past three decades of teams were invited back for the events, which included a soccer game against border rivals, the Park Center Pirates.

The Robins have their own booster club and take their name from the original Robbinsdale High teams, which were also the Robins. The PI teams are some of the best in the state, in adapted soccer, floor hockey and softball. Teams have won 14 out of 15 consecutive state championships between all three sports. The Robins have won the championships either as Robbinsdale High or in combination with other schools. The win November 16 was the Robins’ eighth PI soccer crown.

The program and its coaches have won other honors. In 2008, Robbinsdale Robins P.I. coaches Marcus Onsum and Steve Onsum were inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame as recipients of the USA WEEKEND Most Caring Coaches Award.

This year’s Robins averaged 11.0 goals per game and their opponents scored 1.0 against them in regular season play. Also during the regular season junior Tyler Sarff led the Robins with 25 goals and 10 assists. Junior Joe Dubisar added 12 goals and eight assists. Junior keeper Jimmie Flores went 4-0 in the net and has a 0.93 save perThe Robins defend the goal against a determined Dakota United athlete, in the PI centage. With all three coming back next year the team is title game.

Photo courtesy of MN Prep Photos

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Twin Cities. MN Permit No. 4766

State prep champions - p. 10

“If you get too much on your plate, you’ll have to get a platter!”

— Lynn Tracy NEWS DIGEST

This chef knows her way around the kitchen.

Page 8 Get your copy of The Real Story DVD. And support Access Press through targeted gifts.

Page 3 NAMI of Minnesota presented awards at the organization’s annual banquet.

Page 7 Veterans benefit from house renovations.

Page 9 Check out a movie this holiday season.

Page 11 Outdoor adventures will be easier.

Page 12

INSIDE Accessible Fun, pg 13 Events, pg 12 People & Places, pps 7-10 Radio Talking Book, pg 14 Regional News, pgs 6

Pg 2 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

EDITOR’S DESK

Tim Benjamin Winter is here; there is no questioning that now. As I’m writing this, I’m watching the snow falling out my window. I’m not looking forward to slipping out into the cold and the slick drive home. The winter weather alerts have been broadcast everywhere— smartphones, television, radio, Internet. All those alerts, but nothing to do about them except grit my teeth and be very careful.

Each year at this time I question why I live in this deep-freeze. I ask myself that age-old question of Minnesota-Arizona snowbirds: what would I rather do, run from my heated house to my heated car or from my air-conditioned house to my air-conditioned car? Then I think positive. Minnesota has a quality of life that is better than any place I’ve been in the United States. And without question, Minnesota has some of the best opportunities and services for people with disabilities in the country. Minnesota has an extremely strong disability advocacy community with extremely effective legislative advocacy groups to help maintain our outstanding quality of life. And, hey, spring is beautifully green and renewing, summer

is comfortably warm with occasional rain showers, and fall is always cool and unbelievably colorful.

Bring it on, winter.

We’ve been running articles pretty regularly about the 5% Campaign and its progress. This month on the front page we have an article about a recent rally in the capitol rotunda that got everyone excited. Each day there are more legislators signing on to support the 5% campaign. As we went to press, the campaign received the best possible news: the state’s budget forecast shows a billion-dollar surplus for this fiscal year. After the required (and deserved) payments to K-12 schools, there should be plenty of surplus to cover the 5% requested wage increase for direct support professionals. The plan is that 75% of the increase will be mandated to go directly to employees and the other 25% will cover administrative costs. But I’m told by Steve Larson from The Arc Minnesota, that we need to continue our communications with Gov. Mark Dayton; he’s not totally convinced that the 5% Campaign should be high-priority. Of course, all of us in the disability community think that it should have been top priority last session when a 5% increase went to institutional employees and our PCA agencies only got a 1% increase. I agree with what Rep. Jim Abeler (R-Anoka) said: there should be a 15% increase for home- and community-based providers.

Preparations for the state of MNSure continue.

NAMI Minnesota reminds us that MNSure and Med-

icaid expansion will offer new hope to many young people who are being newly diagnosed with serious mental illnesses. In an article a couple months back we didn’t include an important fact; namely, that all the new health care plans under MNSure and Medicaid were required to expand access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment and must follow mental health parity laws and regulations. Prior to the expansion, many of the individual health insurance plans didn’t cover mental health treatments and substance use disorders. Often these treatments would be exempt from insurance parity laws. To become eligible for Medicaid you almost always had to be on Social Security Insurance. Young adults with mental health conditions are often denied SSA coverage and have had to appeal two or more times. It’s difficult to say at a young age that you’ll never be healthy enough to work again, one of the requirements. With the new expansion you only have to be low-income to be eligible for Medicaid and access your needed mental health treatment through the new plans. Not always, but often, many mental health conditions can be controlled with proper treatments, which will allow many with mental health diagnoses to eventually get and retain jobs. Let’s support these folks today so they can support themselves tomorrow.

Stay warm, stay safe and start calling the governor and your legislators to support the 5% campaign and all other disability services in the upcoming session.

Even though it’s not a budget session, we still need to be seen at the capitol. See you all there in the coming new year! ■

HISTORY NOTE

Protection and advocacy were a key civil rights step Through its series Moments in History, the Minnesota Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities is leading up to the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Through written content, photos, posted documents, video and audio links, history of the disability rights movement comes alive for all to enjoy. The council plans to post 31 history stories in the months ahead. Almost a dozen stories are now available online. Go to http://mn.gov/ mnddc/ and scroll down to the ADA Legacy Project.

Volume 24, Number 12 • Periodicals Imprint: Pending ISSN Co-Founder/Publisher Wm. A. Smith, Jr. (1990-1996)

Executive Director Tim Benjamin

Co-Founder/Publisher/ Editor-in-Chief Charles F. Smith (1990-2001)

Managing Editor Jane McClure

Board of Directors Brigid Alseth, Steve Anderson, Kristin Jorenby, Elin Ohlsson, Halle O'Falvey, Carrie Salberg, Walt Seibert and Kay Willshire Advertising Sales Michelle Hegarty 612-807-1078

Business Manager/Webmaster Dawn Frederick Cartoonist Scott Adams Production Ellen Houghton with Presentation Images Distribution S. C. Distribution

Editorial submissions and news releases on topics of interest to persons with disabilities, or persons serving those with disabilities, are welcomed. We reserve the right to edit all submissions. Editorial material does not necessarily reflect the view of the editor/publisher of Access Press.

Paid advertising is available at rates ranging from $12 to $28 per column inch, depending on size and frequency of run. Classified ads are $14, plus 65 cents per word over 12 words. Maybe it should just say:News, display advertising and classified advertising deadline is routinely the 25th of the month. When the 25th falls on a weekend, deadline is the next Monday. January issue deadline is December 20.

Access Press is a monthly tabloid newspaper published for persons with disabilities by Access Press, Ltd. Circulation is 11,000, distributed the 10th of each month through more than 200 locations statewide. Approximately 450 copies are mailed directly to individuals, including political, business, institutional and civic leaders. Subscriptions are available for $30/yr. Lowincome, student and bulk subscriptions are available at discounted rates.

Application to mail at Periodicals Postage Prices is Pending at the St. Paul, MN 55121 facility. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Access Press at 161 St. Anthony Ave, Suite 901, St. Paul, MN 55103.

Inquiries and address changes should be directed to: Access Press care of The Kelly Inn Offices; 161 St. Anthony Ave; #910 St. Paul, MN 55103; 651-644-2133 Fax: 651-644-2136 email: access@accesspress.org www.accesspress.org

Click on the heading and find the link to each of the histories.

The ADA passed Congress in 1990 and is marking its silver anniversary in 2015. But many other pieces of state and federal legislation led up to its passage.

One of these precursors, the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (known as the DD Act) was passed in 1975 to address and protect the legal, civil and human rights of people with disabilities. the act was passed thanks to the efforts of self-advocates from Minnesotans and many leaders including the late Elizabeth Boggs, Ph.D. Boggs not only held a doctoral degree, she was also a parent, nuclear physicist, president of the developmental disability advocacy group then called NARC, and member of President John F. Kennedy’s President’s Panel. Explore the online history and learn how this remarkable woman is described by Allan Bergman, a nationally recognized leader in influencing the development of federal and state policy relating to best practice services and supports for persons with disabilities.

It took years to get the act adopted. In 1973, Sen. Jacob Javits, serving as Senator Pro Tempore of the Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, Subcommit-

tee on the Handicapped, held a hearing regarding an extension of the DD Act to establish, among other things, standards to protect individuals with developmental disabilities living in residential facilities.

Javits was part of a Former Sen. Jacob Javits and small group of lib- President John F. Kennedy eral Republicans who were often isolated ideologically from their mainstream Republican colleagues. He was strongly committed to social issues, believing that the federal government should have a role in improving the lives of Americans, including those with disabilities.

