JFActivist

EAC Appoints Assistive Technology Expert to Election Guidelines Develompment Committee

From an EAC Press Release (12/11/09):

New Technical and Scientific Experts Appointed to EAC’s Technical Guidelines Development Committee

WASHINGTON- The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) today announced the appointment of four new technical and scientific experts to its Technical Guidelines Development Committee (TGDC), which is charged under the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) with assisting EAC in developing federal voluntary voting system guidelines that are used to test and certify voting systems.

The following new members were appointed jointly by EAC and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST):

...Diane Cordry Golden, program coordinator for the Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs.  Dr. Cordry Golden has 30 years’ experience providing training and technical assistance on disability policy implementation and assistive/accessible technology service delivery to government and nonprofit organizations at the local, state and national level. She has a doctorate in special education administration with an emphasis in disability policy, a master’s degree in audiology, and a bachelor’s degree in speech-language pathology...

HAVA established the TGDC to support the EAC by providing recommendations on voluntary standards and guidelines related to voting equipment and technologies. The TGDC's first task was to draft the third iteration of federal voting system standards, known as the voluntary voting system guidelines, which EAC issued in December 2005. The TGDC continues to work on future iterations and revisions to the guidelines for consideration by the EAC Standards Board and Board of Advisors, and for ultimate consideration and adoption by EAC.

From the JFA Moderator: Diane Golden joins several other assistive technology and disability election experts on the TGDC including Phillip Jenkins, senior software engineer of the IBM Human Ability and Accessibility Center and Ron Gardner, director of field services, National Federation of the Blind.  We are hopeful that with the input of these accessibility advocates, future standards and guidelines will open the election process for all Americans including those with disabilities.

>>> For the Full Press Release

AFSCME Union Declares Support for the Community First Choice Option

From AFSCME:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, December 10, 2009

An Important Step for Seniors and Individuals With Disabilities
AFSCME Declares Support for Community First Choice Option in Health Reform

Washington, D.C. - The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) threw its full support behind a federal provision to increase personal assistance services to seniors and people with disabilities. These services include personal care and homemaking, and are provided in community settings by direct support workers.

"This is an important step toward ensuring the dignity and independence of seniors and individuals with disabilities," said AFSCME International President Gerald W. McEntee. "In our support for the Community First Choice Option, we will work for consumer choice, service quality and workforce stability."

AFSCME's International Executive Board voted unanimously today to support the Community First Choice (CFC) Option, a provision in Senate health care reform legislation to increase resources to encourage the adoption and improvement of state community-based attendant services and supports programs.

"Having a personal care attendant has meant that I can keep living in my neighborhood, that I can keep living my life. He is the best," said Sarah Pitts, a personal care consumer in Lake Elsinore, California. "Without him, I don't know what I would do. More people need this kind of assistance."

Personal assistance programs are not available in many states, and many states that offer such programs often significantly limit services. The field is characterized by low wages, few benefits and high turnover among direct support workers.

"My home health care provider works so hard for me and cares so much," said Marylin Hicks of Springfield, Missouri, a personal services consumer in Missouri's Consumer Directed Services program. "She, and all providers, should be paid fairly, because they are so important to our lives."

AFSCME represents more than 200,000 direct support workers nationwide. AFSCME is working on the federal and state levels to ensure that these programs are adequately funded, accessible to all Medicaid-eligible individuals who need them and available in more states.

Also check out the ADAPT press release on this new partnership.

>>>Download the ADAPT press release here

Comment Below: This is a HUGE victory to have this union on our side.  What can we do to maximize this partnership?

Happy Hanukkah: A dreidel for the blind spins a new, year-round lesson

From the Houston Chronicle (12/3/09):

A dreidel for the blind spins a new, year-round lesson

By NICOLE NEROULIAS

LAKE OSWEGO, ORE. — For centuries of Hanukkah celebrations, the dreidel has served as both children's toy and religious symbol, marked with Hebrew letters that stand for “a great miracle happened there.”

