(Long Island, NY) Local talent, speakers with disabilities, community leaders, and politicians will come together to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Hosted by the Suffolk Independent Living Organization (SILO), the celebration and awards ceremony will take place on Saturday, July 25 from 11:00 AM-3:00 PM at the Lake Ronkonkoma Firehouse, located at 505 Hawkins Avenue in Lake Ronkonkoma.
Featured disability speaker and Huntington Station resident Denise Coleman held several positions at various institutions of higher education. For example, during her tenure at SUNY Stony Brook, she served as the first Director of Alumni Affairs, Associate Vice President for Development, and later as Executive Director of the Stony Brook Foundation. Coleman has lived with a painful spinal condition and has had four major surgeries since she was a young girl. Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis since the 1990s, Coleman now dedicates her time to disability-related causes, including The American Pain Foundation, the government relations committee of the Long Island chapter of The Multiple Sclerosis Society, Huntington’s Citizens Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities, and the Chronic Pain Awareness Project (CPAC), which is an initiative that she founded.
State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R-E. Northport), State Senator Phil Boyle (R-Bay Shore), and Suffolk County Legislator Monica Martinez (D-Brentwood) will receive awards for their support for independent living centers such as SILO, as well as improving the quality of life for people with disabilities. Political speakers will include Legislator Al Krupski (D-Riverhead), Legislator Leslie Kennedy (R-Hauppauge), Suffolk County Comptroller john Kennedy, Legislator Rob Calarrco (D-Patchogue), and Assemblyman Michael Fitzpatrick (R-St. James).
Local talent will include a dance troop of children with disabilities from NXG Dance Studio of East Northport. The troop will perform at 1:30 PM. This family-friendly, wheelchair-accessible event will also include games, prizes, children’s activities, educational resources, interactive exhibits, food, and music.
“Disability rights are civil rights, and we are grateful for 25 years of civil rights protection under the ADA,” said Alice Young, Director of Government and Community Relations at SILO.
About The Suffolk Independent Living Organization (SILO)
The Suffolk Independent Living Organization (SILO) has been a staple of the disability community in Suffolk County since 1985. A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, consumer controlled, non-residential, civil rights, mentorship and educational organization, SILO is philosophically tied to the nationwide Independent Living Movement which asserts that people with disabilities have the same rights and responsibilities, needs and desires, as their non-disabled peers. For more informaon, visit http://www.siloinc.org or call (631) 880-7929.
About The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
Signed into law by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public. The purpose of the law is to make sure that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. For more information, visit http://adaanniversary.org.