Cliff Poetz, a self-advocate from Minnesota; Donald Bartlette, director of the Outreach Community Center, and Dennis Haggerty, member of the National Advisory Council on Developmental Disabilities testified in support of the legislation. Highlights of their testimony can be found through the web link. Readers should be aware that the language and terminology used goes back to the 1970s, and is now outdated and considered offensive. At the time, however, it was acceptable and is retained for its historical significance.

Reading his comments in the written summary of testimony, it is obvious that Javits was moved by those he heard from at the hearing. He praised the speakers and agreed with their points. ■ The History Note is a monthly column sponsored by the Minnesota Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, www.mncdd.org and www.partnersinpolicy making.com

December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

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Need a tax deduction?

Donations help Access Press cover our community

Dr. Roy Grizzard, with the Labor Department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, enjoyed his paper.

Looking for ways to support Access Press, Minnesota’s disability community newspaper? Taxdeductible donations to the newspaper are an excellent way to support our mission as Minnesota’s disability news source. Before 2013 draws to a close, why not consider a donation to the newspaper?

One regular feature of the newspaper thanks those who donate to Access Press. Sponsor levels start with Friends, at $50 and above; Bronze Level Sponsors at $75 and above; Silver Level Sponsors at $150 and above; Gold Sponsors at $500 and above; and Benefactor Sponsors at $1,000 and above.

Sponsorships, as well as advertising help us bring you Access Press every month. No amount

The Real Story can now be yours Access Press’ new documentary, The Real Story is available for purchase. The DVD would make a great gift for anyone interested in disability and the media in Minnesota. The locally produced report, featuring many Minnesota activists and journalists, is also a great resource for those who are learning or teaching journalism, history, sociology or topics related to disability. It is also an economical and thought-provoking way to provide a program or discussion topic for those looking for a presentation for a community group. Or why not purchase the DVD for your local library and have it added to the collection?

Access Press, Minnesota’s disability community newspaper, released the documentary The Real Story in October after a year of production. It examines media coverage of disability issues in Minnesota and nationally and examines the role of mainstream media in reporting on issues important to all people with disabilities. It documents how people with disabilities have found their own voices, through their own grassroots media outlets and have spoken out to make their own changes. The Real Story shows how people with disabilities and their allies have fought to break down barriers created through pity, misunderstanding and fear as well as the physical barriers, with the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The Real Story explores the biases, stereotypes and misperceptions about people with disabilities in the media. The time span covered is the last 20 to 30 years.

The documentary shows how misperceptions and stereotypes perpetuated by the mainstream media are far too often to the detriment of people with disabilities.

But it also shows how many journalists now working in the mainstream media recognize past biases.

The documentary explains how journalists wanting to understand and explain the real issues, need to go directly to the source: people with disabilities.

The Real Story gives a brief history that offers everyone a sufficient understanding of the past to continue to stomp out the untruths and encourage equal rights; in where they live, in their educational opportunities, in their job opportunities, in their medical supports, in their communities and in their lives.

“Our initial goal in creating the documentary that ended up being The Real Story was to tell people about the founder of Access Press, Charlie Smith, and his accomplishments. Each year at the Access Press annual award banquet we give an award of recognition for ac-

Margot Imdieke Cross, MNCOD, waited for the end of the documentary to participate in the panel discussion.

Photo courtesy of U of M

tivism in his name,” said Access Press Executive Director Tim Benjamin. “Some attendees of the banquet, even a few of the winners, were beginning to ask who Charlie Smith was. Charlie passed away in 2001 and we didn’t want anyone to forget his efforts and legacy on behalf of Minnesotans with disabilities.”

Smith and his family founded Access Press as an information vehicle for people with disabilities to learn about the new opportunities that the disability rights movement was creating. The Smiths recognized the need for a news source for people with disabilities to gather information, to recognize there is a disability community and to build stronger advocacy and lobbying efforts at the state and federal level of government. In building public awareness of disability issues, Smith became a major player in Minnesota’s disability rights movement.

After several years of discussions about making this documentary, Access Press staff, board members and community members realized the best way to acknowledge Smith’s accomplishments was to explain how in the last 20 or 30 years how the media has perpetuated old stereotypes, created new stereotypes and transformed, in positive and negative ways, the entire disability community. That is what The Real Story does.

Copies of The Real Story DVD (closed captioned) for individual use can be ordered by sending a request to realstory@accesspress.org The cost is $25 plus tax, shipping and handling. For organizations, the cost is $85 plus tax, shipping and handling and includes permission to use for presentations and hosted screenings.

Access Press is willing to have staff and volunteers attend screenings. Call 651-644-2133 for details. ■

of sponsorship or donation is too small.

Donors may take advantage of several specific funding opportunities, to help cover our day-to-day operations. The newspaper is also looking for funding to restore some Access Press Unbound features that were paid for in the past through grants.

Here is what a donation or sponsorship can provide: • $30 provides a full year’s Access Press subscription to someone who could not otherwise afford to get the paper. $150 provides subscriptions for five readers.

• $500 provides funding to provide a community drop-site, so that readers can pick up copies of the newspaper. $2,500 provides funding to support five drop-sites.

• $190 provides funding to pay for one month’s mailing of newspapers to destinations around Minnesota. $2,280 provides funding for mailing the newspaper for one year.

• $450 provides funding to pay for a series of articles for six months. $900 provides funding to pay for a series of articles for one year. The topics we are looking to sponsor include education coverage, health coverage, employment, service animals, arts and entertainment coverage and features about interesting people in the community.

These were among the topics previously covered in the Access Press Unbound features.

When planning your year-end giving, please consider Access Press. Call us if you have questions, at 651-644-2133. Thank you! ■

Pg 4 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

GUEST COMMENTARIES

His quest for a GED is thwarted by rule changes

by O. Crisstopher

My story is a familiar one. I say this because it is filled with hopes, dreams, and goals. These things are a part of our life, especially if you’re an ambitious person like me.

I am a southern drawl from Houston, Texas. It was there when I started to put my life in the order I could live with. I started taking classes to complete my GED around 1997. Due to the abuses of many forms this chapter in my life was delayed.

Although I was ready to move forward, my failure to pass my GED stopped me in my tracks. I started writing a lot, including short stories and poetry. A story I wrote for a magazine brought me to Minnesota. Someone told me this is the place to be if I wanted to be successful in my artistic venture.

After visiting St. Paul, I fell in love with its atmosphere. In 1999 I moved to the land of 10,000 lakes.

It is here I was determined to complete all of my goals. I studied, first at the Hubbs Learning Center.

When I got sick in June 2002, it really slowed things down for me. First my doctor said I had a brain tumor. Later other doctors gave me different diagnoses. Because I was ill so much, it caused me

to miss too many days from my GED classes. At this time the Hubbs Learning Center teacher told me to sign a paper stating that if I agreed, if I missed too many days I could no longer attend Hubbs Learning Center.

Sure enough, I end up missing a lot of days and they dismissed me. I was really upset about this but this gave me time to focus on my illness. After many years of frustration from doctors telling me, you have this. No you have that, I decided to stop all their nonsense and do the things that made me happy. Since I had passed all my subjects except math, it was time for me to complete this goal.

Math class at Fairview was great, I did better - and everyone was so helpful to me.

One day my teacher told me about the new GED policy effective January 2014. I was told that if I don’t pass the math test, every test I did pass will be removed from my records. I felt this wasn’t right. It made me feel like a child being punished. This was imposed on for not completing the GED test.

At this time in my life I was stronger emotionally and my health I understood it better. I wasn’t taking this, so I started a campaign against the National GED

Education Department. My goal is to get people to sign my petition at Change.org This gave me the opportunity to challenge Minnesota’s GED Administrator Jim Colwell.

I did contact Colwell through email and we conversed on the telephone.

My Change.com campaign goal is to give the signature petition to him. I’m hoping Colwell and Nicole Chestange, Executive Vice President of the GED Testing Service, would take my situation into consideration and hear me, hear us out.

When I told Colwell I wanted to present the petition to him, he asked me to email it to him. In an email I told him no, I wanted to hand it to him in person. I went on to ask “when is the best time for me to come by and hand it to you.” I never heard back from him.

Since then my illness has worsened. I am weaker, my headaches have increased and sometimes I lose my ability to walk. But I plan to present my petition to the GED Administrator in December of 2013.

If you would like to join me on this campaign, join me at: http://tinyurl.com/GEDpetition ■ Editor’s note: O. Crisstopher is a writer from St. Paul.

Experience with ‘inclusion’ has been frustrating

by Jane Strauss

“At the Sabes Jewish Community Center (JCC) we welcome people of all ages and abilities to our inclusive community.” Until recently, this statement appeared on each page of the JCC website, though their “inclusion programs“(Special Olympics, a “special needs” cafe, “friendship seminars”) confuse inclusion with side-streaming.

I believed these bold words until our son was traumatized by the dreadful attitude, poor practices and inadequate planning of the JCC’s “inclusion director.”

He participated as a tween in day camp, but after he entered puberty, the inclusion director’s attitude changed abruptly. Whenever our son tried to interact with any female friend from camp, the inclusion director intervened instantly and separated them. Our son to this day has no adolescent-type interest in girls.