Artist and Jewish scholar Marsha Plafkin Hurwitz's version of the four-sided top is more than child's play. It's also a conceptual sculpture, disability aid and sensitivity training tool.

She fashioned a metal dreidel featuring raised Braille bumps several years ago. First marketed as modern Judaica, “The Braidel (The Braille Dreidel)” joined the collections of the National Museum of American Jewish History and the Jewish Museum of London. Now it's finding fans among disability-rights advocates.

Hurwitz, a graduate of New York's Jewish Theological Seminary, is now spinning it off as a classroom game for all ages, with input from Portland State University's Project Braille program.

“It's taken on a life of its own,” Hurwitz said, leafing through a prototype of The Braidel Game manual at the kitchen table of her suburban home south of Portland, Ore. “This is something for Jews, Christians, Muslims, anyone who wants to engage how their tradition has treated disability.”

By making a tradition from the Jewish festival of lights accessible to the visually impaired, Hurwitz has set a much-needed example for the entire community, said Becca Hornstein, executive director of the Arizona-based Council for Jews With Special Needs...

>>> For the Full Article

Burning Bright: Musicians with Disabilities Live the Dream with 'Flame'

From ABC (11/27/09):

Flame's Members Say Disabilities Won't Stop Band From Making Music
N.Y. Band Members Live With Blindness, Autism, Down Syndrome
By MARY PFLUM and SUZAN CLARKE

Many start-up bands dream of achieving worldwide fame one day.

That the band Flame achieved the dream is remarkable in and of itself. But the band is extraordinary in another respect: Each musician has a physical or mental disability.

Indeed, Flame is the only touring band in the world to be wholly composed of disabled members.

The upstate New York band's members live with conditions that include Down syndrome, cognitive delays, autism, cerebral palsy and blindness...

>>> For the Full Article

>>> To Check out Flame's Rockin' website

Comment Below: Has anyone seen this group perform? Would you be more likely to see or book a band of musicians with disabilities?  Seeing members of our community living out their dream always inspires me to chase my own.  What are your dreams and how can our community support you in reaching them?

Down Syndrome Births Rise Unexpectedly

From NPR (12/1/09):

Heidi Moore holds her son, Jacob, 8, at their home in Alpharetta, Georgia in 2008. Jacob has Down Syndrome but takes music therapy class, reads at an age-appropriate level and plays piano. (Jenni Girtman/AP)

Down Syndrome Births Rise Unexpectedly
By Joseph Shapiro

You might be surprised to learn there's been an increase in the number of children born with Down syndrome in recent years. The conventional wisdom holds that with more prenatal screening, the rate at which children would be born with Down syndrome would have fallen.

But as researchers write in the latest issue of the medical journal Pediatrics, there was an increase in Down syndrome births between 1979 and 2003. "It went up by 31 percent--from 9 per 10,000 births to 12 per 10,000 births," says Dr. Adolfo Correa, an epidemiologist at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and co-author of the study...

>>> For the Whole Article

>>> For the Scientific Report published in Pediatrics

Comment Below: What is your reaction to this article?  After years of depressing statistics, is it a welcome ray of hope?  or is it too good to be true?  Do you think it reveals a shift in the mindset of American mothers or the triumph of our ever-improving medical care? How would you explain this new data? 

DOL to Host Government-Wide Job Fair

From ODEP (10/2/09):

U.S. Department of Labor steps up efforts to serve workers with disabilities

Administration announces new initiatives during
National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) joined President Obama today in underscoring the administration's commitment to serving every American worker, including the 54 million people across the nation living with disabilities.

"No artificial barriers should prevent individuals from reaching their potential in the workplace and contributing their skills to our nation," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.

As part of its efforts, in early 2010, ODEP will collaborate with other agencies to sponsor and organize a day-long federal government-wide job fair for people with disabilities. At this event, ODEP, the Office of Personnel Management, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Defense's Computer and Electronic Accommodations Program will provide workshops on the Schedule A hiring authority, the right to the provision of reasonable accommodations, and information on assistive and communications technology.

