ACCESS SUNDAY "Not everybody has a minister like Diana," said 13-year-old Scott Pigsley of Lincoln, NE. "Things like this tell other wheelchair-users we won't banish you from our church." "This" was Northeast UCC's calling an interim minister with post-polio syndrome. "This" meant rearranging chancel space to accept a replacement ramp that honors the decade-old Americans with Disabilities Act code of no more than one inch of height per foot of run. It frees Scott, who has spina bifida, to light candles with friends. It invites Diana Coberly into the chancel. Five General Synod Disabilities Ministries Resolutions since 1977, including "The Calling of Clergy with Disabilities" (1999 GS), have nudged older churches to erase physical and attitudinal barriers. Robert Wandel, UCC Fellowship of Architects moderator said, "The issue of opening chancels goes beyond voluntary compliance with public access laws to how churches design for inclusion. Inclusion is a Christian question for churches to address." Creative changes at 140-member First Congregational of Alameda tamed eleven levels of the California landmark without disturbing its integrity. Century-old St. Mary's UCC in Westminster, MD, converted a closet to bypass a step, rail, three-step chancel. As at Northeast, trustee Bill Enright's ramp for the wedding of a wheelchair-using member parallels the right chancel arm of Central Congregational in Dallas. "A ramp is an up-front commitment," Minnesota minister Robert Baggott said. "The deeper commitment is accessibility of the soul." Rather than underscore differences that remind temporarily able-bodied persons of their vulnerability, he said a ramp strengthens human connections. "A congregation sees your disability, so we make changes to create a space physically possible for you. We look beyond your challenge to celebrate what is possible with you." God saw beyond Moses' disabilities to call him to lead. Moses' rebuttal, "O my Lord, please send someone else," once couched most churches' response when asked to consider physically-challenged clergy. Now, some hear God's promise, "Go, I will teach you what you shall do....You shall serve" (Exodus 4:1-13). Ongoing commitment to social justice defines the United Church of Gainesville, FL. An informed accessibility committee was key to the architecturally integrated ramp that sheaths its three, broad chancel steps. "This middle class congregation struggles to balance budget," said Pastor Larry Reimer, "yet meets access needs members bring." The 220-member Lazarus UCC, Lineboro, MD, wanted to incorporate five bell and voice choirs into its 1908-built chancel. After six years, the committee overcame seating, faulty underpinning, and flexible-use obstacles to generate a unique, three-level area that offers wheelchair-using families abundant space for reading Scripture or ringing choir bells. Member gifts plus a Development Commission Grant from the Catoctin Association funded the renovation. The aim of calling clergy with disabilities, said Coberly, is to reap the benefits of the minister's abilities. "The change which allows persons with disabilities to participate fully in the life of a church happens only once it is in people's hearts." A minister with disabilities who has served UCC churches since 1969, the Rev. Dr. Dallas Brauninger is a Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries Task Force member.

A Nebraska Conference RECORD focus issue about Disabilities Ministries This issue of The Nebraska RECORD shares delightful stories about tangible and architectural changes reported recently by United Churches of Christ from Omaha to Chadron and Lincoln to Ogallala. These stories -- set in larger, 12-point type – tell of changes which vary in levels of magnitude, yet they all have equal weight. They are concrete evidence of attitudinal change. In 30 years of ministry in our conference, I have observed a heartening maturation of attitude toward persons who live with disabilities. This movement has progressed from viewing disability as an item of pity/compassion to perceiving the inclusion of everyone as a matter of justice/compassion. Our attitudes finally are beginning to progress from "doing something for the unfortunate person I am grateful that I am not, yet fear I might become" to increasing recognition in our hearts of the rightness of removing whatever physical or attitudinal barrier still impedes full inclusion in the life of the church. We have begun to grow together toward a gradual recasting of personal or societal attitudes that shut off rather than welcome, to turn from perceiving persons with disabilities as separate from and different. Although we may notice a visible disability first when we meet a person, we are getting better about viewing that characteristic as only one part of an identity. We also notice and validate other unique gifts and talents. Those of us with disabilities have begun to feel better about ourselves. I have grown from a sense of being broken and inferior to the rejoicing of wholeness and validity as one of God's servants. Not like the attitudes of my parents' generation. My mother as a young, newly married nurse was engaged to "take care of" her blind grandmother who was closeted in an upstairs room. I find the shalom of refusal to be closeted anywhere! This special focus issue of The Nebraska RECORD fulfills my final responsibility for the Disabilities Ministries in the Nebraska Conference. I will continue as a member of the UCC Disabilities Ministries Executive Board and its website editor. Located at www.uccdm.org, this interactive web site offers resources, education, advocacy, and networking opportunities for churches and persons in the disabilities ministries community. Memorial Gift Opens a Door "After the death of their mother, a family wanted to offer a unique memorial," said the Rev. Lauran Heidenreich, pastor of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Ogallala. They thought about a church member who has used a wheelchair since an early age. "We know that you are fully accessible once you get inside the church," they said, "but we want to give you an automatic door so you can come and go on your own." The original door was glass for visibility and of adequate width; but, said the pastor, "somebody has to hold the door while another person pushes in the wheelchair. Now she will have the freedom of doing it all herself." "All the door needed was the addition of the automatic door opener," said Guy Bechtel, the church's buildings and grounds person. "The opener will be programmed to slowly open up. It will stay open long enough for a person to enter, and then close automatically." The $1,700 device is wireless with a box installed in the entryway. Persons hit it, triggering the door to swing open. Should the door prove to be too narrow in the future, several inches of wall glass can be removed for a wider door. "Guy and the family worked together," the pastor said. "They decided the northeast door would be preferable to the front doors." Additionally, the doorway is set in about 2-1/2 feet to protect against blasts of Nebraska wind. Changes for the Family "One of the biggest changes in our church is the hymns," said Eleanor Swanson, member of First Central Congregational UCC Omaha. "The person who brings me to church comes early to choir practice. While she practices, I reread the hymns and Psalm with my magnifier. I can then keep up with the congregation." Within three weeks after losing her sight, Eleanor moved to the independent living side of the retirement center. Her church family also wasted no time adapting. They made certain that she could participate in worship. They had been offering large print bulletins for persons with visual needs but now also enlarge the Psalter and hymns. They also assured that her worship attendance was uninterrupted. Anyone needing a ride phones the member in charge of drivers." One driver also plans church dinners," Eleanor said, "so I provide a needed vegetable, something I can do. She is widowed. We have become a pair." If her daughter is unavailable, Margaret Engstrom also appreciates a driver. "I use a walker now," she said. "I try to get to church every Sunday." As the older building is not easily navigated, during the week her daughter goes to the parking lot ramp. First Central recently added the north entry ramp to meet code for its incoming daycare. "It has also made the lower level more accessible for office volunteers," said Sara Sharpe, church office manager. "It has eased my worries about someone falling down the steep stairs to the church office." Margaret, Sara's eldest volunteer at 91, said, "I work at the church on Monday mornings 9-12, answering phones and doing little things for Sara and the Christian Ed. lady." The next day, she and two others count the offering. "It keeps my mind sharper and I enjoy doing it," she said. "When someone needs help, you find a way. I think of our church as family," Sara said. "It's just a matter of doing for the congregation what you would do for family." Becoming a Fully Accessible Church "How many have trouble hearing?" was asked at an all-church meeting of Lincoln, Northeast. "All these hands raised and heads nodded," relates Northeast member Lois Poppe. Ever since the late '60s construction of their fellowship hall, people had complained about its poor acoustics. Concerns about those poor acoustics plus the need to make the church school rooms on the lower level accessible to everyone led to the creation of a Refurbishment and Accessibility Committee (RAC), which reviewed needed accessibility changes then presented options to the congregation for a decision on how to solve those problems. At first, the Moderator felt these changes could be accomplished through regular boards. Lois commented that Boards were to busy to assume this additional responsibility. According to Janet Domeier, RAC chair, it all started three years ago at another annual church meeting. As each board reported, each had a list that included capital improvement. For years, "we ought to" discussion continued about not being truly lower level accessible. Teachers adjusted classrooms so that a youth who uses a wheelchair could have class on the main level. The Moderator agreed to serve on RAC along with the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees and several other committed church members. It took about a year for the committee to gather information and cost estimates. With congregational feedback, they stockpiled, studied and discussed possibilities. "Because we were thorough, the congregation gave its approval," said Lois, the committee recorder. The committee contacted a Lincoln architect who presented designs in November. "We were successful in obtaining a loan for just under $250,000 for the addition and an elevator." This last year at the church's annual meeting, the congregation decided to proceed in stages. Phase one focused on smaller items. Informational meetings with the congregation and information in every newsletter resulted in membership consensus. After design approval, the church raised enough funds for phase one. Following acoustical analysis, the church installed acoustical wall panels in the Fellowship Hall which hosts Sunday coffee. At a recent anniversary gathering, people noticed a significant reduction of reverberation of voices and improvement in hearing. The panels also soften the room. They are also a great way to display posters, Janet said. "You can poke as many holes in them as you want." Phase one also included a lighted church sign, replacing the wooden sign that was difficult to read. Last August, the congregation approved completed designs for an addition, phase two. "As you go along, you celebrate," Janet said. Now, on to more capital fundraising. Second phase improvements include an enhanced sanctuary sound system; increased accessible front and side parking; blinds and shades in the fellowship hall; an elevator; and lower level accessible restrooms. The initial elevator struggle point, Janet said, was the cost. Most continued to perceive that it was only for somebody using a wheelchair. In the committee's last presentation before the August vote, she detailed how the elevator entry would look. "Persons have an immediate option. The elevator is right there," she said. "It is for everyone. Those carrying equipment or someone who is weary that day will use it. We have many aging people in our church. Hopefully we broke through that with them," she said. "We chose an elevator that is more like the commercial one without the extra doors. Just push a button and it goes." Also authorized and to be completed after the addition construction are new entrance doors and exterior lighting as well as bids for additional parking lot lighting. A modest 2006 grant from the Nebraska-Disabilities Ministries Board will apply toward the $1,200 inside signage. What's In Your Church's Closet? "Our congregation may not realize it has made so many positive, inclusive changes," said Cheryl Cassiday, a member of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Chadron. Thanks to people like retiree Boyd Roberts, who spearheaded several projects, the church is living up to its designation of being fully accessible to aging persons and persons with disabilities. Boyd, a former electrical contractor, said that old fixtures were not giving off much light. New quartz lights save little on cost or energy output, they do produce a sharper, brighter light than regular incandescent bulbs. Each new hanging fixture contains three 100-watt quartz bulbs, replacing the older lamps with two 150-watt bulbs. A section of pews was removed to allow persons using wheelchairs to sit farther forward without having to sit in the aisle. "With the pew cut-out," said Kathy Rapp, "I do not sit out in the aisle, preventing anything from occurring." She said the cut-out is also convenient for persons who use a walker as they can sit in the pew with the walker near by. All three exterior doors are now wheelchair accessible. While entry into the main floor holds no difficulty for persons with mobility needs, the lower level was once off-limits to some. The older lift installed in early 1980s was too small for the newer power vehicles. Boyd scoured the church an engineer. They located a closet, a built-in cupboard. In the basement, they would cut a hole through the wall that goes out into the fellowship hall. Boyd chaired the project. He put together the cost, went to the congregation for agreement, putting together the cost estimates with members doing the work themselves. In a few months after receiving church agreement and the start of the project, $15,000 came in as donations. The church added the other half from savings. "You have to have a little faith," he said about undertaking a major project. "It helps to start doing it. People like to see something happen. Then they get excited about it." One Youth + One Retiree = A Request Honored When Christopher Cassiday learned that the funding had collapsed for his proposed Eagle Scout project, a letter came to the church council at First Congregational UCC, Chadron. Getting in the front door for worship was easy for everyone. However, it was impossible for persons with wheelchairs to use either bathroom. How about updating the women's bathroom? Chris took on the project. The goal was to provide a usable turning radius within the stall itself as well as to make the bathroom entry accessible to persons using a larger, powered vehicle. "We knew the church would be willing to fund it," he said, "and we knew people with expertise would help." Now a first-year student at Doane College, Chris said, "We widened the doorway to make the stall larger, replaced the doorknob with a lever handle, removed the privacy partition and one stool, and installed the new stall system." Both of Chris' parents were involved in the project. His mom helped with the design and obtained a higher commode from the hospital. His dad did hands-on work. Boyd Roberts, Chris' mentor, worked by his side. "Boyd's expertise," Chris said, "was invaluable. He made the project happen." The result is a rectangular-shaped bathroom a little deeper than wide. "The only great change," Boyd said, "was to relocate the stall position. The newer, attractive sink offers plenty of leg room." He also covered hot water pipes with protective insulation. The men's bathroom is still waiting, but Chris knows another young man eligible for an Eagle Scout project. -db "Any Body, Everybody, Christ's Body" This section was written by Pam Cuttlers, member of the Nebraska Disabilities Ministries Committee. "Any Body, Everybody, Christ's Body" is the Accessible to All (A2A) workbook put together by Rev. Jo Clare Hartsig that is available to all from the UCC Disabilities Ministries. Jo Clare chairs the UCC DM and lives in Minnesota. This workbook can be downloaded from www.uccdm.org. It is full of excellent ideas to help churches provide hospitality and accessibility to all. The title "Any Body, Everybody, Christ's Body" shows the process in the workbook. Section One, "Any Body," explores the meaning of the actual flesh and blood body we each inhabit, our differences, our gifts, our laments, our anger, our sacred selves, and the ways we can ‘be good stewards of God’s varied grace.” "Everybody" includes ways to help congregations ‘practice hospitality ungrudgingly’ and offers a wide variety of ideas for churches to put this into practice. There are handouts for ushers, ideas for newsletters on how to write or speak about persons with disabilities, information for pastors, and multisensory worship ideas. "Christ's Body" focuses on “understanding the Body of Christ as a symbol of brokenness and healing, of interdependence and community.” This workbook is designed as a group process of reflection and action with readings and discussion for each section. It culminates in a church committing to be an A2A church. The disability rights movement's slogan is “Nothing about us without us” so please include people with disabilities in your study sessions. The Nebraska Disability Ministries Committee hopes all UCC congregations will become accessible to ALL! Reading the Signs is A Can-Do Forum about accessibility for the whole church family Special Focus Section,The Nebraska RECORD (Nebraska Conference United Church of Christ, Vol. XXIII, No. 1, Feb.-Mar. 2007) Written and edited by Dee Brauninger

