We have some truly wonderful news to share, perfectly timed with Disability Pride Month this July! The Self-Advocates of Calhoun County, a joint initiative of The Arc of Calhoun County and Community Inclusive Recreation (CIR), have recently secured a grant from the Battle Creek Community Foundation! This incredible support means we can further the group's mission to “create a community that is more livable for people of all abilities” and truly live up to our Disability Pride Month 2025 theme: We belong here, and we’re here to stay.
What Does Pride Mean to Us?
Disability Pride Month is a time to celebrate who we are, and our members have shared some powerful thoughts on what pride means to them:
For Annie, "Pride to me is not changing yourself or anyone else. Being true to yourself. Also would include doing what makes you happy, like coming to these meetings and helping other people and showing other people in the same situation that they don’t have to be down on themselves because they have trouble with doing stuff." Annie also expressed pride in herself from "getting people to laugh, especially when they’re having a rough day."
RT shared, "I’m proud of being at CIR and starting at CIR, being here since day one. I’m so proud of everyone here, I’m so proud of everyone doing what they’re supposed to do". RT is also incredibly proud of his personal health achievements, which he partially credits to the Walking Club that several self-advocates are a part of.
Charlie is proud of his new job at Dollar Tree, where he stocks shelves and occasionally mans the cash register: "I thought it was going to be a little difficult, but I used it like I’ve used it before." He’s also proud of signing up for a cooking class, to learn a new skill, even if it took some encouragement from his sister Annie.
Andrew has personal pride in developing healthy habits and meeting his goal like RT. He shared that this work "helps me be healthier and happy in the long run and feel like a better person."
Shelby proudly shared that she moved out into her own apartment, which she said is "good and kind of scary."
Fred, who co-chairs the group and is an entrepreneur, is proud of "getting my name out there and trying to get recruitment" for CIR. He's particularly proud that a general manager from UpRoot was interested in buying items from E3, where they can print custom images on various items like coffee cups, t-shirts, and cutting boards.
Mike feels proud of his personal responsibility and his creativity. RT also praised Mike's progress in bowling, saying, "he doesn’t use the ramp and he bowls really good from his chair. He used to use the ramp and now he doesn’t. 'You should be proud of yourself!'"
What This Grant Means for Us: Expanding Opportunities!
This grant is a game-changer! From the very beginning, the Self-Advocates had goals for themselves and the community, but all our activities were unfunded. This grant will allow us to do more to meet their goals.
Here’s how the grant will help us grow and make an even bigger impact:
More Voices, More Power. We're excited to open our group up to more members and reach out to others who might want to join. As member Andrew Heatherly put it, the grant will allow us to “go places to get our voice out there.” We're planning to present to to the community and create flyers to spread the word.
Skill Development and Training. We're investing in training to build self-advocacy skills and increase confidence.
Paid Teaching and Speaking Opportunities. Several members, including Fred, Andrew, RT, and Annie, are interested in helping teach and getting paid to do that. We are excited that the grant makes it possible to pay the self-advocates for their expertise and their role in educating the public at various opporutnities in the community.
Connecting with Other Advocates. We intend to collaborate with State Advocates of Michigan (SAM), as well as visit other self-advocate groups to learn how they organize themselves.
Community Engagement. We plan to attend civic events to communicate the needs of people with disabilities. One opportunity is with the transportation commission, advocating for buses running after 4 pm.
We are thrilled about these expanded opportunities and look forward to celebrating Disability Pride every day by continuing to build a strong, visible, and empowered community.
If you want to learn more about the Self-Advocates Group, or if you or someone you know is interested in becoming a part of this empowering group, please call us at (269) 966-2575.