His main interests are Buzz Lightyear and other Pixar/ Disney characters, The Wizard of Oz, pirates, soccer and Boy Scouts.

In July 2012, the inclusion director threw our son out of a “Wizard of Oz” summer theater program for 5th-12th graders, in which he was participating with the aid of his personal care attendant, who is an actor.

Why? He asked a girl he knew from previous camps, and who also had (unknown to us) special needs, “Please, may I stand next to you?” She said yes—he did; the girl became uncomfortable and, instead of

letting the children’s PCAs address the problem, the inclusion director ordered our son’s PCA to remove him. The PCA refused, knowing this would escalate the problem. We were later told this girl often says “yes” when she means “no”.

The inclusion director called to say our son had “harassed another camper” and could not return. I stated that was inclusion director decision; I would not be the hatchet man. When our son and the PCA returned to the JCC, the inclusion director met them at the door accompanied by a large and frightening male—to our 4 foot, 10 inch, 80 pound son—and said “You are not allowed in.” Our son was so upset it took nearly six hours for his PCA to calm him enough to safely transport him home. JCC staff told us that he could go to “any other program” that summer—the hitch being there were no appropriate programs, and, most importantly, he was terrified of entering the building.

Because he feared entering the building, he even refused to use the restroom there before leaving for a Scout trip. He had 24-48 hours of panic attacks prior to every indoor Scout meeting there. We sought counseling for the panic; part of the diagnosis was PTSD. We met with the JCC Board chair, executive and program directors. We presented the JCC with possible remedial actions, recommended by the therapist, to help our son be comfortable in their facility again.

They have refused to act on any of them.

Before the theater debacle, our son was happily involved in a Boy Scout troop meeting at the JCC. He enjoyed attending day camp programs and taking swimming lessons there. Before and since, he participated in Minneapolis Park programs without a PCA, and with a PCA, programs at: Three Rivers Parks (overnight and day), Leonardo’s Basement, ArtStart , and of course Boy Scout overnight camp, all without any concerns about “harassment.” He even attended a soccer camp at the JCC this year successfully; though he was only willing to go after being informed that the inclusion director was on vacation.

We bring this issue to the disability community for several reasons. Our family needs closure and has gotten no help within our own Jewish community. This situation has implications for the entire disability community. A training requirement is needed for any inclusion director. When an inclusion director thinks side-stream programs constitute “inclusion” because they are in shared space, and has no knowledge of the literal thought processes that accompany autism (“You can’t come in” means “You can never come back in”) no amount of saying an organization is inclusive will make it so. With this woeful lack of knowledge of a prevalent disability, one cannot assume knowledge of other disabilities. ■ The Strauss family lives in Minneapolis.

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December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

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Disability, elder service groups awarded UCare grants Several disability and elder service organizations were among the 33 groups receiving UCare Fund community and research grants this fall. Community grants totaled $885,116 and research grants totaled $295,460. The funding will help Minnesota organizations working to improve the health of people of all ages, cultures, and abilities. Organizations awarded grants must meet one of four health improvement-related grant criteria. These include access to health care coverage, reduction of health disparities for people living with disabilities: healthy lifestyles and medical home initiatives.

“UCare creates and maintains partnerships with community organizations to improve not only the health of our members in Minnesota but also the underserved in communities across our service area,” said Ghita Worcester, UCare’s senior vice president of public affairs and marketing. The UCare Fund is a community-directed initiative of UCare, the fourthlargest health plan in Minnesota.

Disability and elder service groups receiving community grants are: • Alzheimer’s Association Minnesota-North Dakota, Minneapolis—Twin Cities Enhanced Care Consultation Pilot Project, which builds stronger connections with physicians and clinics, and provides care plan/consultation sessions with Alzheimer’s patients and care partners about community resources.

• Carlton County Public Health & Human Services, Cloquet—The Building a Stronger Self Program of health promotion, chronic disease prevention and management education, and support to developmentally disabled adults in Carlton County.

• Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Cloud, St. Cloud—The Health Promotions Program to build the health and functional capacity of persons age 60 and older who may be at risk of nursing home placement in nine central Minnesota counties.

• Como Park/Falcon Heights Living at Home Block Nurse Program, St. Paul—Expansion of program staff hours to allow for recruiting and training 15 volunteers in Expanded Healthy Moves, a home visit program to improve the well-being of frail and low-income seniors.

• Fraser, Minneapolis—Expansion of Fraser’s innovative wellness initiative for adults with disabilities who live in five independent living apartments.

• Interfaith Caregivers—Faith in Action in Faribault County, Blue Earth—A senior wellness initiative to promote healthy aging, with an emphasis on making better choices about nutrition, exercise, stress reduction, fall prevention, and self-management of chronic conditions.

• Living Well Disability Services, Eagan—The Be Connected Be Well initiative for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities living in group home settings, and the program’s expansion to people served by county non- residential services.

• Opportunity Partners, Minnetonka—Specialized training and development of Safe Boundaries, a program for open communication, positive work relationships, anti-bullying and healthy self-concepts to help deter physical, emotional and social harm for adults with disabilities.

• Washburn Center for Children, Minneapolis— Children’s school-based mental health services that provide therapeutic care in 18 schools in Minneapolis, Bloomington and Eden Prairie to improve the health of underserved populations.

Disability and elder service groups receiving research grants are: • Center for Victims of Torture, Minneapolis – A test of whether embedding case management and mental health services onsite at a primary care clinic will lead to better treatment outcomes and cost effective-

ness compared to clinic-based treatment for refugees with serious and persistent mental illness.

• University of Minnesota, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, Minneapolis— A mental health screening questionnaire validation study for Karen-speaking clients to estimate the prevalence of four mental health disorders: depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol addiction; and to determine the validity of a structured diagnostic interview that uses culturally appropriate terms and conforms with criteria. ■

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Money to help people remain healthy

REGIONAL NEWS More housing will be built UnitedHealth has announced it is supporting a fund that will help construct hundreds of low-income housing units in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. The $50 million investment by the nation’s largest insurance company also aligns with a corporate belief that stable housing is a key component of better health.

The company is working with the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund, a 17-year-old nonprofit that recently created a new program to attract Minnesota companies as investors. The businesses provide the equity capital to finance low-income housing projects, and, in return, are awarded federal tax credits for 15 years.

Minnetonka-based UnitedHealth is the first and largest investor in the program, known as the Minnesota Equity Fund, and the insurer’s participation is expected to draw other businesses. Discussions are underway with half a dozen other companies in Minnesota interested in “mission-related investing,” said Warren Hanson, CEO of the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund.

“It’s a way to build healthier communities and healthier lives,” UnitedHealth spokeswoman Lynne High said. “It fits with our mission perfectly.”

Four projects worth $18.5 million are complete or nearing completion, adding 118 rental housing units. Three of the projects are in Minnesota and one is in Illinois. A number of other projects in Minnesota will be announced in coming months, officials said.

(Source: Star Tribune)

Minnesota was given a green light to deliver better care and more choices for senior citizens and people with disabilities. The federal government has granted formal approval for the state to proceed with its Reform 2020 initiative—a nation-leading, innovative approach to delivering long term care services. This initiative, the result of bipartisan efforts, aims to help more seniors and people with disabilities stay in their homes and remain active and independent rather than being forced into costly nursing facilities.

“Minnesota has been recognized as having the best long term care system in the nation,” said Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson. “But we can do better—and we will do better—under this new model.

Minnesotans deserve the choice to live with dignity, and get the quality care they need in their own homes for as long as possible. Hard-working Minnesotans, regardless of their abilities, should be empowered to contribute meaningfully in their communities and in the workplace.

And if doing both of those things will save the state money in the long-run, that’s even better.”

Federal approval for the state’s new Alternative

Care initiative will free up an additional $58 million over four years in state funds to reinvest in services that will keep more seniors and people with disabilities in their homes and communities. Those services include more employment opportunities, more help in choosing long-term services and quality care, more funding for community-based care to let people stay in their own homes, and consolidation of more than 160 separate services to provide one location to report the abuse of seniors and other vulnerable adults.

These measures represent just one portion of the state’s bipartisan Reform 2020 initiative. All told, the initiative is expected to save and reinvest an estimated $121 million over the next four years by transforming the state’s long term care system. Other key components of the initiative are still awaiting federal approval.

“We know Minnesotans are getting older, and that is going to put more fiscal pressure on our state in the future,” said Jesson. “Reform 2020 anticipates this and looks to get people help earlier so they can live as independently as possible for as long as possible.”

(Source: Minnesota Department of Human Services)

Service dog returned to owner

Boards eyed for changes

A service dog reported stolen from outside a St. Paul gas station was reunited with its owner. The dog, which had been tied up outside of a SuperAmerica store because a clerk claimed to have allergies, was taken December 1. Video showed a vehicle pulling up and taking the dog off of its leash.

The little white dog, named Gummy Bear, helps the dog’s owner cope with seizures. The dog was wearing a green vest when it was taken, which should identify it as a service animal. St. Paul Police said the people who took the dog thought it had been abandoned and planned to take it to the Animal Humane Society.

