Expo features inclusive outdoor activities

Good weather and steady attendance helped make the second annual Disabled and Proud Fest Outdoor Expo at Swan Creek Metropark in Toledo a success on Saturday.

Attendees didn’t need to be disabled to attend or to take part in the tree climbing, wheelchair basketball, or any of the other inclusive activities going on from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in honor of Disability Pride Month.

On hand were organizations that help people with disabilities navigate life, including the co-collaborator of the event, Metroparks Toledo, which showcased its inclusive equipment, like the Action Trackchair, which helps those with mobility difficulties access different parts of the Metroparks.

But more than resources, the focus at Disabled and Proud was the community.

“It's good for him to be around people who have the same disabilities and struggles,” Chris Cuevas, father of Kyler Cuevas, a 5-year-old with cerebral palsy, said.

Mr. Cuevas said that even though his son navigates life differently it doesn’t “mean it’s abnormal or wrong.”

Toledo Urban Volleyball shared in solidarity with the event by hosting a sitting volleyball match at the event, and attendees could also participate in wheelchair basketball.

“We wanted to just kind of normalize disability, take it out of the medical context, get away from that negative stigma that usually comes with disability and just show that it's a part of our lives,” said Valerie Fatica, the disability manager for the city of Toledo and primary organizer of the event.

“It's just a matter of treating everyone like you would want to be treated,” she said, and added a bit of context.

“One in five Americans has a disability, so if you don't have one, you may acquire one later. And you definitely know somebody who has one, so it's really common.”

Young Cuevas came to the festival with his two siblings who are similar in age.

The three of them tried out the Metropark’s equipment and gravitated most of their time toward the tree-climbing area, where kids were strapped into trees with harnesses, hoisting themselves higher into the canopy with climbing ropes.

“Inclusion means making sure that everyone is welcome to be in the community,” said Madison Lindsay, the diversity equity inclusion and accessibility specialist for Metroparks Toledo.

“Any of our programs can be made adaptable,” she said, adding “we have all kinds of equipment.”

This year Metroparks partnered with the city of Toledo to put on the Disabled and Proud Fest.

“We want people to be able to join in with everyone,” Ms. Lindsay said,

Community is important for everyone, organizers said, and centering activities that everyone could participate in highlighted conventional oversights that may unintentionally exclude individuals.

Wheelchair basketball was particularly integral to Tyler Keller, 28, of New Boston, Mich.

“To me it [wheelchair basketball] was everything when I got injured in an accident,” he said. “It helped me keep my mind off things and helped my body heal as well.”

Mr. Keller said the disability fest was a good place to try activities like wheelchair basketball, so people know if they like them or not.

“I love it,” Daphne Pomykala, of New Boston, Mich., said. “I like seeing the community, everyone has great morale, and they want you to participate.”

“I just wish for more group settings like this and more people to come out,” she said.