30th Annual Legislative Reception

Gov. Patrick with the Mayos, James, Lizzie & Katharine with Mom.

Honorees DeLeo & Joyce flanked by Dan Shannon & Leo Sarkissian

Governor Deval Patrick and Lt. Governor Tim Murray joined Legislators of the Year Bob DeLeo and Brian Joyce at the 30^th Annual Legislative Reception co-hosted by The Arc of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council (MDDC). State legislators, individuals with disabilities, families, providers, advocates and members of the administration participated in powerful advocacy day.

Special thanks to our co-sponsors of the day such as the Disability Policy Consortium, HAPHI, BCIL, Chapters of The Arc, Bridgewell, Vinfen, DLC, DPPC, and many other fine organizations. Thank you to our emcee, Brian Leary of McCarter & English, LLP who managed the changing schedule without a bump. We appreciate our other program participants including Secretary of EOHHS, JudyAnn Bigby, State Trooper F.X. Grant, Triathlete Rick Hoyt, Mary Ellen Mayo and Dan Houghton.

See our full article below. We will put up more pictures in the coming days!

A standing-room-only crowd of self-advocates, family members, legislators, agency directors and staff who gathered at the State House for the 30^th Annual Legislative Reception on March 19^th heard Governor Deval Patrick urge families to meet with their elected officials to give a face to people in need. “We want to ensure that there are long-term care options for the elderly and the disabled so that those in need get care when they need it,” he said. See here for the Governor's speech in its entirety.

The event, hosted by The Arc of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council (MDDC) and co-sponsored by a broad range of grass-roots organizations and professional associations, provides an occasion for recognizing outstanding legislators, hearing personal testimonies, and learning about key bills and budget items affecting individuals with disabilities and their families. MDDC Executive Director Dan Shannon began the meeting with a moment of silence for the passing of the Council’s Chair, John Stokes. Chairman of Ways and Means Robert DeLeo and Senator Brian Joyce were recognized as Legislators of the Year.

The theme of this year’s reception was “Opening Doors for People with Disabilities: 30 Years of Legislation.” Serving as emcee was Brian Leary, former anchor for WCVB-TV news and now a partner in the law firm of McCarter & English, LLP. Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray joined in welcoming the audience and read Governor Patrick’s proclamation declaring March “Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities Awareness Month. Dr. JudyAnn Bigby, Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services also spoke.

Following remarks by Dan Houghton (Vice Chairperson, Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council), Mary Ellen Mayo (President, The Arc of Massachusetts) spoke about legislative successes over the past 30 years and the need for continued vigilance. As noted above, Legislator of the Year Awards were presented to Senator Brian Joyce and Representative Robert DeLeo in recognition of their advocacy for persons with disabilities. Senator Joyce received an acrylic painting on canvas depicting a Beacon Hill residential street scene by Sean Cusack. Representative DeLeo received a print of a painting of Fenway Park by Jeff Caturano. Both Cusack and Caturano participate in the Center for Emerging Artists, a division of The Arc of East Middlesex.

Representative DeLeo, Chair of Ways and Means, warmly thanked the gathering for this recognition and shared some stories from the legislative battles that he had participated in. Additionally, he joked that the timing of the award was “shameless” as he was working on the state budget and that he would have to go back to his office and see if he had done enough for our constituency!

Senator Joyce focused on the aversive issue in his remarks, noting that the aversive approaches used would be the subject of national attention if they were utilized at Guantanomo Bay with prisoners there.

Rick Hoyt (who, with his father Dick, is familiar to anyone who watches the annual Boston Marathon) gave the audience their “marching orders.” “I am calling you all into action as advocates, as caregivers, as people with disabilities, and as constituents of people who work in the State House,” he said. “Don’t be shy. They work for us.” With that stirring send-off, participants spread out across the State House to visit their own legislators to discuss bills, budget items and issues of concern to persons with disabilities and their families.