"At the Department of Labor, our goal is good jobs for everyone, and we mean people with disabilities too," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy Kathy Martinez.

This year's NDEAM theme is "Expectation + Opportunity = Full Participation ." In recognition of NDEAM, Assistant Secretary Martinez, will be speaking to federal employees at the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Treasury, and Labor (Atlanta Region), National Defense University, an employer symposium in Corpus Christi, Texas, sponsored by the Texas Department of Rehabilitative Services, and a Disability and Human Rights forum in Hartford, Conn., co-sponsored by the University of Connecticut's Law School and the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center.

ODEP is leading a 21st century federal response to the historic underemployment of people with disabilities. In collaboration with other government agencies, public and private employers, and additional stakeholders, ODEP facilitates the development and implementation of innovative policies and practices necessary to achieve a fully inclusive workplace. ODEP's work primarily falls into three categories: employers and the workplace; workforce systems; and employment-related supports, which include education and training, health care, reliable transportation, affordable housing and assistive technology.

Remarks of Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Thomas E. Perez at His Installation Ceremony

From the Department of Justice:

Remarks of Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Thomas E. Perez at His Installation Ceremony
Friday, November 13, 2009 

I have to begin by thanking Attorney General Holder for the opportunity for this homecoming. It's an honor to have been appointed to lead the Civil Rights Division after having dedicated so many years to it. I also have to thank you for constantly reminding all of us that the Division is a priority for you and for the President.

(Thanks to other program participants) 

I was in a meeting recently with representatives from some civil rights organizations, and one of them relayed to me a story that struck a chord. They were talking to the editorial board of a prominent newspaper about the Administration's commitment to revitalizing the Civil Rights Division, and a member of the board posed a question: Why do we still need a Civil Rights Division? 

In 2009, nearly 50 years removed from the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964; nearly a century and a half removed from the emancipation proclamation; and a year after the American people unwaveringly sent an African American family to the White House -- why do we need a Civil Rights Division? 

It's an interesting and provocative question. 

We have undeniably come a long way. An entire generation has passed since our nation's leaders recognized the injustice of legal segregation. Women outnumber men in the workplace. We have an African American President, a Latina Supreme Court Justice and a female Speaker of the House. My parents probably couldn't have imagined any of it, but my children are growing up to know nothing else. 

There are some out there who think the task is complete, who would like to close the book and say we've fulfilled the promise of equal opportunity and justice for all. 

And my job security aside, I wish they were right. I wish that last year's historic election were the culmination rather than a checkpoint along the way. 

But, as the late Senator Ted Kennedy often reminded us, Civil Rights are truly the unfinished business of America. Perhaps as much as any time in the last half century, we still need a Civil Rights Division. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because, as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote from a narrow cell in Birmingham City Jail, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." 

And when three men are driven from their burning home by a neighbor because of the language they speak and the color of their skin, as recently happened in case that came across my desk, that is certainly a case of injustice and it is certainly a threat to justice nationwide. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because, as President John F. Kennedy said as he introduced what became the Civil Rights Act of 1964, "...this Nation, for all its hopes and all its boasts, will not be fully free until all its citizens are free." 

And when our LGBT brothers and sisters are not afforded the same protections under the law as the rest of us, they are not free, and therefore our nation is not entirely free. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because, as Hubert Humphrey said: "The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped." 

And in 2009, despite great gains, too many reside in the shadows. Too many people of color find themselves powerless in the face of discriminatory housing and lending. Too many individuals with disabilities still struggle to access the basic services the rest of us take for granted. Too many students still lack the quality education all children are guaranteed by law. Too many new Americans who came to this nation seeking the same freedom and opportunities that our parents, and our grandparents sought, find themselves the targets of bigotry and hate.
We need a Civil Rights Divisions to bring these people out of the shadows. We need a Civil Rights Division to back up our nation's promise of equal justice for all. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because on the night that Barack Obama was elected the nation's first African American president, four men on Staten Island set out to assault African Americans in retaliation. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because extremists still think it's their prerogative to murder a doctor because he provides a service with which they do not agree. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because while we all thought we had long ago left behind the ways of the Jim Crow south, we read just last month in the newspaper about a Justice of the Peace who took it upon himself to decide that blacks and whites should not marry. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because when the federal government comes into a community to right a wrong, our presence and our moral and legal authority make a huge difference and have a unique capacity to effect positive, lasting change. 

