Report for Annual Conference 2023

We submitted the following report to the Susquehanna Annual Conference Journal for 2023

Disability Awareness Task Force (Report prepared March 8, 2023)

Disability Awareness Task Force (Report prepared March 8, 2023)

Our Mission-

Our Mission is to lead the Susquehanna Conference in creating a culture where people with disabilities are fully included in all aspects of worship, leadership, ministry, and mission. We will work to advocate for the needs of people with disabilities, empower people with disabilities, and educate members of our churches and communities about issues related to disabilities and disability awareness.

Our Members

Clergy: Rev. Rebecca L. Holland (Chair), Rev. Mitch Galloway, Rev. Craig Gommer, Rev. James C. House, Rev. Jennett Wertz, Rev. Robert Stump, Rev. Carol Gathagan, Pastor Julie Rosensteel, Pastor Steven Atanasoff Laity: Mrs. Pamela Harker, Mrs. Abigail Kane, Mr. Jerry Post, Mrs. Wendy Albright, Mrs. Lisa Lupold,  Mr. Jeffery Holland, Mr. John Henderson, Mr. Alex Ross-Schnaubelt, Mr. Nate Ross-Schnaubelt  Partners: Rev. Evelyn Madison (Mental Health Task Force, Chair), Rev. Ed Zeiders (Child Advocacy, Chair)

How We Are Making Disciples

– The Disability Ministry Task force is a group of laity and clergy who believe in the importance of fully incorporating all people into the Body of Christ. The Disability Ministries Task force seeks to not only minister to people with disabilities, but to be in ministry with people with disabilities. The Disability Ministries Task Force seeks to empower the people with disabilities who are already connected to our churches for leadership, provide radical hospitality to people in our communities who have disabilities, and advocate for the needs of both clergy and laity with disabilities in the Susquehanna Conference. Concern for people with disabilities is rooted in our Biblical call as Christians as well as in the church polity of the United Methodist Church. Jesus himself gave us a mandate to serve, “the least of these (Matthew 25:40).”

The Book of Discipline 2016, ¶653, states, “There shall be in each annual conference a committee on disability concerns or other structure to provide for the functions of this ministry and maintain the connectional relationship.” It also states that, “The basic membership of the committee shall be nominated and elected by established procedures of the respective annual conference. Each annual conference shall determine the number and composition of the total membership.” The Social Principles state that, “We recognize and affirm the full humanity and personhood of all individuals with mental, physical, developmental, neurological, and psychological conditions or disabilities as full members of the family of God (¶162I).” The Social Principles also affirms that people with disabilities have a “rightful place in both the church and society,” and the need for the church to be in ministry with “children, youth, and adults,” who have “mental, physical, developmental, and/or psychological and neurological conditions,” or other disabilities that might make it more challenging for them to participate “in the life of the Church and the community.”

What We Have Accomplished: In the past year, we have accomplished the following tasks:

1. Members of our Task Force serve as both clergy and laity throughout our conference to work to make the church more inclusive for people with disabilities. Members of our Task Force serve in a variety of settings and work within their local churches to empower people with disabilities, create inclusive spaces, and advocate for the needs of people with disabilities.
2. Disability Ministries Awareness Sunday. The Susquehanna Conferencerecognized Disability Awareness Sunday on October 9, 2022. We have submitted a resolution for Disability Awareness Sunday to be held on the second Sunday of October in 2023. We also encouraged local churches to collect a special offering on Disability Awareness Sunday. This special offering was sent to the Disability Ministries Committee of the United Methodist Church and helped to provide grants to local churches. These grants helped local churches to become more accessible.
3. We strongly encouraged clergy and churches to carefully consider before inviting a traveling faith healer to visit their congregation. We published an open letter which was widely circulated beseeching clergy and congregations to carefully consider before inviting a faith healer into their pulpit. In this letter, we shared concerns about how charlatans often fleece money from congregations and make empty promises that they will provide miracles in exchange for money. We also outlined that not every person with a disability wants to be cured. People with disabilities can live full and complete lives.
4. We maintained our website and renewed our unique domain name (DisabilityUMC.org).  In order to make disciples, we have worked to communicate the fact that God loves all people and that all people are of sacred worth; therefore, we have created a website to communicate this message. Our website includes resources, news, and a blog. Our website is a way to collect resources and share information that will be helpful to the people of the Susquehanna Conference. The website has resources that relate to issues of disability, advocacy, outreach, empowerment, and awareness. You can find our website at: DisabilityUMC.org
5. We maintained our Facebook Page and used social media to promote disability awareness.  Our Facebook Page has over two hundred “likes” and continues to grow. We post regularly to the Facebook Page to continue to raise awareness and communicate disability related news. You can find us at @SUSUMCDisability.
6. We continued our connection with the Disability Ministries Committee of the United Methodist Church. The UMCDMC provides training, advocacy, and research with the entire connection. We are proud to be connected with the UMCDMC. You can find more information about their work at UMCDMC.org.
7. We supported the efforts of the Disability Ministries Committee of the United Methodist Church to put forth two resolutions regarding disability concerns at the next General Conference. The Disability Ministries Committee is currently drafting two resolutions to be put forth before the next gathering of the General Conference. The current working titles of these resolutions are “Resolution Concerning Anti-Ableism,” and “Ableism and Audism.”
8. We advocated for the next gathering of the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference of the United Methodist Church to include an Accessibility Coordinator. During the Gathering of the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference which occurred in 2022, a discussion regarding the use of ZOOM to facilitate meetings of the NEJ occurred. Rev. Rebecca L. Holland, a delegate from our conference, spoke from the floor about the need for the NEJ to consider utilizing an Accessibility Coordinator in the future. This is especially true for virtual gatherings, because technology is not equally accessible to all people.
9. We submitted a resolution to The Susquehanna Annual Conference to include captions and/or subtitles in all future gatherings of the Annual Conference.  In the United Methodist Church inclusiveness means the freedom for the total involvement of all persons who meet the requirements of the United Methodist Book of Discipline in the membership and leadership of the Church at any level and in every place. The Disability Ministries Task force has heard concerns from both clergy and laity that they were unable to follow the proceedings of past Annual Conference gatherings due to the lack of captions. Some clergy and laity were unable to participate in the voting process due to the lack of captions.   

Our Future Plans for 2023-2024: We have established the following goals for the coming year:

1. Pray for the life of the church and especially for the needs of clergy and laity with disabilities.
2. Complete our our Advent Resource: Over the next year, our task force will join forces with DMC and UMAMD to complete our work on an Advent Resource centered around interpreting the Good News of the Christmas story through the lens of disability theology. This resource will be an important book for pastors, churches, and individuals to help them learn and grow in their faith.
3.  Educate & Advise: The Disability Ministries Task Force will make themselves available to speak with and advise local churches who have questions about ways in which they can become more accessible.
4.  Advocate for the needs of clergy and laity with disabilities.
5. Offer support to conference boards of Discipleship (camping, Christian education), Global Ministries (disaster and mission programs, health-care institutions), and Older Adult Ministries to help them ensure that their ministries promote full participation for persons with disabilities.
6.  Raise Awareness: Members of the Disability Ministries Task force will work to raise awareness that the committee exists and wants to help churches and individuals.
7. Disability Awareness Sunday: We have presented a resolution to Annual Conference 2023 to continue to observe Disability Awareness Sunday as the second Sunday in October for the year of 2023. This special Sunday is to be used to promote awareness about issues related to disabilities, provide a space for people with disabilities to participate in worship leadership, and (if churches choose to do so) a special offering will be taken for Advanced Special #3021054 to benefit The United Methodist Disability Ministry Committee. This special offering will support the ongoing efforts of disabilities ministries throughout the global United Methodist connection. 

