I Linå'lå-ta
OUR LIFE
November 30, 2015 • Vol. 9, Issue 4

Guam CEDDERS logo.

ADA Celebration Posters Featured in D.C.

Dr. Heidi San Nicolas (far right), Guam CEDDERS Director, presents Guam CEDDERS posters to representatives from the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities 
(AIDD). Receiving the posters are: (L-R): Shakia Baskerville, MPH, Presidential Management Fellow, Office of External Affairs, Administration for Community Living, U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services; Shia Byers, Summer Intern, American Association for People with Disabilities (AAPD); Andrew Morris, MPH, Policy Analyst, Office of the Commissioner, 
Administration on Disabilities, Administration for Community Living, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Resource materials developed by Guam 
CEDDERS and funded by CEDDERS’ 
Administration on Intellectual and 
Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) Core 
Grant were put on display at the 25th 
Anniversary of the Americans with 
Disabilities Act Festival (ADA) held at 
the Smithsonian Museum of American History 
on July 24-26. Copies of the posters, featuring 
advocates on Guam, were also given to AIDD for 
display at the AIDD offices in Washington, DC. to 
celebrate the ADA.


Posters produced by Guam CEDDERS to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the ADA were on display at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. on July 24-26. 




2


It Pays To Speak Up
By Evelyn Duenas


Evelyn Duenas

For the past couple of years, I have been trying 
to access the Lam Lam Trolley service, which 
travels from the Micronesia Mall to other shopping 
malls and Two Lovers’ Point. It would be great to access 
transportation without having to make advance 
schedules. Buses with wi-fi onboard arrive conveniently 
at the Mall every 10 minutes, and fares are reasonably 
priced. Trolleys have indoor and outdoor seating for 
you to enjoy the scenery, and you can interact with the 
diverse local and tourist cultures. Who wouldn’t want 
to ride the Trolley and get to their destination in 10-20 
minutes!

So far, I have been unsuccessful. I still encounter 
barriers to the use of the Trolley service. 

This past March, I asked for help to document the 
problem. Once again, I made an attempt to access the 
service from the Mall to Two Lovers’ Point. I received the 
same response, “It is only for the public and tourists.” 
The manager told me that I was to use the public transit 
services because “that is for persons with disabilities.”

“But I am also the public,” I responded. He didn’t get it. 
He told me again, “The transit is there for a person with a 
disability. Our drivers are not trained and the lift can only 
be operated with management on site. The Americans 
with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not apply to us.” 

I couldn’t believe it. I knew that my rights were being 
violated. My note taker took everything down while I 
continued to ask for rides for an hour and a half. No bus 
was accessible, no driver knew how to operate the lifts, 
and lifts weren’t operable. I called Lam Lam supervisors 
and was connected to transit. They still didn’t get it. I 
wanted to ride the Trolley service to Two Lovers’ Point. 

With so many unsuccessful attempts, I decided to file 
a civil rights complaint through Guam Legal Services 
Corporation - Disability Law Center (GLSC-DLC), our 
Advocacy Law Center. I believed that Lam Lam’s bus 
service is a public transportation service and they 
must serve everyone, which includes individuals with 
disabilities. 

GLSC-DLC agreed to take my case. After they 
researched the ADA regulations, they delivered a letter 
two days before the 25th Anniversary of the ADA, telling 
Lam Lam that since their service is public transportation, 
they were discriminating on the basis of disability and 
must come into compliance with the ADA. The letter 
also said that their purchase of 11 new trolleys in 2013, 
costing more than $3 million, was unlawful, and that 
the profit from out-of-state tourists violates interstate 
commercial law. 

This was good news! This means that everyone, 
including persons with disabilities, whether they are from 
Guam, Japan, the US, or other countries, can expect to 
have access to the Trolley service. Lam Lam responded 
that they are working on it, but did not offer a timeline, 
which is what I am looking for. GLSC-DLC told Lam Lam 
that “their company should take active efforts to make 
your other existing transportation service more accessible 
to persons with disabilities.”

If that doesn’t follow, the issue might have to go to the 
Department of Justice. The ball is now in Lam Lam’s court. 
In the meantime, I am waiting to take a $4 ride to Two 
Lovers’ Point like everyone else. 




3

Tavita Faasuamalie, shown above, points out dangerous barriers caused by route signage near the Bank of Guam. 

In other access news, people can thank Tavita 
Faasuamalie for clearer pedestrian pathways in 
Hågatña. For most people, road signs and posts that are 
located on pedestrian pathways can be an annoyance, 
but as Tavita found out, they can be a danger and a 
barrier to persons with disabilities. In 2013, after a second 
encounter with a road sign that gave him a nasty gash 
requiring five stitches, he took his issue to GLSC-DLC. 
Speaking up for himself, he asked for legal assistance 
to remove the barriers to clear pedestrian access in and 
around central Hagåtña. 

“I explained how we physically get hurt or injured from 
these poles, not only the one that cut my eye, but the 
ones that are in the middle of the sidewalks. For example, 
the one by the Bank of Guam on Route 4, also the two 
signs in front of the Hagåtña Library and heading up to 
Agana Heights. These are just some of many poles that 
we get injured from… I also mentioned the metals that 
stick up on the sidewalk where we have tripped and 
fallen.”