"Everybody has a right to learn through their eyes or their ears," Robyn Weber said. "I am here as a tool to help one person understand." "Today, I knew what was happening. It was like a Thanksgiving song," Sherryl Yokel's voice greeted her pastor. Later, Mrs. Yokel added, "I feel more comfortable in church now. I understand the choir's songs and what Bob says." "It is a lot different for us, really a great feeling, to talk together about the sermon," husband William said. "Sherryl never had that opportunity to hear and understand." Mr. Yokel, then chair of the diaconate at the United Church of Christ in Friend, arranged for the interpreting. "Robyn was so excited when the diaconate and church council said it was a `Go,"' he said. "It is wonderful to have a person give up her hour twice a month to come to another church to interpret." "Everybody has a right to learn through their eyes or their ears," Robyn Weber said. "I am here as a tool to help one person understand." An employee of a Friend day care center, Mrs. Weber gained interpreting certification through The Nebraska Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. She began formal classes in American Sign Language three years ago after becoming the only remaining family member who could sign for a relative. Last summer, at a workshop on worship signing sponsored by NCDHH and Lincoln Association for Sign Language Professionals, she recognized her second calling. Weber uses Elaine Costello's Religious Signing (Bantam Books, 1986) to study choral music during weekly choir practices and before interpreting the sermon and other worship material the pastor gives her beforehand. At first, the Rev. Robert Brauninger said he watched her interpret. "Now, I concentrate on making my points succinct. I let her do her work while I do mine." "Children's time is one of my fun times," Weber said. "I put a little more expression into it because it is spontaneous, and Sherryl and Will get to hear their two-year-old's comments." Warmed by a newly found empathy, members of the congregation enjoy the two mothers' informal finger chats during the hymns. Robyn uses this rest break for Sherryl's questions. Sometimes they slip in "mom talk" about their children. (For interpreting classes offered in the Lincoln area, at UN-0 and Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, or for Distance Learning Classes, contact NCDHH at 402-471-3593. - db Published with the permission of Sherryl and Will Yokel and with the blessing of the Nebraska Conference. Reading the Signs columns are edited by Dee Brauninger.

"Snapshots" of the Adventures In Community Camp, Outdoor Ministries shared by the Disciples of Christ and the United Church of Christ in Burwell, Nebraska. Camp chaplain, Rev. Bob Brauninger, admires the rapport between particularly challenging campers and companion camper Jeannette Blaser. "Jeannette is good at sensing the fine line between doing something for someone and knowing when they can do it for themselves." "Developmentally challenged persons do not come with a recipe card," the retired school teacher/superintendent from Columbus says. "We try this and we try that. Each one is special, a person first." She mentions a man from her cabin. "Neat as a pin. Everything had to be right. His parents had planned his life. By camp's end, he was really opening up. When I asked if he was coming back, he said, `Are you going to be here?' I said, "Next year, try tubing.'" Bob appreciates the honesty of campers' feelings about themselves and the rest of the world. Despite all that has happened to them, most feel secure that God is, and that God is watching over them. Some lack verbal capacity to reflect on scripture, others can. All get involved with their own faith through cabin group conversation at devotions and vespers. He admires the tenacity of campers despite the challenges confronting them, particularly when physical and developmental difficulties are combined. "Some have a hard time walking as well as a hard time figuring out what to do. Their determination often results in accomplishing what they set out to do." He prized the perseverance, understanding, and accepting attitude of one camper-very slow to form his thoughts. When he was ready, people listened and respected him. "Through the years as his physical challenges increased, I learned to understand their power. As much as we both wanted him to participate, we had to find a more comfortable participation level. Once, I asked what in his life allows him to just get up and keep going after each time he falls? He said, "God walks with me. I'll just keep going and be all right."' Judie Luther, Conference/Regional Minister for Outdoor and Youth Ministries, sees AIC challenging campers to walk and do out-of-doors things they normally would not do - tubing, canoeing, time with farm animals. A camper who manages the task of eating feels much better than if someone else assumes that she needs assistance and takes over for her. Another, who cannot speak clearly, is invited to share what is on his mind. He appreciates and grows from that. The camp dance gives some who stumble when walking another chance at self-expression. Joyful in the love campers have for the camp, each other, and the leadership, Judie also recognizes AIC as a fine alternative camping opportunity for companions who give something of themselves. Campers range in age from 18 to 70 and can manage personal needs. About 75 are returnees. "Their able-bodied, companion campers need not be athletic," Judie says: "Older high school student aids; university students from developmental classes, and retirees, some in their early 70s, find themselves patient companions who are interested in understanding what this person is all about and what that person's challenges are." For art show entries or questions, contact Dee. Please inform her about artwork, poetry, sculpture, or a reflective paragraph from anyone acquainted with disabilities. Entries will be considered for an Annual Meeting display that will increase awareness and understanding. - db Reading the Signs columns are Can-do Forums about accessibility for the whole church family shared by the Nebraska Conference for your use.

