Montana Voices Amplified

Montana Voices Amplified provides a microphone and broad audience so the stories, lessons, causes, and advice of individuals with disabilities and their families are heard. No one tells your story better than you can. But life is busy, and time is precious. If you take the time to articulate your experience, we will share your message with people who will benefit from your wisdom, or influence change.

The Montana Voices Amplified project offers people of all ages and abilities a stage to speak for themselves. The series is hosted by the Montana Family to Family Health Information Center (MT F2F), a program of the Rural Institute for Inclusive Communities (RIIC) at the University of Montana.

Montana Voices Amplified welcomes submissions of five-minute videos or 600-700-word essays on any topic related to your lived experience as a person with a disability or caring for someone with a disability. Authors of chosen submissions receive $100. Videos will be posted on the MT F2F web site and shared on social media. Essays will be posted on the web site and ScholarWorks, shared on social media, and printed in a professionally designed publication to distribute to families, schools, agencies, and legislators as appropriate.

Let us amplify YOUR voice!

Do you have a story, a lesson, advice or a message to share about life with a disability or diagnosis? Your experience can positively impact other Montanans.

Send your idea for an article or brief video to Molly Haniszewski molly.haniszewski@mso.umt.edu.

My Perspective: How to Help When You Don’t Know How to Help

Our journey with our daughter has been one filled with joy. Her vibrant personality draws people, and her genetic diagnosis has forged countless connections with people we would never have met otherwise. On the flip side, we’ve experienced rough patches; none more difficult than the uncertainty we’re living with right now.
My Perspective: Living and Grieving in Faith

For me, faith means being certain of the unknown; certain that things will get better when you truly have no idea they will.

My brother was diagnosed with autism. When Weston was little, he didn’t want to be bullied, so mom taught him that when he got excited, instead of flapping his hands at his chest he should snap his fingers down low. Weston taught me that faith means believing you can overcome challenges.
Our Voices: The Importance of Direct Support Professionals and Potential Impact of the Provider Rate Study

In 2021, Governor Gianforte authorized a comprehensive Medicaid rate study so the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) and the 2023 Legislature could make data-informed decisions on how much funding Developmental Disability Program (DDP) Providers require in rate increases to remain operational.
My Perspective: Can I Pet Your Eyes

By Ed Worrell

Ed Worrell is co-founder of OverHere Consulting. Based in Great Falls, OverHere Consulting carries assistive technologies for vision impairment and provides training to individuals, schools, and government agencies.
My Perspective: What just happened? Audio description can answer that.

By Sara Streeter

Sara Streeter spent her career as an accounting and finance professional. Now retired, she loves to be outdoors, travel and volunteer as an animal advocate.
My Perspective: I Run My Own IEP; You Can Too!

By Heath Montgomery

Heath Montgomery is a 7th grader in Missoula, Montana, and has been active in local and national disability advocacy since 2017. He is currently focused on the SSI Restoration Act which would eliminate the marriage penalty for people with disabilities.
My Perspective: Planning for Crisis – Benefits of a Family Safety Plan

By Elizabeth Cummings

Elizabeth is a middle school special education teacher and mother of two boys from Kalispell, Montana. She serves on the Rural Institute Consumer Advisory Council and advocates for individuals with disabilities and their families.

“It’s time to talk about crisis.”
My Perspective: Diabetes, Tech and a Series of Beeps

By Ed Worrell

Ed Worrell is co-founder and CEO of OverHere Consulting. Based in Great Falls, OverHere Consulting carries assistive technologies for vision impairment and provides training to individuals, schools, and government agencies.
My Perspective: Blindness and Misconceptions Surrounding Being Blind

By Samantha Chase

Samantha is a self-described, “blind as a bat” mother to two beautiful daughters. She is currently a student at the University of Montana and works as a peer advocate for individuals with disabilities at Summit Independent Living Center.
My Perspective: Old TV Static–Finding My Way Through Medical Trauma

By Bee Croyle

Bee Croyle works as a direct support professional taking care of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, while being chronically ill themself. They are non-binary and use they/them pronouns!
My Perspective: Rediscovering Museums with Tactile Tours

By Sara Streeter

Sara Streeter spent her career as an accounting and finance professional. Now retired, she loves to be outdoors, travel and volunteer as an animal advocate. She uses assistive technology to deal with her vision loss from degenerative myopia and is passionate about making the...
A Parent’s Perspective: plexiglass Butterflies - Lessons Learned at the Children’s Hospital

By Elizabeth Hill

Elizabeth Hill is a freelance writer, encourager, and humorist who resides with her husband and four children in central Montana. You can read more of her musings, eureka moments, and the hilarious events that mark her days with joy at elizabeth-hill.medium.com or find The Part...
My Perspective: Help Me Pick Up What You’re Putting Down (Accessible Communication for The Blind/Low Vision Community)

By Ed Worrell

Ed Worrell is co-founder of OverHere Consulting. Based in Great Falls, OverHere Consulting carries assistive technologies for vision impairment and provides training to individuals, schools, and government agencies. Ed is blind, diabetic, and loves helping the visually impaired...
A Parent’s Perspective: Take It From Your New Bestie, You Can’t Do Everything

By Elizabeth Hill

Elizabeth Hill is a freelance writer, encourager, and humorist who resides with her husband and four children in central Montana. You can read more of her musings, eureka moments, and the hilarious events that mark her days with joy at elizabeth-hill.medium.com or find The Part...
Our Perspectives: You Can’t Pour from an Empty Cup

In these times of stay-at-home orders, physical distancing, and remote teaching and learning, we need to nurture ourselves. In this issue of Montana Voices Amplified, members of the Rural Institute Consumer Advisory Council* share the strategies they use to reinvigorate and replenish themselves....
A Parent’s Perspective: How I Am Successfully Homeschooling My Child

By Traci Gulledge Street

Traci grew up in the Flathead Valley. She graduated from the University of Montana with a degree in communication studies, and has worked with kids off and on for many years. In the rare moments when she’s not actively being mom, she enjoys collecting and researching...
A Parent Teacher’s Perspective: Exploring Disability and Navigating a New World

By Elizabeth Cummings

Elizabeth is a middle school special education teacher and mother of two boys from Kalispell, Montana. She serves on the Rural Institute Consumer Advisory Council and advocates for individuals with disabilities and their families.
A Parent’s Perspective: How to Advocate without Alienating Team Members

By Elizabeth Hill

Elizabeth is a freelance writer, encourager, and humorist who resides with her husband and four children in central Montana. You can read more of her musings, eureka moments, and the hilarious events that mark her days with joy at www.thepartilove.com or find The Part I Love...
Parent’s Perspective: Navigating Face Coverings

By Elizabeth Cummings:

Elizabeth is a middle school special education teacher and mother of two boys from Kalispell, Montana. She serves on the Rural Institute Consumer Advisory Council and advocates for individuals with disabilities and their families.