See ME. See My Ability

Women's History Month-Roots and Resiliance-Cheryl Knott 2

This is the second of two episodes celebrating Women's History Month with Arc St. Mary's resident and lifelong St. Mary's County resident Cheryl Knott. Both sides of Cheryl's family tree have called Southern Maryland home since the 17th Century before there was even a United States of America. Cheryl's own experiences as a woman with birth defects and physical disabilities show how social barriers were broken down by the advocacy of parents, teachers, and organizations such as the Arc. Listen to Cheryl's experiences from 50 years ago of going to Annapolis to advocate for other disabled people, and how interconnected her family is to the movers and shakers of St. Mary's County.
Special shout out to St. Mary's County State Senator Jack Bailey, the St. Mary's County Historical Society and volunteer society researcher Joan Wise.  Find out how you can help support the society here.
Please leave a review or some stars on your favorite podcast app for See Me See My Ability. The Podcast of the Arc Southern Maryland. 

Roots and Resiliance-Cheryl Knott Part 1

In honor of Women's History Month, this is the first of two episodes featuring one of our friends and residents, Cheryl Knott. Cheryl has roots in St. Mary's County Maryland that go back to the rule of King Henry VIII of England, when the state was one of the English colonies. Listen as Cheryl talks about growing up with physical disabilities and how her family and others advocated for her, and others, to be seen and heard in Maryland.  
Credit to the St. Mary's Historical Society for providing a quiet space for us to talk with Cheryl, and for volunteer society researcher Joan Wise for helping to validate Cheryl's memories.
Photo: Peter LaPorte.
Links for References:
 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21507989/#:~:text=Thalidomide%20was%20a%20widely%20used,defects%20in%20thousands%20of%20children. 
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/23/health/thalidomide-fda-documents.html?auth=login-google1tap&login=google1tap

Mobile Tech Helps Us Talk Featuring Connor and his Parents

If you have new cell phones or Pad-type personal computers consider downloading Voice-to-Text apps. They help people who, for many reasons, have trouble speaking. One types words into a gadget and an artificial voice speaks out loud for them. This episode was produced at the Twin Beaches Branch of the Calvert County Library and features Connor Porecki, his parents Benjie and Kathleen, podcasting students of the ARC Southern Maryland and the Calvert Country School.  It also features the voice of James Whitney of the Maryland Department of Disabilities and its assistive Technology program.
List of Text To Voice Software or APPS from James :
TouchChat
Avaz
Proloquo2Go
TD Snap
LAMP works for Life
                       Episode Art: Screenshot from Southern MD News.

We Advocate for US! People on The Go Southern Maryland

Correction: 3/11/2025 Re the contact to get in touch with People on the Go Southern Maryland please contact For more information on joining the group, please contact Alyssa Thomas athomas@arcsomd.org. Ms. Weed is no longer the primary contact for more information even though you are hearing her voice in this podcast. 
Self-advocacy is one of the things that the podcasting class and the See Me. See My Ability Podcast of the Arc-Southern Maryland tries to teach and encourage. This podcast is about discussions held by the People on the Go Southern Maryland board and membership on the first Wednesday of the month.  Ms. Amanda Weed is the group's coordinator and can be reached at aweek@arcsomd.org. The group is also found on social media at https://www.facebook.com/POGsomd/
In this episode, you'll be hearing portions of a virtual call with the POGsomd board of directors,  as Suzanne Hall, Alex Murray, and Dennis Weeden. He was joined by Ms. Weed, and the ARC Maryland's Natalie Brookes.   
We encourage your feedback about this and our other episodes at info@arcsomd.org
 

Call To Action! Advocate For Us!

This is a special bonus podcast episode! We usually post bi-weekly. But we have a call to action.
Alarms have been sounding throughout the developmental disabilities communities about the proposed changes to Maryland's State Budget that would cut staff and services for us and our loved ones. On January 16th the ARC Montgomery County organized a closed call with the CEO of the ARC Maryland, Ande Kolp, Laura Howell the Chief Executive Officer of the Maryland Association of Community Services, (called MACS for short), and Daria Cervantes of ARC Montgomery. Those in person with Ms. Cervantes and on the closed Zoom call are calling for all of us to lobby the Maryland State Senate and House of Delegates to push back on proposed cuts to this fiscal year's budget.
For more resources on legislation please see https://thearcmd.org/
Or, please visit https://macsonline.org/   for the Maryland Association of Community Services website.
Please leave us your comments and reviews or contact the producers of See Me, See My Ability by writing to info@arcsomd.org
 
 
 

Two Christies

The Charles County Charitable Trust encourages collaboration between all the nonprofit organizations they support. There's a practical reason for keeping track of what could be considered your competitors. With tight state and federal budgets, less money will come from Washington, D.C., and Annapolis in the form of grant dollars. So, localities, like Charles County and its Charitable Trust, will have increasing pressure to provide financial help to places like The Arc Southern Maryland.  Besides all having to do more with less, you never know who you're going to bump into on your journey to serve others. Here's the story of The Two Christies, one spelled with a "C-H" and one with a "K."

Get A Job!

Leading authorities want you to get a job even if you're still in middle or high school even if you may have been diagnosed with Autism or be an individual with other developmental disabilities. It's about developing a work ethic.  In Calvert Country, one of the three counties the Arc Southern Maryland serves, this podcast episode also tells you about one program that helps high school students enterprise, manage time and earn their own money. "Ash Dash is spearheaded by Ashley Gross, and her teachers and principal at the Calvert Country School, which is part of the Calvert County Public School system.

See Me See My Ability 2024 End of Year Special

We're looking back at special moments from behind the scenes in our podcasting classes at the Arc Southern Maryland, and playing back some memorable moments from our completed productions of See Me. See My Ability.
Many thanks go to all who have taken and hosted our classes at the Spring Dell Center in LaPlata and the Calvert Country School in Prince Frederick. We look forward to continuing our work together in the New Year.

Kevin and Natasia and All That Is Good

Kevin Detwiler is a 54-year-old client of Arc Southern Maryland. He's a retired substitute teacher who has held a variety of jobs while partially paralyzed and using a wheelchair. Natasia Herbert is a 27-year-old mom with a baby on the way. She says she loves working for Arc clients and gives a shoutout to her supervisor in Saint Mary's County. Listen to their uplifting and positive stories of meeting people where they are and their satisfaction of being out and about in Southern Maryland.
A graphic of a young man in a wheelchair, the episode art, was created by artificial intelligence.
 
 

Tis the Season of Giving Tuesdays at the Arc Southern Maryland

The Arc Southern Maryland thanks all those who gave money to us during November. We call all the Tuesdays in this month Giving Tuesday. For almost two decades the Tuesday after Thanksgiving was proclaimed by charities and other nonprofit organizations Giving Tuesday.  Listen to our development manager Renee Seigley explain why the concept was extended throughout November, and how the Arc's friends have made one of our campaigns a success.
Much thanks to Robinson's Cycles, on the web at ecyclemd..com, 
Thanks to all those paying for a new roll-in shower for one of our group homes and those helping to support our Dental Fund to help pay for sedation dentistry for our clients.