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2008 SESSION

089056762
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 348
Offered February 6, 2008
Celebrating the life of Martha K. Glennan.
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Patrons-- Vanderhye and Scott, J.M.
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WHEREAS, Martha K. Glennan of McLean, a dedicated advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, died on January 21, 2008; and

WHEREAS, a polio survivor, Martha Glennan spent years as a teacher in the Fairfax County schools, but her efforts at educating others went far beyond the classroom; and

WHEREAS, Martha Glennan was active in educating places of worship on the inclusion of people with disabilities; she spoke at conferences for people with disabilities about accepting loss and moving through it; and when she had her home redesigned to make it more comfortably accessible, she invited people to see it so they could discover the beauty and potential of a new approach called “universal design”; and

WHEREAS, frustrated by not being able to find information about resources for people with disabilities, Martha Glennan started a project dedicated to gathering such information and making it easily accessible by consumers; she also had a newspaper column called "Ask Martha" in which she answered questions about resources for people with disabilities; and

WHEREAS, in 1992 Martha Glennan helped establish and was the first chairperson of the Fairfax Area Disability Services Board, an outgrowth of the Fairfax County Disability Commission, which she also chaired, and in these roles she pushed the Fairfax County government to embrace the spirit as well as the letter of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), reviewing and commenting on the county’s first ADA plan; and

WHEREAS, Martha Glennan was a member of Fairfax County's Long Term Care Task Force, which studied the needs of seniors and adults with disabilities and, when the subsequent citizen-based Long Term Care Coordinating Council was formed, she became cochair of its Access Committee; and

WHEREAS, smart, compassionate, demanding, and always focused, Martha Glennan didn’t just talk about things, she made them happen, and in the process she helped hundreds if not thousands of people live more fulfilling lives; and

WHEREAS, Martha Glennan was married to the late Thomas Glennan; was the beloved mother of Keith and Stuart; and the grandmother of Andrew, Paul, and John; she will be greatly missed by family members, friends, and the countless people whose lives she touched; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby note with great sadness the loss of Martha K. Glennan, an exceptional advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Martha K. Glennan as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for her memory.