Girl Scout troop promotes ADA awareness
RIDGEFIELD — When Girl Scout Troop 50669 had to think of a project for their Bronze Award last year, one idea quickly came to mind.
The group of 15 fifthgraders, who had been together as a troop since kindergarten, wondered whether they could use the project to help one of their own members, Dina Jamshed, who uses a wheelchair.
They ultimately decided to investigate whether shops on Ridgefield’s Main Street were accessible for Jamshed and visited downtown twice this spring to complete a survey of the different stores.
“It was the girls’ idea, which is very amazing,” said Pam Banks, who leads the troop along with Louise Kennerly and Dina’s mom, Madiha Jamshed. “It was something that was very mature for fifth-graders to identify — it’s near and dear to their hearts.”
The girls first wondered whether they could help get one store that was inaccessible to put a ramp in, Banks said, but quickly discovered the legal and financial complications that made it difficult to do so. But they didn’t let that squash the idea for their Bronze Award, the highest award a Girl Scout Junior can earn.
Instead, after a presentation in front of Ridgefield’s Commission on the Disabled, they decided that surveying downtown would be a good way to raise awareness. They qualified a shop as “accessible” if Jamshed was able to get in with minimal challenges.
“Dina went in and the girls observed: ‘Was the door wide enough? When you go in is there enough room for her? Is the wheelchair able to roll (over mats)?’ ” Banks said.
The girls then asked if the shop owners would be willing to put stickers — which read “Ridgefield celebrates accessibility: ADA — Disability rights are civil rights” — in their windows.
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) legislation passed in 1990 and it prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities.
The stickers offered a place for stores to put their phone numbers so that those who might need help getting in could call inside and have a staff member come out to assist them.
Out of 27 stores, 15 were found to be accessible and 21 said they would put up the sticker.
“Overwhelmingly people were very willing to say, ‘Yes, we would be more than happy to assist somebody who could not get access,’ ” Banks said. “Either way, the girls felt they started the conversation for people who didn’t realize that this is a challenge for people with disabilities.”
Banks added that the survey was not meant to be completely comprehensive, in that those that were found accessible for Jamshed might not be for a larger wheelchair or those with a cane or walker.
The girls hope to return to Ridgefield’s Commission on the Disabled to present the findings, she said. They each felt accomplished after the surveys that they were able to come up with a plan and all work together to complete it, she said, adding that Jamshed was happy to have her friends stand up for her.
“My friends always help me and they are great,” Jamshed said. “They are trying to make Main Street accessible so that I can go inside every store — I love my friends.”