November 2002 Issue

1November 10, 2002

Inside■■■■■ Mentor Day — p. 3■■■■■ Brain Injury Assoc — p. 3■■■■■ Arc Northland — p. 8

Memories— Page 7

Volume 13, Number 11 SOURCES RESOURCES November 10, 2002

Non-profit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDMpls. MN

Permit No. 4766

“Politics is about the improvement ofpeople’s lives.”

— Senator Paul Wellstone

Celebration Of Courage Galaby Sue Warner

MINNESOTA IN MOURNING

On Saturday, October 12,more than 700 people

attended the RBC DainRauscher Celebration ofCourage Gala at MedtronicWorld Headquarters inFridley. In its seventh year,Courage Center’s signatureevent honors the professionalachievements of people withdisabilities and focuses onthe benefits of employingpeople with disabilities.

The evening began with aVIP reception for awardwinners and a silent auction,and was followed by a dinnerand awards ceremony withpresentation of the NationalCourage Award and theannual Rose and Jay PhillipsAwards.

This year’s National CourageAward was presented to

Twin Cities corporate execu-tive, Vernon Heath. Acofounder and former CEOof Rosemount, Inc., Heath iswell-known for his businessexpertise and his lifetimesupport of nonprofit organi-zations. Heath, who con-tracted polio at age eight, hasbrought forward his personalexperiences, business skillsand talents to influence andhelp create a stronger envi-ronment for people withdisabilities in Minnesota.

In addition to the NationalCourage Award, PhillipsAwards were presented tofive people with disabilities.The award honors those whohave succeeded in theircareers while also beinginvolved in their communityand in advocacy efforts. Thisyear’s winners are:

Jay Johnson,St. CloudFounder

FENA Designs, Inc.

Jay has fed his capitalisticspirit since his first jobselling lemonade at age fourin Cold Spring, Minnesota.A new world opened up tohim following a spinal cordinjury in 1989. He discov-ered computers and learnedpractical business skills thatwere complemented by adegree from St. Cloud StateUniversity. After some trialand error, FENA Designs,Inc., was born. FENAprovides the technology tomake it possible for people,who cannot do so on theirown, to stand. Today, FENADesigns employs sevenpeople and contracts withanother 100. The standing Courage Gala - cont. on p. 6

wheelchair he designed wonFDA approval in 2001, and isbeing marketed nationwide.

Damon Leivestad,Golden Valley

Mechanical Designer,Thiele Technologies

Damon loves computers andhockey, but not necessarily inthat order. Damon grew up inSt. Peter, Minnesota, beforemoving to Minneapolis wherehe attended an intensive nine-month training program incomputer-aided drafting.That led him to intern withThiele Technologies of Min-neapolis, where he is stillemployed as a mechanicaldesigner. His coworkerspraise both his work and hisfund-raising ability, with hisdevelopment efforts support-

Sen. Paul Wellstone, 1944-2002; Sheila Wellstone, 1944-2002; Marcia Wellstone Markuson, 1969-2002; Mary McEvoy, 1953-2002; Tom Lapic, 1952-2002; Will McLaughlin, 1979-2002

Remembering Paul And Sheila WellstoneA leader doesn’t stay

home while otherswork. A leader doesn’t eatwhile others starve, or sleepwhile others stand watch. Aleader doesn’t commandpeople’s loyalty by fear, norcan he purchase it withmoney. A leader earnsothers’ loyalty by the sweatof his own back and the painshe endures for their sake.That which is the heaviest orharshest burden, he lifts upfirst, and sets down last. A

leader doesn’t require ser-vice of those he leads butprovides it to them. Heserves them, not they him.

Paul Wellstone was a leader.He was the national cham-pion of people whose liveshave been touched by mentalillness, and he served us for adozen years. He neverdenied us, never was ashamedof us, never abandoned us,even though our cause anddisease is “politically incor-

rect.” He acted and spokewith passion about us andtook away our shame.

He and Sheila gave us manygifts. Their love and passionfor their causes and eachother relit our pilot lights, andmade us ask, “What do welove?” They inspired us,and woke us up to thepossibility that we canchange the world, thatpeople with mental illnessdon’t have to sit at “the

back of the bus” anymore.

Paul was a “one-of-a-kind,”but his passing isn’t the endof an era or a movement, it’sthe beginning. PaulWellstone will be remem-bered and honored as a civilrights leader, and his ex-ample will sow courage intoour hearts. The standard ofvalor he set will inspire us torededicate our lives. He wasliving proof that gentlenessisn’t weakness, that true

strength comes not from theforce of our bodies, but fromthe love and compassion ofour hearts. The wordcourage comes from theLatin, “cor,” or heart. Tohave courage means to fol-low your heart. Paul demon-strated to us, every day, whattrue courage is: listening to,and then following your

heart, no matter what.

Paul and Sheila Wellstonebelieved in us, cared for usand gave us hope. They wereliving proof that sometimeswhen we forget to see theface of God, it’s only becauseit’s so close in front of us.

Pete Feigal

Pledge of PeaceIn Honor of theWellstonesby Ann L. Kranz

Hard to write.Hard to think.Hard to beamongst this grief.

Distraughtby Loss of Life,Loss of Hope,Loss of Love, Family.

Advocates,Champions,Voices for the Underdog,the Meek.

Little Man, Big Heart.Calm Intention, Fiery Esprit.Strong Woman, Subtle Skill.Compassion, Integrity,

Charm.

Sole Objectorto War and Death.Faithful Believerin the Power of Peace.

Women, Children,the Vulnerable, Weak.Gimps and Crips,Queers and Fags,You wanted UsAll on your Team.

Appreciation of Difference,both Color and Creed.Fought for Farmers, Vets,

Battered Women,Anyone you found in Need.

A Life of EducationHere and on the Hill.You Understoodto Truly learn life’s lessons,one must at timesjust Listen and be Still.

Upon your Death,I recommit my lifeto that which you believed.I pledge to Work in your

Honortoward Justice, Freedom and

Peace.

November 10, 2002 2

TimBenjamin

Editor

Access PressCo-Founder/Publisher (1990-1996) ....................................................... Wm. A. Smith, Jr.Co-Founder/Publisher/Editor-in-Chief (1990-2001) ............................ Charles F. SmithBoard of Directors ...................................................... Mary Kay Kennedy, Steve Kuntz,

Lolly Lijewski, Bridget Smith, Joani Werner, and Linda WolfordEditor .............................................................................................................. Tim BenjaminAssistant Editor .......................................................................... Laurie Eckblad AndersonCartoonist .......................................................................................................... Scott AdamsProduction ........................................................... Ellen Houghton at Presentation Images

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 locationsstatewide. Approximately 650 copies are mailed directly to political, business, institutional, andcivic leaders. Subscriptions are available for $15/yr.

Editorial submissions and news releases on topics of interest to persons with disabilities, or personsserving those with disabilities, are welcomed.

Paid advertising is available at rates ranging from $14 to $18/column inch, depending on size andfrequency. Classified ads are $8.00, plus 35 cents/word over 20 words.

Advertising and editorial deadlines are the last day of the month preceding publication.

Access Press is available on disk. Call MN State Services for the Blind, 651-642-0500 or800-652-9000.

Inquiries should be directed to: Access Press • 1821 University Ave. W. • Suite 104S • St. Paul,Minnesota 55104 • (651) 644-2133 • Fax (651) 644-2136 • E-mail: [email protected].

YYYYYelloelloelloelloellow w w w w TTTTTaxiaxiaxiaxiaxiTry our Super Taxi Service

in the Metro Area

Call 612-824-4444On-Call Accessible Taxi Service at taxi rateOK’d for Metro Mobility overflow if deniedReservations up to a year in advance or On-Call

Health Care & Disability:Lack Of Access A Problemby Jeff Nygaard

THE MINNESOTA STATE COUNCIL ON DISABILITY

KEEP UP TO DATE ! !SSSSSUBSCRIBEUBSCRIBEUBSCRIBEUBSCRIBEUBSCRIBE N N N N NOWOWOWOWOW F F F F FOROROROROR F F F F FREEREEREEREEREE

MMMMMINNESOTAINNESOTAINNESOTAINNESOTAINNESOTA D D D D DISABILITYISABILITYISABILITYISABILITYISABILITY E- E- E- E- E-MAILMAILMAILMAILMAIL◆ Breaking Federal and State Disability News

◆ Notice of Special EventsTo Subscribe, E-mail MSCOD [email protected]

TTTTTHEHEHEHEHE C C C C CONNECTORONNECTORONNECTORONNECTORONNECTOR N N N N NEWSLETTEREWSLETTEREWSLETTEREWSLETTEREWSLETTERA Quarterly Publication Featuring

Disability Issues and Commentaries plusSpecial Issues on Legislative Activities

For a Free Subscription, Contact MSCOD at651-296-6785 V/TTY ◆ 1-800-945-8913 V/TTY

651-296-5935 FAX

MSCOD, YOUR SOURCE FOR INFORMATION,REFERRAL, TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

ON ACCESS, EDUCATION, EMPLOYMENT, HEALTH

CARE, HOUSING AND TRANSPORTATION

A New Way ToSupport Access Press

Minnesota’s Disability Community Newspaper

We would like to acknowledge the GENEROUS donationsof the Leadership Circle.

Participants:Advocating Change Together • Minnesota Governor’s Council on DD

Remembering with Dignity • University of Minnesota ICIAccommodating Care Inc. • Metropolitan Center for Independent Living

Handi Medical Supply • Equity Services of St. PaulPACER Center • Vinland National Center

Please consider joining The Leadership CircleCall Tim at 651-644-2133

mourning Minnesotans andmany of the Senator’s col-leagues from all parts of ourcountry. The crowd prayedtogether, sang together, criedtogether and cheered to-gether, giving the fallenheroes an honorable memo-rial. In my view, the servicewas an outstanding success.The Wellstone Legacy will beetched in my heart forever.

You will find remembrances

from people in the disabilitycommunity throughout thisissue.

***

For seven years, CourageCenter has presented awardsto six worthy recipients eachOctober. The winners arehighlighted in Sue Warner’sarticle. Thanks to Sue forinforming us of the contribu-tions and successes of thosehonored. We send ourcongratulations to each ofthem.

***Jeff Nygaard writes thismonth about new researchthat has been done on the lackof available health care forpeople with disabilities. NOTA NEW STORY! Jeffexplains the effects of not

having such necessities asdurable goods and adequatepreventive care up front—often the absence of suchsupplies and care createsother, more serious problems.The compound effects, whichwe in the disability commu-nity are constantly aware of,increase the cost of indepen-dence and threaten our abilityto remain independent. Theexample Jeff presents is sotrue. Most all of us have asimilar story to tell. If only theinsurers, government and otherparties involved would recog-nize the cost effectiveness ofpreventive medicine, wewould all be that much richer.

Although this is an old story,Jeff’s article comes from newresearch. We thank him for it;it’s well worth reading. Maybethis new research will make

the difference.

***

The article on National Dis-ability Mentoring Day(NDMD) depicts some of theadvantages of one person witha disability mentoring anotherperson with a disability. Ithink this is a great idea.Thanks to the people whoorganized and participated inNDMD—and please note theWellstone memory connectedto it.

***

We were pleased to havespace for reports from twoadvocacy organizations: ArcNorthland and The BrainInjury Association of Minne-sota. We continue to wel-come updates like these,

especially from greater Min-nesota. It’s important to hearwhat is going on outside ofthe Twin Cities.

