Kindergarden Class Learns To Sign Happy Birthday For Deaf Custodian

Take a look at this adorable video! These Kindergartners in Tennessee learned how to sign Happy Birthday to their hearing-impaired custodian, James Anthony on his 60th birthday!

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Meet Isabella Springmuhl, A 19-Year-Old Fashion Designer With Down Syndrome

She’s one of the most recognized fashion designers in all of Guatemala, and she’s just 19 years old. But her age is not the only thing that makes Isabella Springmuhl stand out in the fashion world. She also has Down syndrome.

The talented teen was the first designer with Down syndrome ever to show her work at London Fashion Week, according to the BBC, which recently included her on its list of 100 inspirational women.

Springmuhl expressed an interest in design when she was in high school, she told Metro. Her influences reach back to her grandmother, who had an atelier that made clothing using traditional Guatemalan fabrics, which are known for their vivid hues and vibrant designs. But because of her chromosome disorder, Springmuhl hasn’t had an easy road pursuing her passion.

The girl was rejected by two design schools, her mother, Isabel Tejada, told the BBC, both of which felt that she “would not be able to cope.” Though angry, Tejada didn’t let that hold her back from encouraging her child’s creativity and talent. “I was furious that these institutions did not give Isabella a chance to learn. It was so sad, but it made her change everything. She then decided she wanted to learn sewing, so I took her to a sewing academy for women,” Tejada told the publication.

A quick study, she soon became fluent in digital pattern-making. Her process, as she explained to Metro, includes drawing designs in her “mannequin book,” coloring them, and then using special software to create three-dimensional printouts. After that, it’s off to the atelier, where she instructs the seamstresses and embroiderers to transform her visions into tangible garments.

To read more on this story, click here: Meet Isabella Springmuhl, A 19-Year-Old Fashion Designer With Down Syndrome

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RCM of Washington Fall 2018 Newsletter

See what RCM has coming up this fall! And if you'd like to join our mailing list, please send us a private message with your email address. To send your email, click HERE. 

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Uber Deal Offers More Wheelchair-Accessible Vehicles Around DC Area

Washington — Uber is expanding its offerings of wheelchair-accessible vehicles in the D.C. area through an agreement with one of the companies that has operated MetroAccess paratransit service.

The agreement with MV Transportation will provide “hundreds” of wheelchair accessible vehicles in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, Chicago and Toronto, Uber said.

It is meant to address some complaints about equity and access disparities for app-based services such as Uber. Riders will select the WAV option (wheelchair-accessible vehicle) in the app, similar to the way riders can select UberX or UberPool, with a promise of average waits of 15 minutes or less. There is no pooled option for wheelchair vehicles, at this point.

Though MV Transportation has operated MetroAccess vehicles, the vans or cars involved in this are owned solely by the company. The project is also separate from Metro and local government programs meant to provide cheaper taxi-based, such as Metro’s Abilities-Ride and the District’s TransportDC.

Uber said it would put money into the program to keep the trips “priced the same as a similar UberX trip.”

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Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope that everyone has a safe and
happy holiday!

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Winnie The Pooh Snuggling A Boy With Cerebral Palsy At Disney World

Winnie the Pooh snuggling a boy with cerebral palsy at Disney World is one of the sweetest things we've ever seen. The boy's mom says it made her so happy because many people aren't sure how to interact with kids who have disabilities. But Pooh knew what to do!




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Durham Man With ALS Uses Love Of Animals, Photography To Raise Money For Animal Shelters

Rick Fisher has been capturing life through a lens since he worked on his high school yearbook. Now, with less than a year to live, he's creating a final love letter of sorts that will help others.

Fisher spends a lot of time in his wheelchair and wearing an oxygen mask. His lungs are only functioning at 50 percent.

"I always thought I was going to live to be like my dad," Fisher said. "He was 88. So, when you're 69 and someone tells you-you're not going to make it to your 70th birthday...that's pretty tough."

Fisher was told in March he only has 10 months to live. He has ALS, an unkind disease that robs the body of its strength and abilities.

"With so little time left, I shouldn't be able to swallow and I shouldn't be able to speak," he said.

But to Fisher, this is not a story of sadness, but of dedication and love.

To read more on this story, click here: Durham Man With ALS Uses Love Of Animals, Photography To Raise Money For Animal Shelters

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Winter Weather Preparedness Tips for Wheelchair Users

Are you dreading this winter season? Dealing with slushy, icy, snowy, and windy conditions can be quite a challenge for wheelchair users, and you might be tempted to just hibernate at home for the next few months. Although there may be moments when it is indeed safer to stay inside, with a little forethought, you don’t have to let less-than-ideal conditions keep you cooped up this season.

So, what can you do to ensure your safety during blustery, winter weather? Let’s take a look!

Prepare for the Worst

If you find yourself snowed in or in a situation where outside conditions are truly too much to brave, don’t be caught off guard. Having a checklist of things to do before a storm hits can keep you from ending up in a bad position.