Charges will not be filed. A police spokesman said the people who took the dog apologized and said they had no idea the dog had an owner, let alone was a service animal.

(Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press)

State boards, committees and commissions are set for changes by Gov. Mark Dayton and state lawmakers. State officials are eyeing more than 180 groups, which have a total budget of $321 million per biennium. The groups eyed for change include some that serve people with disabilities. Some boards have not met for years. Others have membership requirements that are difficult to meet, leaving seats open for many years.

“I am not against the boards and commissions,” Dayton told the Star Tribune. “I am against the micromanaging that gets to be absurd.” The roster of boards has expanded with every new administration, change in legislative leadership and shift in public sentiment. Many were created to tackle specific, complex issues, while others appear to have been little Regional News - p. 15

December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

Pg 7

PEOPLE & PLACES

Donna Zimmerman, a leader in the MakeItOk campaign, accepted the award for HealthPartners and Regions Hospital.

Members of the Mental Health Crisis Alliance were on hand to receive the NAMI award.

Photos courtesy of NAMI of Minnesota

NAMI presents awards at annual conference Groups that work to reduce the stigma of mental illness and provide outstanding service were honored November 16 by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Minnesota, at the organization’s annual conference at St. Paul RiverCentre.

NAMI of Minnesota presented HealthPartners and Regions Hospital with its Anti-Stigma Effort of the Year Award. The award recognizes an organization or individual for outstanding efforts to reduce stigma and break down barriers that lead to discrimination, shame and hopelessness.

“HealthPartners and Regions Hospital have made great strides in increasing public understanding of mental illnesses and promoting dignity and respect,” said Sue Abderholden, NAMI executive director.

“First, a beautiful new, person-friendly, mental health building at Regions Hospital was built, which had input from people who used the services. And not just the physical space was transformed, the staff worked hard to train and educate all the hospital staff to create a therapeutic and respectful environment for patients,” she said.

Abderholden cited the winner’s other accomplishments. “Then, the work moved to the general public with the launch of the MakeItOk campaign, which includes ads in magazines, radio and television. Most recently, the MakeItOk campaign leaders helped generate a series of documentaries on Twin Cities Public Television, where people shared recovery stories and

provide hope for the future. The campaign helps the general public understand mental illnesses and promotes community awareness. The goal is to make it okay to talk about mental illness and to help people to know what to say when someone does share that they or a family member has a mental illness,” she said.

NAMI of Minnesota presented the Mental Health Crisis Alliance with the Provider of the Year Award.

The award recognizes an organization that provides mental health services that demonstrates excellence, respect and best practices. The Crisis Alliance is public-private partnership that created a new level of care for adults experiencing a mental health crisis in the East Metro. Its work represents a partnership between people who use mental health services, counties, hospitals, health plans and the state of Minnesota. Their mission is to provide the right care at the right time to NAMI awards - p. 9

Pg 8 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

PEOPLE & PLACES Blind chef serves tasty meals Va’nasha Washington displayed her culinary skills November 18 as lead chef for about 200 guests at Minneapolis’ Waite House Community Café free lunch program. Blindness doesn’t prevent Washington from working efficiently and safety, and preparing high-quality food, in Waite House’s busy kitchen.

Waite House staff recognizes Va’nasha’s work with us as pioneering the way for other blind people to benefit from this program.

At right, Va'nasha Washington prepared the meal while Chef Wes Durham supervised.

Photo courtesy of Waite House

Waite House, a neighborhood center of Pillsbury United Communities, began offering a culinary arts work readiness program in the summer of 2011. In April 2012 the program moved to share a building with the Phillips Community Center. There Waite House serves food from a larger, fully licensed kitchen.

Waite House offers this unique employment training to both adults and youth. Participants learn basic cooking skills from Executive Chef Austin Bartold, preparing and serving lunch to approximately 200 guests from the community Mondays through Fridays. Participants leave the program with new skills, references, and ServSafe Certification, an industry-recognized certificate in kitchen safety, sanitation and food safety. The program is designed to prepare job seekers for entry in to the growing food service industry.

Part of the program requirement is that the participant plan and direct the preparation and serving of a meal as the lead chef for that day.

Washington’s turn went without a hitch and everyone enjoyed the meal.

Learn more at puc-mn.org ■

Reach for Resources, Inc. receives grant Reach for Resources, Inc. has received a $1000 CVS Caremark Community Grant. The announcement took place last month at the Reach for Resources’ Annual Meeting/Holiday Party held at the Minnetonka Community Center in Minnetonka.

The Community Grants Program was created by CVS Caremark as part of its commitment to help people achieve their best health by providing financial assistance to programs that are focused on wellness and prevention. The support from CVS Caremark will help Reach for Resources continue its School-Based Counseling Project that partners with Intermediate School District 287 to provide

mental health services to students with disabilities. The district is based in Plymouth.

Reach for Resources is a non-profit agency established in 1986. It serves people with cognitive disabilities in the Minneapolis area. Its School-Based Counseling Project works with teens and young adults with developmental disabilities and mental health disorders. These teens and young adults face significant barriers, putting them at high risk for crisis. Having multiple disabilities can also make it difficult for them to complete secondary education.

These students are referred to Independent School District 287 to receive special education transition services provided by. Reach mental health practitio-

ners meet individually with the students to address various concerns affecting them, provide therapeutic skills training and, if needed, refer them to appropriate intensive treatment.

The CVS Caremark Community Grant allows for the project to continue offering free, convenient mental health services to teens and young adults that would, otherwise, not have access to the counseling they need.

“The grant from CVS Caremark will help continue to provide mental health services to an under-served group of students who have been diagnosed with a developmental disability and a mental health disorReach for Resources - p. 11

Merrick, Inc. celebrates decade in Vadnais Heights Merrick, Inc. celebrated a milestone of 10 years at its energy-efficient building located on Labore Road in Vadnais Heights. Building architect Lars Glockzin was among the many guests, staff and clients on hand for the event.

“This project meant a lot to me,” Glockzin said. “I worked with the clients and staff on almost all aspects of design. The end result is an amazing building with accessible design features that really do make a difference.” Features include wide hallways so two people using wheelchairs can pass each other easily; skylights bringing in natural light; and bright welcoming colors. The design choices were inspired by conversations with clients and staff.

The November celebration included a slideshow with highlights of the past decade, the unveiling of a commemorative poster marking the occasion, and of

Merrick, Inc. Board of Trustees Chair Jackie O’Connell, Executive Director John Wayne Barker, and architect Lars Glockzin celebrated a decade in Merrick’s Vadnais Heights building.

Merrick, Inc. - p. 11

Photo courtesy of Merrick, Inc.

December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

Pg 9

PEOPLE & PLACES Volunteers make a house a home A group of about 20 military veterans and volunteers from United Healthcare, as well as workers from Rebuilding Together Twin Cities, did a special project in St. Paul on Veterans Day. The group made needed repairs to the home of Navy veterans Eileen and Jon Vasquez.

The couple met in Virginia while attending Naval training for operating nuclear powered vessels. As a result of their Navy service Eileen is now considered legally blind. Jon has a traumatic brain injury which affects his short-term memory process.

The Vasquez’ St. Paul home was in need of substantial repair in order for them to continue to live their safely. The volunteers tackled a number of projects including installing drywall in the bedrooms, installing a walking path from the front of the house to the backyard garage area, reinstalling stairway handrails and installing fall prevention devices in bathroom.

United Healthcare offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers and Medi-

The house is repaired and ready for winter.

Jon Vasquez helped volunteers with work on the house.

care and Medicaid beneficiaries, and contracts directly with 780,000 physicians, other care professionals, 5,900 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide.

Rebuilding Together Twin Cities’ mission is to bring volunteers and communities together to improve the homes and lives of low-income homeowners. This ensures that low-income homeowners—particularly older adults, people living with a disability, veterans and families with children—can live independently in safe and healthy homes. It is an affiliate of the national Rebuilding Together, Inc. ■

Photos courtesy of United Healthcare

UCare among those honored by foundation Fairview and Ebenezer foundations celebrated donors at an annual recognition event in November, presenting three Outstanding Philanthropic Partnership Awards.

The awards are given to recognize legacy of service, improving access to health care and planned giving.

UCare was honored for improving access to health resources in our community. UCare is an independent, nonprofit health plan serving more than 300,000 members. UCare’s mission is to improve the health of its members through innovative services and partnerships across communities. The support of the UCare Fund enables Fairview to help the underserved by expanding and strengthening its community health programming in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. Support from the UCare Fund was used to open Health Commons, a drop-in health and wellness center aimed at fostering relationships among residents, building trust in health care providers and empowering residents to live healthy, productive lives.

Two Edina residents were also honored for their service. Robert Solheim was presented with the Elsie O. Mitchell Legacy Award. Solheim is a past chair and current member of the Fairview Southdale Hospital Board of Trustees and is co-founder and president of N.C. Little Memorial Hospice, the state’s first licensed residential hospice facility.

