Megan Orth
On Friday April 12, 2013, the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities celebrated the contributions and accomplishments of a distinguished group of students, faculty, staff, and alumni at the Annual Awards & Appreciation Reception. Held in the Kellogg Center, the Reception welcomed RCPD students, staff, and families as well as faculty and sponsors from the larger MSU community. The reception celebrated a theme of “Spartans Will” that was reflected in the incredible stories and successes of RCPD students.
Attendees were welcomed with warm remarks and a few laughs from Director Michael Hudson, who also introduced the new “Spirit of Ability Award”. The award commemorates the vision and passion of the founders of RCPD who opened doors for students with disabilities at MSU. In memory of May Shaw, Judy Gentile, James Hamilton, Dorothy Milbrook, and James Bristor, the award was given to individuals who exhibited qualities of leadership, friendship, and loyalty – all ones that the original founders possessed.
Hudson presented the first Spirit of Ability Award to Judy DeLapa, who along with her husband Jim founded the Samaritan Scholar Award, facilitating students’ higher education pursuits. Accepting her award, DeLapa spoke of the importance of giving back once you are able to as well as of the “magic” she noticed that was in the room that day. She expressed humble gratitude at being one of the first honorees of the Spirit of Ability Award.
RCPD Director Michael Hudson and Spirit of Ability Award winner Judy DeLapa
MSU student Julia Ruggirello took the stage next to give a second award to her Integrative Studies professor, Susie Jackson. Ruggirello described how accommodating Jackson was if she had to miss class time for hospitalizations and how Jackson took a vested interest in her condition and in how to help her. Francie Smith, a staff member in the College of Business who is blind, presented the last Spirit of Ability Award to Sharon Davis, her coworker and friend. Smith spoke of their enduring friendship as well as Sharon’s compassionate, giving character.
The kindness and dedication reflected in the Spirit of Ability Award was followed by that of the Student Leadership and Service Award, presented to the Council of Students with Disabilities (CSD). Students in CSD have made a huge impact on campus this year, spreading understanding about disabilities through a Disability Awareness Day and spearheading a project to Braille the soda vending machines around campus.
RCPD also celebrates the contributions of alumni who have continued to make a difference in the disability field, and the Awards Reception honored one particular alumnus with the Outstanding Alumnus Award. Ed Rodgers, the director of the Michigan Bureau of Services for Blind Persons, received the award from MSU Alumni Association Director Scott Westerman, who spoke of Rogers’ lifelong connections to MSU and countless contributions not only to the disability community but to a larger Spartan one as well. The last award recognized an Outstanding Volunteer Organization, and after all that they do for RCPD students throughout the year, the audience was very pleased to see the award presented to Tower Guard.
Outstanding Alumnus Ed Rogers and Director of the Alumni Association Scott Westerman talk after the Reception
Alternative Testing Facilitator Anna Osborn presents the Outstanding Volunteer Organization Award to Tower Guard members
After the awards section of the program, a total of over $66,000 worth of twenty five scholarships were given out to students who had applied for them earlier in the year. RCPD specialists read aloud from many of the students’ letters of recommendations, in which professors wrote of how deserving students were based on academic excellence, a commitment to service of others, and a life long participation in the betterment of society and people around them.
Members of the Decker & Muns families with the Decker-Muns Friendship Memorial Scholarship recipients
Students were given a chance to thank the foundations and families that made their scholarships possible as well as their own families, RCPD specialists, loved ones, and friends. A combination of tears and laughter emanated through the audience as students shared personal stories of their journeys to receive the scholarships. Many voiced the struggles they have faced over the years in their academics or with their specific disabilities, but their closing messages were always of hope and gratitude for RCPD for helping them through those hard times.
A student accepts his Samaritan Scholar Award at the 2013 Reception
It is clear that the “Spartans Will” theme for the reception was a fitting one – it encapsulated the leadership, compassion, dedication, and vision of the Spartans being honored at the event. Their stories, goals, and achievements give meaning to the phrase “Spartans Will”. Judy DeLapa was right when she noted that there indeed was “magic” at the Annual Awards & Appreciation Reception.