Whether or not you are able to attend this session at 3 PM on Friday, July 30, at the NCE of The Arc in Reno, you can download our PowerPoint Presentation.   Since the slides do not provide detailed information, please get back to us if you have questions.  [Click here]

What can you say about someone who travels across the country to place a gravestone on a tiny plot outside the prison where this unfortunate person is buried?

On the 20^th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, it would be impossible to illustrate the spirit of this act and The Value of One in any more meaningful way than to tell you (and link you to) the story of the actions of Bob Perske on behalf of Joe Arridy.

He sent this e-mail to some of us who follow his advocacy efforts.  This is what it said:

Dear Colleague:

Denver Attorney David A. Martinez is filing a petition asking Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. to issue a posthumous pardon to Joe Arridy who was wrongfully executed on January 6, 1939.  This cause will be helped if a number of “independent persons” chose to write letters that will support the efforts of Attorney Martinez.  Here is the plan:

• I have volunteered to receive your letters. (PLEASE SEND YOUR HARD COPY VIA U.S. MAIL TO PERSKE, 159 HOLLOW TREE RIDGE ROAD, DARIEN, CT 06820).
• I will assemble the letters and write a cover index that will list all names alphabetically.
• The packet will be submitted with the Attorneys petition and documentation.
• THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIVING THE LETTERS WILL BE LABOR DAY.

Rob Warden, Executive Director, The Center on Wrongful Convictions, Northwestern University School of Law has written an excellent overview in www.friendsofjoearridy.com.

Bob Perske

Anyone wishing to read more about this and respond to his request is welcome to visit the website above.

Here is the letter we wrote:

The Honorable Bill Ritter, Jr.

Governor, State of Colorado

Dear Governor Ritter:

More than a decade ago I read the story of Joe Arridy in the book Deadly Innocence by Bob Perske.   I knew the ending and that made it an important but difficult read.  It’s still on my shelf and I pulled it down when I received an email from Bob today.  He requested a letter from “colleagues.”  I felt privileged to be called one, and honored that he asked me to support Joe Arridy.

I didn’t need to re-read Joe’s story.  The emotional parts are a permanent imprint.   Things slip my mind these days but the image of Joe Arridy happily playing with his toy train on the floor of his death row cell never left.   When you touch this area of advocacy — fighting for dignity, respect and justice for the most vulnerable among a highly vulnerable population — too often, you find no tears left.   I still had a few.

It turns out I didn’t know the ending of Joe’s story because it hadn’t yet been written. Thanks to Bob and other “Friends of Joe,” there is an opportunity for a posthumous pardon for Joe Arridy.   I am in obvious support of this and though some wrongs are virtually impossible to right, this is one that will reverberate throughout the field of intellectual disabilities and help demonstrate that all people, regardless of the circumstances that nurture and nature have dealt them in life, have value.

Governor Ritter, you have the power to help write the final chapter in Joe Arridy’s life by granting this pardon.  We hope this highly symbolic and compassionate act is forthcoming in the near future.

It’s never too late to right a wrong.

My thoughts and prayers are with you as you contemplate this decision.

Most Sincerely,

Jim Stream, Executive Director

The Arc of Riverside County

City of Riverside’s Continuing Commitment to Diversity

The Arc of Riverside County chooses to acknowledge this important anniversary of the ADA by telling our readers about the new Universal Playground at Fairmont Park in Riverside.   Several weeks ago, we were present with city officials and members of the city’s Commission on Disabilities for the grand opening of this special place where children with and without disabilities can play together.

The Arc of Riverside County Take Part in the Opening Ceremony

At the grand opening on June 21, Mayor Ron Loveridge and Ward 1 Councilman Mike Gardner spoke of the work and the mission of The Arc of Riverside County and the importance of this playground.  Even though our agency had only a small part in making this a reality, it was an affirmation of our core values and in step with our The Value of One project on dignity and respect for people with intellectual disabilities.   Justin Newman, a person who attends one of our programs, led the Pledge of Allegiance and had the honor of cutting the ribbon to officially open the park.

An Important Area Nonprofit Committed to Teaching Inclusion through Play

At the opening ceremony, Brad Thornton, development director for Shane’s Inspiration, the nonprofit company that facilitates the construction of these playgrounds, spoke of their inclusive mission and their desire to bring this project to elementary schools in Riverside as the logical next step.

The educational program created by CEO and Co-Founder Tiffany Harris and program director, Marnie Norris, includes a field trip to the playground and a pre- and post-classroom session.  The students are briefed on what to expect before students with and without disabilities travel by bus to the park for playtime together.  Upon returning to school, they talk about the experience.

The Riverside Parks Department and the Commission on Disabilities are committed to helping schools implement this educational program.  With two members of The Arc on the Commission on Disabilities, our agency may play a key part in making this happen.

Several weeks after this opening, The Arc staff met with Shane’s Inspiration staff and ideas were discussed for taking the important next step to make this happen in our city.  Testimonials from schools where this program have been conducted are extremely positive.  Visit www.shanesinspiration.org for more information and for how this program can be done in any community.

Read the Press Enterprise article here.

History of the ADA

The ADA was signed into law by President George H. W. Bush in July of 1990.  For the first time it prohibited discrimination based on disability.   “Over the past two decades, The ADA has created revolutionary improvements in the lives of Americans with disabilities,” said U.S.  Attorney General Eric Holder in a speech Friday commemorating the bill’s signing.  Many have noted that people with intellectual disabilities have the least from this landmark legislation.  One example is that while physical barriers in courtrooms around the country have been removed, accommodations for people with intellectual disabilities who encounter the criminal justice system often receive unequal justice due to the legal system’s ignorance and/or indifference to their plight.   It is our hope that these barriers will begin to disappear in the coming decade.

Read what The Arc of the U.S. says about the ADA.

The Arc of Riverside County, California, a nonprofit charitable organization,  is searching for artistic renderings/ideas for a mural on a smooth brick wall bordering our main office that will illustrate the concept of “The Value of One.”

“The Value of One” is our affirmation that all people, with and without disabilities, have inherent value.  Currently, people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities are not always provided the level of dignity and respect they rightfully deserve as they take their place in our communities.  Our goal is to make this wall a visual statement illustrating our belief in the value of everyone and that it will be seen by those coming to our location and by those interested in our campaign for greater dignity and respect of people with disabilities.

A prize of $1,000 will be awarded to the person with the winning design.  We have no preconceived ideas for this design, except that we want the logo to be incorporated into the mural in some manner, although it does not need to be a literal representation.  The wall is located at 8138 Mar Vista Court, Riverside, CA, 92504 and is approximately 100 feet long and between 10 and 12 feet high.

Learn more.

Find out how nonprofit agencies in Nassau County are teaming up to fight hurtful budget cuts.

Find out how.

Here he is on the national nightly news with Katie Couric:

Part I:

Part II:

Read the article!