Dennis Fernkes was recognized for his generous planned gift. His late wife was taken care of by Fairview Hospice He established the Dennis and Janet NAMI awards - from p. 7 improve health outcomes and reduce system costs.

“This innovative model—which uses trained peer specialists and has NAMI materials available for families is very deserving of this award,” said Abderholden.

In 2009, the Mental Health Crisis Alliance brought together stakeholders, always including persons who use mental health services, to develop a program model that would become a first-of-its kind, an urgent care for adult mental health. The new facility consolidates mental health crisis services for any adult in the east metro counties of Ramsey, Dakota and Washington.

Within the first year of operation in 2011, the Crisis Alliance was able to increase the number of people served by this new urgent care effort, reduce the inappropriate use of emergency departments and improve outcomes for the people served. Most importantly, more than 90 percent of the people surveyed who used the service said they were treated with respect, felt hopeful and would recommend the service to others.

NAMI Minnesota is a non-profit organization that works to improve the lives of children and adults with mental illnesses and their families through its programs of education, support and advocacy. ■

Fernkes Endowment to help support Fairview’s hospice program in perpetuity.

Fairview Foundation builds philanthropic partnerships to further Fairview’s mission of improving the health of the communities we serve. Ebenezer Foundation raises funds to support Ebenezer senior living communities, which help older adults and others make their lives more independent, healthful, meaningful and secure. ■

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Pg 10 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12 Recycled lights - p. 1

ProAct workers are in the holiday recycling spirit.

Photo courtesy of ProAct

the strand is dismantled by vocational center clients and properly recycled locally. Unlike many other holiday lights recycling programs, the Minnesota program recycles every part of the light strand.

Brita Sailer and Maggie Mattacola are co-directors of the Recycling Association of Minnesota. They want more people to recycle old light strings, as well as damaged extension cords and phone cords.

The metals and glass in older light strings don’t belong in household garbage. “We want to make sure that we’re not throwing copper, we’re not throwing glass, we’re not throwing recyclable items in landfills,” said Sailer. The recovered materials are destined for use in new plastic products, new electrical cords and new pipes.

Sailer was recently interviewed by Minnesota Public Radio and said, “We’re at a time when we should really be focusing on retaining those resources as our resources become more and more dear.”

Making the switch to LED holiday lights can save energy and money. Depending on how many lights are hung for decorations, a household can save $10 to $250 each holiday season by switching to LED holiday lighting. This is because, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, LED holiday lights save up to 90% of the energy used by traditional incandescent holiday lights. LEDs are also safer, sturdier, longer lasting and easier to install.

For every old holiday lighting string recycled and replaced with more efficient LED holiday lighting, 19 kilowatt-hours of electricity are saved over the course of the holiday season. This is the same amount of energy as a common CFL household light bulb would use if left on for 24 hours a day for two months straight.

Recycle Your Holidays in Minnesota has recycled nearly 650,000 pounds of holiday lighting since the inception of this program. If even half of the light strands were upgraded to more efficient LED holiday lighting, Minnesotans would saving over 5.4 million kilowatt-hours and $430,000 year after year. That’s State prep champions - from p. 1 likely to be strong again.

The Robins predate the current state prep programs. The Minnesota State High School League has offered adapted sports for 21 years. The adapted soccer program has a PI division for athletes with physical disabilities, and a CI division for players with cognitive disabilities.

Before that the Minnesota Association for Adapted Athletics was organized for students with physical disabilities. Indoor floor hockey competition began in 1975. Competition for students with cognitive disabilities began in 1990. Indoor soccer, floor hockey and indoor softball are the team sports offered, with bowling as a team and individual athletic activities.

Athletes with varying disabilities compete coeducationally. One team often represents multiple school districts.

In the latest state adapted soccer tournament the Robins crushed Minneapolis South 11-2 in the first round, and then defeated South Suburban, 7-3 to make the finals.

enough energy to provide electricity for 477 homes for an entire year.

One of the groups working to recycle lights is ProAct. Light strands will be individually disassembled and the cords cut into one-foot sections by people with disabilities at ProAct’s Eagan and Red Wing facilities, said ProAct Production Coordinator Jennifer Cavalier.

ProAct is headquartered in Eagan and has additional operations in Red Wing, Zumbrota and in Hudson, Wis. Its mission is to serve individuals experiencing barriers to employment and self-sufficiency due to intellectual and developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, mental health issues, traumatic brain injuries, and other challenges.

The Recycle Your Holidays Program does have some year-round drop sites. For more information about Recycle Your Holidays, to find drop-off locations or to sign up to participate as a collection site, visit www.recycleyourholidays.com ■

The Robins are shown with their hardware from the state tournament.

Photo courtesy of The Robins

Anoka-Hennepin won third place over South Suburban. Minneapolis South defeated Park Center for the consolation championship. Other teams in the tournament were St. Paul Highland Park and Mounds View/ Irondale/Roseville.

In the CI division, a new champion was guaranteed as the 2012 winners from Dakota United failed to qualify for this year’s tournament. Burnsville/ Farmington/Lakeville won the CI division crown, topping Park Center, 8-1. The Blazing Cats clawed their way past North Suburban, 12-3, and AnokaHennepin, 5-2, to be in the title game. It was the firstever title for the Blazing Cats.

This year’s Cats squad averaged 9.5 goals per game during the regular season while holding their opponents to an average of 1.3. Junior Michael Burns and junior Brayan Estrada Martinez tallied 67 and 66 points, respectively, for the Blazing Cats. Burns scored 36 goals and added 31 assists, and Estrada Martinez scored 33 goals with 33 assists. Senior Stephen Friday played in goal every game and allowed 16 goals all season.

South Washington County won third place, defeating Anoka-Hennepin, 6-3. North Suburban took home the consolation title, trouncing Mounds View/ Irondale/Roseville, 13-1. Other teams in the tournament were Chaska/Chanhassen/Prior Lake/Shakopee and Stillwater Area/St. Croix Prep. ■

December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12 Pg 11

THEATER GUIDE What’s more fun than a trip to the movies? Several technologies are available to make movies accessible for people with vision or hearing loss. This summary is from VSA Minnesota.

Rear Window Captioning displays reversed captions on a light-emitting diode (LED) text display which is mounted in the rear of a theater. Patrons who are deaf or hard-of-hearing use transparent acrylic panels attached to their seats to reflect the captions so they appear superimposed on the movie screen. The reflective panels are portable and adjustable, enabling the caption user to sit anywhere in the theater without bothering patrons in surrounding seats. The LED display is easy to read.

DVS Theatrical presents concise descriptive narration of visual cues, including actions, settings, scene changes, facial expressions and silent movement, through an FM or infrared system, making movies more meaningful to people with vision loss. The moviegoer hears the narration on a headset without disturbing other audience members and at no extra cost.

The Media Access Group at WGBH in Boston developed Rear Window Captioning and DVS Theatrical. Films equipped with MoPix or motion picture access technology can be found by calling 617-300-3400 or TTY: 617-300-2489. The website is http://ncam.wgbh.org/mopix/nowshowing.html#mn or e-mail: access@wgbh.org Some cinemas use other variations of open captioning, which is a text display of words and sounds heard during a performance, film, video, speech or dialogue.

The display is “open” for anyone to see in a particular seating area. The website www.captionfish.com lists cinemas with these access features. Put in your zip code and the site will give current listings of nearby movies with open or closed captioning, an audio description track, or English subtitles in foreign films.

Minnesota theaters offer a variety of services.

Contact the theater before attending as options may change.

Science Museum of Minnesota Omnitheater, 120 W. Kellogg Blvd., in St. Paul is showing “Mystery of the Maya” shows with Closed Rear View Captioning, audio description and Spanish translation. Filmed on location at sacred sites throughout the Maya regions of Central America, this 45-minute film features reenactments of the early 19th century archaeological expeditions that uncovered what is known about Mayan civilization. An accompanying exhibit, “Maya: Hidden Worlds Revealed,” will be at the Science Museum until Jan. 5, 2014. Omnitheater tickets are $8 adults, $7 senior/child, additional cost to tour museum; members free. Online ordering add $3 service fee. To request accommodations for exhibits, call at least 72 hours in advance, at 651-221-9406.

The Science Museum is open Tue-Wed 9:30 a.m. 5 p.m., Thu-Sat 9:30 a.m. -9 p.m., Sun 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m., closed Mon. Phone is 651-221-9444 or 800-221-9444, option 2 for Omnitheater film times, reservations or questions; TTY is 651-221-4585. For accessibility information, visit www.smm.org/accessibility; the main website is www.smm.org Landmark Theatres offer CaptiView Closed Caption Viewing Systems, which allow people to read movie dialogue from the comfort of their seat anywhere in the auditorium, and Fidelio, a wireless audio system that delivers descriptive narration for people with vision loss and amplified sound for people with hearing loss. Patrons can get a compact audio receiver with a plug-in headset at the box office or bring their own headsets. Descriptive Narration and closed captioning availability is subject to the content made available from distributors. All films are available with amplified sound through Assisted Listening Devices. The theaters are Edina Cinema, 3911 W. 50th St., Edina, phone 952-920-8796; Uptown Theatre, 2906 Hennepin Ave., Mpls, phone 612-823-3005; and Lagoon Cinema:,1320 Lagoon Ave., Mpls, phone 612-823-3020. Website for the theaters is www.Land markTheatres.com or www.landmarktheatres.com/ ada/captiview_fidelio.htm.

