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The needs of people with disabilities vary not only based on their respective disabilities, but also where they are living. In rural areas, the needs that people face can be stark and immediate. Disability Resource Center (DRC) is a Center for Independent Living in Demorest, Georgia, that has been serving 13 rural counties in northeast Georgia for over 20 years.
At DRC, the staff confronts a wide variety of needs of their consumers on a daily basis. In this episode, Nancy Peeples and Leah Norton of DRC describe helping consumers with everything from helping them with groceries to tracking down necessary documentation to gain access to social services for those who are currently homeless. We also hear from DRC consumers Tugalo Odister and Ruby Wells about how DRC was able to help them in moments when nobody else could.
TRANSCRIPT
Matt Shedd (Host):
Welcome to the second episode of Accessibility Now: Stories About Accessibility in the State of Georgia. Accessibility Now is a podcast produced by the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, and I’m your host, Matt Shedd. On this show we discuss the real tangible resources that are available for those living with disabilities.
Today we’ll be talking about a Center for Independent Living known as the Disability Resource Center, located in Demorest, Georgia, a town north of Athens. The DRC has been serving 13 counties in northeast Georgia for over 20 years.
I talked with DRC Executive Director Nancy Peoples and Program Director Leah Norton about the work that they do for people with disabilities in this area.
Nancy Peoples (Executive Director, DRC):
Where we are, we’re very rural. So, the struggles that we have, and then not only the struggles but the wins that we have, are very different.
People, when they reach out to us, somehow they’ve heard about us, but at first they really don’t know how we can help. We have a staff that truly cultivates those relationships. That trust is so huge. Our consumers have to trust us prior to us really getting in there and saying, what are your needs?
It’s not pretty stuff. It’s nothing that’s luxurious. It’s boots-on-the-ground types of things. When individuals come in, we really build that relationship. It’s beyond just providing a wheelchair or one type of service.
We find out that there’s an extreme poverty situation, or it’s a parent or grandparent trying to care for a child. There’s food insecurity, housing insecurity, and transportation is always a true issue. Most of the time, in that initial five or ten minutes, we don’t find that out. It takes several conversations when we really get into: how can we help you? What can we do?
Matt (Narration):
It can be hard for a government organization to build the trust necessary to help the people in these areas. People living with disabilities have often been marginalized for years. Negative past experiences can also put up significant roadblocks to them receiving the help they need.
At the DRC, like Nancy said, they build trust one step at a time, one consumer at a time.
Take Tugalo Audister, a DRC consumer out of Stephens County.
Tugalo Audister (Consumer):
I’m legally blind. I’ve lived by myself for quite some time. I almost ended up homeless last year, and someone had recommended them to me.
A few years back I had a little sad song when I tried to call them, but this time around it was completely different. They’ve been hands-on, boots on the ground, every second, every moment helping me. It’s not a gimmick. It’s for real. They’re 100% trustworthy and truthful about everything that they say and what they do.
I’ve needed some groceries in the house, and they have actually stuck their necks out there to make sure within an hour that I’ve been able to get what I need, even though I’m not able to drive or have anyone to help me on that level.
Matt (Narration):
Something like grocery delivery isn’t part of the DRC’s core services. But the staff is committed to helping their consumers however they can.
Nancy:
We had a call from the senior center yesterday about one of our consumers. How old is Sheila? 82. She still works every day. She has a physical disability, and she was actually using a serving cart from the kitchen to be able to walk.
We were able to provide her with a rollator. That’s just in the last 24 hours. Leah and I say this all the time: when you see a need—when you see extreme poverty, or pain, or hunger—you can’t unsee it. If you know what to do and don’t do it, you don’t sleep at night.
That’s the mentality of this staff. We don’t turn folks away. It’s either a referral, or something that we can do, or we send them on the path to somebody who can. Because by the time they’ve made a call to the Disability Resource Center, there’s a need.
