RCM - Revitalizing Community Membership: Empowering Independence: October 2017

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

At The Bocce Championships!

At The Bocce Championships!

Researchers Have Ditched the Autism-Vaccine Hypothesis. Here’s What They Think Actually Causes It

Of all the issues doctors have explored in children’s health, none has been more exhaustively researched than the question of whether vaccines are linked to autism. After hundreds and hundreds of studies in thousands of children, “We can say with almost as much certainty than anybody could ever say that vaccines don’t cause autism,” Mayo Clinic autism researcher Dr. Sunil Mehta told me.

And yet the fear that they do remains stubbornly persistent, as a recent measles outbreak in Minnesota shows. The virus spread among unvaccinated children — in this case, Somali-Americans in Minneapolis, after anti-vaccine advocates targeted their parents with a misinformation campaign. By the end of the outbreak in August, 79 people, most of them children, got the disease.

To read more on this story, click here: Researchers Have Ditched the Autism-Vaccine Hypothesis. Here’s What They Think Actually Causes It

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Monday, October 30, 2017

DC Won’t Restore Subsidized Cab Rides for Paratransit Riders This Week

WASHINGTON — Despite complaints from users who are blind, in wheelchairs or living with other disabilities, the District does not plan to allow more riders to use subsidized taxis in place of more expensive and convoluted MetroAccess paratransit service.

A message from the Department of For-Hire Vehicles had said the program would return Oct. 1 to offer open transportation for qualifying riders in the first half of each month, but instead Transport DC trips have remained limited to medical and work-related trips.

Department of For-Hire Vehicles’ spokesman Neville Waters said on Friday there are no changes planned for the program, so the restrictions will remain in November at a minimum.

To read more on this story, click here: DC Won’t Restore Subsidized Cab Rides for Paratransit Riders This Week

Mom Was Determined to Give Her Daughter a Magical Halloween: Turned Her Wheelchair Into a Cinderella Carriage

A young girl in Comstock Park is smiling bright after her mom took a page out of a fairy-tale by turning her wheelchair into a princess carriage.

Roslyn Breen was born with an undiagnosed muscular condition that prevents her from walking or sitting up.

But her mom was determined to give her daughter a magical Halloween.

3-year-old Roslyn Breen is as happy as any other kid when it approaches.

“Roz is forever my little princess. And she loves Disney so we knew Cinderella was something she’d really want,” said her mom, Tiffany.

She even wore Cinderella inspired slippers on her feet.

To read more on this story, click here: Mom Was Determined to Give Her Daughter a Magical Halloween: Turned Her Wheelchair Into a Cinderella Carriage.

Saturday, October 21, 2017

DeVos Rescinds 72 Guidance Documents Outlining Rights for Disabled Students

The Education Department has rescinded 72 policy documents that outline the rights of students with disabilities as part of the Trump administration’s effort to eliminate regulations it deems superfluous.

The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services wrote in a newsletter Friday that it had “a total of 72 guidance documents that have been rescinded due to being outdated, unnecessary, or ineffective — 63 from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and 9 from the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA).” The documents, which fleshed out students’ rights under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Rehabilitation Act, were rescinded Oct. 2.

A spokeswoman for Education Secretary Betsy DeVos did not respond to requests for comment.

Advocates for students with disabilities were still reviewing the changes to determine their impact. Lindsay E. Jones, the chief policy and advocacy officer for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, said she was particularly concerned to see guidance documents outlining how schools could use federal money for special education removed.

To read more on this story, click here: DeVos Rescinds 72 Guidance Documents Outlining Rights for Disabled Students

Friday, October 20, 2017

Target Launches New Line of Adaptive Apparel for Children with Disabilities

The 40-item line includes jackets, bodysuits, sweatshirts, and t-shirts for boys and girls with “features like side and back snap and zip closures and hidden openings for abdominal access, all in an effort to make getting dressed easier for everyone,” Target wrote in a blog post.

All items are made from extra-soft, comfortable, and durable cotton knits, to insure kids stay comfortable throughout the day.

The senior vice president of Product Design & Development, Julie Guggemos, discussed Target’s goal to cater towards the needs of all customers.

To read more on this story, click here: Target Launches New Line of Adaptive Apparel for Children with Disabilities

Thursday, October 19, 2017

A Send Off for Seungwan, Our Intern from Korea West

A send off for Seungwan, our intern from Korea West. We will miss you, enjoy your travels before heading home! Thanks for sharing your South Korean culture with us!

He gave a wonderful presentation about his life and culture in South Korea, as well as what he learned here at RCM. He will be missed!

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Special Olympics DC: Bocce is Definitely Heating Up. Great Games Last Night!

Special Olympics DC: Bocce is definitely heating up. Great games last night!

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

Stand Up and Be Counted!

For nearly four decades, I’ve been a stand-up comedian. I began honing my craft in 1978, inching out into the spotlight on clubs’ amateur nights. I found that people can be uncomfortable with letting go and laughing; they tend to think that you’re supposed to take life seriously, so I put them at ease by walking them into my world. I made it okay to laugh with me about the quirks of having cerebral palsy. I boldly put myself in their faces to be loved, hated, criticized, ridiculed, respected, adored and/or resented.

When we comedians step out on stage with a new audience before us, we never know how we’ll be received. And yet it’s just like exercising any other muscle; it becomes stronger the more you work it. Now truthfully some comics will never get stronger because, well, they suck. Their “funny” muscle is forever skinny, and they should probably stop now and look at becoming an accountant or a proctologist.

To read more on this story, click here: Stand Up and Be Counted