We need a Civil Rights Division because it is the moral compass of our nation. It backs up with actions the promises made on paper by our nation's civil rights laws. It serves as a guiding light as we navigate new paths on the road to equal justice. 

The question is not "Why do we need a Civil Rights Division?" 

Rather, the question we should ask ourselves is this: What does civil rights mean in the 21st Century? 

I've had quite a bit of time to ponder this question. 

Civil Rights in 2009 and beyond means continuing to combat the sort of blatant discrimination that persists, but also tackling the more subtle, and equally dangerous, discrimination that festers in so many of our institutions. 

It means addressing the vast injustice done by the explosion in subprime lending and the subsequent foreclosure crisis, which, though it has touched every corner of our nation, has disproportionately impacted people of color and threatened the stability of their communities at far greater rates than their white counterparts. Unscrupulous lenders all too frequently have the corrosive power of fine print to trick hardworking people and tear apart communities. We have fair lending and fair housing laws on the books. We must enforce them fairly and aggressively and independently. 

Civil Rights in 2009 means working to create services, programs and public facilities that are accessible to individuals with disabilities, recognizing that they have a vast contribution to make to our society and our communities that can only be maximized if they have equal access. It means recognizing that segregating people with disabilities in institutions is every bit as bad and illegal as segregating children of color in inferior schools. 

It means understanding how the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks has subjected the Arab-American and Muslim-American communities to an unjustified backlash, and working to be sure we don't fall into the trap of believing that we either protect our national security and safe streets OR we protect civil rights. We can and must do both. 

Civil rights in 2009 means understanding that civil rights are human rights, and we are citizens of the world who must set the proper example for others. It means taking partnership to new and unprecedented levels - partnership with sister agencies, state and local governments, and, where appropriate, with private attorneys and non-profits, all the while remaining aware of the independence that we must maintain. 

It means recognizing where our laws fall short, and working to fill the gaps. In this nation today, hardworking LGBT individuals are not even protected by our nation's civil rights laws, and have no legal recourse against discrimination in the workplace. It is fundamentally unfair for my sister in law who is straight to enjoy protections against discrimination in the workplace, while my sister in law who is a lesbian has no protections. Civil Rights in 2009 means expanding the universe of individuals who are protected by the law. The recent enactment of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Protection Act was a good start in that direction. 

Civil Rights in 2009 means restoring and transforming the Civil Rights Division - not in an effort to re-create the Civil Rights Division of an earlier era, but rather to prepare ourselves to tackle the challenges before us today, and to ensure we are nimble enough to address the challenges on the horizon. 

In short, the Civil Rights Division is open for business. Our job is to enforce the civil rights laws - all the laws. Civil Rights Enforcement is not like the buffet line at the cafeteria. You can't pick and choose which laws you like, and which ones you don't. We will enforce all the laws in fair, aggressive and independent fashion, and we will use all the tools available to us. 

I would like to close by noting that we are at a critical turning point. Just a year ago we all were basking in the glow of President Obama's election. To be sure, it was a spectacular achievement for a nation with such a long and complicated history of race relations. But as we look back over the history of the advancement of civil rights in our nation, each moment of great progress has been followed by periods of great challenge. 

Thomas Jefferson wrote of the great self-evident truth - that all men are created equal, but it would be nearly a century before slavery was abolished in the land of the free. 

Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation and later spoke of a new birth of freedom at Gettysburg, but the great promise of those moments was followed by decades of legal segregation, discrimination and hate.
In 1963, Dr. King wrote "we have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God given rights." He and his fellow "drum majors for justice" helped secure those rights with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act the following year. And yet, today, 45 years later, injustice persists. 

We have made great progress. But as we pass each benchmark, we must turn to face the new challenges ahead. 

