Transforming Challenges into Catalysts for Change
Circle of Friends Ministry is a day program that has equipped, empowered, and provided inclusion to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Lake Wales and the greater East Polk Area since 1999. The Circle has plans to expand its class sizes and offer disability housing and respite.
1Community4ALL seeks to create a community network of nonprofits, raising and sharing dollars together. Our programs vary but our missions can help to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities and provide support to families and caretakers, promoting disability inclusion.
1 in 4 Americans and Floridians live with a disability. We all know or love someone with a disability, and we believe that they, too, are endowed by their Creator with the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. How can one live life, enjoy their liberties, and pursue that happiness, the American Dream, if we have communities that aren’t accessible to or supportive of them? Together, we can change our community, country, and the world for the better!
March
Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. This class of disabilities can refer to impairments in learning and behavior, such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and impairments in physical and/or intellectual functioning such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and Down syndrome. The campaign seeks to raise awareness about including people with developmental disabilities in all facets of community life. It also creates awareness of the difficulties that people with disabilities still face in fitting into the communities in which they live.
April
Autism Acceptance Month. Previously named Autism Awareness Month, it aims to celebrate and promote acceptance of the condition that occurs in one in every 54 children as of 2020 in the United States. Autism, a complex developmental condition affecting the patient’s ability to interact, communicate, and progress, has not one but many subtypes. First held in 1972 by the Autism Society, Autism Acceptance Month emphasizes the need for public awareness to promote acceptance, celebrate differences, and be more inclusive towards autistic individuals around us.
19 local Polk businesses have partnered with us for March and April.
May
Mobility Awareness Month. An international campaign that works to highlight and celebrate the ways in which people living with disabilities persevere and triumph over their physical challenges while bringing attention to the many life-changing mobility solutions available to make independence more accessible.
June
Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month. People with intellectual and developmental disabilities can also develop dementia as they age, and in these cases, recognizing their symptoms can be particularly difficult. It’s important to consider a person’s current abilities and to monitor for changes over time that could signal dementia.
We are asking local Polk businesses to partner with us during May and June.
1Community4ALL seeks to create a community network of nonprofits, raising and sharing dollars together. Our programs vary but our missions can help to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities and provide support to families and caretakers, promoting disability inclusion.
1 in 4 Americans and Floridians live with a disability. We all know or love someone with a disability, and we believe that they, too, are endowed by their Creator with the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. How can one live life, enjoy their liberties, and pursue that happiness, the American Dream, if we have communities that aren’t accessible to or supportive of them? Together, we can change our community, country, and the world for the better!
March
Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month. This class of disabilities can refer to impairments in learning and behavior, such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and impairments in physical and/or intellectual functioning such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and Down syndrome. The campaign seeks to raise awareness about including people with developmental disabilities in all facets of community life. It also creates awareness of the difficulties that people with disabilities still face in fitting into the communities in which they live.
April
Autism Acceptance Month. Previously named Autism Awareness Month, it aims to celebrate and promote acceptance of the condition that occurs in one in every 54 children as of 2020 in the United States. Autism, a complex developmental condition affecting the patient’s ability to interact, communicate, and progress, has not one but many subtypes. First held in 1972 by the Autism Society, Autism Acceptance Month emphasizes the need for public awareness to promote acceptance, celebrate differences, and be more inclusive towards autistic individuals around us.
19 local Polk businesses have partnered with us for March and April.
May
Mobility Awareness Month. An international campaign that works to highlight and celebrate the ways in which people living with disabilities persevere and triumph over their physical challenges while bringing attention to the many life-changing mobility solutions available to make independence more accessible.
June
Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month. People with intellectual and developmental disabilities can also develop dementia as they age, and in these cases, recognizing their symptoms can be particularly difficult. It’s important to consider a person’s current abilities and to monitor for changes over time that could signal dementia.
We are asking local Polk businesses to partner with us during May and June.
1 Community 4 ALL
A Joint Initiative of Circle of Friends and Removing the Barriers