A Celebration of Family: Stories of Parents with Disabilities

In the summer of 2021, the Center for Accessible Living and the Advocado Press in Louisville, Kentucky, published A Celebration of Family: Stories of Parents with Disabilities. The book contains 30 stories of families in which one or both parents have disabilities. This presentation will focus on the experiences of three of the parents featured in the book. They will discuss their decision to become parents, their families, and the strategies they have used to be successful parents. The editor of the book will talk about how it was developed along  with a brief history of the legal discrimination people with disabilities have faced in becoming parents. A book signing will follow with copies available for purchase.

Panelists include:

Dr. Kara Ayers was born and raised in Frankfort. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband, Adam, and their three children, Eli, Hannah, and Riley. Dr. Ayers is an Associate Professor and the Associate Director of the University of Cincinnati Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCCEDD) at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

Nanci Howard is from Hazard and currently lives in Salvisa, Kentucky, with her husband, Brian, and their son, Easton. She is an administrator for the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation in Frankfort. She has worked for the agency for nearly 20 years.

Jason Jones is a Disability/Advocate Specialist at the Human Development Institute at the University of Kentucky. He lives in Lexington, Kentucky, with his wife, Jessica, and their sons, Micah and Bryce. Jason wrote the powerful introduction to A Celebration of Family: Stories of Parents with Disabilities and will serve as moderator for the panel of parents.

Dave Matheis retired from the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation after nearly 30 years of service. He is currently a consultant for the Center for Accessible Living. He lives in Louisville, and he and his wife have four grandchildren.