Community Forum

EFE Honors Lynne McNown with a 2004 Public Citizen Award

Equip for Equality is proud to present volunteer Lynne McNown with one of two 2004 Public Citizen Awards. (Aida Calvopina, highlighted in the Spring 2005 Equalizer, received the other award.)

Lynne, after practicing law for more than 30 years, came to Equip for Equality as a volunteer in February 2004. She is currently developing educational outreach materials and activities that will explain the rights of seniors with disabilities who face housing discrimination. She has completed a brochure that provides basic information about fair housing rights under federal law for seniors with disabilities and an in-depth handbook that discusses federal housing discrimination law in relation to seniors with disabilities. The handbook focuses on many illegal practices that seniors might face in retirement communities. Lynne looks forward to leading presentations for seniors on this subject.

Lynne's passion for this cause came from her personal experience in protecting her father's rights. Due to Parkinson's disease, her 89-year-old father had mobility problems and needed live-in care, for which the family arranged and paid. Although his senior retirement community was not asked to provide any extra services, it claimed that he could not have continuing live-in help, that he was no longer living independently and that he would have to leave his home. The John Marshall Law School Fair Housing Legal Clinic took her father's case and filed a complaint alleging housing discrimination based on disability. Before the case was resolved, her father died.

Lynne soon realized that illegal practices in senior retirement communities appear widespread. She decided to spearhead an educational initiative through Equip for Equality. Lynne states that "education about rights has the potential to create a grassroots movement to eventually eliminate senior housing discrimination based on disabilities."

Equip for Equality extends its appreciation to Lynne for her work.

Dear Zena [Naiditch]:

I thought your "President's Roundtable" [Spring 2005 Equalizer - available online] was very good with a great deal of candor and good exchanges of significant issues.

As I mentioned to you, I think I highlighted that it has been my opinion that there was not enough "inter" dialogue amongst people working in this cause now.

You have set a good example for trying to alter this situation and all that is needed now is to include input from people who are not necessarily real "members of the choir." I fee very strongly that it is important to interact with the providers and people of the private sector because they are the ones in need of education - and being made aware of exactly the opinions that are held by "real" people with disabilities.

Sincerely,

Henry Betts, M.D.
Past Medical Director; Pres. / CEO
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago

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