Activities for Daily Living Center, Inc.

06/24/2026

Educational rights have NOT changed.
Please click to read.
Many thanks to PEAL Center for their commitment to our families.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Education announced plans to move the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to the U.S. Department of Justice.

06/24/2026

This is the kind of dedication that inspires.
I love this so much.

06/13/2026

Communication is a basic human right.

06/13/2026

Lean in and demand all communication as a basic human right.

06/13/2026

All of THIS.
💯

06/13/2026

Lately, I've been feeling a shift in the autism world.

Maybe it's just me. Maybe my eyes are more open now than they've ever been before. Or maybe something bigger is happening.

My husband and I were talking about this recently, and I admitted something that sounds a little crazy when I say it out loud. Sometimes it feels like our kids are somehow working through us... guiding us toward something important.

Not long after that conversation, I listened to a podcast where someone expressed a very similar thought. That caught my attention.

What has me thinking this way is the growing number of non-speakers who are finding their voices through Spelling to Communicate and other forms of letterboard communication. More and more, we're hearing directly from individuals who spent years unable to reliably express what they knew, felt, and understood.

And what's remarkable is how often they share the same message.

Again and again, non-speakers write to their parents, communication partners, and audiences that they want to advocate for others who haven't yet been exposed to spelling. They talk about remembering the loneliness of being trapped inside a body that couldn't communicate their thoughts. They describe the darkness of having words but no reliable way to share them. And they are passionate about helping others find a path out.

The consistency of that message is hard to ignore.

So I find myself wondering: Am I simply noticing these stories because Eric's journey has opened my eyes? Or is there real momentum building in this space that is making these voices impossible to overlook?

I often joke that all of our kids used to have secret meetings in the middle of the night. (After all, so many of them seemed allergic to sleep.) Maybe they were gathering to discuss how they would someday inspire and guide their parents.

Do I actually believe that?

I'm not sure.

The practical side of me says no.

But the mom side of me...the side that has witnessed things I can't easily explain... leaves room for possibility.

Whatever the reason, one thing feels undeniable: more non-speakers are being heard than ever before.

Their voices are reaching farther.
Their message is growing louder.

And it feels like we're standing in the middle of something important.
It feels like a new day is dawning.

-- Mrs. B

06/13/2026

Request for Information – Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) Community HealthChoices (CHC) Program

A public comment opportunity from OLTL that will help to make the CHC program better for Pennsylvania.

You can find the RFI here: https://www.emarketplace.state.pa.us/Solicitations.aspx?SID=26-RFI-20429

The Pa DHS is requesting that all responses to this RFI be submitted by 12:00 p.m. on the July 15, 2026. Responses must be submitted electronically to the following email account with “Community HealthChoices RFI” in the email subject line: [email protected].

06/13/2026

NSVRC is committed to continuing the ongoing conversation about the intersection between disability and gender-based violence. For the theme of this issue of The Resource, we emphasize the systemic and cultural failures that make disabled populations face an increased risk of sexual violence. Disability is a broad spectrum, and members of that community come from a wide range of contexts and circumstances that add more complexity and nuance to that experience. This issue does not encompass the full diversity within disability nor does it address every way in which sexual violence can touch this community. We publish this edition of The Resource as just one of many steps we must take to ensure that the experiences of people with disabilities are prioritized and that the work of the sexual violence prevention and education field is built on a foundation of understanding, mutual respect, and a commitment to ensure the safety and dignity of all.

This edition is the third issue of The Resource delivered to readers in a fully digital format as an online magazine. For long-time readers, we hope The Resource online magazine continues to deliver articles and content from across the movement that add value to your work.

Read Here: https://www.nsvrc.org/blog_post/the-resource-disability-understanding-ableism-sexual-violence-and-healthy-sexuality/

06/13/2026