The other day, as my dog guide and I walked to the mail drop box, we passed three playing children. One piped up, "Are you the blind lady?" Ignoring an older girl's attempt to shush him, I said, "Yes, I'm blind, and I'm left-handed, too." "So am I," another child said. We discovered that in our little gathering were two left-handers, two right-handers, and one right-pawed. Naturally curious, children are great models for being themselves among those with disabilities. Most people with disabilities will not mind answering a child's question. Children scolded by a parent for asking or a parent's apologizing for children or moving them away from a person with a disability can make children think there is something "bad" or wrong about having a disability. It can also teach children that something is bad about themselves being curious. Sometimes, a parent or adult friend can bridge a conversation, saying "We were wondering about that tool you are wearing on your hand." 1. Remember that people with disabilities are people first like anyone else. The disability is only one part of who the person is. The rest of the conversation will take care of itself. Besides, you will avoid the embarrassing pause while puzzling about current "politically correct" words. Just use ordinary language, rather than stumble for other words to compensate for "see" or "hear." 2. When welcoming a person at church, shake whatever the person offers: a hand, foot, prosthesis, or hook. It is the greeting and contact that count. 3. When starting a conversation with a person with severe loss vision, speak the person's name as a clue to whom the conversation is directed. Identify not only yourself, but also any others with you. 4. Relax. If you do not know what to do or say, allow the person who has a disability to help put you at ease. Explore mutual interests in friendly ways. The person likely has many interests besides those connected with the disability. 5. Give whole, unhurried attention to the person who has difficulty speaking. Keep your manner encouraging rather than ~correcting. Rather than talk for the person, give help when needed. When necessary, ask questions that require short answers, a nod, or a shake of the head. 6. If a person uses a wheelchair, sit down, if possible, so that you are both at eye level. 7. Speak clearly and slowly to the person who has a hearing impairment or other problem in understanding. To make it easier for the person to read your lips, face the person, keep your hands away from your mouth, and speak normally. Remember that people who are deaf count on facial expressions and gestures for communication. 8. Treat adults as adults. Call the person by first name only when the familiarity is extended to all others present. Your welcoming suggestions are always welcome. Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Burwell, Nebraska

All three of us, each with a unique ministry, have been accepted here for who we are "inside." My heart rejoices in this gift from a generous God to be sent to this church. From individuals' matching-plus of the Disabilities Ministries grant that began Kamp Kaleo's concrete sidewalks (see earlier Record), to our Interim Conference Minister's making available "The Accessibility Audit," to the hiring of another clergy person with a disability, it has been a good year for the church's recognition of the value and wholeness of all persons. Second Note: Keep your eyes open for our own Rev. Nancy Erickson's week of meditations in the latest These Days. Now, how about a couple dog stories? If you have not considered calling a pastor who happens to have a disability, you might be missing quite a bit. The first communion by intinction that Bob and I offered at our Burwell parish was also a first for Leader Dog Treasure to observe. Not to worry. I trusted him to stay in his "don't move a muscle, sleep-during-church position" beside my chancel chair until hearing my "Come" after the benediction. All went well as Bob and I proceeded to the base of the steps with the elements. Then Bob issued the invitation to the congregation, "Come, for all things are ready." One by one, the people came through the line. There Treasure, my guide dog, was among them ready to partake, having discreetly descended the side stairs. My hands were too full of communion bread, my tongue was too busy with communion words, and my voice was too microphoned to utter anything untactful; Treasure won. Of course, when we returned to the chancel, Treasure was too busy vacuuming the crumbs to follow. Is that biblical? Then, at the First Advent with the pungent evergreen next to the chancel, I was at the lectern when Treasure again left his "Stay" position. He crossed the chancel to Bob, another first. After my quiet word, Treasure returned to his spot. I resumed my work. Treasure took off again. Again, this obedient dog guide headed as discreetly as possible down the side steps. He walked directly to a friend in the congregation. "Will you please get me out of here? I can't breathe, and Bob and Dee aren't available." I immediately re-titled the children's meditation, "Integrity and Doing What You Must," and my allergic dog spent the rest of Advent in comfort at the rear of the sanctuary beside a delighted church member. All three of us, each with a unique ministry, have been accepted here for who we are "inside." My heart rejoices in this gift from a generous God to be sent to this particular congregation for God's particular reasons. Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Burwell, Nebraska

Sometimes it takes awhile for the hyphen to disappear. Two words expressing a unit idea first accept a hyphen then release it to form a compound word. Basket and ball were once separate words that became basket-ball, then basketball. At a wedding dinner, the curiosity of a young boy prompted him to pull up a chair. He was full of wanting to hear about my dog guide, I thought. After some dog talk, he paused. "Then, you're not afraid of the dark," he said with the relieved voice of one who might be. "I'm not afraid of the dark with Leader Dog Treasure," I said, Both of us knew we had gotten rid of the hyphen, and he went off with a friend. Later, wanting to confirm my gate number at an airport, I heard a man at the gate opposite mine and crossed the hall. Learning that my gate was #4 rather than #6, I started the short backtrack. Ordinarily when someone offers to assist me, my independence rules. For some reason, I let the man accompany me. He said, "My daughter is visually impaired." Then he left. Minutes later, he returned with his daughter. We had a hyphen, the beginning of a bond. The third grader was curious about Treasure. However, when the dad said an inoperable benign tumor pressing on her optic nerve will steal her sight, general dog talk turned to tool-specific. I began telling her that after becoming skilled at mobility cane travel, she will be ready for a dog guide. Her father interrupted again. Cane travel lessons, scheduled to begin soon, had been postponed after her doctor saw slight improvement in one eye. Prompted to tell why her sight had improved, she said she asked God to make her eyes better. I remembered her prognosis. I remembered my angry childhood struggle when similar prayers proved futile. How could I best tell this third grader that she and God need to be on friendly terms for the journey? Despite her hesitant celebration, she heard. "If some day your eyes cannot improve, it does not mean God is mad or does not like you," I said. "It just happened, that's all." Something changed in the child's voice. The hyphen that also separates one person from another at the level of soul had disappeared. "Then," I continued, "you just change your prayer. You ask God to help you find another way of doing what you want to do." We have the opportunity, especially in our churches, to form hyphenated, embryonic relationships with others who are different from us. Sometimes, when we dare to connect at the level of soul, we find that kinship has emerged. Having dropped the attitudinal hyphen, we understand why we were brought together in the first place. Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Burwell, Nebraska

A Reading the Signs column . . . A Can-do Forum about accessibility for the whole church family. By guest writer, the Rev. Ross Tyler, Vine Congregational Church, UCC, Lincoln, NE To have an elevator from the lower church school classrooms level, to the south entry atrium level, and up to the sanctuary/narthex/church office level was the dream of the planning committee for Vine Congregational Church UCC in 1989. An elevator shaft completed as a part of the new construction proved too small for equipment outlined by new state ADA requirements. The fund drive fell short for purchase of the original equipment ($43,000). Momentum died. The barriers were unresolved for some eight years. In those intervening years, several uniquely gifted adults struggled around the barriers to total access by parking behind the church for entry at the same level of the narthex and sanctuary. They gained access to lower classrooms by going outside and around to east entry doors by way of the parking lot and connecting drive ramp (weather permitting or not). Shane and Pam Cuttlers joined Vine in 1993. In 1996, they were blessed with the birth of their daughter Morgan, a bright eyed, curly blond youngster who steals your heart with a quick smile and wrinkling nose. The church and her parents quickly realized that Morgan would teach them the skills necessary to care for someone with glutaric aciduria, a condition affecting the body's ability to process protein. For Morgan, this means weak muscle control and involuntary movements. Carrying Morgan and her stroller up and down stairs while she was small was an easy, loving task. As she required larger conveyances, this became harder and even dangerous. Because Shane is a Lincoln firefighter, Pam often needed others to help with the wheelchair or she wheeled Morgan outside to get to the lower level church school. Church folk as well as visitors became aware of the absolute need for a vertical lift for this spirited child. The purchase of an Access Industries Porch Lift, model PLS-144 ($24,970) With added shaft preparation and other material expenses ($1,925) was proposed at the Congregational Annual Meeting on.February 17, 2002. Following a unanimous vote, gifts of more than S30,000 came in, including substantial donations from Clark Hoover General Contractors of in-kind labor. Other generous cash donations by members raised more than $15,000 before the end of the meeting! Following the worship service on September 15, 2002, the congregation gathered so that Pastor Ross, Morgan and Pam Cuttlers could formally dedicate the new elevator lift. Morgan had already been using it as well as other summer guests since its state approval in June. The church is deeply grateful to God, to its exceptionally generous members and friends, and to those special individuals whose vision and tenacity have truly lifted the spirit of equal access for all! You can contact Ross Tyler at or call 402.483.4781. This column may be reproduced.

A Reading the Signs column I no longer recall which came first, the fall on an icy sidewalk that necessitated a lesson for Treasure in how to dog guide a walker-using partner or the timely Christmas letter from Rachel Scott. My friend of years is a retired nurse/instructor in gerontology who has mastered the graceful art of using a wheelchair. She included the following "dashed off" list of guidelines for adding a little grace to our own welcoming of persons with wheelchairs into our churches and at home or care center visits. True to the manner in which Rachel approaches all people, each "Commandment" says, "See the person first." 1. You shall always respect the dignity and individuality of the person in a wheelchair as you do your own. 2. You shall remember that control over one's own life is very precious, so that you will not do for wheelchair users what they can do for themselves, even if it takes them longer. 3. You shall take care not to bump wheelchair wheels, remembering that a small bump to you may feel like a small earthquake to the person in the wheelchair. 4. You shall remember that unexpected movements of a wheelchair can be quite startling, so that you will always ask the user's permission before moving a wheelchair. 5. You shall remember that the person in a wheelchair may find it hard to look behind, so you will come around within the person's visual range before speaking or touching them. 6. You shall not assume that the person using a wheelchair is also hard of hearing, and shall speak in a normal volume. 7. You shall assume till you discover otherwise, that a person in a wheelchair has interests as broad as anyone else's, and shall converse accordingly, including not talking with others over the wheelchair user's head. 8. You shall be aware that conversing at the same level as the person using a wheelchair, by sitting or kneeling for all but brief exchanges, is more comfortable for the wheelchair user, and will be much appreciated. 9. You shall ask the user's preference before wheeling a wheelchair backwards. 10. You shall take care to place objects within easy reach, as a person using a wheelchair may not be able to reach as far as you. As you practice these commandments, your wheelchair-using friends will call you blessed! Thanks, Rachel. Used with the permission of the Nebraska Conference UCC

A Reading the Signs column written by Jo Ackerman, Pastor at Clay Center, NE When I have complained to others about my failing eye sight and how frustrated I am with cooking directions that are printed in the smallest of type on the "side" of the box or the struggle to read information that is printed with black ink on red paper, I get comments of agreement and learn that others also have this frustration. In the privacy of home, we who are in this fog of different stages of changes to our eyes, resort to using a variety of tools like extra strength reading and magnifying glasses to assist us in our plight. The problems surrounding failing eye sight are often connected with aging and the onset of cataracts. Fortunately, many of these problems can be dealt with by our eye doctors, but there is still a percentage of us needing some assistance in seeing until we get further help. Facing eyesight problems in public is even harder. Most of us hate to admit we are having a hard time a reading menu or our church bulletin at worship. Colorful paper can make the problem worse. Red Christmas letters and programs, purple Lenten bulletins, make seeing printed material more difficult. When Thomas asked Jesus to see the wounds suffered in Christ's crucifixion, he only wanted to see what the others had been shown. Christ knew that there were only a few who would see what those first witnesses saw when they were in Christ's presence. He also blessed those who would believe in him even if they had not been witnesses. There are some simple solutions to help those who are struggling to see what others see when they take part in worship or receive newsletters and other communications from the church. Large print bulletins can be enlarged on a copier with enough copies so other members of the congregation may use them and those who need the help will not be singled out. We can avoid printing on dark papers and work toward proper lighting in our sanctuaries and meeting rooms. We can take a que from advertising about designing printed copy: "Legibility is the most important rule." Remember this when choosing fonts on your computer. Watch for those fonts that might be harder to read. We can be of help to those in our congregations who struggle to read our printed materials by caring enough to make some small changes. Do you see what I mean? Reprinted by permission of the Nebraska Conference UCC and to be used in your newsletter.