***

By the time you read this, weshould know who the nextMinnesota governor andsenator will be, as well as theother results of this memo-rable election. I hopeeveryone was able to voteand that your candidatesfared well. At this time thecontroversy on the absenteeballot issue is growing. Ifyou are one of the voters whowas unable to get a newballot in on time or thesystem did not work for youin any way, please contact usat Access Press. We need toknow your story and why thesystem failed. ■

People with disabilities inthe United States have a

lack of access to appropriatehealth care. According torecent research, this lack ofaccess, which affects peoplewith a wide range of disabili-ties, “can lead to negativeconsequences for the health,well-being, independence, andquality of life of adults withdisabilities,” say Phillip Beattyand Thilo Kroll from theCenter for Health and Dis-ability Research at the Na-tional Rehabilitation Hospital(NRH) Center in Washington,D.C. In an October 1presentation at Courage Cen-ter entitled “Recent Researchon the Health Care Experi-ence of People With Disabili-ties,” Beatty and Kroll ac-knowledged that the findingabove may sound obvious tomany people with disabilities.Nonetheless, they say, it is“an example of a relativelynew research finding” in the

health care field.

The presentation focused onattempts to answer the ques-tion, “How is access to healthcare services related to expe-riencing secondary condi-tions among people withdisabilities?” This research ispart of a larger national studyfocused on differences inaccess, utilization and satis-faction among people withspinal cord injuries, cerebralpalsy, and multiple sclerosiswho are enrolled in managedcare and fee-for-service healthinsurance plans. The specificsecondary conditions lookedat in the study were pressuresores, spasticity andcontractures (permanent short-ening of muscles, causingdeformities).

The NRH study found thattwenty to forty-nine percentof respondents reported notreceiving the care they needed

in 1999. In all disabilitygroups, those having suchdifficulty reported experienc-ing secondary conditions atsignificantly higher rates thanthose who received appropri-ate care.

In-Depth InterviewsThe in-depth interviews con-ducted as part of the researchrevealed a multitude of barri-ers to health care access,including environmental (e.g.inaccessible provider facili-ties and equipment), struc-tural (e.g. availability andchoice of providers) andprocedural (e.g. timely ap-pointments, complex referralprocess for services) barriers.

While previous studies haveuncovered the nature of someof these barriers, the researchdescribed by Beatty and Krollfocuses on the consequencesthat adults with disabilitiesexperience as a result of them.These include:

•Social consequences—in theform of strained relationshipswith family, friends andcolleagues, as well asmodifications to existingsocial roles, and limitationsin societal participation.

•Psychological effects—suchas depression, frustration,stress and devaluation. Thefeeling of being useless alsoresulted from experienceswith “fighting the system” orencountering accessdifficulties.

•Physical consequences—themost frequently noted beinga general deterioration inhealth, including increasedrisk for secondary conditions,and limitations in completing

Health Care - cont. on p. 9

On October 25, 2002, ina plane crash, the

disability community lost sixgreat allies: Senator PaulWellstone, Sheila Wellstone,Marcia Wellstone Markuson,Tom Lapic, Mary McEvoy,and Will McLaughlin. Thelives of the victims werecelebrated October 29 atWilliams Arena on the Uni-versity of Minnesota cam-pus. The event was attendedby approximately 20,000

3November 10, 2002

ACCESS IS FREEDOM!National Handicap Housing Institute, Inc.

Affordable/Accessible HousingFor

Mobility Impaired PhysicallyDisabled Adults

Community Enrichment Through Housing Diversity

CALL 651-639-9799

National Disability Mentoring Dayby Laurie Eckblad Anderson

� �

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

�� !��

�� !��!"��!��#��!��!$��

��$�#�� !��#��!��!$��

A Revolutionary Approach for People with Disabilitites

651-556-0865

Since 1999, National Dis-ability Mentoring Day

(NDMD) has occurred dur-ing National Disability Em-ployment Awareness Monthin October. The goal ofNDMD is to improve futureemployment options for per-sons with disabilities. This isachieved by pairing studentswith volunteer mentors for aday of observation, questionsand answers, hands-on expe-rience, and networking op-portunities. Below is a profileof one student/mentor team.

As a teenager, Kelly Sochaapplied to ten restaurantsbefore getting his first job as abusboy. Nobody pushed himinto the working world, noteven his parents. Socha, wholives with spina bifida, says hehas been his own mentor.

That is not to say he doesn’tbelieve in the practice ofhaving a more experiencedperson guide one who isyounger and less experienced.In fact, Socha believes that itis an especially importantrelationship when the mentorand mentee are both personswith disabilities. That is whyhe agreed to let JonathanMeyer shadow him on the jobat Handi Medical Supply onOctober 16, 2002, NationalDisability Mentoring Day.

Meyer, who has musculardystrophy, is a junior atHumboldt High School in St.Paul. He attends classes in themorning and the SUMIT(Skills Uniquely Marketablein Technology) program inthe afternoon. At SUMIT,Meyer learns about and works

with computers, his true loveand focus for future employ-ment as a programmer. Whenapproached by SUMIT’s jobcoach about NDMD, hewanted to give it a try.

Upon arriving at Handi Medi-cal Supply, Meyer was intro-duced to Socha and his job.Although Socha does every-thing from handling mail tocash sales, Meyer seemedtruly awed by his mentor’sphone responsibilities. Meyerwatched Socha calmly andskillfully handle a steadystream of calls, from friendlygreeting to transfer to theappropriate party in one ofmany departments. Meyerseemed not only impressed,but also certain that hewouldn’t want phone work aspart of any of his future job

I am a high school juniorwho participated in Na-

tional Disability MentoringDay on October 16. I was oneof a handful of Minnesotastudents who was given theopportunity to spend the dayin a workplace learning aboutcareer opportunities and be-ing mentored by dynamicindividuals, both disabled andnondisabled. The organiza-tion that gave me this terrificopportunity was the Wellstonecampaign. At the height oftheir busy campaign they tooktime to schedule me on theGreen Bus, introduce me tofamous people—includingGloria Steinem—and explaintheir various jobs to me.

Even more extraordinarily,these staffers asked me ques-tions about my life in highschool, talked to me aboutcollege life with a disability,and shared their passions withme. These fine people wereable to offer me this opportu-nity as a disabled young

person because they workedfor Paul Wellstone, a just manwho encouraged others to betheir best. When I heard thenews of the crash, I felt theloss through the hearts ofthose who worked so hard forPaul.

We all need to continueSenator Wellstone’s work.Although not all of us can“Stand Up,” we can all “Keep

NDMD With TheWellstone Campaign

Fighting.” One way to keepfighting is to support the workthat Senator Wellstone andhis staff did to encourage thefull employment of peoplewith disabilities. In hismemory, ask your employerto support National DisabilityMentoring Day and ask astudent like me onto your bus.

Scott BloomStudent

descriptions. This brings upjust one important benefit ofthis experience: preparing forwork is not just determiningwhat you want to do—it isalso learning what you wouldprefer not to do.

After showing Meyer his job,Socha arranged for his menteeto tour the building and get abrief look at how eachdepartment works. Of course,Meyer was especially inter-ested to see how computerswere used in customer ser-vice, shipping and receiving,and other areas.

When questioned about thisintroduction to the workingworld, Meyer said that Sochawas a good mentor and that he

would participate in the pro-gram again. He felt theexperience also gave himencouragement about gettinga job someday. Meyer’smother, Lynn, agreed that ithad been a good idea to be apart of NDMD. She waspleased that her son got thechance to talk with the staff,as well as seeing and hearingwhat goes on in the work-place. She feels it will helphim make choices later.

Socha gave up his middaybreak to share his reflectionson being a mentor. Heprovided some thoughtfulobservations drawn from hisyears in the working world,where he has been employedin restaurants, hotels, retail,

and telemarketing. Admit-tedly, Socha is very outgoingand not afraid to get out andtake a chance. For example,the most challenging aspect ofhis current job is themultitasking involved. WhenSocha started at Handi, hewas not 100% comfortablewith his abilities in this area—over a year later, he feels hehas improved a lot at success-fully juggling all of his duties.Socha knows that pushingoneself can lead to personalgrowth.

Over the years, Socha has alsolearned that meeting people isa plus for him on the job—that’s what he liked aboutdoing reception work at aMentoring - cont. on p. 11

Local people educatingothers in their commu-

nity about brain injury, itsconsequences and how thecare system can better servesurvivors are the goals of astatewide series of meetingsorganized by the Brain InjuryAssociation of Minnesota.

“This isn’t a top-down ef-fort,” said Tom Gode, theassociation’s executive direc-tor. “Rather, it’s a bottom-up,grassroots approach designedto help people better under-stand brain injury and use thatunderstanding to help con-vince policy-makers thatchanges need to be made.”

Although most people don’trealize it, 94,000 Minneso-tans live with brain injury andits effects—more than thosewho suffer disabilities fromepilepsy, cerebral palsy andAlzheimer’s disease. Nation-wide, brain injury affects anestimated 5.3 million people,

more than 2 percent of theUnited States’ population. Itis the leading cause of deathand disability for children andyoung adults. It is commonamong the elderly.

To help unify those manyvoices, the Brain Injury Asso-ciation of Minnesota devel-oped Legislative Home Vis-its. People—many of themsurvivors, along with theirfamily, friends and profes-sionals who serve them—meet with others locally toshare information, and learnabout legislative efforts toclose the cracks in the caresystem through which personswith brain injury often fall.

Another goal of the meeting isto facilitate a dialogue witharea legislators as well as stateand county public officials.They attend to hear theconcerns of their constituents,gain a better understanding ofthe issues and how their

legislative districts are af-fected, and voice their per-spective on pending or pro-posed legislation that impactsthe brain injury community.

“Much of our work focuseson trying to bring diversegroups together,” Gode said.“Professionals in the caresystem are out there serv-ing survivors. Survivors areusing a variety of theirservices. But one sidedoesn’t always know whatthe other is doing and why—or what needs to be changed.”

“We try to develop thatunderstanding at these meet-ings and put forth one strongand unified voice that speaksa clear message,” said Shan-non Robins, the association’scommunity organizer. “If wedo our job right, legislators goback to St. Paul knowing thatbrain injury does affect theirdistricts and with our message

Grassroots Advocacy ForBrain Injury Associationby Pete Takash

Injury - cont. on p. 6

November 10, 2002 4

��

��

��

�� !"��#��$��$��%&��'��%(�))*!)��+,�)!-�)*.�//*0�1+,�)!-�)*.��*!

2��2��

�3"��3"#��

� �� !�� "�#��$�� %�&��'��

� "��&�� "�� #�� $� � &�� %��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

�� &��

��/�5��

��

��

�� !"��#$% !!#

&&'�� !"��#$% !!(

&��)��!%*((%+,�%�,$*��

---.��-��/��0��.��

1��2��3�2��2��-��4��3��4��/��-��/�-��

��4��-��/��4��.

Ellen Houghton—desktoppublisher of Access Press—owns Presentation Images, acompany assisting others inthe selection, development,and implementation of theproper media needed toconvey their messages. Addi-tionally, she was the pub-lisher/editor of “Stepping

Up,” a discontinuednewspaper whichhelped others ex-plore their spiritual-ity.

Spirituality and Disability

People Don’t Have Soulsby Ellen Houghton

Now that I have yourattention, I’ll finish the

headline. I once heard thefollowing saying: Peopledon’t have souls, they aresouls that happen to have ahuman body.

Imagine if we based our dailyactions on this belief. I startedto think about how I mightreact to various situations if Iremembered I was soul firstand body second—think ofthe boost to my self-esteemalone. When someone saidsomething to me, my filtersystem wouldn’t get muddledwondering if the person wasreally attacking some physi-cal trait of mine or was reallynot willing to come out andsay what (s)he meant. Orwhat if someone said some-thing I took as a slam, when inactuality they were hurting somuch they hadn’t even con-sidered the possibility of metaking their comment person-ally? It’s like the old saying,“We wouldn’t worry so muchabout what others thought ofus if we realized how seldomthey do.” It seems too oftenwe are focused on ourselvesand our needs instead oflooking at life from our soullevel, from love.

