The Fairfax Area – Disability Services Board’s Martha Glennan Disability Inclusion and Equality Awards are presented annually to recognize people, businesses, nonprofits, government agencies, and other organizations that excel in demonstrating a commitment to promoting equal rights and community inclusion for people with disabilities in the Fairfax area and how people with disabilities have significantly benefitted from their efforts.
On December 11, 2023, the Fairfax Area-Disability Services Board presented Martha Glennan Disability Inclusion and Equality Awards to Cheryl Johnson, Jeremy Smith, and University Mall Theatres and Cinema Arts Theatre for their commitment to promoting equal rights and community inclusion for people with disabilities in Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax and the City of Falls Church.
Penelope A. Gross, Vice Chair of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Supervisor James Walkinshaw, Braddock District, and David Simon, chair of the Fairfax Area-Disability Services Board, welcomed everyone and offered congratulations to the winners.
Cheryl Johnson has been devoted to the disability services field for over 25 years. Since 2006, she has worked at The Arc of Northern Virginia, always with a person-centered focus. Her passion and work continue to lead to more equitable services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Specifically, her work led to an expansion of access to dental care. Since 1998, Cheryl has also served as a companion for an individual with a disability living in a group home.
Jeremy Smith is fulfilling his lifelong goal of being a role model and supportive advocate for himself and others with disabilities. In 2016, he graduated from Gallaudet University with a degree in Communication Studies, and he uses social media platforms to build communities. Jeremy serves on the Board of Directors at the Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons and is active with the ENDependence Center of Northern Virginia. He is currently working on a website with his Deaf Plus Advocate mission, which he is planning to launch in early 2024.
University Mall Theatres and Cinema Arts Theatre, both owned by Mark O’Meara and managed by Dan Collins, foster an environment where high school students and adults with special needs thrive. They provide students with learning and leadership opportunities and hire individuals with disabilities as theatre staff. The theatres also provide equitable accessible seating, food, and access for community groups, such as group homes and assisted living facilities.
The Fairfax Area-Disability Services Board congratulates these winners and thanks everyone who is continuing to support people with disabilities in all aspects of community life!
Stephanie Davidson is the director of residential services at Langley Residential Support Services (LRSS) and for thirty years she has advocated fiercely for the rights of people with developmental disabilities. Her creative solutions to challenges have been shown to improve the inclusion, equality, and outcomes of hundreds of LRSS residents and program participants. Davidson treats each individual like family and ensures that each person enjoys life and achieves his/her own personal goals at the pace that works for him/her.
The key to Davidson’s success is her ability to listen to the adults in her care and accordingly, have their trust. She is committed to defending the rights of people with developmental disabilities and always ensures that the rights of the individual come first. Davidson has navigated many challenging situations in her thirty years, but through her steadfast approach to always asking if the resolution will improve the inclusion, equality, and outcomes for the individual, the best decisions have been made with the best interests of LRSS residents and community support participants in mind. Her everyday work ensures that the voices of people in the LRSS community are heard and valued. Davidson’s work contributes to improving the lives of people in the larger Fairfax disability community.
Marian Homes, Inc. is a non-profit organization created to address the need for group homes in Fairfax County for adults with intellectual disabilities living at home with aging parents and families without adequate resources to care for their loved ones. The great need for additional community-based housing options for adults with intellectual disabilities to live independently in the community inspires Marian Homes, Inc. to own and maintain houses used as group homes for adults with intellectual disabilities.
Marian Homes, Inc. has successfully purchased and remodeled eight affordable homes in Fairfax County. These homes enable adults with intellectual disabilities to live independently with others once their parents can no longer care for them. Marian Homes, Inc. promotes personal growth in a group home setting and reinforces that adults with intellectual disabilities can live productive lives, working, and contributing to society.
Marian Homes, Inc. provides aging parents with peace of mind about their children’s futures and, approximately forty individuals with intellectual disabilities have benefitted from the group housing offered through Marian Homes, Inc.