By Jo Ackerman, Pastor of Clay Center, Nebraska The Nebraska Conference is proud of its churches that are making an effort to be accessible to all of God's people. The term "accessible," as used in many of our churches, means being able to gain entrance to the building. Some churches have constructed ramps and installed elevators; others consider a rear entrance sufficient. Even with these assists there may be hidden barriers. A doorknob that is unable to be grasped by arthritic hands or a heavy door that cannot be pulled open can be a huge problem for someone using a wheelchair, crutches, or a walker. Many persons who deal with disabilities have learned to be independent. Assistance is not always available at all times. Doorways that may appear wide enough to navigate in a wheelchair may be as little as an inch or half inch too narrow for easy passage. Restroom doorways and stalls are often impossible. Providing access to our meeting places and offering a welcome that allows persons to feel welcomed into our gatherings, whether in the pews in worship, the availability of restrooms, or an easy entrance and exit, means we care and we are listening to God when our Creator asks us to welcome everyone to God's table as part of the whole family. Doorknobs and yardsticks can be important tools to measure our accessibility to all. Jo Ackerman is a member of the Nebraska Conference UCC DM Board which is the source of the Reading the Signs columns for use in conference and local church newsletters. Reprinted by permission.

The second Sunday of October, Access Sunday, launches Disabilities Awareness Week. Consider incorporating into worship this blessing of tools that bring fullness of life to individuals and your church. Hint: Mention the blessing in newsletter and church so folk can determine what objects, architectural changes, and other devices bring them freedom. Home/work examples: jar lid popper, speech access computer, half-steps, support cane, walker, full spectrum light bulbs, reader, driver, usable hearing device, trifocals, lightweight dishes, electric wheelchair, new computer program, powered implement, levered door handles, reorganized work space. Church: improved sound system, pew cutouts, eliminating chancel step(s), 14-point bulletins/newsletters, large type hymnal, automatic doors, wheelchair-accessible bathroom, welcoming attitude. Invite worshipers to bring tools for blessing. Materials: Index cards, pew pencils, chancel table for candles, varisized candles in holders on side tables, 2 acolytes, ushers with card baskets, 2 card readers with microphones stationed in sanctuary. BLESSING OF LIFE-GIVING TOOLS Texts: "Choose life..." (Deuteronomy 30:19b). Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" John 10:10b. Hymn of Thanking: "Great Is Your Faithfulness" or "Now Thank We All Our God" Naming Tools Leader: Let us name the tools that offer fuller life at church, home, and work. We recognize these tools as evidence of God's presence. Think about expected and unexpected challenges and the life-giving ways you or this church has met them. List them. Hymn of Reflecting (Sung during card collection): "How Deep the Silence of the Soul," "We Yearn, O Christ, For Wholeness," or "I Would Be True" Leader: By naming, we acknowledge and honor these tools. Hear now those that bring light into our lives. (Readers read several cards with pauses as acolytes place a candle for each on table and light it. Work from center outward leaving room for cards. When naming is finished, readers place cards on table.) Consecrating Tools Leader: Ever-creating God, we accept these empowering tools as signs of your compassion. People: No tool is too small or costly that draws its user into fuller life. Leader: These gifts symbolize that all people are acceptable and meant to live. People: When spirits soar with new possibility, God, a surge of energy swooshes like an eagle entering flight. Leader: Let those bringing tools come for blessing. (Speak as leader places hands on each tool and person:) Leader: Bless this life-giving tool and the one who uses it. All: Thank you, God, for wholeness of being. Amen. Hymn of Launching: "Help Us Accept Each Other" or "Called As Partners In Christ's Service" Prayer: Gracious God, in holy partnership with your hope, let us continue to open doors in our lives and in this place with whatever helps answer challenge and life-change with hope. When shortness of funds, courage or tenacity causes stumbling, remind us of networking and shared effort. When tangled mats of impossibility exhaust our spirit, refresh the vigor of our resourcefulness. Through Christ. Amen. Reading the Signs columns, written or edited by db, are reprinted with permission from the Nebraska Conference Nebraska Record and are to be used freely.

What inspires a flock of geese to shape a V or a church to focus its energy? "The greatest thing is a matter of dignity," said Wayne Heathers, member of First Congregational Church UCC of Curtis, NE. "You might not understand that, if you have never been shut out from something." He chaired the five-member committee after his church's self-evaluation four years' ago revealed better access as its highest goal. A lift suited their resources and building better than an elevator. The architect preserved the facade of the beautiful, old style brick building. With an accommodating bid from Omaha-based Access Elevators, they acted. Supporting 750 pounds, the street level entry lift carries people to the sanctuary upstairs and the basement fellowship area. Thrift shop and quilting proceeds pooled with general funds to provide the $38,000. "Even if things seem slow, don't quit," Mr. Heathers counseled. "Just keep bringing [your project] up until all the geese are flying together in the same direction, and you can get somewhere." "Two members now can get into the sanctuary and attend worship regularly," their minister said. "Before, they and others in town could not attend funerals of friends or participate in community services." Leon Banzhaf had arrived last March prior to the project's spring forward. "Without handicapped accessibility, the church had a good chance of dying," he said. "I hope this lift gives to the community a message of love and welcome to all people." The church has gained a new image in the community and a renewed self-image. Suzanne Harland, youngest church member, said members had accepted that it is okay to be a church primarily for older retired people. However after four months of use, more and more people are using the lift. One brought a friend with a lame hip. A young woman who had been in a bad wreck had never gone to any church before. A few years ago there was only one man, now there are seven. A couple young families have raised attendance to 25. Donations to recoup lift money are fueling the current fund drive. Still, Mrs. Harland said, the greatest impact of the lift is on those who attend church. Every Sunday, the congregation goes downstairs after church to eat breakfast together. "There's sweet rolls, and cheese and crackers for diabetics. We set the service earlier so we can spend a little time together. We have been friends for so long as a congregation. That makes you close." The Nebraska Conference Disabilties Ministries Task Force has observed through other conferences that, after receiving seed money, members who had none for access modifications in their smaller churches also started giving abundantly. We, therefore, offer the Smaller Church Accessibility Projects Grant. This modest grant (up to $500 this year depending upon the number of applicants) will be awarded at fall association meetings to recipient churches for designing access or actual access modification. For information or an application, contact the Revs. Jeanne Tyler, Nancy Erickson, or Dee Brauninger. Applications also are available at the Conference Office. Please share with us ways that your church has funded accessibility projects. Reading the Signs columns are printed with permission of the Nebraska Conference and are for sharing in other conference and local church newsletters as a tool of inclusion.

Lincoln, Nebraska's Northeast Community Church views things differently because of Scott Pigsley and Diana Coberly. Scott, 13-year-old son of Gina and Jerry Pigsley, knows God sees the person inside his body with spina bifida. "When God looks at me, God looks over that I'm in a wheelchair and sees a normal person." Scott says of Diana, "Not everybody has a minister who gets around in a wheelchair. The first time I met Diana, I felt happy. We both have a person who knows what we go through. It (her ministry) says people can do whatever they want to do." Northeast's first chancel ramp had allowed Scott to light candles with his friends, but he needed a push from his dad. The present ramp, built after the minister's arrival, follows proper incline code. "It's a pretty caring church," he said. "Now Diane and I are thinking about getting downstairs. Things like this tell people in wheelchairs that we won't banish you from our church if you come in." "Diana is a role model," Jerry Pigsley said of the woman whose interim ends in July, "a godsend in that this was my son's confirmation year, so their relationship is even more embellished. Clergy with disabilities have much to share on a spiritual basis. Diana has broken many disability stereotypes." As access committee member, Pigsley has seen his church "expand in spirit to look beyond chair and disability." However, he said, resolving the puzzles of making a church fully welcoming takes time. Joe Geist, moderator when the interim began, said his church is more in tune now that Northeast must continue to increase accessibility, "not by law but from the human aspect. People like Diana have so much to offer that to overlook that gift because you are not ready to provide the necessary things...." Necessary things include chancel ramp, accessible main floor bathrooms, minimal close-in parking, and removal of the front door offset. Trustees are checking into expanded parking, electric door openers, and lower level accessibility. All members will benefit. Resources, such as statewide Barrier Removal and Information Centers (800-742-7338) or Lincoln architect Lynne Jones, from the UCC group of Fellowship of Architects committed to accessibility (402-476-9700) are available for free onsite consultation. Stewardship Committee Chair Nancy Harms said the church set aside a fund for accessibility issues. She said she has grown in tolerance and awareness of things she once took for granted. "I hope people in this church have learned that we would want for others what you would want for yourself." Diana Coberly said that several individuals at Northeast have changed forever because of her presence. "They may even speak up down the road and translate that into changes we will see in this church. Changing attitudinal habits takes time. I once took repeated insensitivity personally. Now I understand that the change which allows persons with disabilities to participate fully in the life of the church only happens once it is in people's hearts." In what ways does a person with a disability in your church, sometimes a clergy person with a disability, mentor to others in your church who live with a disability? This Reading the Signs column is printed with the permission of the Nebraska Conference. Please share the news in your conference or local church newsletter.