Another saying I like is “Feedyour faith and doubt willstarve.” Only the humanaspect of us can experiencedoubt, for the soul does nothave that capability—it isalways motivated from apositive, loving position sinceit knows it is perfect just as itis. When we operate from thisposition, our reactions arequite different than when wereact from our human side.

I am reminded of a story toldby a close family friend, myhonorary aunt. I had askedher how she had first met mymother, her very close friend.She laughed and said her firstreaction to Mom was not themost positive. In fact, she

said she has used the story toillustrate how first impres-sions can be very wrong andhow we need to react to themwith great caution.

She said she first met Mom inchurch, where she noted thatas soon as the minister beganhis morning message, Momwould whip out some statio-nery and start writing letters.Now my aunt thought this wasrather rude—if Mom wantedto write letters she shouldhave done it at home. Fortu-nately for both women, myaunt chose to operate from herheart and overlooked her firstreaction to Mom. She insteadgot to know her as a person,whom she came to love verydearly.

It was a long time later that myaunt overheard my dad com-ment to Mom that he didn’tknow how he would havegotten through the war with-out those transcripts of Dr.Smiley’s sermons that she hadsent to him. Imagine how myaunt felt; imagine how shewould have felt if she had lether first impression—her hu-manness—rule her actions.

Here is an example of twohumans acting as souls first.Mom understood Dad’s needfor spiritual growth at a timethat would truly test hisbeliefs and took on the task ofhelping him—at the risk ofbeing perceived as rudebecause of her actions. Andmy aunt didn’t assume toknow all the circumstancesand, therefore, did not nega-tively judge another and loseout on allowing a very caringperson to come into her life.After all, how can we everreally know the inside—thesoul—of another? We can’t,and understanding this meanswe act from our soul, not ourphysical being.

Another way to see ourreluctance to acting from our

soul is to think of all the timeswe cry out, “Why me?” Thisis definitely reacting on aphysical level. What if soulsare placed in particular bodiesand situations for a reason?What if one’s current physicalsituation is actually the bestsituation for that soul to learnthe particular lesson it is hereto learn? It really goes back toknowing we can only controlhow we react to life—wecan’t control how life hap-pens. We can stay in our bodyand react to our physicalsituation on a physical level—probably finding little or nopeace—or we can react fromour soul (love) and choose tofind growth and, subsequently,serenity.

Too often I think we forgetabout our soul and God’s rolein our life. We either playvictim, and assume we haveno responsibility for the wayour lives play out—or we beatourselves up by assuming weare totally responsible foreverything that happens in ourlives. As we used to say in asupport group I belonged to,no one of us is that powerful.God is the keeper of themaster plan and our part in itis simply to stay open to learnand do the best we can. Seemsto me the best way to do this isto remember the headline Istarted with. Operating fromthis idea, we can’t help butmake the right choices in ourlives. After all, our souls werecreated in the image of Onewho is pretty special.

From one soul to another,have a good month. ■

Mental illness is compet-ing with all other

causes and diseases for dona-tion money, media time andattention, volunteer hours andgovernment support. Breastcancer, AIDS, the HumaneSociety, food shelves, theMake-A-Wish Foundation,Ronald McDonald HouseCharities, muscular dystro-phy, Habitat For Humanity,the Special Olympics, and athousand more are all worthyand important causes. Butunlike mental illness, they are“politically correct.” EvenAIDS has become main-stream. But fifteen years ago,AIDS was talked about in awhisper. Twenty years ago,developmental disabilitieswere whispered about. Fiftyyears ago, it was cancer; onehundred years ago, it wastuberculosis. In 2002, peoplestill whisper about MI.

People are willing to helpwomen with breast cancer orchildren with muscular dys-trophy because they are suf-fering from a reason beyond

their control. What makes MIdifferent is that many stillbelieve that our illnesses areour own fault, that we’re lazyand weak, so it’s not “cool” or“PC” to help us. To break theoutdated stigma, we have tonormalize the disease, takeaway its fear, make peopleunashamed that MI has af-fected them or their families.We have to illustrate how MIis becoming the most excitingarea of medicine. We have toshow that this is an importantcivil rights struggle, notunlike the battles of the ‘50sand ‘60s, that this is TheCause of the 21st century. Wehave to show people that weare in good company havingthe illness, that our arts,sciences and politics havebeen a “Who’s Who” ofamazing people who struggledwith MI. God help me, wehave to make this disease“cool,” fun and exciting.

Granted, there aren’t a lot oflaughs that come from para-noid schizophrenia, but thesame can be said for MS or

cancer. The fun comes fromfeeling that you’ve helped outin some way, that you’vemade the world a better placefor people that genuinely needyour help.

To effect change, it helps tohave money, but what wehistorically have had is cre-ativity. And that’s what willget the attention of people andthe media. Wonderful, fun,exciting, wild, creative, crazystuff!

How about a Celebrity Minia-ture Golf Tournament at theWalker Sculpture Garden withevery “Rube Goldberg” holedesigned by an artist with MI,and sponsored by a differentcompany or celebrity?

If there is a marathon run forAIDS, maybe we can have amarathon Dance-a-thon orTrivial Pursuit/Monopoly/Clue contest with life-sizeboards.

If the MS Society has a BlackTie Dinner, we’ll throw aCostume Ball for ourselvesand our pets. Hey, peoplethink we’re crazy already.What do we have to lose?

We need to get more celebri-ties “out of the closet,” and letthem see how their involve-ment with our cause will becreating a place of honor forthemselves in history—justlike Elton John did withAIDS.

We need to raise funds andwork for other causes than ourown. “Minnesota’s MentallyIll Walk To Raise Money ForDiabetes” is the right thing todo, but it’s also a unique andnewsworthy thing to do.

Mental Illness/Brain Disorders

No More CandlelightVigils—We Want“Root Beer Float Days”by Pete Feigal

Diamond Hill Townhomes

We are currently accepting applications for our waiting list atDiamond Hill Townhomes, a great property located near theMpls. International Airport.

We have two and three bedroom townhomes that are HUDsubsidized and rent is 30% of the total household's adjustedgross income.

We have a large number of mobility impaired accessible unitsand we are scheduling appointments for persons in need of amobility impaired accessible unit immediately.

To schedule an appointment please call (612) 726-9341

Check us outat

accesspress.org❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖

Please

patronize your

Access Press

Advertisers —

and tell them

where you

heard about

them.

They bring you

your paper.

Feigal - cont. on p. 6

5November 10, 2002

GREAT SERVICE & PRICESWe offer 24-hr. Emergency Service exclusively to our regular

customers. Free UPS and deliveries to Mpls., St. Paul, & Suburbs.

We bill M.A., Medicare, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Medica and many other insurances

YOUR COMPLETE MEDICAL SUPPLY VENDOR• Wheelchairs/with complete • Commode & shower chairs

repair service • Ostomy/and wound care• Walkers/canes, crutches • Blood pressure equipment• Bathroom safety aids • Diabetic supplies• Incontinent/Urological supplies

Visit Our Large, Fully-stocked showroom open to the pubic.

HANDI MEDICAL SUPPLY

Handi Medical Supply2505 University Avenue West

St. Paul, Minnesota 55114At Hwy. 280 & University Avenue

(651) 644-9770

METROPOLITAN CENTERfor INDEPENDENT LIVING

MCIL offers services for people with disabilities, their familiesand friends, service providers, and interested community members

in the 7-county metro area.

Information and Referral (Information hotline: 651-603-2039) AdvocacyIndependent Living Skills Training Individual Peer Support

Deaf I.L. ServicesPersonal Assistance Services (M.A. Subsidized)

Ramp Project Transition Program ADA InformationMeeting Rooms Computer Lab Resource Library

Support Groups ...Chemical Dependency with Physical DisabilityGLBT with Disability

Chemical Dependency with Traumatic Brain Injury

1600 UNIVERSITY AVE. W., SUITE 16, ST. PAUL, MN 55104-3825651-646-8342 VOICE 651-603-2001 TTY 651-603-2006 FAX

HTTP://WWW.MCIL-MN.ORG

The Extra Mile: Part IIby Derek VanderVeen

[The conclusion to an articlebegun in our October issue.]

Timing is a very crucialthing in my world. In few

retail environments that Iknow of do the customers callthe store and actually ask theworkers to do their shoppingfor them. People telephone toask if we have five or sixbooks in stock and if we couldput them on the hold shelf sothey can just come in and pickthem up. I have even had awoman hand me a list offifteen titles and say, “I’mgoing shopping out in themall. I’ll get these off the holdshelf when I’m done.” I knewI had about an hour to look upeach title in our database,check the inventory and whatsection the books would be in,and retrieve them for her.This was while helping othercustomers and attempting toaccomplish all my otherresponsibilities. I must admit,tempers run short at times(mine included) but we can’tlet them run short in front ofthe customers. We have tosmile and make them thinkthat whatever they want isOK, even though it may becompletely unrealistic.

And yet this isn’t even themost difficult aspect of myjob. Although I will say mostof the customers are decentmost of the time, there are theones I’m forced to deal withwho are sometimes just nastyto me because of nothingmore than their own impa-tience—an unwillingness torealize that not everyone isperfect and maybe they needto slow down, take a step backand see that sometimes beautyruns more than skin deep. Inthe beginning, I just swal-lowed the snide comments.But my managers (Adam andElizabeth are the two whohave really stood up for me inthis respect) have defendedme so unbelievably that I nowhave the confidence to stand

up for myself. I once had tosay to a customer on thephone, “Excuse me, I’mhandicapped. Have a littlepatience and ask me to repeatmyself if you can’t understandme, instead of just asking foranother bookseller. We’rebusy here and I’m who you’vegot. Now how can I helpyou?”

Most of the problematiccustomers are over the phoneand all they have to go on ismy voice, but there are a fewwho just are clueless andtactless. Case in point (andthis is one of the nicerinstances): One woman askedme what was “wrong” withme. Not the most eloquentway to phrase the question,but she had the courage to askand I’ve always been anadvocate of that. I told herabout my car accident andhow I’d suffered a headinjury. Her response? “Oh …I’m sorry.” Short pause.“Boy, you must’ve had alousy doctor.”

What do you say to that? Inretrospect I can think of allsorts of nasty ways I could’veput her in her place (forexample, “Not as lousy asyour hairdresser.”) but Ifigured I needed to be thebigger person and just giveher the book and shoo her offwith a pat on the head and alollipop. My friends reallybacked me up on that one. Iheld it together on the salesfloor, but I just lost it later inthe break room. My bigconcern was, OK, how doesthe world perceive me? Is thiswhat I have to look forward tofor the next sixty years?Leslie hugged me, and Adamlaughed in exasperation witha, “Does she know howignorant that was?”

It comes down to this: I dealwith most customers for five,ten minutes tops. I’vedeveloped a pretty thick skin

and can take a lot more than Iused to. It takes love andsupport and commiserationwith my coworkers, whoinvariably go through thesame experiences, albeit ondifferent levels and for differ-ent reasons. I’ve realized thatI’m in a position of controlregarding making a patron’sexperience pleasant. AndI’ve learned if I can do that,then I’ve made a difference.If they leave bitter, with orwithout the book they wanted,they’re going to be bitterregardless of how nice I am tothem. Some people are justnaturally negative, and theywill be negative about every-thing no matter what I oranyone else does to try toassuage their disposition. Oth-ers maybe have had a bad day,a bit of bad luck, or someother extraneous reason thatcauses their negativity. I can,then, work a little of my charmto try to make them smile bygoing that extra mile to helpthem. And that may benothing more than directionsto the ATM down the mall.It’s possible to give them asmile even if we don’t have orcan’t get what they wouldlike. I just have to take it all instride and exercise my re-straint.

