Three mothers from Lynn are looking to make the lives of disabled people a bit easier by launching a revolutionary project designed to help bring everything they need to public events.
“There actually isn’t a vehicle like ‘The Lynnebago’ that exists,” Lisa Tulipani told MassLive in an interview last Wednesday.
Tulipani, Maria Riley and Louise Dominique are the three moms behind Lynn Disability Network. The trio has worked to create inclusive events for families who also have members with disabilities throughout Lynn.
Between their own experiences and work, the group has noticed that it is incredibly difficult for these families to attend public events.
“It’s just very apparent when you go out in the world that, you know, the world is not built for families like ours,” Tulipani said, who has a 4-year-old son with a neurological disorder. “We just want things to be not so much more accessible, but more inclusive.”
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Thus came the idea for “The Lynnebago,” which is a finalist at this year’s The Arc Tank, hosted by Northeast Arc. The “Shark Tank” style pitch competition rewards up to $200,000 to one project aimed at improving the lives of people with disabilities and autism.
A sensory friendly event hosted by Lynn Disability NetworkCourtesy of Lisa Tulipani
“The Lynnebago,” which Tulipani describes as “a new mobile public amenity,” has an accessible bathroom with an adjustable changing table. It also features sensory-friendly and multilingual communication technologies. The goal is to help disabled individuals and their families overcome barriers that deter them from participating in public events.
“Accessibility is really an issue for public spaces,” Tulipani said. “To encourage the city to kind of think creatively about making things more inclusive, we came up with the idea of ‘The Lynnebago.’”
The three women already have an adult changing table that they paid for out of their own pockets. Therefore, Tulipani is hoping the funds from Arc Tank could help launch “The Lynnebago” and make more events accessible to people with disabilities.
“Our whole idea behind ‘The Lynnebago’ is not for Lynn Disability Network to own it, but for the city to absorb it as a public health amenity and project,” Tulipani said. “We’re just facilitating it. We’re making it happen and then gifting it to the city.”
The “Lynnebago” is one of five final projects vying for nearly $200,000 in funding from The Arc Tank. The event will take place at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, located at Columbia Point in Boston, from 2-5 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 5.
