Rapid City to host Americans with Disabilities Act Anniversary picnic Tuesday
RAPID CITY, S.D. — The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) picnic is held every year on July 26 to mark the passage of the Americans with Disabilities act of 1990.
The picnic is coordinated by the Disability Awareness and Accessibility Committee, and will begin Tuesday at 11 a.m. and last until 1 p.m. at Main Street Square in downtown Rapid City.
The 10th annual picnic offers vendors with products and services for people with disabilities. The aim of the picnic is to bring disabled citizens to a space where they have access to these services and can learn about them. Welcoming the community as a whole to join the event also helps bring awareness to the issues faced by those with disabilities.
Disability Awareness and Accessibility Committee chairman, Steve Massopust, explains, “People underestimate how many people are really disabled in South Dakota. 23% of people are disabled and your chance in your lifetime of becoming disabled is probably one in four, So this is going to be something that’s important for everyone.”
The picnic is the committee’s main annual event, but they have also been working to partner with organizations like Main Street Square to do other events like an all-abilities skate.
Laura Armstrong, of the Rapid City Council, went on to talk more about the group, “We are a group of citizens in Rapid City that have a wide range of talents, some have some physical disabilities, some have hidden disabilities, we have talented individuals. One of our missions in addition to advocating and educating the public is to just be inclusive and bring everybody to the center of our community and just have some fun and join in together and really just unite as a community.”
The committee says it’s important for them to remain involved in the progress of Rapid City, and to promote accessibility for both residents and visitors of the Black Hills, and that the best way to get everyone together and bring awareness is through the picnic.