Someone once said to me thatmaybe I looked for ways toenjoy my job because I felt Ihad to settle for work in retailbecause I didn’t think I couldget a “real” job with mydisability. I did a lot of self-analysis on that one—reallylooked at what I was doingand questioned my own moti-vations. The truth of thematter is, I’ve come to care foreach of my colleagues as Icare for my own family. Weare a family, and not every-body can say that about thepeople with whom they work.What we do is physicallytaxing, and not just on me.But there’s a joy in it—looking forward to working

Disability Culture

Absentee Ballotsby John Tschida

By the time this column ispublished, the polls will

have closed and all legalballots will have been cast,bringing to a close at least aportion of the 2002 electionseason. I suspect the results ofthe U.S. Senate race will beleft unresolved, due to theextraordinary circumstancessurrounding the untimelydeath of Paul Wellstone. Ihope I am very wrong.

Regardless of the U.S. Senaterace’s outcome, it is morethan a bit ironic that thedisenfranchisement of untoldvoters with disabilities willresult from the passing of oneof the greatest champions ofvoter turnout. Think what youwill about the politics of PaulWellstone. What is undis-puted is that he firmlybelieved in a citizen’s right tochoose their elected officials.He’s famous for shouting intoa bullhorn on Election Day ashe traveled through untoldneighborhoods across thestate, encouraging people toget out and vote. Of course,he preferred if folks voted forhim, but even if his messagewas met with a promise toelect “the other guy,”Wellstone still stressed theimportance of voting.

For some in the disabilitycommunity, they can’t get outand vote. They need toexercise their right to vote byabsentee ballot. It’s a rightthis community has had forthe last 73 years. Lawmakersrecognized long ago that forsome, voting in person is notan option, and that thedisabled should be given the

same access to absenteeballots that able-bodied folkswho had to work on ElectionDay had been granted yearsbefore.

While the Minnesota Su-preme Court made it possiblefor voters to recast absenteeballots in the 2002 Senatecontest, they did not make iteasy. The process wasconfusing to county auditors,city clerks, and for thoseworking in the disabilitycommunity. Uniform pro-cesses and standards did notseem to exist. Phone inquiriesdrew varied responses to thesame question. Frustratedindividuals unable to visittheir county or city officeneeded to find someone—anagent, in the language of ourByzantine election statutes—to deliver the ballot in theirstead. Of course, expeditedmail service was an option,but for those on fixed in-comes—often struggling topurchase prescriptions orMetro Mobility tickets—thiswas a prohibitively expensiveoption.

Some have shrugged and saidthat no system is perfect, and

that the Minnesota SupremeCourt, faced with a Solomon-like dilemma, performed ad-mirably. I think they played abad hand very well, and thatdisability organizations needto work to clarify our electionlaws so this situation doesn’thappen again.

The legislature is often in theposition of fixing what’sbroken after the fact, which isnot meant as a criticism, but asimple fact. Current state lawis much more clear in ensur-ing that folks in nursinghomes and hospitals cast anabsentee ballot, than it is inaddressing those with dis-abilities in the communitywho can’t get to the polls onElection Day. This is trueunder any standard election,but the confusion surroundingthis year’s need for supple-mental ballots only magnifiedthe differences. Many moreindividuals with disabilitiesare now living in their ownhomes, apartments and smallgroup settings since the rightto vote by absentee ballot wasauthorized for those withdisabilities in 1929. Whilethe law has been amended

with people you enjoy beingaround. Someday I’ll moveon, but for now I’m content inmy life. ■

Besides working in retail,Derek VanderVeen is afreelance writer.

Tschida - cont. on p. 9

IN-HOME ASSESSMENTS TO DETERMINE MEDICAL EQUIPMENT NEEDS

(952) 933-1126ST PAUL (651) 641-1917

8:30 - 6:00 M-TH · 8:30 - 5:00 FRI8564 EXCELSIOR BLVD HOPKINS

FREE DELIVERY AND SET UP · MINIMUM ORDER APPLIESMPLS - ST. PAUL & ALL SUBURBS

Celebrating 30 Yrs OfRENTAL ••••• SALES

SERVICE ••••• REPAIR

November 10, 2002 6

A leader in training forstaff or families working with people with disabilities.

CPR,First Aid,

Behavioral Solutions,and many more.

CallJohn Walton

at651-644-3140

ext 221

AWARD WINNER S u p e rfest XX-Best of FestivalAw a rd, Spirit Aw a rd • LondonDisability Film Festival • U.S.I n t e rnational Film and Vi d e oFestival- Silver Screen Aw a rd• Marg a ret Mead Film and Vi d e oFestival • Real to Reel DocumentaryFilm and Video Festival • Contemporary Issues FilmFestival, Portugal • KynnysKINOFinland Film Festival • U.S.A. FilmFestival • Columbus Intern a t i o n a lFilm & Video Festival- Silver ChrisAw a rd • Philadelphia Intern a t i o n a lFilm Festival • Silver Aw a rd• TASH- Positive Image Aw a rd• Doxa Documentary Film Festival

D i s a b i l i tyCulture Rap For more information, contact

Advocating Change Togetherat 1-800-641-0059 or

www.selfadvocacy.com.

HOUSING AND PERSONAL CARE SERVICES

Accessible Space, Inc. (ASI) offers subsidized one and two bedroomapartments for individuals with physical disabilities. We have housingin the Twin Cities metropolitan area, St. Cloud, Brainerd, GrandRapids, Hibbing, Austin, Marshall, Willmar, and Duluth.

The apartments are fully wheelchair accessible and each building hasa central laundry room, large community room, secured entry and anon-site caretaker.

ASI also offers shared personal care services 24 hours a day, at mostlocations, for adults with a physical disability and/or traumatic braininjury who qualify for Medical Assistance.

For more information call (651) 645-7271 or (800) 466-7722. Forservices or housing call Cami, for employment as a personal careattendant call Al or Angie.

Accessible Space, Inc.

No illness can claim so many famousand interesting people. We need tocapitalize on that. We need to workcooperatively with the MinnesotaOrchestra, for example, in special“Mozart, Beethoven and OzzyOsbourne: Sometimes ‘Crazy’ IsCool” nights. Or work with theGuthrie on special “Madness to OurMethod” theater nights with scenesfrom Shakespeare, O’Neill andTennessee Williams.

We need more mental health fairsand festivals for young people, morepeer-run programs like YellowRibbon, because kids listen best tokids.

We need to find ways to workcooperatively with other causes andorganizations, like Feline Rescue or

FEIGAL - Cont. from p. 4

the Humane Society, to saveanimals—and help therapists, resi-dences, and hospitals find therapydogs and cats, and focus on thehealing power of pets.

We need to change our image andshow that people with MI don’t justlook like homeless people. Some-times they look like MarilynMonroe, Audrey Hepburn and CaryGrant. And sometimes they lookjust like everybody else.

Brain disorders are real, horrific andsometimes fatal, and no one wants tobe disrespectful of the deep loss andpain many of us have felt.

But we also need to join together injoy to celebrate that sadness andpain is not all that we’ve been given.

We’ve been given creativity andcourage and insights into the humancondition that put us in the companyof Michelangelo, Charles Dickens,Abraham Lincoln, Vincent vanGogh, and, yes, even Ozzy Osbourne.

What’s going to make mentalillness/brain disorders “politicallycorrect,” what’s going to bringmillions to our banners, what’sgoing to finally break the 3,000-year-old stigma, isn’t going to be anannouncement from the SurgeonGeneral, or a press release fromGeorge W. It’s going to be “RootBeer Float Days For Mental Illness.”

It’s about time, and man, we’veearned it. ■

SSA Employment Initiativesing the United States ElectricWheelchair Hockey Associa-tion. Founded by Damon andtwo colleagues in 1996, theleague has grown to fiveteams and more than 50players. Damon was bornwith spinal muscular atrophy,and uses an electric wheel-chair.

Jeff Mickle,Plymouth

Software Engineer,EDS Corporation,

PLM Division

In 1997, Jeff graduated fromthe University of Minnesotawith a degree in mathematics.He is employed as a softwareengineer for EDS Corpora-tion, an international businesswhose PLM Solutions Divi-sion is based in St. Paul.Growing up in Grand Rapids,Minnesota, Jeff didn’t thinkmuch about wheelchairs andaccessibility. But a spinalcord injury prior to his highschool graduation changedthat forever. After a stay atthe Courage Residence, Jeffmoved into his own apartmentand enrolled at NorthHennepin Community Col-lege (before attending the

COURAGE GALA - Cont. from p. 1

University of Minnesota).

Mark Siegel,Minneapolis

Policy Specialist,Minnesota Dept.

of Human Services

Mark was born in Stuttgart,Germany, and raised in GreenBay, Wisconsin. His first jobwas teaching creative writingat a summer arts workshop forkids with disabilities. A loverof words and language (hisfavorite authors include T.S.Eliot and Raymond Chan-dler), it’s no surprise that hewas attracted to law. “Law-yers do lots of writing and lotsof talking and I like to doboth,” he says. Born withspinal muscular atrophy, Markwas exposed to little activismor disability culture until hisfirst year of law school at theUniversity of Minnesota.While working as a clerk atthe Disability Law Center hefound kindred spirits whochampioned the rights ofpeople with disabilities. Al-though many have referred toMark as “an inspiration,” hedisagrees. “I don’t see what Ido as extraordinary orunique… I’m doing what I

INJURY - Cont. from p. 3

For more information, contactShannon Robins at 612-378-2742, visit the association’swebsite at www.braininjurymn.org or send an e-mail [email protected]. ■

Pete Takash is the Public

need to do to pay the bills justlike everyone else.”

Jenny Peterson,Plymouth

Executive Director,Helping Paws

At age 17, Jenny was likemany high school seniors:active, busy and preparing forthe future. On a ski trip, on thelast run of the day, her ski tipcaught in the snow. Shelanded awkwardly and hard,sustaining a spinal cord in-jury. Lynne Rourke, atherapeutic recreation spe-cialist at Courage, introducedJenny to archery. Jenny thenwent on to become a world-class archer, participating atthe highest level of interna-tional competition. But it wasa dog that influenced hercareer path, leading Jenny toher current position as execu-tive director of Helping Paws,which trains and certifiesservice dogs to assist peoplewith disabilities. ■

Sue Warner is the Communi-cations Services Manager atCourage Center.firmly in their minds.”

Legislative Home Visits arescheduled throughout the statefrom now until the Legislatureconvenes on January 7, 2003.Watch your local newspaperfor the times and meetingplaces in your area.

Jo Anne Barnhart, Com-missioner of Social Secu-

rity, announced several newinitiatives to assist peoplewith disabilities who want togo to work. The initiatives,announced at the New Free-dom Initiative Celebration ofNational Disability Employ-ment Awareness Month, in-clude the Disability ProgramNavigator, a new positionformed jointly with the De-partment of Labor, and “Ticketto Hire,” a specialized referralnetwork linking employers tojob seekers with disabilities.Also announced at the cel-ebration was a new website(www.disabilityinfo.gov), anon-line resource for Ameri-cans with disabilities.

“Under President Bush’s NewFreedom Initiative, the SocialSecurity Administration isproviding greater opportuni-ties for people with disabili-ties to stay connected to theworkforce,” said Commis-sioner Barnhart. “SSA iscommitted to making positive

changes in the lives ofmillions of Americans.”

The Navigators will linkpeople with disabilities whovisit the Department ofLabor’s One-Stop Career Cen-ters with employers andbenefit planning assistanceand outreach organizations.The Navigators, who willwork in the One-Stops, willalso provide information onSocial Security’s work incen-tives, employment networksand the Ticket to Workprogram.

