Area nonprofit embraces accessibility, inclusion in schools
Jenny Gerrick, chief development officer at IncludeAbility, is with Makayla Maxwell, center, and her son Zack Gerrick on the other side of the Stryker evacuation chair. An evacuation chair is an assistive device that allows for individuals with mobility impairment to be safely and quickly evacuated from a multi-story building in the event of an emergency.
According to the IncludeAbility website, 1 billion people in the world live with a disability.
The local nonprofit, founded by Wooster resident Julie Hartzler in May 2021, has a goal to go above and beyond the mandated laws and embrace accessibility and inclusion as a priority within the culture. Its mission is to make the world an accessible place where individuals with disabilities are empowered and included in all aspects of life.
“Fourteen years ago I had a daughter who was born with spina bifida,” Hartzler said. “Through our life experiences and my experiences as a nurse, I became passionate about advocating for individuals with physical disabilities. I shared my dream to create a nonprofit organization to help address some of the barriers we’ve faced with my friend Jenny (Gerrick), and she was excited to join me in this adventure.”
Gerrick is the chief development officer of IncludeAbility.
The nonprofit’s current focus is on a program to develop a standardized, inclusive emergency-preparedness plan for all the schools in Wayne County. Initially, they partnered with Wooster City Schools on a pilot program.
This program involved the purchase, installation and staff training for six Stryker evacuation chairs. IncludeAbility worked with the Wooster Fire Department and Wooster Police Department to decide on which equipment to purchase and where it should be installed in the multi-level school buildings. The chairs were purchased with funds from a Wayne County Community Foundation grant.
An evacuation chair is an assistive device that allows individuals with mobility impairment to be safely and quickly evacuated from a multi-story building in the event of an emergency.
“Providing evacuation chairs takes an inclusive approach to ensure safe evacuation for individuals with physical disabilities so they are able to evacuate with their peers,” Hartzler said.
The chairs were recently installed, and Stryker medical personnel were present for staff trainings at Cornerstone, Edgewood and Wooster High School. Students with disabilities also are being trained to know how to properly use the chairs.
“Our goal is that every staff member in the buildings will be trained on the evacuation chairs by the end of the year,” Hartzler said. “We want every student, staff or visitor to be able to be evacuated in the event of an emergency, whether they have a permanent or temporary disability.”
There are two chairs in each of the three schools. They are installed in stairwells and can be easily transported and installed in new locations if needed. The chairs could be used in such emergency situations as a fire, power outage, tornado, active shooter or any instance that would require evacuation.
Once chairs are installed in all the Wayne County schools, IncludeAbility hopes to expand throughout the state.
Additionally, Hartzler said they plan to address housing and healthcare issues.
“We would love to see new houses being built have wheelchair access so that whether or not an individual purchasing the home needs the accessibility or you simply want to invite over a friend or family member that has a mobility disability, you can have them over with no barriers to access,” she said.
The nonprofit is building an adaptive equipment library so individuals and organizations may sign out equipment for short-term use. The library will contain items such as hiking wheelchairs, beach wheelchairs, ramps and more.
“We want to eliminate the financial burden and promote exercise and inclusive recreation within the community,” Hartzler said.
IncludeAbility also is creating an evaluation form that will be on its website to allow the community to determine the accessibility of area hiking trails. There will be photos and information available so individuals can get a picture of how accessible an area is before venturing out.
Hartzler said, “As a parent with a child who has a disability, we do a lot of research before going to parks, vacations, restaurants, et cetera, to determine how accessible they are.”
Any nonprofits or community groups that may be interested in partnering with IncludeAbility are invited to email Hartzler at juliehartzler@include-ability.org.
Volunteers are needed to help with fundraisers and can email Gerrick at jgerrick@include-ability.org. Cash donations may be made via the website or contact Hartzler.
“We would love to build our equipment library,” Hartzler said. “We are looking for beach wheelchairs, ramps and grass mats. We also want to purchase evacuation chairs for additional school districts. Each chair costs roughly $4,700.”
Currently, any individuals interested in using any of IncludeAbility’s equipment should get in touch. The organization hopes to offer more services soon.
Find IncludeAbility online at www.include-ability.org, Facebook and Instagram.
IncludeAbility is well on the way to making the community and the larger world more inclusive and accessible.
“We have big hopes and dreams,” Hartzler said. “We want to start locally, but our hope is to expand out. We are just getting started.”