AMC Theatres offer accessible films. Eden Prairie Mall 18 Theatres, Auditorium 7, Eden Prairie Shopping Center, 8251 Flying Cloud Drive Suite 4000, Eden Prairie; phone is 952-656-0010. Park in upper level lot between Sears and Kohl’s. AMC Rosedale

14 Theatres, Auditorium 14, 850 Rosedale Center, Roseville; phone is 651-604-9347. AMC Showplace Inver Grove 16, 5567 Bishop Ave., Inver Grove Heights, offers open captioned films generally WedThu; phone is 651-453-1916. General information for all AMC Theatres is 1-888-262-4386. Website is www.amcentertainment.com Regal Theatres offers films with open captioning or descriptive video. Regal Brooklyn Center 20, 6420 Camden Ave N, Minneapolis; phone is 763-560-6300.

Regal Eagan 16, 2055 Cliff Road, Eagan; phone is 651-452-8329. Website is www.fandango.com/ 55122_movietheatershowtimes Marcus Theatres offer different accommodations by theater. Oakdale Ultrascreen Cinemas, 5677 Hadley Ave. N., Oakdale, uses Digital Theatre Systems to superimpose open-captions over the bottom of select movies on Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays.

Phone is 651-770-4992; Subscribe to Open Caption weekly e-mail at www.marcustheatres.com/ opencaption.cfm Marcus Lakes Cinema, 4351 Stebner Rd., Hermantown, and Marcus Duluth Theatre, 300 Harbor Drive, Duluth, both offer Rear Window Captioning and DVS when available. Phone is 218-729-0335. Website is www.marcustheatres.com The Film Society of Minneapolis/St. Paul doesn’t currently have audio described or captioned films, but does offer foreign films with English captions, at St. Anthony Main Theatre, 115 SE Main St., Mpls.

Phone is 612-331-7563. Website is www.mspfilmsociety.org ■

Merrick, Inc. - from p. 8

Reach for Resources - from p. 8

course, cake. Board of Trustees President Jackie O’Connell, former board member Dan Kuechenmeister, and others enjoyed celebrating the anniversary together.

“Almost daily we are reminded how having a clean, safe, and respected building reinforces a positive attitude among clients and employees that promotes their engagement and satisfaction,” said Merrick Executive Director John Wayne Barker.

“We continue to have other programs tour our building to inspire their projects and feel good about having a building that saves over 50% in utility costs and has no harmful emissions to the air.”

Merrick, Inc. is a private nonprofit corporation that provides meaningful work options, therapeutic programs and life enrichment activities to 375 adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. In addition to the energy efficient facility in Vadnais Heights, Merrick operates a second program site for adult day and memory care services in North St. Paul. ■

der,” said Allison Henderson, Reach’s mental health practitioner. “These students face unique challenges that often put them at high risk for poor outcomes. Being able to provide counseling in school allows these students access to services they would likely not receive otherwise. This program aids students in gaining skills and knowledge to improve not only their day to day functioning, but their quality of life and long term success.”

“As a pharmacy innovation company, we are committed to building healthier communities. We believe one of the keys to helping people on their path to better health is by providing wellness and prevention programs,” said Eileen Howard Boone, senior vice president, corporate philanthropy & sustainability, CVS Caremark. “We are pleased to support the work that Reach for Resources does in the community and we look forward to working with them in fulfilling their program’s mission.” ■

Diamond Hill Townhomes Diamond Hill Townhomes is a great property located near the Minneapolis International Airport. We have spacious two and three bedroom townhomes that are HUD subsidized and rent is 30% of the total household’s adjusted gross income.

Our Three Bedroom waiting list is now open and we are currently accepting applications. Our non-accessible Two Bedroom waiting list is also opened.

We are always accepting applications for our large number of mobility impaired accessible units. Please contact us for more information.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Please call (612) 726-9341.

Pg 12 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

Access guidelines change for great outdoors

UPCOMING EVENTS Advocacy Advocates sought for panel The Subcommittee on Children’s Mental Health of the State Advisory Council on Mental Health has an opening for a person knowledgeable about the needs of children of minority races and cultures who have emotional disturbances. The Subcommittee provides advice to the State Advisory Council on matters related to children’s mental health. The Subcommittee and Council file a formal report on their legislative and policy recommendations to the Governor and Legislature each even-numbered year. Current priorities of the Subcommittee are mental health in schools, mental health and juvenile justice and outreach to diverse communities. Deadline is December 31. FFI: Bruce Weinstock, 651-431-2249

Youth and families PACER offers workshops PACER Center offers many useful free or low-cost workshops and other resources for families of children with any kind of disabilities. Workshops are at PACER Center, 8161 Normandale Blvd., Bloomington, unless specified. Advance registration is required for all workshops. Check out PACER’s website and link to a new bimonthly newsletter of workshops statewide that allows participants to pick and choose sessions catered to their needs. Upcoming workshops include transition planning and help for young adults and very young children. FFI: 952-838-9000, 800-537-2237 (toll free), www.PACER.org

Information and assistance MNsure, Cub Foods are partners MNsure and Cub Foods have joined forces to provide consumer information about the state health insurance marketplace in Cub Foods stores throughout the state.

Cub Foods shoppers will find MNsure consumer brochures and fact sheets in the Cub pharmacies printed in four languages; Spanish, Hmong, Somali and English. Materials include general information about the state health insurance marketplace, including contact information, plan benefits and cost-saving options offered only through MNsure. FFI: 1-855-3MNSURE (1-855-366-7873), www.MNsure.org Free Family Course on Mental Illnesses in St. Paul Do you have a family member living with a mental illness? The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Minnesota offers a free course to help families gain a greater understanding of mental illness, discuss resources, build communication skills, reduce stress and find support. The Family-to-Family course meets weekly

Anyone planning a trip into the great outdoors may see some changes. This fall the U.S. Access Board issued new accessibility guidelines for outdoor areas maintained by the federal government. The specifications for newly built or altered trails, picnic areas, and beach access routes will help federal areas comply with the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA).

Advocates hail the change, saying it means that individuals who use wheelchairs or adaptive equipment will have improved access to federal lands. Places where terrain makes the changes impractical are exempt from the new guidelines. Despite concerns about that limitation, the change is still a positive move forward.

“Opportunities for integrated outdoor recreation are an effective catalyst in changing attitudes,” said Greg Lais, executive director of Wilderness Inquiry, a Minnesota-based non-profit organization whose mission is to share the adventure.”

Until recently, many people in the disability rights movement considered access to recreation a lower priority when compared to issues of employment, health care, or access to basic services, such as the use of restrooms or the ability to enter a building through the front door,” Lais said.

The new standards are more than a blueprint for building or remodeling outdoor areas and facilities; they have the potential to forge real social change. By guaranteeing real access for everyone, they will make it easier for people to connect to the outdoors and to each other.

“There is no greater statement of social acceptance than being asked to recreate together as a friend, peer or colleague. The accommodations people make in a social, recreational context do translate into other areas of life—including employment, health care and access for 12 weeks and starts 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wed, Jan. 8 at Jewish Family Service, 1633 7th St. W., St. Paul. Preregistration required. FFI: Debbie at 952-836-5927 or Marilyn at 651-497-6858.

UCare meetings UCare hosts informational meetings about its UCare for Seniors Medicare Advantage plan, as well as informational meetings about the UCare’s new UCare Choices and Fairview UCare Choices health plans available on MNsure, Minnesota’s health insurance marketplace. Learn about the various plans, as well as key dates and penalties associated with health care reform..

Meetings are held all over the region. UCare for Seniors has more than 75,000 members across Minnesota and western Wisconsin. UCare serves Medicare-eligible individuals and families enrolled in income-based Minnesota Health Care Programs, such as Minnesota Care and Prepaid Medical Assistance Program; adults with disabilities and Medicare beneficiaries with chronic health conditions and Minnesotans dually eligible for Medical Assistance and Medicare FFI: 1-877-523-1518 (toll free), www.ucare.org Mental health support offered NAMI-MN offers free support groups for families who have a relative with a mental illness. NAMI has about two dozen family support groups, more than 20 support groups for people living with a mental illness, anxiety support groups, groups for veterans and other groups.

Led by trained facilitators, the various groups provide help and support. FFI: 651-645-2948. A full calendar of all events is offered online.

Partners and Spouses support group meets 6:45 p.m. the first Tue of each month at Falcon Heights United Church of Christ, 1795 Holton St. FFI: Lois, 651-7881920, or Donna, 651-645-2948 ext. 101. Open Door Anxiety and Panic support, meets at 6:30 p.m. the first and third Thu at Woodland Hills Church, 1740 Van Dyke St., St. Paul and 6:30-6 p.m. on the second and fourth Thu at Goodwill-Easter Seals, 553 Fairview Ave. N., St. Paul. FFI: 651-645-2948.

