Hi everyone, I hope you all had a great time at the MASS 26th Annual Conference! MASS presented the new Pauline Bosma LGBTQ+ Award to Pauline Bosma for her 20 years of running the Rainbow Group. Pauline is a tireless self-advocate who delivers trainings across America. The Rainbow Group has even made connections overseas! Congrats, Pauline!

Hi everyone, we are so thrilled that the MASS annual conference is just a few weeks away! We are celebrating the fact that your ideas still count and so do you.

Wow - we here at MASS find it hard to believe that back-to-school season is already here. At the end of the summer, staff and self-advocates had a wonderful time at the Deer Island Fun Day. This event was hosted by the Winthrop Commission on Disability; read more about it below! We are already excited for next year's event!

On Saturday, August 24th, MASS self advocates and staff joined the Winthrop Commission on Disability for a day of outdoor fun on Deer Island. Led by Accessible Adventures, the day was full of sun and memorable experiences!

This summer has been busy here at MASS! Disability Pride month in July invited us all to reflect on what disability pride means to us. We recorded training videos for our Self-Advocacy Leadership Series, or SALS. Watch this space for more in the coming months! We are busy preparing for our 26th annual self-advocacy conference in October.

July is for Disability Pride!

Our staff and self advocates have had a busy summer already, and it's just getting started! In June, our Metro Regional group participated in an outing to Beaver Brook Step (pictured above). We also attended the Western Region Self Advocates Conference in Springfield and saw many familiar faces at the Partners for Youth with Disabilities (PYD) Youth Leadership Forum! This month, Mayor of Boston Michelle Wu will host the city's annual ADA Day on July 17th. We hope to see you there!

Summer is Here!

Things are heating up around here as the days get warmer and the sun sets later. In late May, the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) held a virtual listening session, where they heard from advocates about how to improve health service delivery for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Keep an eye on the MASS Flash for more opportunities for feedback! There are more than a few events in our June calendar, so be sure to scroll down to see what is happening this month!

We will continue to share updates to our Statewide Drop-Ins, Rainbow Groups, and Regional Self-advocacy meetings. You can always find your meeting information on the MASS Events Calendar.

Hi everyone!

Be sure to check out this month's Self-Advocate Story of the Month! Kamisha Heriveaux interviews Parker Gambale about his work on a self-care app and what he contributed to the work.

Read on for more updates on Statewide Drop-Ins, Rainbow Groups, and Regional Self-advocacy meetings. You can always find your meeting information on the MASS Events Calendar.