My name is Harriet, I am the founder of Disabilities Ministries located in Oxnard, California. I also serve on the Board of Directors for ARC Ventura County and Ed Hunt's Rehab Point Project. There are connections to other organizations...but the job discription God has given me is serving people with disabilities, the terminally ill and elderly. His lesson plans were unique, He taught me through life experiences, bed pans and tears...and I believe...in Him...and the people I serve.

My main passion is God, my goal is opening doors of opportunity for people with disabilities to worship and establish relationships with Him. I have been in this ministry for seventeen years, My primary focus has been on adults with disabilities, secondary focus is cultural awareness. I have over twenty four thousand hours of volunteer ministry and community service in those focus areas.

First, I spent several years visiting patients in convalescent centers, serving as a volunteer hospice worker, and feeding the homeless. I also attended numerous workshops, conferences and training sessions. Next a home library of information and materials to be used by churches and individuals that were interested in accommodating people with disabilities was created. I surveyed the County I live in and created a data base of churches, synagogues and temples, letters are sent to local spiritual leaders encouraging them to include people with disabilities in their congregations. Following that, I researched problem areas, areas that kept people with disabilities from attending religious services (transportation, accessibility and that old "Monster" bias and attitude, are the biggest deterrents) and got involved in those areas.The most important part of my training and education was provided by God...and people with disabilities. There are no accidents in life...only incidents that lead us to a higher purpose or calling.

Inclusion Guidelines for your place of Worship.

Words of Advice...Pray...Pray and Pray some more!
And then..

Include people with disabilities as leaders, recognize their abilities.

Have one or two wheelchairs available for use at your church. Use them as the emergency room at your local hospital would. That way people that are not mobile can be easily transferred from a vehicle to the meeting rooms.

Conduct an in-church survey, Do an assessment of your facility, accessiblity is more than a ramp. Also, find out if there are people with disabilities within the congregation, or if families know of someone that has a need.

Educate the congregation. You, and the people with disabilities that you have empowered need to speak to the body of the church. Tell the congregation what it's like to live with disabilities, teach them that a wheelchair is a form of transportation, not a reflection of the person that is sitting in it... Our differences make us unique... but we are all created by God, and in his image.