NAMI Connection peer support group for adults are

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Long time Wilderness Inquiry traveler Bob Gregory is shown getting into the tent that has a wide platform and ramp access.

Photo courtesy Wilderness Inquiry

to basic services. The clear, practical guidelines from the U.S. Access Board will help illuminate best practices in the outdoor recreation industry. We welcome them as a tool to help us provide equitable access to the natural world,” Lais said.

The U.S. Access Board is an independent federal agency that promotes equality for people with disabilities through leadership in accessible design and the development of accessibility guidelines and standards for the built environment, transportation, communication, medical diagnostic equipment, and information technology.

For a copy of the final guidelines, go to the websitehttp://preview.tinyurl.com/outdoorguidelines, or contact Bill Botten at outdoor@access-board.gov ■ led by trained facilitators who are also in recovery lead NAMI Connection groups. One group meets at 6:30 p.m. on the fourth Tue. A group meets at 6:30 p.m., on the fourth Tuesday of the month, at Goodwill-Easter Seals, 553 Fairview Av., St. Paul (The group previously met at Lutheran Church of the Redeemer.) FFI: Shelly, 651-228-1645. Bi-weekly adult recovery groups meet at 6:30 p.m. the second and fourth Wed at Centennial United Methodist Church, 1524 Co. Rd. C-2 West, Roseville. FFI: Will, 651-578-3364.

A family support group meets in St. Paul on the second Wednesday of each month from at 6-7:30 p.m., at Goodwill-Easter Seals, 553 Fairview Ave. N., St. Paul, in room 123. FFI: Sonja, 651-357-2077. A family support group meets in Oakdale on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month, from 7:00-8:30 p.m., at Canvas Health, 7066 Stillwater Blvd., in the community room.

FFI: Dan, 651-341-8918. A group also meets at 6:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month at Centennial United Methodist Church, 1524 Co. Rd. C-2 West, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month. FFI: Anne Mae, 651-730-8434

Volunteer, Donate Share a smile Brighten the day of a senior citizen in north or southwest Minneapolis and have fun. Visit an elder and do things together: movies, games, crafts or just friendly conversation. Hang out with an elder on a regular basis and do things that you both enjoy, like watching a movie, building stuff, playing games or friendly conversation.

One-time or ongoing opportunities through the NIP Senior Program. FFI: Jeanne, 612-746-8549, srvolunteer@neighborhoodinvolve.org, or www.neighborhoodinvolve.org Open the Door to Education Help adults reach their educational goals and earn their GED. Tutor, teach or assist in a classroom with the Minnesota Literacy Council. Give just 2-3 hours a week and help people expand their opportunities and change their lives through education. The literacy council provides training and support and accommodations for volunteers with disabilities. FFI: Allison, 651-251-9110, volunteer@mnliteracy.org, www.mnliteracy.org/volunteers/opportunities/adults ■

December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12 Pg 13

See the holiday lights in Phalen Park

ACCESSIBLE FUN Welcome to the Access Press Accessible Fun listings. Readers looking for additional opportunities to enjoy the arts have these options: For information on galleries and theater performances around the state join the Access to Performing Arts email list at access@vsamn.org or call VSA Minnesota, 612-332-3888 or statewide 800-801-3883 (voice/TTY).

To hear a weekly listing of accessible performances, call 612-332-3888 or 800-801-3883. The web accessible performance listings at www.vsamn.org/calendar.html, www.mrid.org, www.accesspress.org, or http://c2net.org (c2: caption coalition, inc.), which does most of the captioned shows in Minnesota and across the country.

Performances on Facebook; sign up to connect with Audio Description Across Minnesota (www.facebook.com/pages/Audio-Description-AcrossMinnesota/202035772468). Connect with ASL Interpreted and Captioned Performances across Minnesota on Facebook http://tinyurl.com/FBcaption

Attend free concerts The Hennepin County Government Center continues its annual tradition of seasonal and holiday performances, free and open to the public. All performances are noon – 1 p.m. unless otherwise noted, at the Hennepin County Government Center Public Service Level (Skyway Level), 300 S. 6th St., Mpls. On Fri, Dec. 13, 80 Parkview School kindergartners perform cold weather and Spanish songs.

On Tue, Dec. 17, hear the Chippewa Middle School eighth grade orchestra. The City-County Chorus rounds out the shows on Wed, Dec. 18.

Youth Legacy Foundation holiday crafts Join the Youth Legacy Foundation for some holiday fun 10 am,-noon Sat, Dec.. 14 at the Edina Library Meeting Room, 5280 Grandview Square, Edina. Enjoy sandwiches and make Christmas gifts at four stations.

Cut and wrap soap, wrap jars of candy with ribbon, make greeting cards and create songs and email them to your loved ones. Learn about the foundation and how it serves youth. Youth who identify as experiencing disabilities are welcome. Preregister. FFI: Bridget Siljander, 612-293-7008, Bridget at bridget@ youthlegacyfoundation.org

Miracle on 34th Street—the Musical Paradise Community Theatre presents a musical version of the holiday family favorite at the Paradise Center for the Arts, 321 Central Ave. N., Faribault. AD and ASL: shows are 7:30 p.m. Thu, Dec. 12, tactile tour at 6:45 p.m. if requested in advance. Tickets are $15, AD/ASL patron or student $10. FFI: 507-332-7372; info@paradisecenterforthearts.org, www.paradisecenterforthearts.org/

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever SteppingStone Theatre presents the story of the illbehaved Herdman children and how they and others find the true meaning of Christmas, at SteppingStone Theatre for Youth Development, 55 Victoria St. N., St. Paul. AD show is 7 p.m. Fri, Dec.. 13. ASL show is 4 p.m. Sun, Dec.. 15. Tickets are reduced to $10 access rate (regular $15; youth/senior 55+ $12). FFI: 651-225-9265; info@steppingstonetheatre.org , www.steppingstonetheatre.org

Enjoy a spectacular drive-through holiday light experience, from the comfort of a motor vehicle. Phalen Park in St. Paul is transformed through the IBEW Holiday Lights display, put on by the electrical workers’ union, Woodbury’s King of Kings Church and other sponsors.

See more than 50 larger-than-life holiday light sculptures and animated displays.

The display is nightly, including holidays, 5:3010 p.m. through New Year’s Day. The park is at 1615 Phalen Drive E., St. Paul.Cost is $10 per vehicle, or $8 on value nights Sunday through Thursday. (No discount on holidays.) The rate is $15 per limo/passenger van/mini bus and $30 per coach bus. Proceeds go to charities focused on fundamental community needs such as food, shelter, education, and the environment. ■

Llama Llama Holiday Drama Stages Theatre Company presents another tale of little Llama Llama, who is waiting for Christmas, at Hopkins Center for the Arts, 1111 Mainstreet, Hopkins.

AD and OC shows are 1 p.m. Sat, Dec. 14. ASL show is 2 p.m. Sun, Dec. 15. Tickets are $15, child/student $12; discount for AD/ASL/OC: $11, child/senior 60+: $9.

FFI: 952-979-1111, x4; www.stagestheatre.org

Winter Wonderettes Rochester Civic Theatre presents the 1960s sequel to the smash Off-Broadway hit about a girl group and their adventures, at 20 Civic Center Dr. SE, Rochester. ASL show is 7 p.m. Sat, Dec. 14. Tickets are $27; senior $24; student $17. FFI: 507-282-8481, www.rochestercivictheatre.org

Between the Worlds In the Heart of the Beast Puppet & Mask Theatre presents a tribute to the beauty and mystery of the winter solstice, the time of darkness when earth is dormant, at the theater at 1500 East Lake Street, Mpls.

ASL show is 7 p.m. Sat, Dec.. 14, Tickets are $20.

FFI: 612-721-2535, ext. 23; info@hobt.org, www.hobt.org

The Wizard of Oz L. Frank Baum’s classic story of Dorothy, Toto and their adventures is presented by Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre at The Stage, 333 4th St. S., Fargo. AD show is 7:30 p.m. Sat, Dec.. 14, 7:30 PM; pre-show description at 7:10 p.m. Tickets are reduced to $8 (regular $15, student/senior $10). FFI: 701-2356778, www.fmct.org.

Junie B. Jones in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells Youth Performance Company presents one of Barbara Park’s stories at the Howard Conn Fine Arts Center, 1900 Nicollet Ave., Mpls. AD and ASL shows are 2 p.m. Sun, Dec. 15. Tickets are $12, student 18 & under or senior 62+, $10. FFI: 612-623-9080, www.youthperformanceco.com.

