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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 23, 2015

CONTACT: Melanie Mowry Etters
Communication Director
850-414-7551

Celebrating the ADA
Disability Community Joins Miami Celebration

MIAMI, FL—The Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on July 10 in downtown Miami. APD's Southern Region will host its seventh annual Gallery of Dreams at the Rohde Building, South Tower lobby, located at 401 Northwest 2nd Avenue. The opening ceremony will be held 10-11 a.m.

The art exhibit will feature the work of more than two dozen artists in Miami-Dade County who are also customers of APD. The artwork will remain up until August 31. For these artists, an exhibition of their work in a public gallery is truly a dream come true.

The artists are not in the mainstream Miami arts community and are mostly untrained. This makes the artwork even more amazing, as the artists' natural talents reflect their unique perceptions. Often the art was created during adult day training and licensed community residential programs.

APD Southern Regional Operations Manager Evelyn Alvarez said, “We are excited to debut this beautiful artwork in the Miami community in celebration of 25 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The ADA allows people with disabilities to participate in their communities. The art exhibit shows the talents and skills of individuals with disabilities which in the past would not have been able to happen. We are thankful for all that the ADA has accomplished.”

APD supports people with developmental disabilities to live, learn, and work in their communities. The agency annually serves more than 50,000 Floridians with autism, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, intellectual disabilities, Down syndrome, and Prader-Willi syndrome. For more information about the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, visit APDcares.org or call toll-free 1-866-APD-CARES (1-866-273-2273).

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