Council for Persons with Disabilities Launches Second-Annual Capable Con For June 3

Disability awareness and equality are coming back in a family-friendly event as the Council for Persons With Disabilities (CPD) has launched its second-annual Capable Con set for June 3, announced at the Venture North Building on Wednesday.

(FrOm left to right) Rachel Quilty, CPD event facilitator; Jason King; Zaun, King’s seeing-eye dog; Leslie Yee, CPD vice chair and Akira, Yee’s guide dog. The Capable Crew was created and illustrated by local artist Mariah Yee. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

This event is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Millennium Park, taking place during the last day of National AccessAbility Week. It is a free, educational convention and designed to create open, healthy dialogues about disabilities and accessibility according to Leslie Yee, CPD vice chair.

“Disability is all around us and interconnected to everything,” she said. “Every person deserves a fair and equal chance, be it access to services they need, accessible sidewalks, or home and job opportunities.”

Fictional characters known as ‘The Capable Crew’, are returning to the con as a group of everyday superheroes with disabilities. They will circulate around schools and other business locations to celebrate the differences in our community to create safe spaces to learn, share and promote inclusivity according to a press release. Anyone is encouraged to take photos with the Crew and post them to social media using the hashtag #CapableCon2023.

The convention consists of scavenger hunt missions, arts and crafts, giant board games, educational activities, sports demonstrations stage entertainment, interactive and inclusive games, draw prizes and more. Irish Millie was announced as one of the live music acts performing at the event.

A virtual relation simulation is being featured called the CPD’s Time in My Shoes Program. It is an experiential learning program that simulates the daily challenges while having a disability.

“At CPD, we recognize that disabilities can be a person’s superpower and we hope that we can create an inclusive and celebratory environment bringing the community together,” said Rachel Quilty, CPD event facilitator. “I encourage all residents to plan on joining us on June 3 from 10 a.m – 2 p.m. for a day of fun, education and celebration!”

For more information, visit the Capable Con website.

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