Bipolar Brain Disorder The genesis point of our religion is God's looking at each creature and seeing, first, that it is good. We also, as open, accepting churches, need not start with what is wrong with a person but from the beginning can choose to affirm what is right. "If more people educated themselves about mental illness, maybe they could understand it is an illness of the brain, not a character defect or something that I, or anyone else who suffers from it, can just stop whenever it is inconvenient," says Lincolnite Sheri Riley. Read Papolos' The Bipolar Child, Granet's Why Am I Up, Why Am I Down? and other nonfiction resources by Miklowitz, Mondimore, and Waltz. Explore the Nebraska chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill at http://www.nami.org. One to five percent of adult Americans live with bipolar disorder (BP), formerly manic-depressive disorder. Living with undependable mood swings of this brain disfunction is like being on a roller coaster at different speeds from time to time. "Tomorrow, am I going to be up, down, or even? You can't plan anything." Fixing BP takes time. Some medications bring unsettling side effects. Others, discomforted, either ignore you or try to do too much, said the advocate-coordinator of online support groups. One parent calls her daughter's BP "a brain chemical glitch. After all these years, we have learned acceptance. Her behavior is no reflection on us, or has anything to do with us, other than our genes. Our goal is to help her live a successful life with her Bipolar." Compassion helps another. "About half of all people are kind and 'think before they speak.' Others feel there has to be someone to blame. We're all charting foreign territory." A third adds, "We talk about it to people we trust and whom we know will be caring and accommodating." Riley appreciates worship services that acknowledge different gifts among individuals. It took her many years to see her complex illness as a gift bringing her empathy. "Helping others takes the focus off me. I want to make others happy, and in the process, maybe I can find peace with myself. In God's eyes, we are all unique. Look for the specialness of persons. Look beyond the illness at the whole person." Getting acquainted, share conversations about interests. The "Where do you work?" query is a tender subject, however, as many take so many medications they cannot afford to return to work. Someone to talk to and accept us for who we are, faults and all, is important. "There is already a negative label of being unaccepted within our own heads." Riley's practiced perseverance with constant emotional flux imparts new strength to the message of a church congregation whose attitude can remind us that God first says, "Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off" (Proverbs 23:18). Share with us what ways your church includes persons with serious brain disorders in the life of the congregation. Reading the Signs columns are reprinted from The Nebraska Record, and offered as a gift from the Nebraska Conference for other Conferences and local churches to share in their newsletters. Written by Dee Brauninger

A Reading the Signs column by Jeane Tyler "We have something to say. We want to be heard. Communication is what a church is about. A clergy person with communication challenges differs little from someone in the pew," says the Rev. Jeanne Tyler, who serves St. Paul's in Lincoln, NE with her husband John. Jeanne reflected recently about living with speech impairment and a 55 percent hearing loss resulting from cerebral palsy. Ordained for 20+ years, the member of national and conference level disabilities ministries committees said these losses are barriers. During worship, Jeanne moves closer to her congregation to hear announcements. "There is a difference between understanding what someone is saying," she said, "and hearing. I may hear the words, but I don't understand what they are." Neither do others understand her at times. Older sound systems that emphasize bass tones were designed by men for the male voice. "A good quality system with the mix of a good treble sound can amplify my voice to the best ability that it can be amplified. It is easier for people to hear. People don't have to strain both to hear and to understand." Jeanne says most people offer a patient attitude. As she does not recognize phone voices well, most callers introduce themselves. On the other hand, acquaintances readily identify her voice. She deposits positive feedback in the bank to draw on during lean times. "Otherwise, you can get pretty devastated," she said. "The expressions on faces also tell me that most people who are interested and open to my sermon content respond positively." She said anyone with differences struggles with self-image. Who am I? How does what I look like affect how I am seen? How does how I am seen affect who I am? Jeanne occasionally sees herself on video. "Then," she says, "I know how much my congregation accepts me: I walk differently, I talk a little differently, and I listen differently. Yet, people laugh when I tell funny stories. They look sad when I tell sad stories. They have the normal reactions to me, so I know I must be doing something right. I try to be as real as possible." She reflects that she is "a person with disabilities with gifts and abilities." Knowing she is not just a person with disabilities helps her to be a life-giving person. Among her gifts to her congregation is her capacity to listen attentively well to people. Jeanne has seen the people of their church grow in understanding that God is somebody who accepts and affirms us, that it is okay to have limitations, that there are limitations in the world that we cannot always change, that we learn to live with them. Her being, as well as her words, communicates a transformative faith that "announces life in the midst of death, change in the midst of fear, and love in the midst of apathy. This faith transforms fear of death, change, and lack of care into the power that the community can draw upon for strength. With this faith," Jeanne Tyler says, "we trust God." First call for artwork, poetry, sculpture, a reflective paragraph from anyone acquainted with disabilities. Entries will be considered for an Annual Meeting display that increases understanding. In what ways does your church include persons with hearing loss in the life of your church? Reprinted from The Nebraska Record, Reading the Signs columns are used by permission of the Nebraska Conference and shared with the hope that they will be used in other conference and local church newsletters to further disabilities ministries awareness.

From Reading The Signs . . . A can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family "Today, I knew what was happening. It was like a Thanksgiving song," Sherryl Yokel's voice greeted her pastor. Later, Mrs. Yokel added, "I feel more comfortable in church now. I understand the [choir's] songs and what Bob says." "It is a lot different for us, really a great feeling, to talk together about the sermon," husband William said. "Sherryl never had that opportunity to hear and understand." Mr. Yokel, then chair of the diaconate at the United Church of Christ in Friend, NE, arranged for the interpreting. "Robyn was so excited when the diaconate and church council said it was a 'Go,'" he said. "It is wonderful to have a person give up her hour twice a month to come to another church to interpret." "Everybody has a right to learn through their eyes or their ears," Robyn Weber said. "I am here as a tool to help one person understand." An employee of a Friend day care center, Mrs. Weber, a resident of Friend, gained interpreting certification through The Nebraska Commission For The Deaf And Hard Of Hearing. She began formal classes in American Sign Language several years ago after becoming the only remaining family member who could sign for a relative. Recently at a workshop on worship signing sponsored by NCDHH and Lincoln Association For Sign Language Professionals, she recognized her second calling. Weber uses Elaine Costello's Religious Signing (Bantam Books, 1986) to study choral music during weekly choir practices and before interpreting the sermon and other worship material the pastor gives her beforehand. At first, the Reverend Robert Brauninger said he watched her interpret. "Now, I concentrate on making my points succinct. I let her do her work while I do mine." "Children's time is one of my fun times," Weber said. I put a little more expression into it because it is spontaneous, and Sherryl and Will get to hear their two-year-old's comments." Warmed by a newly found empathy, members of the congregation enjoy the two mothers' informal finger chats during the hymns. Robyn uses this rest break for Sherryl's questions. Sometimes they slip in "mom talk" about their children. Reading the Signs columns, written by members of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries board, are offered for use by Conference and Local Church newsletters as an accessibility tool. Have you something to share that your inclusion committee, accessibility board, or inclusion coach has tried?

Growing Attitudes A man's curiosity won out as I waited for several mobility-cane users to enter the Services for the Visually Impaired (SVI) seminar. The man, just passing by, struck up a conversation with me. "Hello. Nice dog," the man commented. "Thanks," I replied. "I walked right by one of them:" (He was referring to the people entering the seminar). "They said, 'Hello' to me. How did they know I was there?" he questioned. My response was, "Your footsteps? Keys jiggling in your pocket? A sigh? The break in air current?" "Oh. Nice dog." "Thanks:' A surprising turnaround. The man felt invisible. Usually, invisibility is our response. We all want to count. When the former Nebraska Commission for the Hearing Impaired was renamed the Nebraska Commission for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing, I perked up. Gramma was hard-of-hearing. A friend prefers "deaf" to the euphemism, "hearing impaired." "But," I said, "we have to forget 'deaf' for a while because it was linked with the du- word for mute, which suggests stupidity." She answered, "'Deaf" belongs to doctors' medical terms, so there is nothing wrong with me -- just deaf." That helped me with "blind." l checked to see if SVI had changed its title. Still too much stigma. I used to choke when I said "blind." An orientation and mobility teacher said, "Accepting is naming." Inside, I just know I cannot see what I am doing or where I am going. So I find another way. Like the wheelchair user who stresses the helpful tool rather than the difficulty, when making air reservations, I mention I am a dog guide user. I still prefer, "When I was a seeing person.... " Human nature insists we notice differences. New to town, I heard children say, "There's that blind lady." Lest it turn to taunt, I hailed them. Crossing the street, I introduced my dog guide, gave my name, then asked theirs. Next time, they called me by name. I became a person. What is in a name? Not only what we say but the fear, anger, compassion, or embarrassment happening inside us. "If I had to live with that... "the honest inner monologue bursts out. Those living with a disability move beyond loss. Discovering what still works, we find plenty worthy of a joyful heart. How does this relate to our churches? A church is about people connecting despite what appears to separate us. A church is an attitude-shaping place. In church, we recognize that, first, God sees us as acceptable persons with a given name. Here, when asking what's in a name, we respond, "a whole and holy being:" "So, how do I refer to you? Shall I say you are visually impaired, sight challenged, or blind?"' "Your choice, but call me Dee."
A "Reading the Signs" column for The Record published with permission of the Nebraska Conference. Columns written by members of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries board are offered for use by Conference and Local Church newsletters as an accessibility tool. Have you something to share that your inclusion committee, accessibility board, or inclusion coach has tried? From UCC DM Newsletter Archive

Reading the Signs column An S.O.S. in church for walkers resulted in eight volunteers and a parcel of mutuality. Three months without a dog guide translates as no jaunt to post office or trot to grocery. Forget prayer walking at dawn or visiting parishioners. I had still to shape up for new dog training. This first time in twenty years without tools necessary for mobility freedom meant this can-do person could not "do." An S.O.S. in church for walkers resulted in eight volunteers and a parcel of mutuality. I learned about disabilities attitudes, myself, ministry, and being the church. One walker said, "I don't know what you need, so tell me." With another, I just took off . Receiving this ministry was a gift some could offer Miss Self-sufficient. I could only be gracious. I brought pastoral care and extra walks when a walker lost her job. Two teachers debriefed the day while nudging me toward strength. All avoided that "heroic suffering" stuff. Their quiet respect of my "creative coping" still sustains me. Others saw my private side. I laughed upon excusing myself for wincing. We laughed together. I learned to tell my needs and model mutuality of self with self, that is, the art of cooperating with and listening to the body to maximize its possibility. They learned the changing normal of chronic illness, respect and honor of what we have, and about the art of choosing the side of hope. We both have a teaching presence. After awhile, the fear in one person's arm hold relaxed into confidence. A reticent woman walking side by side settled into conversation. One who earlier thought people need eye contact to talk discovered it unnecessary. I rethought my in-the-face directness. I learned about lack of expectation and fear of disabilities. They learned I will not break and about my bevy of resourceful techniques. All valid persons, we were a study in mutuality. The goal is not the impossibility of overcoming a disability but living fully within it. Did these walkers taste the freedom available within those limitations? Did they notice that disabilities are only one part and they handicap only when external, mostly removable, barriers or attitudes impede? A youth volunteered talk about her chronic condition. I found life-giving kinship with another youth who lives with bipolar disorder. She found a peer in understanding. Three years ago, LD Treasure taught a four-year-old the possibility of sitting still in church. When this first volunteer discovered the boredom of "once around the school track," we visited mutual friends at the care center instead. He learned the value of service in action. I enjoyed showing him respect. I was grateful for an elder's willingness to spend her energy on her "I'm good for once around the track" saunter. Mutuality is bonding and cooperative. Mutuality respects possibility and is hope-giving. Mutuality returns joy to the equation of greeting life. It focuses not so much on the need but asks first, "What do I have to offer?" The mutuality gained of full inclusion of persons with disabilities in our churches is a significant part of God-partnership. Write a comment or submit an article about mutuality. Written by Dee Brauninger. Reading the Signs is a Can-Do Forum about accessibility for the whole church family. Permission to use from Nebraska Conference newspaper, The Nebraska Record. Use freely. Please credit the source.

