Allison's Blog

 Posts Tagged ‘Scary Things’

The past two days have been very busy INSANE. I worked with TURN in Provo and down in St. George, then turned around and came back to Salt Lake City. Made for an adventurous twenty four hours.The speed limit along much of I-15 is 80 MPH (which is only a guideline really…) helping me get back from St. George in about four hours. Fortunately, highway patrol was not looking.

This morning, I went back and met with Allison, Kevin and Chris at Columbus Community Center to sort out some provider administration questions and then headed over to Danville with Bobby, Jeremy, Annette, Gina, Marsha and Jorge (AKA Alisha)…It looks like Danville is already ready to move into Health Tracking and ISPs. This makes them not only the fastest set-up in Therap history, but the fastest move-implementation-along in history, too. Their areas report that all is well and are chomping at the bit to get more into Therap. These people know what’s up, y’all.

So, everyone here wants me to move to Utah. I decided I’d look around for just the right property for a home and Therap office…a nice neighborhood is very important. I think I found the perfect place…See below. I particularly like the number of immediate neighbors…and many places to bury things where no one will ever find them. I like that in a house.

Jorge also got me a BASKET filled with treats…We share an abnormal fascination for bad horror movies (Dawn of the Dead is CLASSIC!) and now I have a handful of new titles to rot my brain with and a blanket to hide under while doing so…Thanks, Alisha!! We can scare Marsha even more now.

Did you notice the basket  pattern name: Adorned Animal…after Archie, I’m sure.

See you soon! (And Alisha, I think everyone needs to buy a vowel)

Allison

Archie’s friends in Florida.

Allison

I’m not sure if any of you have followed the Constance McMillen thing but here is the skinny: this girl in Mississippi came out as a lesbian and wanted to take her girlfriend to the senior prom, the school said she couldn’t, she said she could. She sued the school and won. Then the school canceled the prom and they could not legally be forced to still hold it. However, some parents allegedly organized an alternate prom for the students. Nice, right? Don’ be so sure.

Currently, it is alleged that Constance, along with some kids with learning disabilities, were sent to a prom at one location while the other real one was held someplace else. They simply would not hold the prom with them. This is where I wished that everyone involved with this would be eaten by bears.

Can people really be that hateful?…

What struck me was not only the homophobia–which is distasteful enough–but the fact that the kids with disabilities were also excluded. They considered those kids as a them as well. They were different.

For those of you who have made working with those people your profession, be reminded that this ignorance still exists. You are not only staff, but advocates and educators for the community at large. People who are “intellectually challenged” or “developmentally disabled” or “autistic” or “purple” or “fat” or “gay”…are still plain old people. And there are plenty of folks who still fail to see that. They don’t see how we are all related. They don’t get that we are all responsible for one another, regardless of our race, gender, sexual orientation, or ability. They don’t see the plain old people thing.

Deinstitutionalization, community integration, normalization; we have worked very hard at this education, of revealing the value of inclusion. And in an instant, a community wrecks it. And they are not alone.

So, the next time you’re at the movies, at the coffee shop, or in Wal-Mart, with your folks, remember this: you are a true teacher, for not only the folks you support but for the world. Cheers.

Allison