Ruby Wells (Consumer):
If it wasn’t for them, I don’t know what I’d have done. I’ve been sick and disabled, and there’s a whole lot of red tape. I needed a ramp, and they had somebody come fix it.
They helped me with a wheelchair. When the appliances broke down, they replaced them. I couldn’t get in my tub, and they helped me with a walk-in shower where I could roll my wheelchair.
When I got sick, I didn’t have anybody to bring me anything. They brought me groceries. They’re like my family. They did more for me than my family did.
Matt (Narration):
Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic and budget cuts have made the DRC’s work even more challenging.
Nancy:
COVID has created its own monster. We’ve had to really adapt. We’ve had to become critical thinkers in using every resource we have.
There’s not a one-size-fits-all. Every day is different, and every individual’s needs are different. One day you’re dealing with inspectors trying to get a ramp to code. Another day you’re trying to help an individual who’s been living in a car and has been abused, and you’re trying to find them somewhere safe.
We are so far beyond just those core services that we’re charged with.
Leah Norton (Program Director, DRC):
Communicating with the big systems—like DFCS or Social Security—was already tough, but during COVID, when the offices were shut down, it became nearly impossible. Helpers couldn’t even get through.
We figured out ways around it to connect people. But for a senior or a person with significant disabilities to navigate these systems—it was overwhelming. We’ve saved a lot of folks from losing their benefits. I’ve done a lot of food stamp, Medicaid, and Social Security applications during this time, because people just couldn’t do it on their own.
Matt (Narration):
Like all Centers for Independent Living, a big part of the work DRC does is ensuring that people with disabilities can live independently, outside of nursing homes.
Leah:
I do the nursing home transitions. Some of those cases are like working with people experiencing homelessness. Folks may have been there long term, and they’re almost institutionalized.
We often start at ground zero: no documentation, no place to go. We start with getting birth certificates, IDs, Social Security cards—basic things. Without them, we can’t do anything.
Nancy:
It may be easy to feel like disability services are for someone else—that whether their funding is maintained doesn’t affect you. But everyone will live with disability at some point. One fall, and you’re in the disability community. Or you have an aging parent, or a child with a disability.
If the folks who make decisions about funding don’t realize the need, situations that absolutely need help may have to be told “no.” That’s not just unfortunate—it’s catastrophic.
Leah:
We’ve identified champions in each county—sometimes it’s Rotary, sometimes it’s a church, sometimes just an individual with a heart to help.
Most people want to help; they just don’t know how. So we ask. Eight times out of ten, we get it.
Matt (Narration):
A major challenge for all CILs is reaching people who need help—telling them what’s available and encouraging them to use it. That’s one of the main goals of this podcast.
Here are Tugalo and Ruby with some words of encouragement.
Tugalo:
Please do not be afraid to call. Please do not be afraid to lean against them. They are there to help you, and they will.
Ruby:
Don’t give up. Everything takes time. There are resources out there, but finding them is a challenge. Just keep looking. I turned over a million rocks before I came to them.
They are a godsend. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.
Nancy:
What I charge individuals to do is: if you hear about the Disability Resource Center, tell three people. Whether it’s at your kids’ ballgame, at work, anywhere. Then challenge those three to tell three more.
Word of mouth is the best way to let people know. And there are so many ways to help—listening, advocating, building ramps, donating. Every bit helps us continue what we do.
Matt (Closing):
And that’s where we’re going to wrap up today’s episode.
You’ve just heard about the services that the Disability Resource Center offers in northeast Georgia. If you’re in the service area and want to reach out, you can call them at 706-778-5355 or visit their website at disabilityresourcecenter.org.
The music for this podcast is provided by Bensound.com. I’m Matt Shedd. This episode was co-written and co-produced by Desi Gillespie. Accessibility Now is produced by the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia. To learn more about us, visit silcga.org.
Thanks so much for joining us. And just a reminder: a Georgia that includes everyone is better for all of us.
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