This year, the DM Committee is trying a new means of meeting in order to save mileage and physical energy. This is a combination of email communication, through a group email, and telephone conference calls. We are building the conference calls and reimbursement for an interpreter for the deaf into our budget. In 1995 the board said good-bye to Jeanne Tyler with gratitude for her years of work with the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries Committee. Jeanne and her husband took a new position in Iowa. We also greeted new member, Jo Ackerman, in May, as well as five others in autumn from South Central Association –Trudy House, Vera Losh, Karen Roback, Sherryl Yokel, and Chad House, youth member. From Lincoln Association, Pam and Shane Cuttlers joined us and Morgan Cuttlers, junior member. Nancy Erickson, also from Lincoln, and Dee Brauninger from Burwell share facilitating responsibilities. Because our membership has had this fine replenishment, we have spent significant time getting to know one another. A note from Friend member, Vera Losh, merits including here: Depending and Helping I had known (DM member) Sherryl for several years since we attend the same church. Sherryl has a hearing disability and I have vision disability from age-related macular degeneration. Dee asked us to be on the DM. We both agreed and now have become very close friends (a generation apart). So many times Sherryl does my vision-related needs and I have learned to communicate with hearing impaired and enjoyed meeting Robin, her interpreter. We are really a lively, fun, and efficient team. God can do great things by teaming persons with disabilities. VL God also can do great things by teaming those temporarily without disabilities with PWDs. Look around your church and become a support team. This year, the DM Committee is trying a new means of meeting in order to save mileage and physical energy. This is a combination of email communication, through a group email, and telephone conference calls. We are building the conference calls and reimbursement for an interpreter for the deaf into our budget. Any church wishing to make a monetary contribution to the important work and ministry of this committee is invited to do so. Please indicate this on your check to the conference office. We are planning an in-person lunch together Friday of Annual Meeting and invite all interested persons to a training presentation by the Nebraska Advocacy Services: Center for Disability Rights, Law, and Advocacy from 1:00-3:00, prior to the optional Friday conference workshops. Visit our Disabilities Ministries Exhibit Table at Annual Meeting at Doane College. Also, listen for Speak Out Moments during conference business sessions. How does your Inclusion Committee or Accessibility Board build community among yourselves? How do you span the miles? The Reading the Signs column is made for recycling in other conference and local church newsletters.

The compassion of 15-year-old Chad House permeated Nebraska Conference Annual Celebration 2005. Chad, the son of Terry and Trudy House lives with behavioral, developmental and neurological disorders resulting from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). His mom, Trudy, understands through and through that he is one of "God's children `loaned' to [her] to love, to nurture, and to teach." First Congregational, UCC, Hastings, folk have long-since set aside discomfort to accept his special needs. Karen Roback, Chad's minister-person, said, "I have learned much more from him than he will ever learn from me." After nurturing Chad's early religious journey, she designed for him a confirmation program. He responded with clarity that he knows at heart level what God's love and God's church are about. Chad also showed us that he lives his confirmation promises. He and Trudy stood near the "Speak Out" microphone as I described the mission of the doll I was about to loan him for a companion. A colleague at General Synod had invited me to check out the cloth doll riding in her wheelchair. This was no usual doll. The fingers sewn into each hand pad were made for holding. To be sure, it had rug yarn hair and a soft body. He wore a beard, but no mouth. For a frustrated youngster, a smile would offer little understanding. A sad mouth could not celebrate joy. Further, his eyes were as openly compassionate as those of a dog guide. Chad listened to the stories about the doll who served as listener during the sleepless nights of a woman moving through chemotherapy. He spent time with a high school senior sidelined by mono and with another during a difficult season of bipolar disorder. He lived in the arms of an older man with Alzheimer's and awoke a woman's smile at the care center. He snuggled with another young child in another worship service. I, too, having wrapped my arms around this soft symbol of God's presence, understood what they discovered. So did Chad. As I wondered about his imaginative spiritual play, tender stories bubbled back to the Disabilities Ministries table. This youngster who finds relating to others difficult studied the faces of conference participants. From time to time he would approach someone. "Do you need to hold the Jesus Doll for a little while?" Then he placed him into their arms. From time to time others found in him a tool for chatting with Chad. At the banquet, Chad approached the head table. He told our conference minister, "Jesus needs to sit at this table because that is where Jesus belongs." So Roddy Dunkerson, our conference minister, found a chair, and the doll that reminds us of Whose we are and how we are to be with each other dined at the head table. To learn about FAS, visit www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/fas/default.htm Beulah Enterprises, a Children's Mission ministry of St. Paul & St. James Church in New Haven, CT, markets the Jesus Doll made in a cottage industry by battered women rebuilding their lives. - db Used with permission of the Chad and his parent as well as with the blessing of the Nebraska Conference. Reading the Signs is edited by Dee Brauninger.

Humiliation is as stealthy and subtle as dust entering a house. It comes from outside a Person with Disabilities (PWD). However, attitudinal humiliation from others experienced in a fragile moment can turn inward. As self-humiliation, it clogs the spirit with life-defeating feelings of shame, failure, lack of dignity, and shaky self-worth or self-respect. Until sight deteriorated, I did not consider the frustration of a member's wanting to be at church functions, yet seeing too poorly to drive - or what it took to ask for a lift when yesterday the person seemed independent. Until fickle flares of rheumatoid arthritis sapped stamina, I failed to understand why a faithful parishioner promised to do something, but called at the last minute to cancel out or on several occasions did not come - or his chagrin. Until diabetic blood sugar fluctuations muddied cognitive functioning, burst emotions, or knocked the stuffing out of me, I did not fully comprehend how a person could be fine one moment and border chaos the next - or know the vulnerability that engenders. Until my body began to age, I could not fully grasp how susceptible older persons with disabilities might be to spiritual wound, humiliation, and societal attitudes of ageism, let alone the energy spent on everyday tasks. I still cannot appreciate how one with hearing loss feels when never certain if what was heard is what was spoken - or the subsequent reticence to participate in conversations. Humiliation is as stealthy and subtle as dust entering a house. It comes from outside a Person with Disabilities (PWD). However, attitudinal humiliation from others experienced in a fragile moment can turn inward. As self-humiliation, it clogs the spirit with life-defeating feelings of shame, failure, lack of dignity, and shaky self-worth or self-respect. Persons with disabilities abound in our church communities. To nourish the understanding of wholeness and wellness is part of our Can-Do as a church. All persons can be agents of affirmation and strength. First, let us talk with each other about our situations. It heartens when persons having courage to visit about their lives find common experiences. This may bring spontaneous brainstorming of ideas and a deeper sharing about attitudes of and toward PWDs. Often others give little thought to the imagination and creativity of PWDs. While aware of another's disability, we can perceive first the whole person and relate as one might with a left or right-handed individual. When others drop the presumption that I am unable to do something, I feel accepted. We can avoid avoiding PWDs, thereby weighting loneliness. We can avoid assuming that we understand how another's disability is for that individual, even if we share that disability. We can avoid mushing the "You do so well" that italicizes disabilities rather than gifts. We can assist where needed as unceremoniously as one would open a door for anyone with arms full. We can attend to our tone of voice, noting an edge of impatience before it speaks aloud or checking a voice tone that is solicitous rather than as one speaks with an equal. Being for each other is a gift of our life-giving communities that declares that all are wanted by and acceptable to God. Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Burwell, Nebraska

1. Apply brightly colored, textured strips at tops of stairs to indicate their presence to visually-impaired persons and anyone carrying something that blocks vision. 2. Adopt a person who cannot attend services for reasons of work, disability, inclement weather, etc., so they may continue to feel part of your church. Maintain regular communication throughout the winter. 3. Volunteer to remove snow and ice patches promptly from all sidewalks, curbs, and parking areas before staff people usually arrive. 4. Be outside to assist elders and persons with special needs to/from cars. 5. Make a list (with recipes) of healthy, nutritious snacks to share for children's after-school programs or church school. 6. Contribute to the health and inclusion of all with careful food choices for coffee hour, meetings, and church functions. 7. Make healthy food plates and gift food baskets for sharing. 8. Designate a money gift for an accessibility project that will make your church more welcoming. 9. Purchase and install permanent signage in Braille/raised letters/pictorial symbols on the wall, just to the right of the door lever, at the entrance to restrooms, " meeting rooms, accessible entry/exits, elevators, etc. 10. Discuss together as a family making church giving a first priority of your budget. Consider tithing or, if you already tithe, making a second mile gift to your church. 11. Pay for a holiday ad containing a small accessibility symbol to tell your community that your church is ready for wheelchair users. 12. Provide padded armchairs in the sanctuary for persons having difficulty sitting in a pew. 13. Replace heavyweight offering and/or communion serving plates with lighter weight plates. 14. Take a tour through and outside your church to identify and correct poorly lit areas. 15. Add a second railing to steps or stairs where only one side rail exists. 16. Include children in plans to visit nursing homes and persons who are shut in. 17. Survey your neighborhood to learn whether there are unmet needs, especially among persons who are elderly, homebound; or persons with disabilities. 18. In consideration of persons with scent allergies, monitor your perfume, hair spray, or aftershave when attending church functions, especially during the holiday season. 19. Embark upon a search for unscented candles if your church uses candles of seasonal colors. 20. Adopt a person for the holiday who might not get out easily. Provide regular transportation to services and other parish activities. 21. Create a touchable Chrismon Tree. 22. If there are steps to your chancel and sanctuary, suggest that your Diaconate consider having a Communion Station on the main floor or serve in the pew first all who are unable to come forward. 23. Donate a high-quality artificial Christmas tree and/or greenery for your sanctuary. 24. Replace door knobs with levers throughout the church. 25. Contact someone who has not been in church recently. From Reading the Signs, Nebraska – Disabilities Ministries

