December 15, 2014

Our Nashville IDD Housing Group met December 11 to learn more

about what kinds of services some of the more invested disabilities
ministries in town provide to our community, and to touch on whether
their ministries might be able to expand to include support services to
adults with IDDs living independently.
Pam Harmon, the Executive Director of Young Lifes Capernaum
Ministries, began the evening with an introductory video on the
groups nearly 30-year-old ministry with young people with intellectual
and developmental disabilities, giving them a chance to experience fun
and adventure, to develop fulfilling friendships and to challenge their
limits while building self-esteem. Capernaum helps fill the void many
teens and young adults face, particularly during the transition period
when they age out of high school. Capernaum hopes to have a club
wherever Young Life has a presence. Currently, Capernaum meets
here in Nashville at Covenant Presbyterian and Brentwood Baptist with
programs also taking place in Knoxville, Memphis and Chattanooga.
(FYI: a Divinity School student at Vanderbilt, Topher Endress, is leading
a ministry for young adults over the age of 22-years-old at Woodmont
Christian, meeting at the same time as Capernaum to augment
services provided to young adults with IDDs.) People with all kinds of
disabilities are welcome.
Amy McArthy leads the 3-year-old Can Do Ministry at Grace Chapel
in Franklin (the ministrys name comes from Philippians 4:13, I can do
all things through Christ who strengthens me.) The ministry began in
order to serve two brothers on the autism spectrum and is
predominantly staffed by volunteers from the churchs 4,000-member
congregation (speech pathologists and other paraprofessionals). All of
the volunteers are adults, but teens are allowed to serve as buddies.
Specialized classrooms are provided during two services, special
classes for adults with IDDs are offered twice a month, and respite
nights are provided quarterly. The ministrys goal is to provide a safe
place to learn, to give parents time to worship and to give respite to
parents. Ann said, We all come with needs some are just
diagnosed, adding that the gospel doesnt discriminate. People with
all kinds of disabilities are welcome. She said there are three key
families at Grace Chapel. 1) The childrens pastor has a nephew,
Tucker, who does not walk or talk, and has developmental delays.
Tuckers grandmother started Tuckers House to retrofit houses in the
Nashville area for wheelchairs. 2) One of their families started Our
Thrift Store in Franklin to help provide employment for their daughter,

Sara, who has autism; they now employ 25 other young adults with
disabilities. 3) The churchs Youth Pastor and his wife have six children,
two of whom have Down syndrome. Amy apologized to our group on
behalf of churches who have not been sensitive to families and the
needs of their loved ones.
Gigi Sanders is the coordinator of the Special Needs Ministry at
Christ Presbyterian Church. The ministry there began 23 years
ago with a family that had a baby with Down syndrome, and it aims to
provide a welcoming community for families with children and adults
with special needs in the areas of worship, teaching, fellowship and
service. Weekly, Christ Pres provides buddies to assist those with
special needs during childrens church and Sunday classes. (Buddies
are provided with training.) Weekly, the church hosts an Inspirations
Class for adults with special needs. During the school year
(September-May), the church provides respite one Saturday per month
for families at Christ Pres and in the Nashville community for children
with special needs and their siblings. Various seasonal outings are
provided throughout the year for adults with special needs and their
families, allowing for friends from the community to join in the
activities. Annually, Christ Presbyterian hosts a Very Special Bible
School for children with special needs and their siblings, with trained
buddies provided for the children. The church also seeks service
opportunities within the Christ Presbyterian Church community for
those with special needs.
Pam Harmon
Executive Director, Young Life Capernaum Ministries
Email: PHarmonYL@comcast.net
www.younglife.org/ForEveryKid/Capernaum/Pages/CapernaumLearnMor
e.aspx
Amy McArthy
Director, Can Do Ministry, Grace Chapel
Email: AMcArthy@gracechapel.net
www.gracechapel.net/ministries/can-do-ministry-special-needs
Gigi Sanders
Coordinator, Special Needs Ministry, Christ Presbyterian Church
Email: GSanders@christpres.org
www.christpres.org/special-needs
Topher Endress
Leads a ministry for adults with disabilities in the community,
Woodmont Christian
Email: Topher.Endress@gmail.com

Sunny Rosanbalm, Executive Director/Founder

Tuckers House
www.tuckershouse.org
Sandy and Dave Krikac Founder
Our Thrift Store
www.ourthriftstore.org
Jaco Hamman, our groups co-leader (who is ordained and a professor
at Vanderbilt Divinity School) recommended a book to the group called
Chronic Sorrow: A Living Loss by Susan Roos, a therapist and mother of
two developmentally disabled daughters, one who died at the age of 3.
Roos, Susan. (2002). Chronic Sorrow: A Living Loss. New York: BrunnerRoutledge.
On Friday afternoon, December 12, a dozen of us met with Rusty
Lawrence, Executive Director of Urban Housing Solutions and Brent
Elrod, the groups Program Director. The two described the property
UHS has purchased at 26th and Clarksville (near the Watkins College of
Art, Design & Film), and then proceeded to ask questions. A sampling
of the questions: Do you need a bedroom and private bath? Is a
private bedroom with a shared bathroom okay? Can your loved one
manage stairs to a loft with a ships ladder? Can your loved one
manage stairs? How much rent can your loved one pay? What is
unacceptable about a community? What do you require? What
services does your loved one need? What can you and others provide?
Do you prefer just individuals with special needs in the
accommodations or do you prefer a mixed community? Do you want
to rent or would you like a condo?
Bottom line, Urban Housing Solutions wants the housing units they
build to respond to your expressed needs. They seemed to estimate
that the monthly cost will be, on the low end, $450/month, to, on the
higher end, about $800/month. Urban Housing Solutions is interested
in asking the wider group a few questions, and Jaco and I will be
designing a short questionnaire that we will be sharing with you soon.
In the meantime, we will be taking a break over the holidays, and hope
to launch a new website for our group in the New Year, a site that will
be a repository of housing-related information for adults with
intellectual and developmental disabilities.
With our best wishes,

CN and JH