To read more on this story, click here: Winter Weather Preparedness Tips for Wheelchair Users


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People With Disabilities Want Paychecks Not Pity: Here's How Businesses Are Helping

Companies that embrace and improve their policies and practices for inclusion of disabilities in the workforce significantly outperform their peers.

People With Disabilities Want Paychecks Not Pity: Here's How Businesses Are Helping

Despite reports that U.S. unemployment continues to drop, most people with disabilities are still unemployed. And, despite the recent focus on hiring a diverse workforce, developing disability inclusion practices has lagged far behind. Until now. New research from Accenture, in partnership with Disability: IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), reveals that companies that embrace and improve their policies and practices for inclusion of disabilities in the workforce significantly outperform their peers. Research from the Getting to Equal: The Disability Inclusion Advantage shows that 45 companies championing disability inclusion experienced on average:

28% higher revenue
twice the net income
30% better performance on economic profit margins
and were twice as likely to have total shareholder returns that outperformed their peers

To read more on this story, click here: People With Disabilities Want Paychecks Not Pity: Here's How Businesses Are Helping

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Trauma-Informed Care Lunch & Learn – November 27th – 12:00 P.M. – 1: 00 P.M.

Join us on Tuesday, November 27th from 12:00 – 1:00 PM at RCM's Main Office for a Lunch and Learn presentation by Dr. Matthew Mason of Georgetown University. 

During this event you will have the opportunity to learn more about how to provide supports to people who have experienced trauma. 

Trauma-Informed Care is a new initiative led by DDA Health Initiative at Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development-University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (GUCCHD-UCEDD). This initiative provides training and technical assistance on trauma care to service agencies that serve people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. RCM is fortunate to be a recepient of Trauma Informed Care technical assistance from GUCCHD-UCEDD.

Pizza will be served and Phase 4 credit will be dished out to RCM employees. The event is open to the public with an RSVP. Hope to see you there!

To signup on Facebook, click here: Trauma-Informed Care Lunch & Learn

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DC3C Next Steps Transition Fair

RCM enjoyed participating in this awesome event yesterday! The young people who participated were very well prepared and enthusiastic to do great things post-graduation!

DC Department on Disability:
It was a full house today at DDS for the DC3C Next Steps Transition Fair. 250 charter school students engaged with professionals from a wide variety of fields. Representatives from education & training programs were also on site to advise youth about the steps the need to take to reach their goals.

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DDS Names New Deputy Director

Happy to continue to work with Erin, congratulations on the new position!

Erin Leveton has been selected as the DDS Deputy Director for Quality Assurance and Performance Management Administration (QAPMA). Erin has been with DDS for a little more than six years, starting out as the Legislative and Policy Analyst for the State Office of Disability Administration (SODA), now known as the State Office of Policy, Planning and Innovation (SOPPI).

To read more on this story, click here: DDS Names New Deputy Director


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Dad Defends His Son's Down Syndrome

Dad defends his son's down syndrome.
Credit: Robb Scott - facebook.com/RobbScottDrawings





Take a look at the video below:
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DC Developmental Disabilities Council -- 'Disability Mentoring Days'

Two awesome high school students from Dunbar High School    and Eastern High School joined us today to learn about the world of work through an initiative from the DC Developmental Disabilities Council -- 'Disability Mentoring Days'. Learning and fun was had by all!

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Uber Joins Lyft In Giving Free Rides to the Polls on Election Day

In an attempt to get out the vote in a contentious election year, Uber is offering free rides and voting location information in its app this Election Day.

Uber is partnering with Democracy Works and #VoteTogether to provide promo codes for free rides to voters across the U.S. on Nov. 6. Riders will be able to look up their designated voting location by entering their home address into the app.

Ridesharing competitor Lyft announced back in August it would also offer free and discounted rides to the polls on Nov. 6. Organizations including Vote.org and TurboVote will help distribute nationwide 50% off codes for the Lyft app. And Lyft will also provide free rides through nonpartisan, nonprofit partners such as Voto Latino to help members of underserved communities who historically have had a harder time getting to the polls.

Midterm elections often have notoriously low turnout, perhaps four in 10 eligible Americans vote in them compared to six in 10 for presidential election years. Lyft pointed out an estimated 15 million people were registered but didn’t vote in 2016 because of transportation issues.

Uber had this caveat at the end of its announcement, however: “Any promo codes or free rides under the Uber Drives the Vote program are offered to individuals by our partner organizations and in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations, subject to Uber’s terms and conditions. Any such offer is not intended to induce, nor is it conditioned on, the act of voting, refraining from voting or voting for or against any particular candidate, political party or measure.”

To read more on this story, click here: Uber Joins Lyft In Giving Free Rides to the Polls on Election Day


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Early Voting Ends Tomorrow in DC!

For more information on voting centers, click here: Early Voting Centers

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