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Holly Riddle, J.D., M.Ed. <br /> 109 Charlesber y Lane <br /> Chapel Hill, NC 27517 <br /> May 26, 2014 <br /> Barbara Tyroler <br /> 120 Old Forest Creek Rd. <br /> Chapel Hill, NC 27514 <br /> Dear Ms. Tyroler: <br /> I am writing in strong support to continue your work photographing the Adapted Recreation and <br /> Inclusion Swimming Classes at the Homestead Aquatics Center. As the executive director of the <br /> North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities (NCCDD)for over two decades, I developed <br /> and funded, through NCCDD, diverse initiatives focused on enhancing the health and wellness of <br /> people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities and on improving quality of life. Many <br /> of these initiatives were characterized by the very elements that inform your Adapted Swimming <br /> photography initiative. I will enumerate but a few. <br /> Your endeavor begins with the well-known premise that the best interventions for people with <br /> disabilities celebrate strengths and abilities. Your work captures the pride of accomplishment in <br /> the faces of children and their families, affirming that these children are about abilities, not <br /> disabilities. The project, further, creates and reinforces, in image, a mutual reciprocity, conveying <br /> that teachers and swimmers benefit equally from the experience of working together. Yet another <br /> bedrock principle lies at the heart of this initiative: communities are enriched by and benefit from <br /> activities in which all members are welcomed and supported to participate to their fullest potential <br /> These characteristics are the elements of change within an individual's life and,through art, can <br /> become the makings of a larger and eminently positive societal change. You have, with ease, <br /> captured the elements on film. <br /> Your initiative exhibits a wonderful marriage of the skills of a gifted photographer, experienced <br /> special educator and deeply committed social change agent. In closing, thank you in advance for <br /> enriching the lives of those who will appear in these photographs, as well as the collective life of <br /> the community where these powerful images, once viewed, will doubtless bring us closer to one <br /> another. <br /> Sincerely, <br /> Holly Riddle, J.D., M.Ed. <br /> N.C. Department of Health and Human Services <br /> Policy and Research <br /> DMH/DD/SAS <br /> 325 N. Salisbury St. <br /> Raleigh, NC 27603 <br /> Office (919) 733-7011 <br />