From left, Jennifer Pelka, Cece Strongheart, Glenna Strongheart and Ann Strongheart pose for a photo at their vendor booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. Cece, who is autistic, knits hats and makes various crafts to sell such as bookmarks and stickers. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

From left, Jennifer Pelka, Cece Strongheart, Glenna Strongheart and Ann Strongheart pose for a photo at their vendor booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. Cece, who is autistic, knits hats and makes various crafts to sell such as bookmarks and stickers. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Disability Pride Celebration draws a big crowd

Organizers said that attendance in just the first hour had tripled from the previous year.

Just because someone is in a wheelchair doesn’t mean they can’t compete in a good old-fashioned cake walk. This Saturday, more than a hundred central peninsula residents turned out to show off their pride and support for their disabled friends and family during the second annual Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park. Organizers Nikki Marcano, from Frontier Community Services, and Maggie Winston, of the Independent Living Center, hosted the event. Winston said that attendance in just the first hour had tripled from the previous year. Winston and Marcano said that a number of local businesses and organizations donated their services for the day and helped make it a success, including Geneva Woods Medical Supplies, Snappy Turtle Photobooths, Consumer Direct, Riverside Assisted Living, The Kenai Peninsula Borough School District, Coca Cola, the Peninsula Points on Prevention Coalition, Hope Community Resources and the local Zumba group.

As local band Hot Mess took the stage to play some classic rock ‘n’ roll, kids and adults alike spent the day enjoying games and activities. The priority for the organizers was to make everything as accessible as possible, and volunteers were stationed at each activity to assist anyone who needed a little help. There was a slip-and-slide equipped with inflatable pool toys, a face-painting booth manned by John Stocks of Mad Creations Tattoo Parlor and a dunk tank where people got the chance to soak Frontier’s executive director, Amanda Faulkner.

The day also featured a hot air balloon brought all the way from Valdez, which was grounded due to windy conditions but still gave folks the opportunity to take photos inside the basket.

Not only did people with disabilities get the chance to have fun with the rest of the community, they also had the opportunity to show off their entrepreneurial skills. Eleven-year-old Cece Strongheart spent the day selling the knits she creates for her business, Autistically Artistic. Strongheart is autistic and started knitting hats and scarves back in October. On Saturday, she had a dozen or so of her creations on display. Strongheart learned the craft from her mom, Ann, and uses a loom to make her products.

“She took to it quickly and now she’s knitting all the time,” Ann Strongheart said. “I can hardly get her to put it down.”

Strongheart obtained some guidance in her new business venture from Heidi Lieb-Williams, who is also autistic and has been the owner of Puzzled With Purpose in Anchorage since 2015. Lieb-Williams came down from Anchorage to sell some of her own artwork as well as the crafts of her friends, including paintings, handbags and skirts sewn together from neckties.

When she is not busy running her business, Lieb-Williams travels the country as an advocate and public speaker for the autistic and disabled community. Lieb-Williams also won this year’s Alaska Miss Amazing, a pageant for women and girls with disabilities. At 44 years old, Lieb-Williams said that part of her mission is to normalize the idea of autistic or disabled people being just as much a part of society as everyone else.

“People often associate autism more with children than adults, but we get old, too, and want to contribute,” Lieb-Williams said. “And even if we can only do 80% of what a job requires, we will do that 80% better than anybody.”

Puzzled With Purpose can be found on Facebook and Lieb-Williams said that people can message her there for custom orders. Strongheart’s creations are available online at www.etsy.com/shop/AutisticallyArtistic.

Heidi Lieb-Williams poses in front of her vendor booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Heidi Lieb-Williams poses in front of her vendor booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Jordan Tackett, left, and Nikki Marcano, right take a break from the bounce house to pose for a photo during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Jordan Tackett, left, and Nikki Marcano, right take a break from the bounce house to pose for a photo during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Roger Randall and Molly Joseph dance to the music of Hot Mess during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Roger Randall and Molly Joseph dance to the music of Hot Mess during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

From left, Dee Roddis, Michelle Castro and Sybille Castro-Curry smile for the camera during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

From left, Dee Roddis, Michelle Castro and Sybille Castro-Curry smile for the camera during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Chris Finley and his daughters Aubree and Danni pose at the photo booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

Chris Finley and his daughters Aubree and Danni pose at the photo booth during the 2019 Disability Pride Celebration in Soldotna Creek Park on July 20, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)

More in News

The Kenai Peninsula College main entrance on Aug. 18, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Chiappone and Dunstan to speak at the KPC Showcase

Kenai Peninsula College continues its showcase with two new speakers this week and next

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, talks about issues of concern regarding the proposed merger of supermarket chains Kroger and Albertsons during a floor speech in the House chamber on Wednesday. (Screenshot from official U.S. House of Representatives video feed)
Begich leads in early results, but Alaska’s U.S. House race won’t be immediately decided

About 245,000 ballots had been counted by 11:32 p.m., and Peltola trailed by about 5 percentage points

The Alaska governor’s mansion on Wednesday. Gov. Mike Dunleavy is considered a contender for a post in Donald Trump’s second presidential administration. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Election summary: Trump wins, GOP takes over U.S. Senate, Alaska may get new governor

Begich and repeal of ranked choice voting narrowly lead; GOP may lose control of state House.

Nesbett Courthouse in downtown Anchorage on Oct. 7, 2024. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Voters line up at the polling site at Anchorage City Hall on Nov. 4, 2024. City Hall was one of the designated early voting sites in Alaska’s largest city. It is not a designated site for Election Day voting. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Alaska Republicans lose two seats in state House, increasing odds of leadership switch

Rural Alaska precincts had reported few results by 11:30 p.m. Tuesday night.

Donald Trump won or was leading as of Wednesday morning in all seven swing states in the 2024 presidential election. (Doug Mills / The New York Times)
Donald Trump returns to power, ushering in new era of uncertainty

He played on fears of immigrants and economic worries to defeat Vice President Kamala Harris.

A voter is handed as ballot at Woodworth School in Dearborn, Mich., on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. One of the most consequential presidential elections in the nation’s modern history is well underway, as voters flocked to churches, schools and community centers to shape the future of American democracy. (Nick Hagen/The New York Times)
Trump verges on victory, picking up Pennsylvania

Donald Trump has captured Pennsylvania, the biggest prize of the seven battleground… Continue reading

Signs and supporters line the Kenai Spur Highway in Kenai, Alaska, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Update: Unofficial results for the 2024 general election

Preliminary, unofficial election results as of 9:55 p.m.

Poll worker Carol Louthan helps voters submit ballots at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Update: Bjorkman, Ruffridge, Elam and Vance lead in election night results

Several residents said that they came out to vote because they knew this election was “a big one.”

Most Read