From time to time, someone from one of our churches will ask a member of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries Committee if we have material about designing or renovating a home for an older individual or for anyone with a disability. In earlier columns we have spoken about the principles of universal design. Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. Recently, Jo Clare Hartsig, Co-Chair of the UCC Disabilities Ministries Committee, sent a news release from the architect Charles Schwab, AIA. In his book, Universal Designed "SMART" Homes for the Twenty First Century, the architect, Charles Schwab, presents plans for 83 unique, completely accessible stock homes. Home construction blueprints and stock home plan revisions can be ordered as well as arrangements made for custom architectural services. Interviewing and listening to the needs of persons with disabilities led to several innovative features that had not been addressed earlier by universal designers. One of Schwab's unique features is clean indoor air. Several people also requested a safe room: a place of refuge in the case of natural or human-made disaster. As a result, Schwab designed a universal design bathroom that would also serve as a safe room accessible to a person using a wheelchair or anyone with limited mobility. Excerpts of the press release read: "This is the first Stock home plans book that combines Universal Design, Energy efficiency and Green building practices as well as optional SafeRoomsâ„¢ in every home plan. Thirty of the home plans are less than 2000 square feet and are affordably designed in the New Urbanism style for narrow lots for urban infill as well as retirement housing communities. We specify sustainable and low maintenance materials. The remaining homes are mostly less than 4000 square feet. Home types include in-law additions, empty nester, single family and duplexes. "The plan book also has an informative room-byroom description of features and benefits in the UD Smart home. This is a checklist and is included in an effort to be of use to advocates, agencies, builders and homeowners alike. This resource will be of use for those making home modifications and Universal designed home additions." Many of Schwab's ideas, based on the seven principles of universal design, can be used in church buildings as well as homes and businesses. The web site, www.universaldesignon-line.com contains sample designs. For additional information about the book of plans, contact Schwab by phone at 563-359-7524 or through email:charless-chwab@universaldesignon-line.com. Reading the Signs...A Can-Do Forum about accessibility for the whole church family, Dee Brauninger, Editor. Nebraska Conference

In our new church this year, I was approached by a member before Easter: Do Easter lilies bother you? No more than my beloved daffodils on Daffodil Sunday. Don't worry about it. The headache and nausea would only last a day. When did we start to acknowledge that people are more important than things? In the church of my childhood, a life-sized, rough-hewn crass stood before the altar on Easter morning. A tree split in half and laddered vertically and horizontally with Easter lilies given in memory or celebration greeted sunrise worshippers. EASTER WAS... opening the church door to the scent of Easter. We celebrated Easter quietly at our house. There was no fancy Easter dinner. By the time my mother, the organist, had played for all three services she went directly to bed with a sick headache. Nausea rose in my own throat an Easter, but I refused to make the flower connection. It was the holiest time of the year. I knew, however, that the best part was getting out into the fresh air again. I waited for the traditional Easter afternoon long walk by the lake. I detest artificial flowers in a church. Only the finest, real flowers are good enough - nothing fake. That attitude changed when a choir member in a parish early in my ministry said he would have to stop singing because the autumn flowers overpowered him. He could not catch his breath. From that point on, all flowers in that church were plastic. Later, and for the eight years we were in another church, there were silk Easter lilies of such a high quality that only the absence of their scent gave them away. An earlier member had to "get those lilies out of here." In our new church this year, I was approached by a member before Easter: Do Easter lilies bother you? No more than my beloved daffodils on Daffodil Sunday. Don't worry about it. The headache and nausea would only last a day. EASTER IS . . . the scent of lilies as we enter the sanctuary. I would not deprive one worshipper of that. We will position them so that I will be upwind, but the people can still smell them. I was at once moved by their concern and chagrined at myself. They were so far ahead of me in caring. I could have been the fall guy for someone else in the church with scent sensitivity. As my discomfort grew throughout the service, I wondered if I had placed the Easter lilies too close to someone in the pews. Do same folks not come at all to church because of another person's overpowering perfume or aftershave? How necessary are scented specialty candles, scented deodorizers in restrooms, and stuffy rooms that never know the refreshment of an open window? How can we learn to practice the fine art of being considerate of others in our churches so that we will have a chance to be considerate of others elsewhere? Slowly, even in the middle of summer, Easter dawns on us. People are always more important than things. EASTER WILL ALWAYS BE... far more than the scent of lilies greeting us at the church door. – db Reading the Signs columns are a gift from the Nebraska Conference for your use.

Written by the Rev. Nancy J. Erickson, December 2003 St. Monica's Chemical Dependency Service for Women, Lincoln The backdrop for discussion is Leviticus 21:16-23. I suggest you read this paradigm which has informed church policies and even some religious beliefs for hundreds of years. I presented a Bible study at our annual meeting this year focused on a biblical foundation for becoming a welcoming church to people with disabilities. What I present here is one aspect of my discussion, the most significant one, in my opinion, because it forms the basis for the rest of it. The backdrop for discussion is Leviticus 21:16-23. I suggest you read this paradigm which has informed church policies and even some religious beliefs for hundreds of years. It has been the rationale for excluding certain groups of people from being part of the leadership of the church, and in some instances, from even entering the church building. This text says that "no one with a blemish may draw near" and goes on in great detail to describe what kinds of conditions constitute a "blemish." As we know, Jesus broke many religious taboos and called into question many cultural norms. This is no exception. In my presentation, I looked closely at three healing stories from Mark (Mark 1: 29-31, Mark 5: 2534 and Mark 2: 1-12) to show that Jesus' treatment of those with blemishes (as defined by his own Hebrew tradition) was the exact opposite of the Levitical codes. It is clear from these stories that for Jesus, breaking physical bonds and breaking bonds of sin are both redemptive processes that are intertwined. These stories reveal Jesus of God. Jesus' ministry points to a God who is compassionate to those who do not fit into the protective custody of the family or culture - widow, orphan, stranger, sick. The themes of healing, wholeness, restoration, empowerment, redemption, compassion for those excluded, and integration come through loud and clear. For Jesus, the movement is ALWAYS from exclusion to inclusion and towards mutuality. Given this understanding, there are at least three important implications for the church. First, a sign of healing, wholeness means bringing in the excluded. This does not mean curb cuts, elevators, large print and accessible drinking fountains. But let me be clear those things are VERY important. It also means welcoming folks with physical, mental or intellectual differences into Sunday school, the choir, the church's committees, etc. Second, which follows naturally, wholeness occurs when those who have power are willing to share it. This means that people with disabilities are able to be in leadership positions within the church, both as lay persons and as clergy. The third and final implication can be a way of restating what has already been said: in order to be whole, everyone must have access. I served on a board with a young woman named Annie. Annie had several birth defects, used a wheelchair and had some impediment of her speech. Her idea of heaven was that she would remain just as she was, but that the environment in heaven would be one in which she could go anywhere, do anything she pleased, no one would stare at her, and she would be accepted unconditionally just as she is. We have the capacity to make our churches a lot like Annie's idea of heaven. I would love to see us try. Wholeness - Accessibility/Attitudinal Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Burwell, Nebraska

"We don't think our way into new ways of acting; we act our way into new ways of thinking." - Harold Wilke (1914-2003) Two years ago when Jo Ackerman was an E.L.M. student, the Friend church paid her way to General Synod. Recently, she said that the awards luncheon for outstanding persons with disabilities made a significant influence upon her own ministry. "All those other people with disabilities far worse than mine who were doing it. I remembered that as I mustered the courage to go for a church position," Jo said. "If they were doing it, certainly I could give it a try." Jo serves our church at Clay Center and has become a mentor herself. Mentors come in many forms. There are planned mentors, those of confirmands, older marrieds with younger marrieds, and mentors for students of reading or math. There is also the accidental wisdom of one person with a disability modeling hope for another to follow the calling. These mentors rise from the reading of a United Church News article written by a person with a disability who lives across the country. Mentors come from this column. They come as two clergy members of our Disabilities Ministries Task Force. The persistence of the Rev. Jeanne Tyler and the quiet and understanding of the Rev. Nancy Erickson inform all around them about hope. Mentors come as we need their wisdom, yet none is accidental. They are given. They dawn on us years after a chance meeting. Throughout my first months at the Chicago Theological Seminary, no longer able to read print and wondering if I were foolish to follow the calling of my heart, I summoned the words of the seminary staff person sent to interview me at college. By chance, he also lived with serious visual difficulties. His confident attitude intimated that I would find my way. The following year, a minister named Harold Wilke visited the seminary dining room and sat at a nearby table. Slipping his foot out of his loafer, he began to eat. I was as fascinated with a sock that had toes in it as with his agility in managing both silverware and coffee cup. I had not noticed that he was without arms. After that only encounter, Dr. Wilke has remained a source of wisdom in my ministry. As additional physical difficulties develop, it is he who comes to mind as encouraging presence. Many readers knew him as the minister who offered the blessing at the signing into law of the American Disabilities Act of 1990. I learned from him that wholeness has little to do with the body. Reading the Signs is a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family edited by the Rev. Dee Brauninger, First Congregational UCC, Friend, Nebraska

A review by the Rev. Nancy Erickson, Associate Pastor at First Plymouth, Lincoln, Nebraska. Nancy also is a member of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Task Force. When I first saw The Disabled God: Toward a Liberatory Theology of Disability on a bookstore shelf, I was momentarily taken aback. It was the adjective "disabled" in front of "God" that did it. I am not used to the holy described in terms like that. On closer scrutiny, I noticed the part of the title after the colon. Excited now, I had to get my hands on the book. I asked a salesperson to reach it for me, and I immediately started skimming it. Here, in a brief and succinct way, Nancy Eiesland describes a way of thinking theologically about disability and about those who have one (or more) disabilities. She offers ideas as to what the church can do with, not for, those of us with disabilities. As it turns out, she helped me understand my initial response to the title. Historically, God is seen as perfect, humankind as imperfect. A subset within humankind - those with disabilities - is set apart even more. The author states, "Within Christian tradition, `disability' denotes an unusual relationship with God. The person with disabilities is seen as either divinely blessed or damned: the defiled evildoer or the spiritual super hero:' As a result, people with disabilities have been viewed as needing charity, healing, or both. These notions do not engender thoughts of including or engaging people with disabilities in the work of the church. In the heart of the book, the title chapter, Ms Eiesland proposes that the image of Christ's resurrected body, with pierced hands and feet and scarred side, offers a way of seeing God as having lived through the fullness of the human experience in a very physical way. Not only was his body broken in life, but the signs, the symbols, of this brokenness remained after the resurrection. Eiesland proposes theological and practical implications of this way of envisioning God. Most certainly this entails full participation by people with disabilities at all levels of church life. This book helped me put words and symbols to thoughts and feelings that have been hanging out on the edges of my consciousness as I have wrestled with my relationship with institutionalized Christianity. Sprinkled with stories of others' experiences of trying to find a comfortable place within the church, it should be required reading for pastors trying to form inclusive communities within congregations. The Disabled God, one of several books purchased as a project of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries Task Force, is available for loan from the Wholeness/Wellness section of the Conference Resource Center. Reading the Signs a can-do forum about accessibility for the whole church family is edited Dee Brauninger.

