Ilene Younger Qualkinbush, the “founding mother” of The Arc of Indiana, passed away on May 14, 2020 at the age of 93. Inspired by her daughter Susan, who was born with severe developmental disabilities, Ilene helped establish The Arc of Indiana in 1956. Along with her friend and colleague, Dorothy Burnside, Ilene served as the…
As we approach Memorial Day, it is important to remember those who have given so much to bring the developmental disabilities movement to this point. It came home so powerfully this week. I was privileged to be the speaker for Down Syndrome Indiana’s fourth Tuesday family session at St. Luke’s UMC in Indianapolis. And into this…
Many years ago, during one of our more trying days at the Indiana General Assembly, I made the trip to Rushville to speak at the Rush County Arc annual dinner. I must admit on that day I was weary, feeling the weight of the people who did not believe in what we were trying to…