I am excited about what lies ahead, and I appreciate the sacrifices that my wife and children make day in and day out to enable me to take on these responsibilities. I know success will not be easy, but it is a great privilege to have been given this opportunity to return to my roots at the Civil Rights Division and to help lead it into its latest chapter in this epic story.

URGENT: Do You Still Care About Long Term Services and Supports?

National Call-In Day TOMORROW, Thursday, December 3rd

Call your Senators at this toll-free number: (800) 958-5374

Senator Gregg (R-NH) just spent some time on the Senate floor bashing the CLASS Act.  Senator Baucus (D-MT) (Manager of the health reform bill) interrupted him briefly to say, “Frankly, I’m no fan of the CLASS Act myself.”  

See below for info on a national call-in day tomorrow and for the need to collect stories ASAP.  Please feel free to adapt the alert [when you pass it along].  This is critical.  There will be an amendment to strike the CLASS Act.  We need a full-scale effort to build support for keeping CLASS Act in the bill when the amendment is offered.  

I believe this is an empowerment issue.  Some Senators have expressed the view that people with disabilities who need long term services belong in Medicaid!  That would mean continued impoverishment for life to qualify for needed supports.  We need the CLASS Act to offer an alternative to forced impoverishment in the future!

Marty Ford

From the Arc and UCP Disability Policy Collaboration (12/2/09):

Background:

The U.S. Senate is now debating its health care reform bill, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. And while the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act has stayed in the bill this far, it could be stripped from the bill any day now.   In fact, we just learned that there will be an amendment to eliminate the CLASS Act from the bill.

 

Our contacts on Capitol Hill tell us that one of the biggest obstacles for the CLASS Act is misperception among Members of Congress and their staff that people with disabilities belong in the Medicaid program and cannot work.  We must set the record straight and let our Senators know that, while Medicaid is an essential safety net, millions of people who now have or later develop disabilities work and want to take personal responsibility for their long term care needs. This is an empowerment issue - People should not be forced into poverty to get the support they need.

 

You can help by doing two things:

 

1) Plan to participate *tomorrow* December 3 in a national call in day.  Join advocates from around the country in making our voices heard!  Please call both of your Senators.  The toll free number is (800) 958-5374.  Here is a Sample Script:

Hello. I am calling to ask Senator ___________________ to make sure the CLASS Act remains in the final health reform bill and to oppose any amendment to strip it from the bill. The CLASS Act will help people to remain independent at home.

 

 

2)           Tell us your long term services and supports story NOW.  Stories are being gathered to share during Senate debate on the health care reform bill. We are seeking personal stories that fall under two categories:

 

Looking Back - What could have been if the CLASS Act program had been available.  Story examples include:

•        You worked for many years and discovered that you were financially unprepared for your long term services and supports needs after you became disabled in a car accident.  If you had been able to pay into the CLASS Act program, you could have paid an attendant to help you remain in your own home and not been forced to move into a nursing home before it was necessary.

•        Your sister who has a developmental disability held a job for several years until her health worsened and she required assistance with daily activities such as transportation and meal preparation.  Had she been able to pay into the CLASS Act program, she could have paid an attendant to help her with these activities of daily living and remained employed.

•        Your wife became disabled after having a stroke.  Had she been able to pay into the CLASS Act program, she could have used the cash benefit to pay for services and supports in the state where you had planned to move to.  Instead, she had to spend down all her savings to qualify for Medicaid and you and your wife were unable to move.

•        Your father’s retirement savings were depleted to pay for his long term care needs.  If he had been able to pay into the CLASS Act program, he could have made the necessary modifications to his home to accommodate his wheelchair and covered his other needs instead of relying on you and your sibling who tapped into your own children’s education funds to help pay for his care.

 

Looking Forward - What could be if the CLASS Act program becomes available. Story examples include:

•        You just started your career.  If the CLASS Act program becomes available, you know that you can be take personal responsibility for your own care and be more self sufficient should you become disabled for any reason.