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All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 Theater Latte Da, Cantus and Hennepin Theatre Trust present the extraordinary story of a World War I truce, at Pantages Theatre, 710 Hennepin Ave., Mpls. ASL and AD shows are 2 p.m. Sat, Dec. 21.Tickets are reduced to $18 for ASL/AD patrons and one guest (regular $28$35.50). FFI: 612-339-7007; must call to get discount, or accessible@broadwayacrossamerica.com, or www.theaterlatteda.com or http://www.cantusonline.org or www.hennepintheatretrust.org/box-office/accessibleinformation ■

Pg 14 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12

Weekend Program Books

Radio Talking Book December Sampling Books available through Faribault Books broadcast on the Minnesota Radio Talking Book Network are available through the Minnesota Braille and Talking Book Library in Faribault Call 1-800-722-0550, 9 a.m.- 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The catalog is online at www.mnbtbl.org, click on the link Search the Library Catalog. Persons living outside of Minnesota may obtain copies of books via inter-library loan by contacting their home state’s Network Library for the National Library Service.

Listen to the Minnesota Radio Talking Book, either live or archived programs from the previous week, on the Internet at www.mnssb.org/rtb. Call the Talking Book Library for a password to the site. To find more information about Minnesota Radio Talking Book Network events go to the Facebook site at http://tinyurl.com/ RadioTalkBook.

Access Press is one of the publications featured at 9 p.m. Sundays on the program It Makes a Difference.

Veterans Day

Christmas programs Every year Radio Talking Book gives volunteers a break at Christmastime. Special Christmas programming begins after the newspapers on Dec. 24, and continues until the morning newspapers on Dec. 26. Some of the holiday programming is read by past volunteers, so listen for some familiar voices from years ago.

Your Personal World (Saturday at 1 p.m.) is airing Happier at Home, by Gretchen Rubin, and Dream More,

by Dolly Parton; For the Younger Set (Sunday at 11 a.m.) is airing The Opposite of Hallelujah, by Anna Jarzab, and Magicalamity, by Kate Saunders; Poetic Reflections (Sunday at noon) is airing 3 Sections, by Vijay Sashadri, and Belmont, by Stephen Burt ; The U.S. and Us (Sunday at 4 p.m.) is airing The Orchid Murder,

by Christine Hunt, and Black White Blue, by William Swanson.

Chautauqua • Tuesday – Saturday 4 a.m.

Love in the Time of Algorithms, Nonfiction by Dan Slater, 2013. 10 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 27. The rising marriage age and declining marriage rate mean we’re spending a greater portion of our lives searching for love. One third of America’s singles are turning to dating websites. L - Read by Holly Sylvester.

Past is Prologue • Monday – Friday 9 a.m.

The Watchers, Nonfiction by Stephen Alford, 2012.

18 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 24. In 1519, Elizabeth I’s reign was a precarious one that required unrelenting surveillance by Her Majesty’s secret service. Sir Francis Walsingham, who headed it, deployed spies, double agents, cryptography, and torture. Read by Nancy Bader.

Bookworm • Monday – Friday 11 a.m.

The Last Runaway, Fiction by Tracy Chevalier, 2013.

Nine broadcasts. Begins Dec. 19. Honor Bright left England because of personal disappointment and ended up in Ohio, a stop along the Underground Railroad. A Quaker, she is surprised to find that the local Quakers are not as bound to their principles as she expected.

Read by Esmé Evans.

The Writer’s Voice • Monday – Friday 2 p.m.

Raising Cubby, Nonfiction by John Elder Robison, 2013. 12 broadcasts. Begins Dec.26. Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at age 40, the author was not a model dad, approaching fatherhood as a series of logic puzzles and practical jokes. When Cubby started to behave as John had as a child, he wondered if Cubby had Asperger’s too. Read by Mike Piscitelli.

Choice Reading • Monday – Friday 4 p.m.

The Bartender’s Tale, Fiction by Ivan Doig, 2012.

16 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 30. Tom Harry and his son, Rusty, run the bar in Gros Ventre and are satisfied with that life. Then when Rusty turns 12, a dancer Tom knew long ago turns up with her daughter, who might also be Tom’s daughter. L - Read by Dan Sadoff.

PM Report • Monday – Friday 8 p.m.

And Hell Followed with Her, Nonfiction by David Neiwert, 2013. 14 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 26. After murders in an Arizona border town, the leader of an offshoot of the Minuteman movement was arrested. The murders were part of a scheme to finance a violent antigovernment border militia. The ethnic hatred found in the movement drives much of the immigration debate today.

L - Read by Charlie Boone.

Night Journey • Monday – Friday 9 p.m.

The Innocence Game, Fiction by Michael Harvey, 2013. Eight broadcasts. Begins Dec. 23. Journalism students Ian, Sarah, and Jake are invited to participate in the Innocence Seminar, and tasked with trying to exonerate the falsely accused. But Jake introduces a cold case of his own, a long-ago murder of a ten-year-old boy. His alleged killer was murdered decades ago but evidence suggests that the real killer is alive and in their midst. V, L - Read by Bill Studer.

Off the Shelf • Monday – Friday 10 p.m.

A Working Theory of Love, Fiction by Scott Hutchins, 2012. 13 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 23. Thanks to his dead father’s journals, Neill has a job with an artificial intelligence company. But the computer is now acting sentient and asking about Neill’s childhood. L - Read by Don Gerlach.

Potpourri • Monday – Friday 11 p.m.

Land of 10,000 Loves, Nonfiction by Stewart Van Cleve, 2013. 14 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 18. Former assistant curator of the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection at the University of Minnesota, Stewart Van Cleve, gives an unprecedented history of queer life in Minnesota. L - Read by Scott Brush.

Good Night Owl • Monday – Friday midnight And the Mountains Echoed, Fiction by Khaled Hosseini, 2013. 14 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 31. A father does what he thinks is best and gives his young daughter to a rich man. What follows is a series of stories within a story, illustrating how people’s actions are shrouded in ambiguity. Read by Don Lee. After Midnight • Tuesday – Saturday 1 a.m.

The Office of Mercy, Fiction by Ariel Djanikian, 2013.

12 broadcasts. Begins Dec. 13. Natasha is chosen for a venture Outside of America-Five, a utopian world where hunger and money do not exist. But she is forced to make a choice that may put the people she loves in danger, and change the world as she knows it. L – Read by Joy Fogarty.

Abbreviations: V - violence, L - offensive language, S - sexual situations.

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December10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12 Pg 15

5%- from p. 1 islators signed on to support the rate increase. Sponsors for the legislation include Senate sponsor Kent Eken, DFL-Twin Valley and House bill author Jerry Newton, DFL-Coon Rapids.

Eken, who has a family member with disabilities, told the cheering crowd that they would not be left behind this session.

In 2013 nursing home saw a rate increase of 5 percent increase for employees’ wages. Those who serve people with disabilities got only a 1 percent inSam Subah spoke on behalf of direct support providers. crease. That slim increase, Photo courtesy of The Arc Minnesota coupled with years of cuts to home- and community-based care, means wages for those who provide direct care have fallen far behind their peers in institutional settings.

“It’s not the year we normally deal with the budget,” said Eken. He said an exception must be made because people with disabilities were left behind. “It was important to give nursing homes an increase, but we should be treating waivered services and disability services equally. There are no second-class citizens in Minnesota.”

“We think 5 percent is well-deserved but what you really need is 15 percent,” said Rep. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka. That comment drew loud cheers.

Sen. Tom Huntley, D-Duluth, said the rate increase will be his top priority this session, after seeing how people weren’t treated equitably in 2013. Huntley chairs the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.

He praised the crowd for building momentum to start the session, but cautioned everyone that the increase “may be a tough sell.”

“We will be a priority in the 2014 session and we will prevail.”

— Bruce Nelson, ARRM

The increase add about $86 million to the current state budget. How it fares may be determined by upcoming state revenue forecasts. Some lawmakers and Gov. Mark Dayton have cautioned that more support may not be forthcoming until more is known about the state’s financial picture.

Several speakers focused on the need to make the rate increase a priority. Sen. David Brown, R-Becker, said state lawmakers should make people with disabilities a priority. He suggested lawmakers shouldn’t be building new offices for the Senate, but should focus on people instead. “Let’s make this rate increase a priority,” said Brown. “Let’s quit talking about it and get it done.”

Bruce Nelson, executive director of ARRM, said the campaign and its goal of a rate increase shouldn’t been seen as partisan. “This isn’t about Republicans or Democrats, it’s about you,” he told the crowd.

Nelson told those present to continue reaching out to legislators who haven’t yet indicated support for the rate increase. “We will be a priority in the 2014 session and we will prevail,” he said.

Look for The 5 % Campaign on Facebook. The Facebook page has a link to a support petition, which at the time of Access Press deadline had 2,686 signees. ■ Regional News - p. 6 more than consolation prizes for constituencies that did not get satisfaction from state lawmakers.

The group that has already asked to be downsized is the Minnesota State Council on Disability (MnSCOD). It has been downsized from 21 to 17 members. “We are the land of 10,000 boards,” said Joan Willshire, the disability council’s executive director. “That’s a good thing. That is one of Minnesota’s strengths. We really work with the people.”

(Source: Star Tribune)

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Pg 16 December 10, 2013 Volume 24, Number 12