The Ticket to Work program,previously available in 13states, is now available in 20additional states. The Ticketprogram provides Social Se-curity and Supplemental Se-curity Income beneficiarieswith more choices and ex-panded opportunities to helpthem go to work. Uponreceiving a Ticket from So-cial Security, individuals maygive it to an employmentnetwork to obtain free voca-

tional rehabilitation, job train-ing, and other support ser-vices. The Ticket program,launched in February 2002,will be available nationwideby January of 2004.

As an offshoot of Ticket toWork, a new service has beendeveloped with the Depart-ment of Labor to help em-ployers locate and recruitskilled employment candi-dates with disabilities. Theservice, “Ticket to Hire,” is afree, national referral servicefor employers to recruit work-ers from the Ticket to Workprogram. “Ticket to Hire”specialists, available at 1-866-TTW-HIRE (1-866-889-4473), will answer questionsabout the Ticket to Workprogram.

Please visit www.ssa.gov formore information about So-cial Security’s new disabilityinitiatives, the Ticket to Workprogram and more. ■

Awareness Coordinator forthe Brain Injury Associationof Minnesota.

7November 10, 2002

What if you could coordinate all of your health care and support services with a single source? Now you can. UCare Complete isdesigned by and for people with disabilities. It connects you with health coordinators who can help you with dentist appointments,doctor visits, home-based services and more. You can take advantage of UCare Complete if: you're a person with a physical disability, areeligible for Medical Assistance with or without Medicare, live in Hennepin, Ramsey, Anoka or Dakota Counties and are between18 and 64. For a free information packet call 612-676-3500 or toll free 1-877-523-1518. Hearing Impaired 612-676-6810 or toll free1-800-688-2534. Or visit our web site at ucare.org.

Health care that starts with you.

In Memory Of Paul And Sheila WellstoneI have had

the honorof working forand with PaulWellstone. Irecently foundan old pictureof Paul at afund-raiser atmy house dur-ing his first campaign. It wasclassic Paul. Hand choppingthe air, eyes blazing, preach-ing to the crowd. It broughtback many fond memories.

As Director of ConstituentServices and later DeputyState Director, I saw firsthandhis passion, commitment anddedication to ensuring thecivil rights of and services topeople with disabilities. Un-like many senate offices, wehad staff in the state officewhose job it was to connectwith groups in certain issueareas. Paul wanted to makesure that he knew the thoughtsand concerns of Minnesotanswith disabilities and that heheard it from them. Paulcared about public policy andabout people. It wasn’tenough to work on ADA orIDEA, he wanted to makesure that his office could helpindividuals with their prob-lems with social security orveteran’s benefits. He per-

sonally calledpeople whowere facingchallenges intheir lives, per-haps an illnessor a death inthe family.And theseweren’t large

donors, these were everydaypeople.

He had a special connectionto young people. At schoolshe loved to talk to students,asking for their views on theworld. He always stopped totalk to children—at airports,along parade routes, in librar-ies. He was never too busy totalk to my daughters aboutschool and politics. He reallylistened to them and theyknew he adored them.

This last year while withNAMI, I was able to workwith him on mental healthparity. For NAMI, he was ourstrongest advocate in the U.S.Senate. His belief that wewould ultimately win, sparkedhope in so many people. Thedisability movement has lost agreat advocate. We will misshim, I will miss him.

Sue AbderholdenNAMI-MN

Paul Wellstone was awonderful champion of

civil rights. For him, thatalways included persons withdisabilities. He didn’t needany sensitivity training orreminders not to forget dis-ability issues. From begin-ning to end, Paul saw disabil-ity issues as civil rights issues.He demonstrated this com-mitment by capably and

Like many of us in his agerange, Paul Wellstone

grew up seeing Jews andpeople with disabilities gassedat Auschwitz simply for whothey were; blacks attacked bydogs in Alabama simply forwho they were; great Ameri-can leaders assassinated forbeing who they were; threeyoung men (two of whomwent to school with me atQueens College in New York)murdered in Mississippi sim-ply for being civil rightsworkers; and 50,000 Ameri-can lives lost in Vietnam.

Yet through all of thistragedy, Dr. Martin LutherKing taught us that if wepersevere against injustice“we shall overcome.”

Paul kept up this fight forjustice. He became a voicefor many Americans and wascalled the “conscience of the

U.S. Senate.” Democrats andRepublicans alike respectedPaul’s integrity, passion andcaring.

Paul wanted no one to be leftout. His philosophy ofinclusion reminds me ofCourage Center’s slogan:“Where abilities and disabili-ties become possibilities.”People in the disability com-munity felt they could trustPaul when there was an issuethat needed his support.

I respected and was inspiredby Paul because he showed usthe power of believing inpeople and always fightingfor one’s convictions. Even ifyou didn’t always agree withhis political views, he was arare leader and a genuine,remarkable human being.

Eric StevensCourage Center CEO

passionately taking on mat-ters of great significance inthe daily lives of people withdisabilities and their families.Paul Wellstone’s commit-ment and contribution tobettering the lives of personswith disabilities is truly re-markable.

Anne Henry,Disability Law Center

I was walking up to thepavilion at Lake Phalen for

Charlie Smith’s memorial andnoticed a couple walkingtoward me, one with a limp.As they got closer to me, Irealized it was Paul and SheilaWellstone. A panic cameover me while I wonderedhow I would introduce myselfor if I should introducemyself. Before I got closeenough to say anything, trueto the Wellstone style, hewaved his hand and yelled,“Hi Tim—good luck!” Andthey were gone.

I was looking forward toseeing Senator Wellstone andSheila at their victory party.And to be involved in the nextsix years of peace rallies,community attendant legisla-tion, universal health care,domestic abuse legislation,and all the social justice issuesthat will be coming upon us.

And they are gone.

God bless them and theirsurvivors!

Tim Benjamin, Access Press

I first met Paul at the 1984state DFL convention. Since

then our paths have crossedmany times. There were twovery intense times. The firstwas around the Jesse Jacksoncampaign in 1988—with Paulserving as chairperson for thecampaign, he was all over theplace exciting people with histypical speech method. Heand Jesse Jackson can fire upthe crowd. Amazing! Thesecond was with the 1990Senate campaign—going tomeetings at the campaignoffice on University andRaymond, putting on fund-

raisers all over St. Paul,watching people trying tofigure out what this guy wasabout.Well, we found outwhat this guy was about andwe miss him ‘cause now weknow more—every personPaul met will have a storyabout what their impressionwas of him and will pass it on.I will never forget my firstmeeting, or the last—he wasyelling at me from adistance: “Rick—Rick! RickCardenas!”

Rick Cardenas, ACT

November 10, 2002 8

If you have questions call Medica’s Center for Healthy Aging Monday–Thursday 8 a.m.– 5 p.m. and Friday 9 a.m.– 5 p.m. at 952-992-2345or 1-800-906-5432. TTY members may call 952-992-3650 or 1-800-234-8819.

Medica Prime Solution™ is a Medicare cost product offered by Medica Health Plans, an HMO with a Medicare cost contract. Medicare-eligible beneficiaries must be entitledto Part A and enrolled in Part B or Part B only to apply. Beneficiaries must use Medica network providers to receive their highest level of benefits. CMS #462

It’s personal.

It’s flexible.

It’s portable.

It’s clear.

It’s easy.

It’s mine.

It’s Medica.

Solutions as individual as you are.

MY MEDICARE PLAN

At Medica you’ll find Medicare coverage that fits your needs and your lifestyle. We’re dedicated to providing you with flexi-

bility, open access, large provider network and the virtually hassle-free experience you deserve. Our Medica Prime Solution™

product gives you choice so you can tailor your coverage while staying in control of your health care. After all, it’s your Medicare.

Arc Northland: Responding To Needs In NE Minnesotaby Jenny Kempfert

A rc Northland is a non-profit organization

whose mission is to createequal opportunity for qualityliving, and enhance dignityand respect for people withdisabilities and their families.Located in Duluth, ArcNorthland is one of twochapters of Arc Minnesota(along with Arc Range) serv-ing northeastern Minnesota.In 2001, we celebrated 50years of supporting peoplewith disabilities and theirfamilies.

While most Arc chaptersfocus on developmental dis-abilities, we have had tobroaden our services based onthe needs of our area. Inrecent years, several otherlocal agencies serving dis-ability-specific populationshave closed their doors due tofunding difficulties, and wehave needed to fill some of thegaps, including taking over anexisting respite care program.Our interest in fetal alcoholsyndrome/effect (FAS/E)—based partly on the fact thatthe Arrowhead region has thehighest alcohol use rate bywomen of childbearing age in

Minnesota—has also led us toinnovative programming inthat area. In addition, anunmet need we saw in the areaof children’s mental healthhas opened up another doorfor Arc programming. Over-all, we divide our servicesinto the following three pro-gram areas.

Self-AdvocacyThe self-advocacy programsupports adults with develop-mental disabilities by offeringadvocacy for individuals andgroups, yet focusing more onpromoting and teaching self-advocacy. We offer advocacyand one-to-one support, in-formation and referral, andseveral self-advocacy groups,including a recreation club foryoung adults, a youngwomen’s group, a couples’club, and two People Firstgroups. People First Duluth ispart of an international self-advocacy organization forpeople with disabilities, andArc Northland provides anadvisor for the group andfunding for the program. In2000, working together withPeople First of Minnesota,People First Duluth hosted a

statewide self-advocacy con-ference, giving our groupmembers a number of greatopportunities involved withworking on that event, includ-ing fund-raising, presenting atworkshops, and working onall the minute details ofputting together a conference.

FamilyThe family program servesfamilies who have a child withany type of disability. Weprovide one-to-one supportand counseling, advocacywithin the schools or socialservices, information and re-ferral, and training and educa-tion. Workshops on topicslike guardianship, conserva-torship and special needstrusts are offered from time totime. Support and educationgroups are offered for parentsof young children with dis-abilities, for family membersof young people making thetransition to adulthood, andfor families of children withfetal alcohol disabilities.

In late 1999, Arc Northlandstarted a project to serve theneeds of families who have achild with a mental health

diagnosis. The project hasgrown over the past few yearsand today we offer both aparent liaison and a supportgroup component. The parentliaison mentors and empow-ers other parents regardingaccessing services, and givessupport and information re-garding legal issues, schoolinterventions, medications,placement decisions, insur-ance issues and creating thechild’s treatment record. Theparent liaison also coordi-nates the Extreme Parentingeducation and support groups.These are family-friendly fo-rums where parents are thefoundation and can gather forsupport and information. Thesubjects covered are chosenfrom suggestions gatheredfrom participants. Profes-sionals in the mental healthfield meet with the parents’group on a volunteer basis forfrank dialogue. These “pro-fessional volunteers” (whoare also parents of a child witha mental health diagnosis)share information and theirexperiences with the others.Trained recreational special-ists with experience in thearea of children’s mental

illness supervise the childrenand provide activities. Hav-ing a specialized group forsiblings allows them thechance to discuss and dealwith experiences and feelingsrelated to living with mentalillness. Full family involve-ment has been essential toreducing barriers for partici-pation.

One other component of thefamily services is the respitecare program. Arc Northlandtrains respite care providersand matches them with fami-lies who are looking foroccasional or regularly sched-uled breaks in caregiving fortheir children with disabili-ties. Respite providers can gointo the family home or bringthe child or young adult intothe community for recreation.

Fetal AlcoholThe fetal alcohol programalso takes on several differentcomponents. In order toprevent future disabilities,Arc trainers speak to middleschool, high school and col-lege students around the stateabout FAS/E and the dangersof drinking during pregnancy.