•        Your son has a disability and is currently employed.  If the CLASS Act program becomes available, he will be able use the cash benefit to purchase the services and supports that he needs to remain employed for as long as possible.

•        Your husband is starting to plan for his retirement. If the CLASS Act program is available, you know that, if he becomes disabled, you will not have to divorce him in order to keep his household income below the Medicaid eligibility level to receive long term services and supports.

•        Your mother is nearing retirement.  If the CLASS Act program becomes available, she can start paying in and supplement her private long term care insurance plan that provides limited coverage.

 

You can submit stories online at http://surveys.aahsa.org/EFM/wsb.dll/s/30g179 , or use the questions in this survey to help guide you in writing your story.  If you would prefer to just email your story (instead of the survey), please send it to acosta@thedpc.org

 

 

Thank you in advance for your advocacy and your commitment to improving the quality of life for millions of people with disabilities and older Americans.  For more information, see www.passtheclassact.org.

 

HHS: Pamela Hyde Confirmed to Lead Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

A Press Release from Health and Human Services (11/20/09):

HHS Secretary Sebelius Announces Senate Confirmation of Pamela Hyde as Administrator, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that the United States Senate unanimously confirmed Pamela Hyde as Administrator for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) within HHS. 

“Pamela Hyde has worked tirelessly on behalf of the people of New Mexico to expand access to health and human services programs and improve their quality,” said Secretary Sebelius. “With over 30 years of experience in both the private and public sectors, Pamela’s health policy expertise and management experience will be invaluable to our Department. She will be an outstanding leader at SAMHSA, and I look forward to working with her in this new role.” 

Pamela Hyde’s Bio:

Pamela S. Hyde -- Administrator, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, HHS.

Pamela Hyde has served as secretary of the New Mexico Human Services Department (HSD) since 2003.  Hyde has 30 years of experience in management and consulting for public sector systems of health care and human services.  She has held several key public sector management positions, including as director of the Ohio Department of Mental Health, the Ohio Department of Human Services, and the Seattle Department of Housing and Human Services. She also previously served as a CEO of a private non-profit behavioral health care organization.  Hyde is a member of or has served as a consultant to many national organizations, including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the American College of Mental Health Administration, and the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.  She has received awards from the American Medical Association, the National Governors Association, the Seattle Management Association, and a number of consumer and provider organizations for her leadership and commitment to the well-being of those who rely on publicly funded health and human services.  She received a B.A. from Missouri State University and a J.D. from the University of Michigan.

ABC to Air "A Place for All: Faith and Community for Persons with Disabilities"

From a Diva Communications Press Release (11/16/09):

Diva Communications' Interfaith Documentary Explores Pressing Issue of Faith and Persons with Disabilities

Diva Communications, Inc., a three-time Emmy award-winning programming and production company, has complete 'A Place for All: Faith and Community for Persons with Disabilities,' a unique interfaith documentary due to begin airing on ABC stations in December.  The documentary, produced in conjunction with the New York Board of Rabbis, had the support of an extraordinary lineup of faith groups including the National Council of Churches, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the United Methodist Church, the United Church of Christ and the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops.  The faiths' relationship with persons with persons with disabilities is a critical issue since it is estimated that 1 out of 5 Americans has a disability.

'A Place for All' explores the courageous stories of persons with disabilities as the succeed in making their faith communities truly inclusive.  It features people such as Rabbi Darby Jared Leigh, a spiritual leader at Congregation Bnai Keshet in New Jersey and one of the handful of deaf rabbis in the world; members of ELCA's DAYLE program where Definitely Abled Youth unite at the 40,00 strong triennial Evangelical Lutheran youth gathering; Rev. Beth Lockard, the pastor of Christ the King Deaf Church; and Brandon Kaplan, a severely disabled boy with limited sigh and speech who recently had the privilege of becoming a Bar Mitzvah...

... ABC  stations nationwide will begin airing the program December 6, 2009 as a part of ABC's Vision and Values series, a presentation of the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission. Check your local station for times. 

>>>For More Information or To watch the trailer

>>>For A Listing of Stations and Times