Holiday Cheer

Although I have a general rule of not endorsing products on this blog, I am making a one-time exception (for which I am not being paid in any way) to let my readers know about the beautiful handcrafted Christmas ornaments sold by Highland Roses Design.





Its founder, who blogs at Cheaper than Therapy, describes Highland Roses Design as "a collaborative craft studio to help market the creations of adults who have disabilities and their family caregivers in an effort to help them become more financially independent. If they aren't mobile or prefer to work in their own homes, we pick up and deliver the supplies to them. Every step of the process is a collaborative effort."

She mentions on the Highland Roses Design website that people who have mental illnesses or developmental disabilities sometimes do not qualify for disability assistance but are unable to work without accommodations in a traditional employment setting.

Of course, the Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified workers who have disabilities, but in recent years many workers could not assert their legal rights because of lax enforcement by the Bush Administration and conservative court decisions that greatly narrowed the scope of the law's protections. Although things are changing for the better as a result of Congress' passage last year of amendments to the ADA and a new administration that actually seems to be listening to self-advocates' concerns, at present there are still many people with disabilities who are unemployed because of discrimination, and craft projects such as making holiday ornaments can help such individuals to gain work experience. If you are considering buying handcrafted ornaments this year, please check out the Highland Roses site.