[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 146 (Saturday, October 8, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 8, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                  MAKING VOLUNTEER PROGRAMS ACCESSIBLE

                                 ______


                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 7, 1994

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, long before passage of the Americans With 
Disabilities Act, the American Association of Retired Persons [AARP] 
was keenly concerned about accessibility.
  Today, with more than 33 million members, more than 4,000 local 
chapters, and countless volunteer programs in communities all across 
America, AARP is working to make its programs and services accessible 
to all of its members and other older Americans.
  The September-October issue of Highlights, AARP's national volunteer 
newsletter, features a front-page story about how the association is 
striving to make its volunteer programs accessible to people with 
disabilities. The managing editor of Highlights, which goes to some 
200,000 AARP volunteer leaders and chapter presidents, is one of my 
constituents--Steve Mehlman of Crofton.
  I commend this interesting and informative article to our colleagues:

         AARP and the ADA--Making Volunteer Programs Accessible

       Accessibility has always been a priority for AARP's 
     volunteer programs. When choosing locations for program 
     sites, for instance, volunteers have sought out places that 
     are accessible to people with disabilities. Flights of stairs 
     are out. So are buildings with doorways too narrow for a 
     wheelchair to fit through. And all sites must have nearby 
     parking or public transportation.
       The passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) in 
     1990 formalized this commitment to accessibility. Under ADA's 
     Title III, public programs like AARP's are now required to 
     make reasonable accommodations to allow participation by 
     people with disabilities. ``We're looking to make all our 
     programs accessible to all people, including people with 
     disabilities,'' explains Tricia Selby, Manager of AARP's 
     Disability Initiative.


                    serving people with disabilities

       In some cases, a simple one-on-one approach allows for 
     accessibility. Taxpayers with vision impairments, for 
     example, occasionally ask Tax-Aide counselors to come to the 
     taxpayers' homes to help prepare their taxes. Other Tax-Aide 
     counselors conduct entire counseling sessions in writing, 
     scribbling questions and answers back and forth to taxpayers 
     who are deaf or hard of hearing. ``It takes more time to 
     write notes to one another, but it's never a problem,'' says 
     Walter Bock, an Assistant District Coordinator for Tax-Aide 
     in New Port Richey, FL.
       Sometimes the demand is too great to make this kind of one-
     on-one service feasible. Bock, for instance, now runs a 
     special Tax-Aide site at a deaf center. The center provides 
     facilities, handles scheduling and donates the services of a 
     staff interpreter; Bock sends one or two counselors over 
     whenever there's a need. The program now helps about a dozen 
     people a month.
       ``Many of the deaf people tell us that they are very happy 
     that this service is being offered,'' Bock explains. ``They 
     can't work with paid preparers because of the need for 
     interpreters.''
       A 55ALIVE site in Shawnee, OK, has also set up a special 
     service. The program began when someone asked Assistant State 
     Coordinator Cecil Johnston whether he ever held driving 
     classes for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. He 
     hadn't, but he set about making it happen.
       Determined to keep costs down, Johnston convinced two 
     friends who knew sign language to volunteer their time as 
     interpreters during a one-day course targeting drivers who 
     communicated primarily through sign language. Because one of 
     them taught sign language at a local vocational/technical 
     training center, she was able to arrange for the class to use 
     the center's facilities. Drawing on her contacts in the deaf 
     community, she also pulled together the 19 or so students who 
     attended the class.
       Johnston was a little nervous at first. For one thing, he 
     wasn't sure that the interpreters would be able to keep up 
     with him. For another, he wasn't too sure how his usual jokes 
     would go over when translated into sign language. His 
     interpreters reassured him, telling him to do everything 
     exactly the way he always does. Although Johnston admits that 
     the process took a little getting used to, it worked out just 
     fine.
       By the end of the class, Johnston even had a new awareness 
     of the concerns of people with disabilities. In fact, he had 
     already talked to state legislators about requiring police to 
     provide interpreters when drivers who are deaf have 
     accidents. ``If I speak a foreign language, I'm entitled to 
     an interpreter,'' he explains. ``If I can't hear you, I ought 
     to be able to have an interpreter, too.''


                 welcoming volunteers with disabilities

       Services like these make AARP's programs accessible to 
     people with disabilities. Taking accessibility one step 
     further, the Association also encourages people with 
     disabilities to serve as volunteers. ``It goes both ways,'' 
     explains Wayne Harper, Senior Program Specialist for Tax-
     Aide. ``It's important to us that people are given every 
     opportunity to volunteer in our program.''
       Beulah Waller of Wolf Point, MT, for example, doesn't let a 
     vision impairment keep her from volunteering as a Tax-Aide 
     counselor. ``I don't think any impairment should ever stop 
     you from doing things!'' she says.
       A former speed reader, Waller reads more slowly and with 
     greater difficulty now that she had lost part of her vision 
     to glaucoma and cataracts. ``Having to take more time to read 
     is frustrating,'' she admits. She has, however, developed 
     techniques that help her compensate for her lessened vision. 
     A ruler helps hold her place. Studying the tax forms 
     beforehand helps her know what goes on each line.


                            getting involved

       These examples represent just a few ways AARP programs are 
     promoting accessibility to volunteers with disabilities. 
     Along with other community agencies that help by providing 
     services such as accessible sites and convenient parking, 
     AARP programs strive to offer reasonable accommodations to 
     welcome persons with disabilities.
       ``We want people to understand what a reasonable 
     accommodation is and to know that often it doesn't cost a 
     lot,'' explains Selby, ``although in some cases, interpreters 
     have to be paid. We need to make these types of reasonable 
     accommodations, and we need to plan for them in our 
     budgets.''

  Mr. Speaker, I commend the work of the AARP and wish them continued 
success in assuring all people are able to fully participate in their 
communities.

                          ____________________