The trainers also travelthroughout Minnesota pre-senting to caregivers andprofessionals to build betterunderstanding of this uniquedisability and how to bestsupport someone who has it.The FAS/E training team hasgained a state and nationalreputation for excellence.Since 1999, Arc has alsocoordinated a fetal alcoholdiagnostic clinic to servefamilies in Northeastern Min-nesota and provides follow-up advocacy to families afterdiagnosis.

We work hard to make sureour services are family-friendly and promote self-advocacy and full communityinclusion for people withdisabilities. To this end, staffmembers also serve on anumber of interagency com-mittees and task forces.

For more information on ourorganization, please contactArc Northland at (218) 726-4725 or (800) 317-6475. ■

Jenny Kempfert is the Associ-ate Administrator with ArcNorthland.

9November 10, 2002

We’re ready. Are you?

Join us to celebrate the grand opening of our

newly renovated Courage Residence

Friday, November 22, 2002

Courage Center

2:00 p.m. Program and Ribbon CuttingSpeakers:

Sharon Sayles BeltonDr. Peter VaillDave PhillipsVirgina Schoenbohm Clymer

Reception and Tours following

3:30-4:30 p.m. MN Sinfonia Concert

RSVP to Mary- Call 763-520-0305 or

e-mail [email protected]

Limited Seating

T M

WHERE ABILITIES AND DISABILITIES BECOME POSSIBIL ITIES

TTTTThahahahahank nk nk nk nk YYYYYouououououMarthaMarthaMarthaMarthaMartha

For nine years of insights into,ideas about, and discussions of

disability culture!

Access PressAdvocating Change Together, Inc.

Arc MinnesotaThe Disability Institute

Metropolitan Center for Independent LivingMN State Council on Disability

People First MinnesotaRemembering With Dignity

HEALTH CARE - Cont. from p. 2

household chores andmaintaining personalhygiene.

•Economic consequences—including financial strainand additional health serviceexpenditures. Deterioratinghealth and the developmentof secondary conditionssometimes necessitatedadditional and morecomprehensive services,adding to expenses andstraining economicresources. This issue isexacerbated for those onlimited incomes.

•A loss of independence—due to challenges totraditional roles, and due to aneed to rely more on spouses,children, colleagues andfriends for assistance inperforming activities of dailyliving.

One Example From theResearch

The research showed thatthese consequences are oftencomplex and interwoven.Most of those interviewed forthe study indicated thatconsequences were not limitedto just one area; frequently,one triggered others.

Sometimes several simulta-neous consequences resultedfrom one distinct barrier tocare, while in other cases oneconsequence led to another(and beyond).

Consider the case of “Ed,” a52-year-old man with a spinalcord injury who was publiclyinsured. As Medicare wouldnot cover the costs of a newpower wheelchair, Ed wasforced to continue to use hismanual chair, causing damageto his already arthriticshoulders. As a result ofincreased shoulder damage,he was then unable to care forhis legs, saying, “I can’tstraighten them out anymoreall the way… I couldn’t workmy legs because it hurt [myshoulders] so bad to reachdown and pull them up, tobend them…that all goes backto the wheelchair problem.”

Ed’s shoulder deteriorationalso led to increased serviceu t i l i z a t i o n — p h y s i c a ltherapy—so that he couldcontinue to use his existingchair. However, it turned outthat it was too late for therapyto remedy his shoulderdeterioration. This hadconsequences for hisindependence. All of this

caused great concern for Edabout his future and his abilityto live alone. “What’s goingto happen now is it’s justshortening the time I’m goingto be able to live by myself.I’m going to have to go into anursing home eventually, buta lot quicker. It has probablycut three to five years off of it.I’ll be lucky if I can stay bymyself, say, another three,four years.”

Thus, a single barrier (denialof a power chair) led tophysical deterioration,increased need for therapy,decreased independence, andincreased stress about hisfuture.

Costs and Solutions

Beatty and Kroll stressed that“barriers [to care] are bothinternal and external,” notingthat the “frustration, anger,and depression” caused by alack of access to appropriatecare “may weaken theindividual’s motivation toseek care, to adhere totreatment regimens, and toinitiate necessary preventivestrategies.”

Beatty and Kroll pointed outthat, in the U.S., most cost-

saving efforts focus on theacute needs of the averagehealth care consumer.Coverage for services istypically limited to those thatrestore or improve function.However, people withdisabilities need services thathelp them to maintain functionand to prevent complications,functional decline andsecondary conditions. Theypointed out that these ‘cost-saving models’ of health caredelivery can “backfire,”increasing the need for evenmore costly services in thelong-term.

For consumers withdisabilities, Beatty and Krollstressed the need for increasedparticipation in decision-making processes related tohealth care access anddelivery. For care providers,they pointed out the need for“disability literacy” in theform of improved knowledgeabout, and skills for dealingwith, the special needs ofpeople with disabilities.Health plans and institutionsneed to provide better accessto, and timely delivery of,preventive services, main-tenance therapies and durablemedical equipment. From thecommunity as a whole, they

emphasized the need to reducebarriers outside of the healthcare delivery system (e.g.transportation) that negativelyimpact health care access.

Judging by several commentsfrom the audience, there is ageneral awareness that manyof the recommendations in theNRH study will be difficult toimplement in the currenteconomic climate. To some,this only underlines theimportance of the work doneby organizations such as theCenter for Health andDisability Research. As John

Tschida, director of publicaffairs and research atCourage Center, said afterthe presentation, “For policy-makers and people who makedecisions about funding healthcare, this kind of quantitativeresearch is essential.” ■

Check us out ataccesspress.org

❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖Please patronize your

Access PressAdvertisers.

countless times since then, itdoesn’t adequately reflect thebarriers that exist—both eco-nomic and physical—that pre-vent this population fromvoting.

Any lawyer will tell you thatno law is black and white, thatmuddled laws are passed allthe time and their interpreta-tion can, as President BillClinton once remarked, hingeon what the definition of “is”really is. Where clarity doesnot exist, our communityneeds to help fix it.

Simply put, “Every registered

voter deserves to have confi-dence that the system is fairand elections are honest, thatevery vote is recorded, andthat the rules are consistentlyapplied.”

This comes from currentPresident George W. Bush,who on October 29 signed theHelp America Vote Act of2002. In part, the law isdesigned to increase access tovoters with disabilities. Weall need to work harder tomake sure every vote counts—especially the votes of thosewho need absentee ballots tobe heard. ■

TSCHIDA - Cont. from p. 5

November 10, 2002 10

Guzmán & Associates, P.L.L.C.Guzmán & Associates, P.L.L.C.Guzmán & Associates, P.L.L.C.Guzmán & Associates, P.L.L.C.Guzmán & Associates, P.L.L.C.Attorneys and Counselors at Law

Disability LawConservatorships

GuardianshipsSpecial Needs Trusts

14800 Galaxie Avenue, Suite 103 Tel: 952-432-0648Apple Valley, Minnesota 55124 Fax: 952-431-2491

A GREAA GREAA GREAA GREAA GREAT RESOURCE!T RESOURCE!T RESOURCE!T RESOURCE!T RESOURCE!

DirectAbility.comDirectAbility is a comprehensive,

ever-expanding, award-winning, Internet direc-tory devoted to disability-related products,

services, resources and information throughoutthe state. Online at www.directability.com.

Access for All

The Minnesota Travel Guidefor Persons with Disabilities

www.accessminnesota.org

3680 Victoria St. N. • Shoreview, MN 55126

Office: (651) 481-4062 • Fax: (651) [email protected]

ProfessionalDirectory

R.C. SALES AND MFG., INC.14726 Wake Street NE · Ham Lake, MN 55304 · (763) 786-6504

www.rcsalesmfg.comEllen Houghton • [email protected]

Computerized Desktop publishing:Brochures

CatalogsDirect Mailings

FlyersNewsletters

NewspapersResumes

and more!

Check us out ataccesspress.org

❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖Please patronize your

Access Press Advertisers— and tell them whereyou heard about them.

They bring you your paper.

The following performances will be Audio Described (AD) for people who are blind or have lowvision, or interpreted in American Sign Language (ASL) for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

Accessible Performances

Forever Plaid presents PlaidTidings; runs 11/5-12/29;ASL/AD Sat., 11/23, 2:00;Ordway ; St. Paul; 651-224-4222, TTY 651-282-3100;www.ordway.org.

YES; ASL Sat., 11/23, 8:00;State Theatre; Mpls.; 612-373-5650 or 612-989-5151;www.state-orpheum.com.

The Glass Menagerie; ASL/AD Thurs., 12/5, 8:00; ParkSquare Theatre; St. Paul; 651-291-7005; www.parksquaretheatre.org; half-price tick-ets to ASL/AD patrons.

A Christmas Carol; AD/ASL Sat., 12/7, 1:00 (tactiletour 11:00) & Tues., 12/10,7:30; Guthrie Theater: Mpls.;612-377-2224, TTY 612-377-6626; www.guthrietheater.org.

Nuncrackers; runs 11/30-12/15; ASL Sat., 12/7, 7:00;Rochester Civic Theatre; 507-282-8481; www.rochcivictheatre.org.

The Christmas Schooner;AD Sat., 12/7, 8:00; ASLThurs., 12/12, 10:30 a.m. &Sat., 12/14, 8:00; Great Ameri-can History Theatre; St. Paul;651-292-4320; www.historytheatre.com. A crew bravesthe icy waters of LakeMichigan in a wooden schoo-ner to bring Christmas trees tothe immigrant families ofChicago in 1887.

Miss Richfield: Fall Downon Your Knees: Down onAll Fours! 11/29-12/9; AD/ASL Sun., 12/8, 7:30; IllusionTheater; Mpls.; 612-339-4944; www.illusiontheater.org. With a special tributefrom Miss Richfield’s AnitaBryant Christmas Album.

Lorie Line; AD Mon., 12/9,7:30; State Theatre; Mpls.;612-373-5650 or 612-989-5151;www.state-orpheum.com.

A Christmas Carole Peter-sen; runs 12/7-12/29; ASL/AD Thurs., 12/12, 8:00;Theater Latté Da; Mpls.;612-343-3390; www.ticketworks.com.

Miracle on 34th Street; runs12/6-12/21; ASL Fri., 12/13,7:00; Bloomington Art Cen-ter Gallery Players; 952-563-4777; www.bloomingtonartcenter.com.

The Boys Next Door; runs12/4–12/29; AD Fri., 12/13,8:00; ASL Fri., 12/27, 8:00;Mixed Blood Theatre; Mpls.;612-338-6131; www.mixedblood.com. Tracks the livesof four adult residents of agroup home for people withdevelopmental disabilities.Performed for the first time byactors with disabilities.

The Littlest Angel; runs12/6-12/22; AD/ASL Sat.,12/14, 1:00; Howard ConnFine Arts Center; Mpls.; 612-623-9080; www.youthperformanceco.com.

Arturo Brachetti; runs 12/10-12/15; AD Sat., 12/14, 2:00;Ordway; St. Paul; 651-224-4222, TTY 651-282-3100;www.ordway.org. Brachettitransforms into 100 charac-ters in 100 minutes.

The Flying Foot Forum’sHoliday Cabaret; runs 12/12-12/15; ASL Sat., 12/14, 8:00;Southern Theater; Mpls.; 612-340-1725, www.southerntheater.org. A variety showof holiday vignettes.

The Best Christmas Pag-eant Ever; runs 12/6-12/22;ASL Sun., 12/15, 2:00; ADTues., 12/17, 11:00 a.m.;Landmark Center; St. Paul;651-225-9265; www.steppingstonetheatre.org.

