n e w s

Mary Yoder Takes Reins As New Executive Director
of Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities;-
Supporting Legislative Study on Aging

ATLANTA, May 17, 2004 – The Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities (AADD) has named Mary Yoder as its new Executive Director.  Under Yoder's direction, AADD is leading a collaborative effort focused on increased awareness and understanding of the issues of aging and disabilities.   This has resulted in a legislative study committee that will explore the issues and the ramifications for statewide planning.   AADD is also actively seeking better funding and support for persons with cognitive disabilities who have been victims of violence.

A 28-year AADD veteran, Yoder took the reins of the organization on Jan. 1 after the retirement of long-time director Tom Graf.  She has spent the first months in her new role exploring ways to implement identified growth areas in AADD's strategic plan.

“Thanks to improved health care, people with disabilities are living longer, outliving their parents who currently provide most of the support,” said Yoder. “We are hoping the Department of Community Health, the Department of Human Resources, and other community resources will realize this is an important issues and will respond with proactive planning and strategies.

“There is so much misinformation about persons with disabilities. The focus is often on trying to fix people, rather than accept them for who they are and focus on what they can do. We need to support them in who they are.” Mary Yoder

“So far these efforts have led to a Senate Study Committee to explore the issues of aging among persons with disabilities,” Yoder said.   “We also want to expand our work concerning violence.   Studies show that 90% of people with disabilities will experience violence in their lives. AADD recently started a program to gather information to help persons who have experienced violence to move beyond its devastating effects,” Yoder said.

The mission of the Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities is to build communities of support, acceptance, and opportunity for children, adults, and families living with developmental disabilities.

According to Yoder, the agency has a $2.3 million budget, the bulk of which comes from private donations, foundations, and government grants and funding. The agency also receives income from the sale of used clothing and household items donated by thousands of supporters each year.

Now she is creating jobs for talented individuals in multiple capacities. While more than half of her business is hiring nannies and housekeepers, she is accomplished at locating staff with a much more diverse and complete skill set. Zeier has placed help Since Yoder joined AADD in 1976, the agency has had a number of legislative successes, including:

• Playing a key role in passing state legislation ensuring children with disabilities have the right to a public education.

• Working to get the first metabolic screening law passed.  By law, all Georgia newborns now are tested for 14 different metabolic disorders, which, if left untreated, can result in disabilities.

• Working to get funding from the state for respite service for caregivers so they can take personal time for rest and renewal.  AADD has also helped people with disabilities go to camp, get jobs, buy needed equipment, and even purchase homes.

“We have to ensure that public policy keeps changing to make the world a better place for people with disabilities,” said Yoder.

Yoder says the most challenging part of her role is to gather more resources, identifying partners in the community and forming relationships to work together for common goals.

A large part of her role is education and collaboration “People with disabilities make meaningful contributions to society,” Yoder said. “There is a great deal of misinformation about people with disabilities and the focus is often on trying to ‘fix' them, rather than accepting them for who they are and focusing on what they can do.”

Yoder first became concerned with the needs of people with disabilities as a child in Illinois.  She was strongly impacted by the experiences of a friend, Shirley, who had developmental disabilities, and a cousin with Down Syndrome.

“It was a personal loss to me to see what Shirley had to go through and how much pain she suffered from being different,” Yoder said.

Yoder and her husband moved to Atlanta in 1966 to become involved in the civil rights movement. She often volunteered with children whose mothers had mental health issues and other disabilities and was disturbed by the fact that these children were often blamed and rejected rather than receiving the support they so desperately needed.

After working for several years at the Georgia Retardation Center, she joined Georgia Family Support, then known as Project: RESCUE, a division of AADD that provides services to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families.

Yoder also served as director of Georgia Family Services, and became assistant executive director of AADD in 1995, a position she held until being named executive director this year.

“The most rewarding part of my job is to support the wonderful, dynamic staff,” she said of the 34 employees of AADD. “I get to remove obstacles, get resources together, and empower these folks to do what they need to do.”

More information on AADD is available online at http://www.AADD.org.  Phone: 404-881-9777.

The mission of the Atlanta Alliance on Developmental Disabilities is to build communities of support, acceptance, and opportunity for children, adults, and families living with developmental disabilities.

www.aadd.org , Phone: 404-881-9777, Fax: 404-881-0094. The office is located at 1440 Dutch Valley Place, NE, Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30324-5371