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Irving Martin Award

This award is given in memory of the late Irving Martin “The Godfather of Self-Advocacy,” who was known for his endless work on behalf of the self-advocacy movement. Irving Martin understood that people with disabilities are people first, deserving the same opportunities as everyone else. He had the innate ability to share his vision with others. His message was simple - all people belong in the community working together to create better lives and training self-advocates across the nation to their role in creating change.

We are honored to announce that the 2011 Irving Martin Award recipient is Susan Adams.  She was nominated by Rosita Meehan. Rosita has known Susan since September 1979, where she met Susan through Nekton, Inc. where she worked as her SILS counselor. Their job was to work together so Susan could live independently in an apartment of her own.

Susan had a group of friends that hung out together, but lived in different areas of the city. She came up with an idea of all of them living in the same apartment or in apartments right near each other. Susan got on the phone and called all of her friends and invited them to a meeting to discuss the possibility. More than a dozen people showed up. They all agreed to meet every Tuesday for two or three months to discuss what this would mean and how the idea might evolve. She had a unique role in this group. She was the “communications officer” always making the phone calls. She was also the quiet listener at all of the meetings. When a meeting was nearing the end, Susan usually summarized all that was discussed into a little speech.

In June 1982 the group heard that the Community Development Corporation of the Catholic Archdiocese was looking for a suitable group to live in the old Forepaugh’s house on Summit Avenue. Susan and her group thought this might be an interesting place for them to try out their idea and were awarded the right to live in the house.

The small act of stating the need to live closer together to care for each other launched a life changing organization called ON OUR OWN and Associates, Inc. In the spring of 1988, Susan and friends formally became ON OUR OWN and Associates, Inc. and a 501 (c)(3) corporation forever uniting their lives.

The group that Susan helped start in 1982 by 2011 had approximately 60 people living within its influence, whose lives were improved from the effort of Susan and her friends. Susan has been a vital force in ON OUR OWN. She is one of the eight pioneers, who originated this idea and supported it for thirty years. She is the only member, who has never missed a meeting!

Susan walked in the same circles as Irving Martin. If Irving had known Susan, he would have discovered a person with the same kind of heart and spirit he had, believing that together people can take care of each other regardless of ability. Susan has devoted thirty years of her life helping herself and others like her to unite and take care of each other.

Congratulations, Susan!