DISABILITY MINISTRY MILESTONES IN AMERICAN HISTORY.............

Among the Disability Ministry Milestones in the Catholic Church of the United States over the past century and three quarters chronicled by the NCPD - National Catholic Partnership for Disability begin with the following achievements.

1837 - Two Sisters of St. Joseph Carondelet emigrate from Lyons France to join six other Sisters tp open a school in the Archdiocese  of  St. Louis and invite four deaf students to study with hearing peers.
1853 - St. Mary's School For the Deaf opened in Buffalo, New York.
1900's - Xavier Society For the Blind begins it service to Catholics with Vision Loss.
1936-1957 - Catholic Guilds for the Blind opened in Eleven Dioceses.
1947 - CUSA, founded by Laure Brunner, An Apostolate of Persons with Chronic Illness or Disability; formerly known as the Catholic Union of Sick Associates, and then changed later to the Catholic Union of the Sick; in 1997 became CUSA.

These milestones underscore the origins of the nearly two centuries of Awareness and Ministry to Disabled U.S. Catholics, beginning 141 years before the U.S. Bishops Pastoral Statement on Persons With Disabilities....More To Come.............Fr.  Troy David