A Pueblo Christmas; runs12/13-12/22; ASL Sat., 12/21,8:00; Teatro del Pueblo atConcordia College; St. Paul.This story of how a Mexicancouple deals with their diffi-cult economic situation. (En-glish with Spanish intermin-gling).

Loyce Houlton’s NutcrackerFantasy; runs 12/18-12/23;AD Sun., 12/22, 7:00 & Mon.,12/23, 2:00; Historic StateTheatre; Mpls.; 612-373-5650or 612-989-5151; www.state-orpheum.com.

The Holiday Pageant; AD/ASL Sat., 12/28, 2:00; South-ern Theater; Mpls.; 612-340-1725; www.southerntheater.org.

IN BRIEF . . . . Applications Closing For Section 8

NAMI Speakers Series

Assistance Network

Effective Nov. 21, 2002—and until further notice—thePublic Housing Agency of St.Paul will no longer beaccepting applications for the

Section 8 Rent AssistanceHousing Choice Voucher Pro-gram.

The last opportunity to apply

for assistance will be on Nov.20. An application can bereceived by calling 651-298-5108 only on that day.

The National Alliance for theMentally Ill in MN continuesits Speakers Series on Nov.18, 2002 with “Where Do IStart?” Experienced familymembers and professionals

will answer commonly askedquestions about finding ser-vices and supports for relativewith a mental illness.

This free event will be held at

Bethlehem Lutheran Church(4100 Lyndale Ave. S. inMpls.) from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.For more info, call 651-645-2948.

Free Delivery Of Library Materials

Adaptive Ski Lessons At Mt. Kato

The MN Dept. of HumanServices has awarded a grantfor coordination of a state-wide network for people of allages with a disability or long-term illness.

The network will be linked to2-1-1, a comprehensive health

If you can’t get to the librarydue to illness or disability, theFriends of the Mpls. PublicLibrary can help. Volunteers

S.M.I.L.E.S. Center for Inde-pendent Living in Mankatoand District #77 CommunityServices A.C.C.E.S.S. Pro-

and human services telephoneinformation and referral net-work, and Senior LinkAgeLine®, a free telephone infor-mation and assistance servicefor seniors and their families.Both are to be fully imple-mented in MN in early 2003.

For more info, contact JeanMartin, MN DHS, Commu-nity Quality Initiatives, 444Lafayette Rd., St. Paul, MN55155-3872 or 651-582-1147(phone), 651-582-1808 (fax),711 (MN Relay Service, TTYand speech to speech) [email protected].

will deliver books, tapes andother library materials to yourdoor. For more info about thisfree service to Mpls. residents

with limited mobility, call612-630-6173.

gram are offering a Sit-Skiprogram this winter. If youhave a physical disability andwould like to try skiing or

improve your current skills,contact Dalaine Remes orMary Ellen Johnson at 507-345-5222.

A Christmas Carol; runs 11/22-12/29; ASL/AD Sun., 12/29,2:00 (ASL also Thurs., 12/19,12:30); Stages Theatre Co.;Hopkins; 952-979-1111;www.stagestheatre.org. ■

For updates by phone, callVSA arts of Minnesota at 612-332-3888 or statewide 800-801-3883 (voice/TTY).

11November 10, 2002

Check Access Press outat accesspress.org

❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖❖ ❖ ❖ ❖

Please patronize yourAccess Press Advertisers —

and tell them where youheard about them. Theybring you your paper.

Access To EmploymentEmployment ads are $14 per col. inch; Nov 29 is the deadline for the Dec 10 issue.

Mail to: ACCESS PRESS • 1821 University Ave. • #104S • St. Paul, MN 55104FAX 651-644-2136 • E-mail: [email protected]

ADMINISTRATIVEASSISTANT

A key position with theprofessional staff of the OttoBremer Foundation. Excel-lent administrative and com-munication skills, resource-fulness, attention to detail,and experience with non-profit organizations. Senda resume to: Kari Suzuki,Otto Bremer Foundation,445 Minnesota St., Suite2000, St. Paul, MN 55101.

LIGHT DUTY TRUCKTECHNICIANS

Immediate full-time openingsavailable. Ford Certificationpreferable. Best pay plan inTwin Cities area—Check itout! Top $ for experiencedtechs! Contact Glenn, 651-450-1502.

BILINGUAL CLIENTSERVICES ADVOCATE

Client services advocate tointerview clients & translate.Spanish fluency req. Goodcomm skills. Diverse exper +.Sal. 22,800-30,667 DOE.Fully pd family hlth, generousvacation, casual work environ.Resume, refs & cover letter:Chris Lord, Legal AidSociety of Minneapolis, 29294th Ave S, Mpls, MN 55408.

EOE

FIELD ENGINEER

PCL Construction Services,Inc., is a large dynamicgeneral contractor with exten-sive operations throughoutNorth America and annualvolumes in excess of $2.7billion. As a result ofsignificant new work, we havean opportunity available inour Minneapolis District. Weare looking for a candidatewith 2 or more years ofcommercial construction ex-perience. Computer compe-tency and an engineeringdegree are an asset. Respon-sibilities will include survey,layout, field coordination anddocument review. We offercompetitive salaries, excep-tional benefits, including stockpurchase, bonus, 401(k) andmore! Join an energetic teamwith a 93-year history ofprofit, growth and stability!Send resume and salary re-quirements in complete confi-dence to:

PCL ConstructionServices, Inc.

Attn: Personnel Manager12200 Nicollet Avenue South

Burnsville, MN 55337(No phone calls or walk-ins

please)

An Equal OpportunityEmployer M/F/V/H

SRF Consulting Group, Inc.,a locally owned and well-established transportationplanning and design firm, hasthe following opportunities inits environmental planninggroup.

ENVIRONMENTALPLANNER

Planner wanted to assist in awide range of environmentaldocumentation and planningprojects. Requirements in-clude graduate degree, orbachelor’s degree and twoyears experience in environ-mental, transportation, or ur-ban planning. Must haveexcellent writing and problem-solving skills. Public presen-tation experience a plus.

ENVIRONMENTALPLANNING INTERN

Intern wanted to work on avariety of environmental docu-mentation and planningprojects. The ideal candidatewill have good technical,analytical and writing skills.The internship will consist ofapproximately 10-15 hoursper week. Undergraduatestudent acceptable, graduatestudent preferred.

For consideration, send re-sumes to SRF ConsultingGroup, Inc., One CarlsonPkwy. N., #150, Plymouth,MN 55447; fax to 763-475-2429, or e-mail to [email protected]; EOE.

Intrepid USA offerscomprehensive, quality Home

Health Care services. We havethe national resources and the

local knowledge to providespecific solutions to your

needs. Our quality of care isunparalleled, with a

commitment to recruitingthe best talent in today'scompetitive market. Our

Home Health Careservices encourage clients

to live to the maximumlevel of their abilities.

We have 13 locations inMN, ND, and IA.

Austin507-433-4700Golden Valley763-544-0315Forest Lake

651-982-9052Burnsville

952-894-2663Edina

952-920-6060Fairmont

507-238-4300

Rochester507-281-3029

St Cloud320-255-1882

Fargo, ND701-271-0669

Grand Forks, ND701-746-5822

Des Moines, IA515-278-9920

Ames, IA515-233-9730

Mankato 507-625-1553

hotel front desk—and it’ssomething that carries over tohis current position. Inrestaurant employment, Sochaappreciated that he couldalways keep busy—this abil-ity to thrive in a busyenvironment is another skillthat he transfers to his jobtoday. Socha sees links in hisjob history and realizes thateverything you do adds some-thing to your skill set thatmight come in handy in futurepositions.

Socha also realizes that noteverybody is an extrovertedrisk-taker like he is. Headmits that it can be tough fora person with a disability toenter the workplace, but he orshe should not give up. Hewas glad to be a mentor so hecould show a student thatthere is hope for getting agood education and gainfulemployment. Specifically,Socha was glad to be able to

MENTORING - Cont. from p. 3

encourage Meyer in his goalof attending St. Paul Tech, asSocha is currently takinghuman resource courses therehimself. He praises theschool for being accessibleand very accommodating.

Socha would like to seeNDMD occur multiple timesper year. Beyond that, hisadvice for mentees is to lookfor opportunities, and don’tgive up because there arecompanies who want to hirepersons with disabilities. Formentors, he encourages themto keep pushing their menteesto get an education and to beindependent.

The next National DisabilityMentoring Day will be Octo-ber 15, 2003. For moreinformation, contact JulieDavis, National Center onSecondary Education andTransition, at 612-625-5037or [email protected]. ■

MISCELLANEOUS“Words of Love” is a CD bySnoopi Botten, a musicianwith cerebral palsy whowrites and performs inspira-tional songs using a syntheticspeech system. To order, call(612) 872-7233 or visitSnoopi’s website at http://hometown.aol.com/dectalk/myhomepage/index.html.

FOR SALEMultiple items: 1) Jazzy1103 mini power chair (usedonly 4 months) and powerchair lift (swing-away op-tion). $5,000 or best offer. 2)Raised, padded toilet seatwith arms. Like new, $30. 3)BI-PAP machine, $75. 4)Nebulizer, $30. 952-997-3029.

Electric wheelchair:Invacare Storm Series model2 GSTXR-TS. Roho seat &back. Cost $10,557. 3 yearsold. $1,500. Also Quickiemanual wheelchair. Takeapart to put in trunk. $150.Both perfect condition. 763-537-0154.

Multiple items: Electrichospital bed, excellent mat-tress; hydraulic Hoyer lift;electric wheelchair (with headcontrols); two manual wheel-chairs. Call 651-429-6535for details.

1994 Dodge Grand Cara-van. 35, 000 miles. Oneowner. KneelKar conversiondropped floor. Remote con-trol rear entry ramp. PS/PB/AC/Cruise. Call Curt West.Cellular: 612-859-1000.

Barrier Free Home! Newerrambler style home with over1800 sq. ft. of space on mainfloor. Owner’s suite with roll-in shower, whirlpool styletub, walk-in closet. GreatRoom with fireplace, formaldining area, and eat-in kitchen.Den, 2 additional bedroomson main floor, with full bath.Lower level has 3/4 bath, recroom, and bedroom. Fencedrear yard and 3-car garage.Call for showings or moreinformation. Bob Reuter:651-552-3647 or 651-455-1256.

FOR RENTLewis Park Apartments:Barrier free housing withwheelchair user in mind.Section 8 subsidized. One-and two- bedroom units. Formore information on avail-ability call (651) 488-9923.St. Paul, MN. Equal Opportu-nity Housing.

Holmes-Greenway Housing:One and two bedroom apart-ments designed for physicallyhandicapped persons. Conve-nient SE Minneapolis loca-tion. Call (612) 378-0331 foravailability information.Equal Opportunity Housing.

Seward Square Apartments:We are currently acceptingapplications for our waitinglist at Seward Square Apart-ments in Minneapolis. SewardSquare is barrier-free housingand is federally subsidized.For an application, please call(612) 338-2680. Equal Op-portunity Housing.

SENIOR FIELDTECHNICIAN

Construction Inspector wantedfor construction observation.The ideal candidate will have3-10 years experience inobservation and documenta-tion of roadway & utilityconstruction, have excellentcommunication and recordkeeping skills. Mn/DOTCertification a plus.

SRF Consulting Group, Inc. isa locally owned and well-established civil engineering,transportation and planningfirm. In addition to varied andexciting work in a positiveatmosphere, we offer com-petitive salary and benefits,401(k) & profit sharing. Sendyour resume to SRF Consult-ing Group, Inc., One CarlsonPkwy. N., #150, Plymouth,MN 55447; fax to 763-475-2429, or e-mail to [email protected]; EOE.