We submitted the following two resolutions to Annual Conference 2023

DISABILITY AWARENESS SUNDAY Resolution for 2023

WHEREAS ¶265.4 of The Social Principles states that annual conferences shall designate a special Sunday of the year to be observed as “Disability Awareness Sunday;” and

WHEREAS ¶265.4 calls for the church to use this special Sunday designated for Disability Awareness to celebrate the gifts and graces of persons with disabilities,” as well as to “promote the full inclusion of persons with disabilities in the community;” and

WHEREAS the nation recognizes October as National Disabilities Awareness Month;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that members of the Susquehanna Conference of the United Methodist Church recognize Disability Awareness Sunday as the second Sunday in October (October 8, 2023)  by promoting awareness about issues related to disabilities, providing a space for people with disabilities to participate in worship leadership, and participating (if churches choose to do so) in a special offering for Advanced Special #3021054 to benefit Disability Ministries of the United Methodist Church. This special offering will support the ongoing efforts of disabilities ministries throughout the worldwide United Methodist connection.

Rev. Rebecca L. Holland, Disability Awareness Task Force of the Susquehanna Conference (Chair) and Disability Ministry Committee of the United Methodist Church (chair of communications), serving Christ Community & Llyswen in Altoona, PA

Jeffery D. Holland, Licensed Local Pastor Bald Eagle Parish, Tyrone PA

The People of Christ Community United Methodist Church, Altoona 

CAPTIONS FOR FUTURE ANNUAL CONFERENCE GATHERINGS Resolution for 2023

WHEREAS The Book of Discipline 2016, ¶653, states, “There shall be in each annual conference a committee on disability concerns or other structure to provide for the functions of this ministry and maintain the connectional relationship;” and

WHEREAS The Book of Discipline ¶653.1 states that membership of the committee on disability concerns, “shall include persons with physical disabilities and persons with mental disabilities;” and

WHEREAS The Disability Ministries Task Force of the Susquehanna Conference has heard numerous concerns from both laity and clergy regarding the accessibility and inclusivity of past gatherings of the annual; and

WHEREAS members of the annual conference, both clergy and laity, have been unable to fully participate in the work of the body of the annual conference due to the lack of captions; and

WHEREAS delegates, both clergy and laity, have been unable to vote in the past because of the lack of appropriate captioning; and

WHEREAS captions are helpful to many different people, including those with processing disorders and those who speak English as a second language; and

WHEREAS The Disability Ministries Task Force of the Susquehanna Conference volunteers to assist in helping to explore the different options for captions available and to make recommendations to the planning committee for the annual conference regarding captions;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that members of the Susquehanna Conference of the United Methodist Church call upon the planning committee for the annual conference  to make every reasonable effort to provide captions for all future gatherings of the annual conference, including any special called sessions. We believe that this will help everyone, including people with disabilities, to participate fully in the life of the church. 

Rev. Rebecca L. Holland, Disability Awareness Task Force of the Susquehanna Conference (Chair) and Disability Ministry Committee of the United Methodist Church (chair of communications), serving Christ Community & Llyswen in Altoona, PA

Jeffery D. Holland, Licensed Local Pastor Bald Eagle Parish, Tyrone PA

The People of Christ Community United Methodist Church, Altoona 

Serve with Us!

Is God calling you to serve on the Disabilities Ministries Task Force? If you are interested in joining the Task Force, please contact Rev. Rebecca Holland at RHolland@susumc.org. You can also contact us for questions or other inquiries at our website at DisabilityUMC.org. We would love to hear from you!

Where Do I Begin? If you are looking for easy ways to make your church more accessible, we recommend the book The United Methodist Church and Disability by Rev. Rebecca L. Holland. You can also find an abundance of great resources on our website at (www.DisabilityUMC.org) or at the website for the Disability Ministries Committee of the United Methodist Church (UMCDMC.org).

Are you a clergy person with a disability? We encourage you to view the work of The United Methodist Association of Ministers with Disabilities at UMDisabledMinisters.org and to consider joining our caucus.

Respectfully submitted,

–Rev. Rebecca L. Holland, Chair of the Disability Ministries Task Force of the Susquehanna Conference and Chair of Communications for the Disability Ministries Committee of the United Methodist Church