What does it mean to belong? This question has sparked discussions across churches and denominations and among Brené Brown readers for the past decade.
If the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s cadre of Disability Concerns Consultants had a motto, it might be: “We are small but mighty.”
That’s how Hunter Steinitz, an elder at Riverview United Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, describes the group, which consists of four consultants who each have a different specialty: people with mobility or accessibility issues, people with intellectual or developmental disabilities, people who are deaf or hard of hearing, and people who are blind or have low vision.
In my disability ministry work with congregational leaders, the question I have heard most often is not, “How can each person experience the love of God?” The question I hear most is, “How can we meet the needs of this family? We can’t start a disability ministry. We don’t even have the volunteers we need for our ‘regular kids.’”
All of us face the possibility of dealing with natural disasters. Depending on where you live, these can include hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, earthquakes, floods and wildfires. Preparing for and dealing with disasters can be stressful for everyone, but disasters can be especially challenging for people with disabilities — including the elderly.