This is an "It's About Time" project that will enable users of manual wheelchairs to slip into the bath house with ease and to negotiate cabin entry with neither sweat nor snarl. No sooner was the check in the hands of Judie Luther and Kamp Kaleo than the Rev. Harold Richardson, pastor at Plymouth Congregational in Crete, and Bob Essig, retired veterinarian from the Burwell church volunteered to oversee the project. It will be done right. Members of the Nebraska Conference Disabilities Ministries Task Force presented Kamp Kaleo with a $500 matching funds grant* to replace the thresholds of the bath house and most cabins. Expressing gratitude for the grant at the Annual Meeting, Judie Luther said, "This is a small yet much needed improvement in accessibility at Kaleo that will make the camp a welcoming place for everyone." Those wishing to contribute to this matching funds grant are invited to mail checks clearly marked for the project to Kamp Kaleo, RR 1 Box 22 A, Burwell, NE 68823. Empowering all persons to fullness of life and encouraging the inclusion of all in the life and activities of the church are two dimensions of the mission of Disabilities Ministries. The task force states its purpose as follows: "The mission of the Disabilities Ministries Task Force is to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities, both lay and clergy, in all areas of the life of the Nebraska Conference." We encourage congregations, clergy, Search Committees, Church and Ministry Committees, and Conference staff toward a higher level of community with people with disabilities as characterized by attitudinal and architectural welcoming of those among us with disabilities. This involves, but is not limited to, educating people in our churches about the needs, issues, and potential of people with disabilities; advocating for those encountering physical or attitudinal barriers; and supporting and empowering those with disabilities who are called to participate in the church. Present DM Task Force members are Nancy Erickson, Jeanne Tyler, Fred Anderson, Becky Copple, Kathy Baker, Deb Finn, and Dee Brauninger. *In the absence of applicants this year for the annual Smaller Church Accessibility Grants, the Disabilities Ministries Task Force has presented Kamp Kaleo with $500 dollars for increasing its accessibility. - db Readers are invited to share this Reading the Signs column from Nebraska-DM with your conference and church.

"(Make) supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings for everyone... so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all goodness and dignity" (1 Tim. 2:1-2). Vulnerability pricks when one we know has Alzheimer's Disease. We shy at first hint of a fragile brain. Unnerved, we quake at our mental lapses. We cannot predict another's. What worked in last Sunday's conversation may not today. To keep a church a welcoming place, members sustain personal dignity by finding active, comforting ways to relate to those enduring AZ. When the Rev. Carl Kemper could attend United Church of Christ, First Congregational in Crete, he appreciated greetings from many even without knowing names. Some invited Carl to sit with them so Betty could play bells and sing in choir. In early stages, chatting without pressuring question or expectation, as if he understood fully, offered Carl a message of respect. AZ is about our remembering who a person was and whose he is. AZ is about our forgetting what is right with him. Become his memory. Replay his life's relevance. Focus on what he can do and enjoy. Keep talk simple. Introduce yourself, telling your relationship. Use name tags. Say "Tell me more" during memory talk. Ask yes/no questions. Give time to answer. Talk about real things. Using the same words, repeat sentences when necessary. Gently distract during frustration. Avoid correcting, arguing, or attempting to reason. Provide appropriate touch. Then embrace the curious relief you feel when your friend releases you by no longer knowing you. Surprisingly, this also frees us for a new relationship. Talk becomes a unique setting aside of ourselves to engage in a new listening and joining in whatever is the focus of the moment. In this living moment, tone of voice communicates. During these visits that require greatness of spirit, we accept another without reservation. We hope that somehow he knows we acknowledge the inner nature, which no disease can destroy. Writing for the Disabilities Ministries Traveling Exhibit about their AZ journey, Betty Kemper drew us closer to appreciating spousal grief. "Like an onion, one layer of memory at a time peels away. I have lost a companion, lover, and helpmate of 55 years." With the pace of Carl's AZ accelerating, Betty teaches us further about partner support. "The silence (of others) is the hardest thing - worse than a physical death. People know how to act then. They bring casseroles and love," she said. Ask spouses how things are. As word spread that Carl had moved into the AZ unit, Betty welcomed letters from friends in previous churches. Let them know by note or phone call that they remain on your prayer list. Showing concern "I'm sorry this has happened" or "I'm praying for you and your mate" helps throughout the chaos. With AZ, we have little access to someone's "inner nature (that) is being renewed day by day" (2 Corinthians 4:16). With her husband unable to attend a class reunion, Betty asked what his prayer would be for his classmates. From somewhere inside him, Carl answered, "To trust in God so they can face the difficult times in life." - db (For additional information about AZ, see www.mayohealth.org.) This Reading the Signs column is published with the permission of Betty Kemper and with the blessing of the Nebraska Conference.

Pastor and 13-year-old acolyte, both wheelchair users, have ramp to access the chancel. Lincoln's Northeast UCC views things differently because of Scott Pigsley and Diana Coberly. Scott, 13-year-old son of Gina and Jerry Pigsley, knows God sees the person inside his body with spina bifida. "When God looks at me, God looks over that I'm in a wheelchair and sees a normal person." Scott says of Diana, "Not everybody has a minister who gets around in a wheelchair. The first time I met Diana, I felt happy. We both have a person who knows what we go through. It (her ministry) says people can do whatever they want to do." Northeast's first chancel ramp had allowed Scott to light candles with his friends, but he needed a push from his dad. The present ramp, built after the minister's arrival, follows proper incline code. "It's a pretty caring church," he said. "Now Diana and I are thinking about getting downstairs-. Things like this tell people in wheelchairs that we won't banish you from our church if you come in." "Diana is a role model," Jerry Pigsley said, "a godsend in that this was my son's confirmation year, so their relationship is even deeper: Clergy with disabilities have much to share on a spiritual basis. Diana has broken many disability stereotypes." As access committee member, Pigsley has seen his church "expand in spirit to look beyond chair and disability. However," he said, "resolving the puzzles of making a church fully welcoming takes time." Joe Geist, moderator when the interim began, said his church is more in tune now that Northeast must continue to increase accessibility, "no by law, but from the human aspect People like Diana have so much to offer that to overlook that gift because you are not ready to provide the necessary things..." Necessary things include chance ramp, accessible main floor bathrooms minimal close-in parking, and remova of the front door offset. Trustees an checking into expanded parking electric door openers, and lower level accessibility. All members will benefit. Resources, such as statewide Barrier Removal and Information Centers (800-476-9700), are available for free, onsite consultation. Stewardship Committee Chair Nancy Harms said the church set aside a fund for accessibility issues. She said she has grown in tolerance and awareness of things she once took for granted. "I hope people here have learned that we would want for others what you would want for yourself." Diana Coberly said that several individuals at Northeast have changed forever because of her presence. "They may even speak up down the road and translate that into changes we will see in this church. Changing attitudinal habits takes time. I once took repeated insensitivity personally. Now, I understand that the change which allows persons with disabilities to participate fully in the life of the church only happens once it is in people's hearts." - db Reading the Signs Columns are shared for sharing by the Nebraska Conference.

You open your church's front door and enter without a thought. If advancing years or a temporary, progressive, or permanent disability has diminished your strength, you may still open the door enough for a foot or shoulder wedge. Then, thrusting your body against the door, you are in. That is, if you could grasp the handle while managing a walker or cane. Or, you pound on the door and wait because you are a child or your wheelchair reach does not afford the leverage necessary to budge the door. For some, the door gets heavier each year. Overnight, a church door can become a wall. While we are not under American Disabilities Act requirements, churches do set a community example by opening our own doors. Jeanne Walter, Disability Rights and ADA Specialist at Lincoln's League of Human Dignity, said that ADA guidelines relate to door width and steps but say nothing about weight. Neither do they currently require automatic doors. In addition to advocacy work, the League administers Barrier Removal and Information Centers (BRICs). BRIC's consultation services include on-site assessments, recommendations on the most cost-effective and best solutions, and implementation plans. Phone 1-800-742-7338 V/TDD. Courage in the struggle for justice and for peace comes to people one by one. A person's tenacity in continuing to move forward does spring from small, quiet, surprising offerings by perceptive individuals and willing church committees. By thinking universally and responding with compassion, churches do eliminate attitudinal and architectural barriers. The architectural principle of universal design involves designing all products, buildings, and exterior space to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible. Follo Society-and-Culture, Disabilities, at Universal Design Internet links . UCC churches have another way to participate with each other in building projects. Cornerstone Fund provides low-cost loans for money needed to improve accessibility, renovate or expand facilities, or to refinance existing real estate debt. Pooled investments from local churches and members enable Cornerstone Fund to pass by fees normally associated with similar loans. At www.ucc.org, visit Cornerstone Fund. Does your church employ anyone with disabilities? Trail the Assistive Technology Partnership (ATP) link on or phone 1-888-806-6287. ATP provides statewide on-site technical assistance, latest innovations, and low-cost accessibility solutions for employers. Why not complete the year by taking a closer look at reshaping your church and camping facilities so that all will be welcome regardless of one's physical capacities? Rather than being places of gradual exclusion, our churches may then continue to be builders of communion. - db Reading the Signs columns shared by Nebraska Conference are Can-do Forums about accessibility for the whole church family.