Celebrating The ADA at 30 by Laurie Schultz, Public Services Librarian July 26th is the 30TH anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. President H. W. Bush signed the act into law to protect the civil rights of people with disabilities. The purpose of the law is to prohibit discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including employment, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public. You can read the complete act here: https://www.ada.gov/pubs/adastatute08.pdf At the time, a great many businesses, like theaters and restaurants, and public buildings needed to redesign their spaces to make them accessible to everyone. It was difficult because there are a great many factors involved in designing spaces to be inclusive. Beyond the accessibility of the building, is the accessibility of the services provided. When we think of making services accessible to the public, educational institutions like the public library need to consider disabilities beyond those of a physical nature. As we strived to provide programming that reflected the varied backgrounds and needs of our community, we offered an eclectic variety of lectures and presentations about topics of interest to a wide variety of ages, ethnic backgrounds and income levels. Although it seemed we served the entire community, the needs of individuals with intellectual disabilities and their caregivers were often hidden to us. Through positive interactions with these individuals and their caregivers, the library has been successful in reaching out through our programs to individuals and groups throughout Allegheny and surrounding counties. The shift in focus to a virtual world has left our society struggling to keep connected with one another. Although we miss the craft programs and dog therapy we enjoyed with our intellectually disabled patrons, we are hoping these virtual programs will keep us in touch with one another. Virtual Basic Fitness and Nutrition Series
Monday August 10, 2020
1:30 PM until 2:30 PM Mark Selekman will guide us through some basics of Fitness and Nutrition with topical discussions and gentle movement activities. Great for Seniors or Intellectually Disabled Adults. Registration is required. Virtual Basic Fitness & Nutrition will be conducted via the free video conferencing software Zoom and a Library staff member will be supervising the session. The Librarian coordinating the event will email each registrant a Zoom meeting invitation before the start of the program. Zoom is available as a free desktop (for Windows, MacOS, and Linux Operating systems) and mobile application for Android and Apple iOS devices. Once Zoom is installed, you will be able to join the virtual Library program. REGISTER HERE: https://www.eventkeeper.com/code/ekform.cfm?curOrg=MTLEB&curID=443296 Virtual Coloring
Tuesday August 25, 2020
1:00 PM until 2:00 PM Join us for a Zoom session to color together and socialize. Registrants will receive links (the day before) to free coloring pages they can print out. Register below. These programs will be conducted via the free video conferencing software Zoom and a Library staff member will be supervising the session. The Librarian coordinating the event will email each registrant a Zoom meeting invitation before the start of the program. Zoom is available as a free desktop (for Windows, MacOS, and Linux Operating systems) and mobile application for Android and Apple iOS devices. Once Zoom is installed, you will be able to join the virtual Library program. REGISTER HERE: https://www.eventkeeper.com/code/ekform.cfm?curOrg=MTLEB&curID=450838 | 
