Alachua County held its annual Disability Awareness Expo on Wednesday.
More than 30 vendors set up in Martin Luther King Jr. Multipurpose Center. Attendees stopped by the booths to learn what the vendors can do for people with disabilities.
The event celebrates the July 1990 signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The law prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, public services and public accommodations.
The Alachua County Equal Opportunity Office and the Gainesville Office of Equity and Inclusion are joint sponsors for the event.
“The goal is always public education,” Equal Opportunity Manager Jacqueline Chung said, “making people aware of not just the law that’s there, but what are the resources available in the community.”
This year, the event had a new addition: a panel of speakers from community organizations. The representatives were from Center for Independent Living of North Central Florida, Disability Rights Florida, ElderCare of Alachua County, Dogs Inc. and Regional Transit System Plus.
The panelists talked about their organizations and what they offer the community. Attendees asked questions about transportation, disaster relief and how their organizations can aid those in need.
Gainesville’s Regional Transit System Plus provides on-call door-to-door transportation services. It began this year following the city’s decision to move medical transport services in-house.
Millie Crawford, the representative for RTS Plus, said rides are only provided on the fixed bus routes for paratransit.
If someone is over 60 years old and living in the county, ElderCare can provide transportation in cities of Alachua County that RTS Plus doesn’t venture to, said Jeffery Lee, the executive director. ElderCare specifically provides rides to monthly medical appointments.
Other questions included what organizations do for disaster relief for those who are less able to care for themselves.
If the governor declares a disaster for the county or area, ElderCare can provide for people that aren’t eligible in regular situations, Lee said. When preparing for a hurricane, the organization provides items for just its clients. But after the storm, if declared a disaster, it will serve anyone in need.
“After the event, the constraints are a lot looser,” he said, “so we can serve whoever needs it.”
During the panel, organizations emphasized their resources and accessibility.
Dawn Moore, the representative for Disability Rights Florida, said the services provided by the organization are free to anyone with a disability.
Along with the hourlong panel, attendees stopped by booths to learn more about each service and organization. It also gave organizations the chance to meet and collaborate with one another.
Alachua Conservation Trust is one of the repeating vendors at the expo. Building accessible trails is one of its conservation efforts.
In nature, accessibility can be difficult. Alachua Conservation Trust has two EcoRover all-terrain wheelchairs that are lent out to people. The chairs are durable for approved trails like Prairie Creek Preserve. People can apply to borrow the chairs for a visit.
The organization uses the event to network with the others.
“We meet people who might use these chairs, but we also meet a lot of partners who help us connect with other people who might use them,” Preserve Manager Danny Rohan said.
Another vendor, Dogs Inc., has been another active organization at the expos. The organization's mission is to provide service dogs for veterans and the visually impaired. It offers a training program for dogs to learn commands and socialization skills, and volunteers can sign up to raise the dog trainees.
Sharon Skiles, the club’s co-leader, brought five furry trainees to the event. From a 3-month-old named Sparkle to an 11-month-old named Dasher, attendees got to learn what a puppy beginning its service job is like.
The event is a learning experience for everyone, Skiles said.
“[This event is] not just for somebody who has disabilities,” she said, “but for everybody, because you may have a friend who has issues, and you need to be able to help.”
Pedro Enrique Rivera, a 54-year-old Alachua County resident, attended the event to learn and gain resources to help his mother, who he has been helping take care of since 2019, he said.
He learned so much from the event, he said, especially after talking to one of the representatives for Florida Legal Services.
“As soon as she started talking, within 20 words, she covered everything, all the questions that I got,” Rivera said.
Contact Teia Williams at twilliams@alligator.org. Follow her on X @teia_williams.
Teia Williams is a journalism student and in her second semester at The Alligator. She is a lifestyle and general assignment for The Avenue. In her free time she is constantly reading, going to concerts, or talking about her favorite celebrities.
