A big group gathered on September 15th for a forum on inclusive community. Here are some of the highlights:

Disability Models

First, we discussed how narrow ways of thinking about disability color the way people with disabilities are treated and biblical healing stories are read. If people only view disability through a “medical model”, disabled bodies are viewed as a problem and medical cure the only solution. A social model of disability helps us remember that disability is a natural part of life and is the result of social conditions, not just medical ones. Having more than one way to think about disability ensures that we read healing stories and understand healing as more than the erasure of disabled bodies.

Rejecting Expired Language

Next, we discussed how being anti-ableist as a congregation and as individuals requires us to reject expired language and replace it with “person-first language” and other language that our friends with disabilities tell us they experience as affirming.

Disability Etiquette

Ensuring that the bodies and boundaries of people with disabilities are respected goes hand in hand with using affirming language. Read on for disability etiquette.

Apple pickers of all ages and abilities gathered on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon at Carver Hill Orchard in Stow to pick delicious fruit, climb trees, run and stroll with friends, and enjoy the beautiful sunshine. Some folks may have even sampled one or two (or six) cider donuts as well. Enjoy the pictures of our fabulous time together!

An experiment that began last year is working beyond our wildest dreams. It’s a simple gathering of folks who happen to be free on a Wednesday morning once a month, to hang out in the WCUC Parlor and chat over coffee and refreshments – a sort of mid-week “coffee hour” that lasts an hour and half from 10:30-12noon so that people have the time and space to share stories, talk about what’s going on in their lives, and find joy in laughter, connection, and friendship. And for those who might prefer a quieter activity, there’s always a jigsaw puzzle available too. We meet on the third Wednesday of each month, so the next dates are: October 16th, November 20th, and December 18th. Please consider stopping by if you have the time. We’d love to visit with you!

Nothing could dampen the spirits of the crowd at this year’s Minuteman March. The WCUC Youth Group joined many Sunday Fellowship friends in this important walk to raise awareness and money to support the amazing services that MMA provides annually for 1400 children and adults with disabilities. This year happens to be their 20th Anniversary which added to the joy of the celebration. A huge thank you to all who donated to the WCUC team, helping us to surpass our goal as we raised a total of $2135.00. It takes a village to support those we care about and we are very blessed to be a part of this one!

WCUC hosts Walking Prayer every Monday morning @ 9:30am. Our meeting place alternates between the Welcome Garden and Walden Pond. This week was Walden’s turn so it felt appropriate to begin with this meditation written by Mary Oliver:

GOING TO WALDEN

It isn’t very far as highways lie. I might be back by night fall, having seen
The rough pines, and the stones, and the clear water.
Friends argue that I might be wiser for it.
They do not hear that far-off Yankee whisper:
How dull we grow from hurrying here and there! Many have gone, and think me half a fool
To miss a day away in the cool country. Maybe. But in a book I read and cherish, Going to Walden is not so easy a thing As a green visit. It is the slow and difficult
Trick of living, and finding it where you are.

Join us next week on Monday, September 23rd @ the Welcome Garden or the following Monday, September 30th back at Walden. Email Joyce DeGreeff, joycedegreeff@gmail.com to let us know you’re coming. We’d love your company!

Sunday Fellowship recently read the story of the Syro-Phoenician woman from Mark 7 in which Jesus is accosted by a desperate mother seeking healing for her daughter. This story is remarkable because it’s the only time we hear Jesus refusing to heal someone. Jesus refuses the woman because she is not Jewish, saying, “No, first I must help my own family. It is not right to throw the children’s food to the dogs.” But the woman refuses to take “no” for an answer and continues to advocate for the needs of her daughter and herself (as so many parents of sick or disabled children are often forced to do). She shoots back “That’s true, sir, but even the puppies under the table are given scraps.” Jesus cannot help but be impressed by this woman’s strength and faith. He relents and heals her daughter. She, not Jesus, is the hero of this story.

As people with disabilities, we can all relate to this story of determined advocacy. Like the Syro-Phoenician woman, many of us have had to learn how not to take “no” for an answer and how to becomes the heroes of our own stories. Norah McShane, a Minute Man Arc self-advocate, shared her own story of advocacy when she had to fight hard for the job she wanted. Then the whole group took photo with self-advocacy posters. Read on for Norah’s story:

Hi, I’m Nora McShane. I have worked at Roche Brothers for 29 years. Since 1995, I was working in the front end. I didn’t like it because I wasn’t getting respect from a coworker. I also didn’t like going outside all the time and pushing the heavy carts. So I asked to move to the bakery. 

First, I asked my boss. I had a friend in the bakery who spoke to the manager and helped me advocate. Next, I went to the bakery boss, saying I would like to permanently work at the bakery department. Then I had to go to the store manager and make my case to her. I started asking for this in 2012. 

At first, they had me working 4 days a week: 2 days in the front and 2 days in the bakery. I kept asking to switch to the bakery full time at my ISP and to my boss. I was getting really tired of asking. Finally, in 2015, after years of sticking up for myself, I became full time at the bakery. 

I really like working in the bakery. I started with packaging and now I do labeling. I’m not as bored and I feel like I’m getting more done. They listen to my opinions. They let me ask questions and they are patient with me. I feel my time is valued. It’s important to use your voice to speak up for what you really want to do in your own life.