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Paralympian co-hosts Conference

Paralympian co-hosts Conference

London 2012 Paralympian Michael Sharkey joins Sophia Nichols of ASNA to host the Enabling Church Day conference on 3 June at the Bethel Convention Centre in the Birmingham area. Michael is a 29 year old physiotherapist living in Hillingdon. For the last 13 years he has represented Great Britain at Goalball, an exciting, fast-paced sport for visually impaired people. Michael says, ‘I am very proud to have competed at the London 2012 Paralympic games. More importantly though, I am a believer in Christ and I attend Crown Church in Uxbridge. I am passionate about sharing what great things God has done in my life and I love to challenge churches as they reach out to people with a disability.’ Sophia Nicholls, who lives in Oxfordshire,  is co-founder of ASNA, a Christian charity providing support for people living with disabilities, and awareness training. She is responsible for developing policy in disability ministry in the Seventh Day Adventist Church. One of her sons has severe learning disabilities. Together they will guide delegates through a fast paced programme which addresses the key topics of Disability – Dementia – Deafness. For more information and to BOOK NOW click...

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US Author joins Conference

US Author joins Conference

On 15 May Lion-Hudson published Randy Lewis’ book No Greatness Without Goodness. Randy join the Enabling Church conference on 3 June at the Bethel Convention Centre in the Birmingham area. No Greatness Without Goodness is the inspiring story of how Randy Lewis, as Senior Vice President of Walgreens in the US, changed the lives of thousands of people with disabilities. After watching the world through the eyes of his own autistic child, Austin, Randy was determined to use his position and influence as a corporate executive of Walgreens in the US to create a workplace where people with disabilities could not just succeed, but thrive. What followed was years of campaigning to garner company support to make the initiative successful. The result was two productivity leading distribution centres employing 35% people with disabilities. The initiative is now being rolled out nationwide in Walgreens retail stores across America and is changing the lives of thousands. The Walgreens success serves as a model for other employers in the U.S. and abroad including P&G, Marks & Spencer and Boots. Randy says, ‘ When it comes to our issues around inclusivity and the use of our power, I can think of no better example than Jesus himself.’ Joni Eareckson Tada, who is contributing to the Enabling Church conference by video say of Randy and his book, ‘People like me, a quadriplegic, need people of vision in their lives-people like Randy Lewis. Randy has truly caught God’s purpose in displaying his power through any and every weakness, and I am so grateful for his new book, No Greatness Without Goodness. To be great is to remember the lowly and to envision success for these individuals when they are unable to see it for themselves. Greatness like that not only makes for a person of fine character; it ultimately makes for a great society, even a great nation. I highly recommend No Greatness Without Goodness.’ Before retiring in 2013 as Senior Vice President, Randy led Walgreens’ logistics division for sixteen years as the chain grew from 1,500 to 8,000 stores with the most advanced logistics network in its industry. Over the past year, he has developed the NOGWOG Disability Initiative as an effective, low-cost and sustainable disability hiring model for employers. It is a private/public partnership between employers, community providers and government to provide employers with the qualified candidates they need and people with disabilities...

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