Tap the Potential (Disabilities Awareness Month)
Tap the Potential, Disability Awareness Month
Tap the Potential in 2008
Tap the Potential Disability Awareness month has been celebrated in Milwaukee each October since 2003. This year thirty-two organizations are sponsoring a variety of activities geared towards raising the public’s awareness of the talents and issues of people with disabilities in our community. Initially coordinated by the Milwaukee County Office for Persons with Disabilities, the 2008 effort is being led by Barbara Leigh from the Milwaukee Public Theatre and Heide Planey from VSA arts of Wisconsin.
Tap the Potential October Calendar
Tap the Potential has organized a number of awareness raising events throughout the month. Organizations are encouraged to sponsor their own events and invited to list them on the calendar. The calendar will be updated throughout the month as information is received. To find out more, click here.
Art Exhibition(s)
An exhibition of over fifty artists representing a full spectrum of disabilities is being held at three different sites throughout the Milwaukee area. The flagship show is being held at Mitchell International Airport’s main concourse. Milwaukee’s City Hall and the Lake Country Fine Arts School and Gallery will host the two additional shows.
Click here to see the calendar for details.
The Airport show will once again ask the public to share their comments about the artwork. Many passengers wrote messages sending support and encouragement to the artists. Click here to see the messages. In 2008, travelers will be asked to vote for their favorite artist.
If you are looking for 2008 Art Sales information, please contact Jennifer Vattendahl at 414-483-6989 or Email by clicking here.
Thanks to the committee members who put the 2008 show together: Heide Planey - VSA Arts of Wisconsin, Jan Kruk - Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin, Susan Klawien - Easter Seals Kindcare, Jennifer Vattendahl - Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin, Mary Newhouse - Curative Care Network, Tim Rode - Curative Care Network, Susan Endes - Milwaukee Center for Independence, and Bridget Bannon - Milwaukee County Office for Persons with Disabilities
On Wheels
This intiative began as a partnership with the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects and was called Architects on Wheels. The idea grew to include the engineering, designing and nursing disciplines.
The goal is for future designers of our environment to spend time experiencing the environment from a different perspective. Students see first hand what it is like to be two feet shorter, with a more limited reach range. They find that things that they are used to not paying attention to such as thresholds become much more obvious. We hope that their experience will impact on future designs of buildings and environmental spaces.
Milwaukee-area college students have enthusiastically embraced the On Wheels effort. Students are provided with wheelchairs and asked to go through their normal daily routine including going to class, working, going through the college food lines and negotiating their dormitory rooms. They are encouraged to go outside and experience curb cuts, sidewalk slopes and public access into various buildings. Students from the Milwaukee Institute of Art Design, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Marquette and the Milwaukee School of Engineering participated last year. 100 MSOE students participated making MSOE the school with the highest number of students in the country participating in the experience and earning them a national award from the American Institute of Architects for their dedication in the areas of disability and accessibility awareness
"The wheelchair event was a great opportunity, I feel, to give students a chance to experience what it might be like, only if for a few hours, to be wheelchair bound. It made you really think about the way things are designed and how it really does come from an able bodied person's perspective. Things like getting in and out of the elevators and how long those doors stay open for. When you can walk they never seem to close quick enough, I never thought about how it would be if I had to get in and out in a wheelchair… It is very important to experience these things especially if you are some sort of architect or engineer." Denise Benish
"In the chair, I noticed a great deal about floor textures and levels, because I felt every dip and sag in the floors inside buildings. The surface covering the floor has a huge deal on the mobility of a wheelchair…In all, I had a great opportunity to learn about practical building design for disabled Americans who have to deal with these little hassles every day." Gabe Gorsline
Many thanks to Andrew Alden, American Institute of Architects, SEW Chapter: Julie Schulz, Wheelchair Recycling Program: Jason Goike, Student Coordinator, Milwaukee School of Engineering: Pascal Malassigne, Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, Tim Ochnikowski, Milwaukee County Office for Persons with Disabilities, Vic Thomas, Milwaukee World Festivals and Cleo Funches, Milwaukee County Facilities Management
Bookmarks
Each year artwork is submitted by artists with disabilities and laminated for bookmarks. Information about the artist and the sponsoring agency is included on the back. This year seven pieces were submitted and are being distributed locally and nationally as requests come in. Representatives from five states across the nation saw information about our bookmarks on the website and requested quantities. Click here to see the 2008 bookmarks. Contact Bridget if you'd like some bookmarks. Click here to email Bridget.
Special thanks to Susan Russell - Easter Seals Southeast Wisconsin and Valerie Lorenz - Easter Seals Southeast Wisconsin for coordinating and producing this effort.
Guerilla Artist Strike
Milwaukee enjoys the presence of many talented performing artists who have disabilities.
"Guerrilla Artists" will be exhibiting their work and performing before the ears and eyes of Milwaukeeans in public and private locations throughout the community, sharing the gift of their talents, challenging worn stereotypes and creating a new vision borne of our disability experiences. The artists include storytellers, pianists, harpist, drummers, puppeteers, singers, and an actor/ humorist, and more. See calendar for scheduled strikes.
Bus Pass
The Milwaukee County Transit System again selected Tap the Potential as one of its weekly bus pass themes this year. Last year bus riders were surprised to see a new president sitting on top of Mt Rushmore. Tap the Potential thought it was time that Franklin Delano Roosevelt (seated in his wheelchair) take his place with other great American presidents! This year’s bus pass will be posted after the issuance for security purposes.
Thanks to Don Natzke, Milwaukee County Office for Persons with Disabilities; Tom Roehl, Milwaukee County Transit Company; and Dan Spitz for their creativity and talent in creating the pass.
More Information
For more information about Tap the Potential contact Bridget Bannon, Milwaukee County Office for Persons with Disabilities at 414-278-3938 or click here to e-mail Bridget.
