Emily F. Keller

Obituary of Judy Record

    Judy Record, a longtime member and former chair of the Suffolk County Handicap Advisory Board (now known as the Suffolk County Disabilities Advisory Board), has passed away. She was 69.

    Her husband Gilbert Record said, “I’m still reeling from it. I miss her so much. We were so close for 41 plus years. It’s just very hard to get used to it. Judy always had a smile – always – and I never heard her say a bad word about anybody. She was just an upbeat positive person especially so even with all her aches and pains. I think I was very lucky to have her and I wish I had her longer.”

United Nations Celebrates International Day of Persons with Disabilities

    On December 2^nd, the United Nations (UN) celebrated the 19^th annual International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a tradition started by the General Assembly in 1992. The theme of this year’s event was: Together for a better world for all: Including persons with disabilities in development.

     The day included a discussion of the Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), a human rights treaty establishing international legal standards for governments and international governmental organizations to promote equality in the areas of health, education, international cooperation, gender equality and standard of living.

Outer Borough Taxi Plan with Accessible Medallions On Hold

    Please visit www.ablenews.com for the latest news on taxi accessibility.

    Legislation to allow livery cabs to pick up street hails in the outer boroughs and increase the number of accessible medallions has been stalled.

     The legislation was passed in June but Governor Andrew Cuomo said he will not sign the bill until several issues have been resolved, including wheelchair accessibility.

Obituary of Matthew Sapolin

    The first Commissioner of the New York City Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities has died.

    Matthew Sapolin, 41, passed away on November 29^th. The cause of death was cancer, which he had battled since childhood.

    Sapolin was born in Islip, New York. He became blind at age five from bilateral retinoblastoma, a cancer affecting the optic nerve. 

    He held a BA in Philosophy from New York University (NYU), where he was co-captain of the wrestling team. Sapolin earned the University Athletic Association Athlete of the Week honor three times and received the President's Service Award for Volunteerism and Community Service upon graduating. He also held an MA in Public Health Administration from NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service.

Athletes with Disabilities Complete New York Marathon

    More than 260 athletes competed in the wheelchair and handcycle divisions of the ING New York City Marathon November 6. They came from countries including Grozny/Chechnya, Venezuela, Brazil, Japan, Ecuador, Denmark and Britain and had disabilities including blindness, paraplegia and amputations.

    The male winner in the pushrim wheelchair division was Masazumi Soejima of Japan with a time of 1:31:41, who made history by becoming the first winner from Japan in any marathon division. The winning female wheelchair athlete was Amanda McGrory of Illinois with a completion time of 1:50:24.

    The female winner in the handcycle division was Renata Kaluza of Poland with a finishing time of 1:49:49. The male handcycle winner was Alessandro Zanardi of Italy, who finished the race in 1:13:58.

    [Pictured: Joseph Beimfohr and Anthony Robinson.]

    The New York Road Runners, the non-profit organization that manages the race, listed 49 athletes completing the race using wheelchairs and 93 athletes who finished in handcycles. The Achilles Track Club recruited and trained many of the athletes with disabilities who entered the race. Founder Dick Traum said not all of the 260 Achilles participants identified themselves as members when they registered.

Suffolk Office for People with Disabilities Changes Its Name

    The Suffolk County Office for People with Disabilities has completed an official name change, phasing out its prior title, the Suffolk County Office of Handicapped Services.

    County Legislator Steve Stern of Huntington sponsored the legislation requiring the change.

Senator Harkin Holds Transportation Accessibility Hearing

    U.S. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, who introduced the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), is weighing in on the accessible taxi debate in New York City.

    Harkin held a hearing called “The Americans with Disabilities Act and Accessible Transportation: Challenges and Opportunities” November 17^th to reflect on recent developments including a class action discrimination lawsuit by the Taxis For All Campaign against the City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC).

    The Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee sponsored the hearing where experts in the field were invited to speak.

Mayor’s Office Holds Disability Mentoring Day

    The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) held a series of events for Disability Mentoring Day, a part of National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

    The eighth annual event linked jobs seekers who have disabilities with potential employers and provided opportunities for networking, mentoring and work experience in the job seekers’ preferred fields.

    The main event took place October 19 when job seekers were able to shadow professionals to gain knowledge about their day-to-day work and how to prepare for their careers. The employers learned about the value that people with disabilities bring to their professions.

Disabled in Action Joins Occupy Wall Street

    Members and supporters of Disabled in Action (DIA) joined the Occupy Wall Street movement, gathering at Zuccotti Park in lower Manhattan on October 16^th.

    Pat Walls, who attended the event with her husband Phillip Walls, said Occupy Wall Street reminds her of her college days as she spoke out against government service cuts.

    “Specifically, I am really afraid of the cuts to homecare services because I am really dependent on my home attendant,” said Walls. She also criticized a new limit for physical and occupational therapy to twenty visits a year, which restricts her ability to receive care for her leg problems.

    (David Dopico and Phillip Walls pictured)

Judge Denies Disability Benefits Based on Substance Use

    An upstate New York judge has ruled that a man with physical and emotional impairments can be denied disability benefits because his condition allegedly resulted from alcohol and opioid dependence.

    Judge Richard J. Arcara of the United States District Court of the Western District of New York said that the plaintiff, Charles L. Cutler, is not disabled under the Social Security Act because alcohol and substance use are a significant factor of his disability and that the plaintiff would no longer be disabled if he stopped his alleged substance use.