This event is free!

It is designed especially for clergy, trustees and those with a heart for making their church a place of welcoming and belonging for all.

Please register online at wpaumc.org/events or send your name, church, church role and contact information to:

Rev. Debbie HillsPO Box 74

West Springfield, PA 16443deacon.dhills@gmail.com

440-812-4624

.5 CEUs offered for attendance and completion of the church accessibility audit

Sponsored by Disability Concerns Committee

How Accessible Are We?

Opening Hearts, Doors and Minds

a Little Wider

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

6 - 9 pm (sign-in begins at 5:30)

Hollsopple Bethel UMC215 Whistler Street, Hollsopple, PA 15935

The Conference Committee on Disability Concerns advocates for and supports the development of programs and services to meet the needs of persons affected by disabilities and promotes the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all levels of ministry within the Conference. The committee is responsible for being a resource to our local churches to help them become more architecturally and attitudinally accessible and inclusive.

Who We Are

Registration

Learning Objectives

1. Gain an increased understanding of the heart issues that underlie the need for architectural and attitudinal accessibility.

2. Gain classroom and hands on experience using an accessibility audit as a means to make needed changes.

3. Gain knowledge about how and where to locate resources to help your church become a place of welcoming and belonging for persons affected by disability.

The Need for Architectural and Attitudinal Accessibility

There are some important questions each congregation must ask itself:

• Is the expense and effort of making our church accessible worth it?

• What is the value of one soul?

We see from the Gospels that those with physical, emotional, and cognitive disabilities were very important to Jesus during his earthly ministry. This biblical record can and should inform how we create a place of inclusion and belonging for ALL God’s children When a congregation realizes they need to make some changes to more fully welcome and create a space of belonging for all God’s people, they can become overwhelmed by the task in front of them. They may not even know where to start.

This workshop will give you tools and resources to begin or, if you have started, continue making the needed changes every church is charged to make.

The Mandate Book of Discipline, ¶ 2533.6

Board of Trustees’ Powers and Limitations

The board of trustees, in cooperation with the health and welfare ministries representative, shall conduct or cause to be conducted an annual accessibility audit of their buildings, grounds, and facilities to discover and identify what physical, architectural, and communication barriers exist that impede the full participation of persons with disabilities and shall make plans and determine priorities of the elimination of all such barriers. The Accessibility Audit for churches shall be used in filling out the annual church and/or charge conference reports.

The Rev. Debbie Hills, chair of the Conference Disability Concerns Committee, brings to the ministry nearly 35 years of experience as a physical therapist working directly with individuals and families affected by disability. She is an ordained deacon under appointment to All God’s Children Ministries and West Springfield/ Cranesville Charge. Rev. Hills is a coordinator for Volunteers in Mission in the Erie-Meadville District. She has led and participated in more than 20 international mission outreach efforts into Central America, serving the needs of persons affected by disability. Rev. Hills has developed and leads a local outreach project called Ramps of Hope that provides residential accessible ramps for persons in need. This program continues to grow and currently has more than 25 churches actively reaching out to their neighbors with help and hope. She also brings more than 15 years of business and administrative experience to the ministry as owner and CEO of DLH Therapy Services, Inc.

Barb Baird is a stay-at-home mom and wife with a passion to assist persons with disabilities. In the late 80s and early 90s, she worked as a social worker doing the same, until a diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis caused her to quit working. This enabled Barb to focus on the rights and needs of the disabled population. Barb is currently on the Board of organization called Accessible Dreams, an organization whose mission is to expand the opportunities for independent living by increasing the inventory of accessible housing choices.

Presenters