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Adams County proclaims July 2025 National Disability Pride Month, vows accessibility upgrades
Summary
The Adams County Board of Commissioners on July 22 proclaimed July 2025 as National Disability Pride Month and outlined upgrades to improve accessibility in the public hearing room and county services.
Adams County commissioners proclaimed July 2025 as National Disability Pride Month on July 22 and outlined a series of accessibility upgrades to county facilities and services.
The proclamation, presented and read aloud during the board's public hearing, cites the Americans with Disabilities Act and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics on disability prevalence. It was signed by Julie Duran Molica, Kathy Henson, Emma Pinter, Steve O'Dorisio and the presiding commissioner.
The county said planned improvements include a new wheelchair ramp and expanded accessible seating in the public hearing room, upgraded listening-assist devices for people who are hard of hearing, and a website overhaul to improve accessibility for people with visual impairments. County officials also credited public works and facilities staff for ongoing efforts such as high-contrast paint markings on sidewalks and curb ramps to aid individuals with limited vision.
"These things that are made to be more inclusive end up benefiting...makes us all richer and makes our conversations better and our community safer," Commissioner Emma Pinter said during the proclamation remarks. Commissioner Steve O'Dorisio described personal experiences with temporary mobility limitations after surgery and said those moments inform the board's push for sidewalks and facility improvements.
The proclamation text noted national figures it attributed to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including that about one in four adults live with a disability and cited percentages for mobility, cognitive, vision and hearing impairments. The board emphasized the anniversary of the ADA and framed the proclamation as both recognition and a reaffirmation of county commitments to equitable access.
During the public-comment portion of the meeting, Brian Genno, who identified himself as a disabled firefighter and gave an Adams County address, raised a separate access-related concern: he said county social services staff had not allowed him to speak to a manager and that state notices indicated his Medicaid was at risk. "They will not let me speak to a manager," Genno said. The board asked the county manager to follow up and to provide contact information to the commenter.
The proclamation was delivered as part of the July 22 agenda; commissioners discussed accessibility improvements already underway and encouraged continued work to remove barriers for residents with disabilities.
The board did not take a separate recorded roll-call vote on the proclamation in the transcript excerpt; the document was presented and signed by the five commissioners.
