RESOURCE UPDATE

a newsletter for those interested in new resources for accessibility and disability ministries within the United Methodist Church

DMC 2023 ACCESSIBILITY

GRANT DEADLINE

EXTENDED TO APRIL 15th!

The 2023 Grant Cycle is open through the middle of April - it's not too late to apply! We offer seed money grants of $500 - $1000 for accessibility and disability ministry projects. Applications and instructions are available on the Grants page of our website. Note that we now have a sample Grant Application form to give you a better idea of the grant criteria. Contact us if you need additional information. Remember that we cannot reimburse a congregation for projects that are already completed.

Eight churches were awarded grants during the second cycle of 2022. One of these was Kenova UMC in the West Virginia conference which received grant funding to help set up Spectrum Worship Ministry. The church created sensory spaces for autistic individuals who are overwhelmed by being in worship in the sanctuary. This gives them a transitional option to observe livestreamed worship on a big screen television in a safe place. Read about their ministry and see photos in the West Virginia conference news.

These grants are supported by your gifts to the Disability Ministry Advance #3021054, as we receive no apportioned funding. Please make a generous contribution!

WORKING TOGETHER

• Are you staffing a display table for Annual Conference this year? Let us know if you need DMC brochures and templates of other handouts to print or distribute electronically.

• If you use the resources on our Disability Ministries website, please take a moment to let us know what changes you would like to see on the new site we will launch this year. What sections are the most helpful to you? What kinds of resources would you like more of? What is missing? Write us at our email address with your ideas and input.

• Remember to follow us (UM Disability) on Facebook and Twitter and to share our posts.

NEWS ABOUT THE DISABILITY-FRIENDLY AND ACCESSIBLE CHURCH

BADGE PROJECT

Congratulations to the Holston Conference for their recent project to get more churches to complete Annual Accessibility Audits!

Disability Committee Chair Rev. Brian Burch completed our three-part Audit Review training which included our virtual participation in a site review of Church Street UMC in Knoxville. Church Street was the first to gain Gold Badge status in the conference. Among their many accessibility improvements was installation of an amazing lift to the chancel that converts from a staircase to a platform lift. Check out this website to get an understanding of the concept which is making its way from Europe to the US. To learn more about the the Accessibility Audit campaign in the conference and other churches who are working hard to make their buildings and ministries accessible read the Holston conference media article "Audit helps churches boost hospitality to persons with disabilities."

A review is required for Gold Badge designation, and we can train your conference disability ministry committee to carry out the reviews as we did for Holston. As mentioned previously, Bronze and Silver badges are awarded based on the church accessibility audit score and self-report. See our Audits and Accessibility Badge page for instructions on obtaining these digital badges. 

Not every church building is physically accessible enough to earn a badge, but every congregation that completes their annual audit and sets goals they can achieve in their context deserves recognition. Holston helped us rename the pre-badge level Honorable Mention, which is fitting. Adding this designation might be a good option for your conference, too!

RESOURCES & UPCOMING EVENTS

Order the comprehensive book Safer Sanctuaries: Nurturing Trust within Faith Communities through Upper Room Books. Bishop Peggy Johnson wrote the introductory chapters and Deaconess Lynn Swedberg wrote a chapter on Ministries with People with Disabilities. This material has not been previously published and will help you craft a more comprehensive and thoughtful Safe Sanctuaries policy that covers the unique factors of disability ministry and ministry with vulnerable adults.

Watch the video of the joint Disability Advocacy webinar held in January, co-sponsored by the General Board of Church and Society and the General Commission on Religion and Race. Download a copy of the Advocacy Toolkit with contact information for many resource organizations you can learn from and utilize.

Take advantage of a free 4-part webinar series on Pathways to Belonging: Supporting the Spiritual and Faith-Community Interests of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities offered by the AAIDD Religion section. The videos for the February and March sessions are available online at the same weblink where you can register for the April and May sessions.

Save the date for the Institute on Theology and Disability which will be held at Baylor University in Waco, TX from June 26th - 29th. It will be both in-person and virtual again this year. Check the ITD website for registration information which will be coming soon.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Volunteers (we call them Resource Persons) help us expand our ministries and keep up with the new directions God calls us to go in. We need people to serve in the following capacities:

• Persons willing to regularly check the links on current webpages and notify our webmaster Tim of broken links.

• Additional members for the Mental Health Task Force.

• Writers interested in researching innovative ministries and describing them, or who have particular expertise to share.

Please contact us at our email address

• If you are already a Resource person and ready to take on a new task, or need to update your information. We want to get back in touch with you if we haven't touched bases for a while.
• If you have questions.
• If you know someone who may be just the right person to work with us!

Please prayerfully consider how you can help. If you are interested in becoming a Resource Person to serve in any capacity, please check the Get Involved - Volunteer page on the DMC web site, read the Role of the Resource Person, and complete a Resource Person Application.

PRAYER REQUESTS

• For focus as we work to get back in gear after time off for personal, school, and family responsibilities that had to take short-term priority.

PRAISE REPORTS

• For the hard work of Deaconess Sharon McCart who is the past DMC chairperson and who started the Mental Health Task Force. She completed her second term and is shifting her efforts from the DMC to writing and to strengthening ties with disability ministries and the deaconess movement in The Philippines.

• For invitations to offer training to leaders throughout the connection! We have provided disability ministry and awareness training for leaders in Volunteers in Mission, Camp and Retreats, and Abundant Health so far this year!

• For new disability ministries arising out of painful church separations.

• For momentum with our project of offering resources and training with Conference Boards of Ordained Ministries to help ensure appropriate accommodations for candidates with disabilities.

Disability Ministries Committee Resource Update #11, March 2023

Disability Ministries Committee of the UMC - https://umcdmc.org/