SRF Consulting Group, Inc.,a fast growing, locally owned,and well-established trans-portation engineering, plan-ning and design firm, has thefollowing openings in itstraffic and transportationgroups.

TRAFFIC ENGINEER

Traffic Engineer wanted toperform traffic engineeringfunctions including opera-tional analysis, traffic simula-tion, signal timing and intelli-gent transportation systemresearch and design func-tions. Requirements include aB.S. in Civil Engineering, 0-3years traffic engineering ex-perience and strong written/verbal communication skills.Familiarity with operationalanalysis and traffic simulationsoftware preferred.

SENIOR TRAFFICENGINEER

Seeking senior traffic engi-neer to perform and manageoperational analysis and traf-fic study projects. Must be alicensed civil engineer with atleast five years experience intraffic engineering includingproficiency in Synchro/Sim-Traffic, Corsim and otheroperational analysis and traf-fic simulation software. Re-quires excellent written andverbal communication skills.

TRANSPORTATIONPLANNER/ENGINEER

Transportation Planner and/or Engineer wanted to assistin preparing area transporta-tion plans, corridor studiesand traffic studies. Qualifica-tions include a four-yeardegree in transportation plan-ning and/or transportation/civil engineering, 0-3 yearsexperience in traffic andtransportation work includingaccident analysis, growth pro-jections, travel-time data col-lection and systems planning.Familiarity with geography,land use and transportationissues. Must have stronganalytical and communica-tion skills and proficiency in anumber of computer applica-tions including word process-ing, spreadsheets and data-base software.

In addition to varied andexciting work in a positiveatmosphere, we offer com-petitive salary and benefits,401(k) & profit sharing. Ifyou want a career with stronggrowth potential in one ofENR’s Top 500 design firms,send your resume to SRFConsulting Group, Inc., OneCarlson Pkwy. N., #150,Plymouth, MN 55447; fax to763-475-2429, or e-mail [email protected]; EOE.

ClassifiedsReach 11,000 Active, Interested Readers with

ACCESS PRESS Classifieds. $8 up to 20 words, 35¢/word thereafter. Must be

prepaid. Mail with check to: ACCESS PRESS, 1821University Ave W, #104S, St. Paul, MN 55104

(651) 644-2133

November 10, 2002 12

------------------------------------- BASIC SPONSOR -------------------------------------Margaret Beier LeAnne Dahl Jesse EllingworthMary Frank-Wawokiyawin Patricia Guerrero John HartsonDavid Hopkins Dale Janiszeski Beth JensenDebra Johnson Luci Kennedy Rosanne KramniczSteven McKeever Kathleen M. Miller Cindy MooreJane & Albert Olson Carla Reichenberg Gary & Leann TaylorPaul W. Taylor Kelli N-E Wysocki

----------------------------------- FRIEND SPONSOR ($25 and above) -----------------------------------Lynda Adams Mary Andresen Steven AndersonRick Benjamin Marisa Bennett Patrick BilbreyMike & Karen Bjorgan Susan Blaylock Maynard BostromBob Brick Carlyn Bryngelson Deah CainCarol Jo Cochran Cheryl & Thomas Corcoran Marty CushingJustin & Yoshiko Dart Jolene Davis LeRoy deBoomBarbara Droher Neil Doughty Craig Dunn & Candy HartMel & Georgia Duncan Will & Mary Englund Peg & Joe FigliuzziCandace & David Gislason Tom Gode Rep. Kevin GoodnoJohn Hoffman Bradley J. Holmes Judy HuntCindy & Greg Johnson Deb Johnson Ericka JohnsonThe Joyce Family Linnea Johnson Hoff Roger A. HoffmanBarb Kane Mary Kay Kennedy Diah KinionBeth Knutson-Kolodzne Eugene Kook Gari KrogsengSherry Lampman Sue Lasoff Bruce LarsonLinda Larson Steven Laux John MartyDorothy McCoy Kelly Matter Desiree MenueyRobert & Ardis Meyer Sara & Gary Meyer Kathy MoranDavid & Judona Musselman Jim & Cindy Musselman Joe & Maureen MusselmanBill & Joan Overby Mary & Henry Pattridge Richard PetersonMargery Pilhofer Robert J. Geldert & Roberta Pinkosh Barbara ProehlVirginia Puzak Julee Quarve-Peterson Kelly RathckeKim Rezek Brian Rogers Ann RoscoeStuart Rosen James Ross Scott RostronGinger Rudberg Patricia Rydeen Arthur SauterElizabeth Smith Adele Spavin Diane SpragueGerry & Barb Tollakson Candace Warne Teri WelcherCurt Wiehle Joani Werner David WoodAccommodating Care, Inc. Accord Health Care Services All Temporaries, IncAlliance for the Mentally Ill of MN Arc of Anoka/Ramsey Cty Arc SuburbanArc Minnesota Assistive Speech Technology Research Labs Axis HealthcareBest Care Blue Sky Designs, Inc. Brain Injury Assn. of MNConsumer Council of The Alliance for the Mentally Ill Disabled DealerEast Suburban Resources Franciscan Sisters of St. Paul Forensic Alliance of Mentally IllFraser Community Services Home Health Care JQ-P, Inc.Kaposia MBW Company Metro Mobility Service Center StaffMN Bio Brain Assoc. NAMI Northeast Contemporary ServicesResource S.M.I.L.E.S. United Cerebral Palsy of MN

THE FRIENDS OF ACCESS PRESS

Your help is crucial if Access Press is to continue being the voice for people with disabilities. Your tax deductible gift entitles you to a one yearcomplimentary subscription. Please mail your donation to Access Press, 1821 University Avenue West, Suite 104S, St. Paul, MN 55104. Thank you.

Thanks to the following sponsors for supporting Access Press this year.---------------------------------- BRONZE SPONSOR ($75 and above) ----------------------------------

Sue Abderholden Steve Alarik AnonymousSusan Asplund David Baldwin Kathleen BallJill Bedow Janet Berndt Michael BjerkesettSandi Lane & Monte Blair Bill Blom Tom BrickWendy Brower Deb Bryan Susan BulgerRick Cardenas Mike & Jan Chevrette Margot Imdieke CrossStephanie Cunningham Robert Gregory Diane GreigLuther Granquist Martha Hage Ellen & Skip HoughtonDianna Krogstad Carol & David Larson Linda LattinLoRene Leikind Lolly Lijewski Joel McGuigganChristopher Meyer Cliff Miller Jim MorsePaul Mueller William O’Dowd & George Zilligen Ann & Manley OlsonLouise Pattridge Catherine Reid & Liddy Rich Patricia L. RogersRick & Debbie Ryan Patricia Siebert Barb SmithJohn Smith Peter & Pamela Stanfiel Mary Jane SteinhagenErica Stern Eric & Caroline Stevens J. Quinn TierneyHelen Thompson Jerry Wood Joe & JoAnn Zwack

The College of St. CatherineDept. of Occupat’l Therapy-U of M Div.MN Rehab. Assoc Job Placement & DvlpmtEquity Services-St. Paul FastServ Merrick CompaniesMinnesota Work Incentives Connection Pat Siebert, MN Dis. Law Ctr.National Results Council New Dimensions Home Health Care

---------------------------------- SILVER SPONSOR ($150 and above) ----------------------------------Karen Adamson Jamie Becker Scott BeersLou Burdick Robert E. Buuck Chris DuffCatherine Eilers M. Therese Gockenbach Paula GoldbergDoris & John Groven Lori Guzman Judy HaaversenDavid & Susan Houghton Ronna Linroth Lynn NorenMichael Otubushin RISE Inc. Dean Doering & Lisa ScribnerKevin Sullivan Kay Willshire Arc Hennepin CountyHelp Yourself Job Placement & Development Division, MN Rehab AssnLottsa Tax & Accounting Services Mental Health Consumer/Survivor NetworkMILS Mpls. Advisory CommitteeMN Developmental Achievement Ctr Assoc. (MnDACA) PACER CenterSt. Paul Mayors Advisory Committee on People with Disabilities Twin City TransportationUCare Minnesota Vinland Center

----------------------------------- GOLD SPONSOR ($350 and above) -----------------------------------Shirley Larson Margaret Perryman Bridget & Diane Smith

In Home Personal Care, Inc.

-------------------------------- DIAMOND SPONSOR ($500 and above) --------------------------------Case Management Systems, Inc. Rapit Print

------------------------------- BENEFACTOR SPONSOR ($1000 and above) ----------------------------Headwaters Fund HECUA The Medtronic Foundation

-------------------–------------------------------------- IN HONOR-----------------------------------------------------Anne Henry by Karen Adamson • Cecelia Bilbrey-Baer by Patrick J. Bilbrey • Charlie Smith by Tom & Mimi Fogarty • Charlie by Fern Rogstad • Jaehn Clare by Candice Warne

Kyle by Joe & JoAnn Zwack • College of Saint Catherine’s Occupational Therapy Masters Program by Steven Anderson • U of M Occupational Therapy Education Program by Erica Stern

-------------------–------------------------------------- IN MEMORY-----------------------------------------------------Charlie Smith by Anita Boucher & Jeff Bangsberg • Grandma & Grandpa Laughlin, Shamma & Frank Haas, & Fred Benjamin Jr. by Phyllis & Fred Benjamin III

Bill & Renee Smith by Becky J. Bugbee-Tong • Pete Chevrette by Mike & Jan Chevrette • Troy Fahlenkamp & Valerie Birosh by David Dreier • Mabel Heuer by Dawn DoeringCharlie Smith by Lee Ann Erickson • Bill Smith by Joe & Peg Figliuzzi • Charlie Smith by Andrew Groven • John Hardy by Martha Hardy • Miss Irene MacKaloney by Roger Hoffman

Charlie Smith by Barbara Kane • Ruth Riggs by Corbin Kidder • Charlie Smith by Tracy Kochendorfer • Charlie Smith, our cousin, by Henry Pattridge & familyUncle Bill & Aunt Renee Smith by Mary & Henry Pattridge • Charlie Smith by Sister Kenny Institute • Bill & Renee Smith by Helen Thompson

Bill, Renee, & Charlie Smith by Kathy & Paul West • Charlie Smith by Linda Wolford • Tony Lebahn by Linda Wolford

-------------------–------------------------------------- IN KIND (time & services)-----------------------------------------------------Pete Feigal • Ellen Houghton • Jenny Kempfert • Jeni Mundl • Deb Olson • Jon Skaalen • Pete Takash • John Tschida • Sue Warner

Disability Health Options Committee Members • Disability Law Center • Minnesota Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities • St. Paul Social Security PASS CadreWellstone Memorial Contributors

MAIL TO: ACCESS PRESS1821 University Ave. W. • #104S • St. Paul, MN 55104

Phone: (651) 644-2133 • Fax: (651) 644-2136 • e-mail: [email protected]

Name ________________________________________________

Street ________________________________________________

City _______________________________ State ______________

Zip __________________ Telephone _____________________

Limited income subscription: $5

I have an idea for editorial coverage. Please call me.

I’ve enclosed my check for $15. Start my subscription.

Send your advertising rates.

Don't Miss An Issue! Subscribe Today! $15 Buys A FullYear (12 Issues) Of Access Press

Are you UNSURE of yourcurrent home care provider?

$100 -$500 forclientreferral

Kevin Sullivan, Director

Assisting individuals with disabilities to achievetheir maximum independence since 1991.

IN HOMEPERSONAL CARE

8441 Wayzata Blvd • Suite 130Golden Valley, MN 55426

If so, Make a Change for the Better.Call 763-546-1000 or visit www.inhomepersonalcare.com

Services we offer:• Personal Care Attendants/Home Health Aides• On-Call Staff• Loaner Car for PCAs with . . . “Car Trouble”

Documents

November 2002 Issue