The FA-DSB congratulates the winners and thanks everyone who is continuing to support people with disabilities in all aspects of community life!
The 2021 Martha Glennan Disability Inclusion and Equality Award was presented to Conner Cummings for his advocacy on behalf of people with disabilities.
Conner has been advocating for persons with disabilities from a young age, when he and his mother advocated for the need for Conner’s Law. Passed in 2015, Conner’s Law was established to help adult children with disabilities who need financial support. If the parents are divorced, the law allows judges the discretion to order non-custodial parents to pay child support for disabled adult children, over the age of 18.
Since then, Conner has gone on to partner with The Arc of Northern Virginia and the Autism Society to host candidate forums for people seeking elected office such as the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Virginia Commonwealth Attorneys, state delegates and state senators, congresspersons, senators and presidential campaigns.
At the beginning of the forums, Conner often reminds the audience that candidate forums are a way to learn. He believes that to include everyone in that learning, we must be inclusive. Language should be simple, words should be kind, everyone should be given a fair chance and people with disabilities should be heard and believed.
During the forums, candidates consistently take time to thank Conner for leading the way on how to host educational inclusive events where people with disabilities are heard and can hear from candidates.
Conner also shares his stories about voting and encourages others to do the same. Conner openly talks about his struggles and shares that he conquered many of them with inclusion, love and support. He
believes everyone else can do the same. He inspires people everywhere because he is so open and genuine. In 2020, Conner was appointed to the Virginia Disability Commission.
Self-Advocate Award – Rory Dunn
Since moving from an Intermediate Care Facility to his own apartment, Rory Dunn has educated and empowered others still living in institutions to explore community living options. Now that Rory is living in the community, he manages his own schedule, makes choices, and navigates the community. Or, as Rory puts it, “Life has never been this beautiful, and I am living every bit of it.”
Individual Award – Lucy Beadnell
Lucy Beadnell works as the director of advocacy for the Arc of Northern Virginia where she increases awareness of the talents of, and the barriers facing people with disabilities. Her current focuses include justice reform, integrated housing, and children transitioning out of nursing facilities. One of Lucy’s core values is that information should be free, available, and accessible to all. She has grown the organization’s information and referral program by writing family-friendly guidebooks that offer in-depth information on locating housing, finding quality staff, leaving institutional settings, and ensuring safety and justice for people with disabilities.
Business Award – Southern Asphalt
Southern Asphalt is a Fairfax County family-owned paving business. Southern Asphalt’s skillset has ensured a high level of accessibility for county residents; often finding ways to provide accessible routes without the need for less accessible ramp designs in the park environment. Because of their excellent work ethic, and intrinsic desire to go beyond the call of duty, Southern Asphalt has firmly and competently enhanced the quality of life of people with disabilities through their outstanding work.
Government Organization Award – Fairfax County Office of Elections
Since 2012, the Office of Elections has enthusiastically supported college students and recent graduates in the John Hudson Internship Program. What sets them apart is how they typically hire students who have little to no work experience or who need additional supports to be successful in the workplace. They not only provide summer interns with a meaningful work experience, but go above and beyond by hiring several of the interns, which increases the diversity of the workforce and takes us one step closer to furthering the Fairfax Area Disability Services Board’s mission of making Fairfax County Government a model employer for people with disabilities.
Individual and Organization of the Year – Donna Goldbranson & SPecially Adapted Resource Clubs
SPecially Adapted Resource Clubs (SPARC) has had a profoundly positive impact on countless individuals with disabilities, and none of it would be possible without the dedication and passion of Donna Goldbranson. As Braddock District Supervisor John Cook said in his nomination, “[Donna] led the way in creating a Fairfax County where all people, regardless of ability, can work, play, and prosper – which is a gift we cannot put a price tag on.” Donna identified an unmet need for young adults with disabilities who were not being served once they left the public-school system. She created a solution for inclusion when she opened the first SPARC Club. Donna believes that the best way to provide opportunities for individuals with disabilities is to make sure the community is accessible to ALL.