If you check out today’s environment, you will see that 
speaking up made a difference. Route and traffic signs 
have been moved and Hagåtña has improved pedestrian 
access for everyone. Thanks, Tavita!

Route signage in the middle of a pedestrian sidewalk.

Here is a prime example of improperly placed signage in our island’s capital. Route 
signage approaching the Nieves Flores Library in Hågatña, which was placed in the 
middle of the pedestrian sidewalk, has since been moved. 



4

PEP Hosts First Summer Camp

Group of I CAN TOO Summer Camp participants.

Parents Empowering Parents, also known as PEP, hosted its first summer camp on July 27-31. The I CAN TOO Summer Camp offered a wide range of activities for children with 
distinct abilities, their siblings, and non-disabled peers, in elementary to high school, for an inclusive learning experience. Topics included art expression, creative writing, music, 
science, and team building games. PEP is a non-profit organization comprised of parents and supporters of children with disabilities.

GDDC to Focus on Diversity
By Marie Libria

Marie Libria, Guam Developmental 
Disabilities Council (GDDC) Program 
Coordinator, attended the Technical 
Assistance Institute on July 23 in Reno, 
Nevada. Information received during 
the institute will be used in the planning 
and development process of the GDDC 
Five-Year State Plan for 2017-2021. 
The State Plan will have an emphasis 
on diversity, cultural competency, and 
targeted disparities of people with 
developmental disabilities who are 
unserved and/or underserved as required 
by the Administration on Intellectual and 
Developmental Disabilities (AIDD). 

(Left photo): Attending the Technical Assistance Institute were (L-
R): Sudie Johnson, DC DD Council, Program Analyst; Luz Collazo, 
Puerto Rico DD Council, Analyst Planner; Marie Libria, Guam 
DD Council, Program Coordinator; and Shar’ron Williams, North 
Carolina DD Council, Business Services Coordinator.


5

Funding Opportunities Await
By Carla Torres

More often than not, funding for important, 
life-impacting things like assistive technology 
or home modifications to create accessibility for 
the recent onset of a physical disability can be hard to 
come by. The Guam System for Assistive Technology, 
better known in the community as “G-SAT,” offers the 
community financial 
assistance in the 
form of low interest 
personal loans to 
help with these very 
causes. 

For individuals 
with disabilities 
and their family 
members seeking 
funding for assistive 
technology, accessible 
vehicles, and home 
modifications, the 
Guam Options for Alternative Loans-Assistive Technology 
(GOAL-AT) Loan Program is a great option to consider. 

GOAL-AT is a federally funded program that provides 
affordable financial loans to persons with disabilities 
and/ or authorized representatives for the purchase of 
assistive technology devices and services and for home 
modifications aimed at increasing accessibility to the 
home. Interest rates on these loans are 2.125%. When 
insurance coverage is not available or when personal 
finances are tight, GOAL-AT is there to help. When one 
wants an opportunity to establish credit or needs help 
in rebuilding a negative credit history, the GOAL-AT Loan 
Program can also help do just that. 

Many people with disabilities today are turning to the 
flexibility of self-employment 
and entrepreneurship to meet 
both their career aspirations 
and financial goals. GSAT offers 
another financial loan program 
with the same low interest 
rate of 2.125% for individuals 
with disabilities who aspire to 
become self-employed. This 
program, called the Get Guam 
Teleworking Loan Program 
(GGT), can provide funding 
assistance for equipment 
and supplies needed to run a 
business. 

Information and applications for the GOAL-AT and 
GGT loan programs may be found on the GSAT website 
at www.gsatcedders.org, at the Bank of Guam locations 
(GOAL-AT only), or you can call the GSAT office at 735-
2490/1. If you have any questions or need assistance 
completing the application, the GSAT staff will gladly 
answer your questions and guide you in the loan 
application process. (See advertisement on back page.)

Electronic Magnifier

Wheelchair

Speech Communication Device

The GOAL-AT and GGT Loan Programs can help people with disabilities acquire needed assistive technology.


6

ADA Transportation News
By Ginger Porter

Thinking of flying sometime this year? There 
are some new accessibility rules coming from the 
Department of Transportation that will help ease your 
access. 

In a new ruling, airports will be required to provide 
high contrast captioning on audio-visual displays at ticket 
counters, gates, lounges and common passenger areas. 
This is great news for people with hearing loss and/or low 
vision. 

There is also great news if you are a wheelchair 
passenger headed for Rota or Saipan.

Mechanical lifts for enplaning and deplaning 
passengers with mobility impairments will be required 
where level entry loading bridges are not available. 

Service animals in our community are few and far 
between. However, if you are traveling with a service 
animal, airlines are required to make at least one sterile 
service animal relief area available on their flights.

The Federal Transit Authority (FTA) is also launching 
the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center 
later this year, providing technical assistance to address 
the needs of seniors and people with disabilities. Late this 
summer, FTA will also issue guidance on transit-related 
ADA requirements for the transit industry to provide 
guidance on how to comply with ADA regulations. 

Finally, the Federal Highway Administration is 
updating a Questions and Answers document related 
to accessibility issues of ADA and Section 504 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a great resource for everyone!

Organizations Collaborate on Communication Film 
By Sean Lizama

Guam CEDDERS, Guam 
Legal Services Corporation 
- Disability Law Center, and 
SiñA: Self-Advocates in Action 
recently collaborated to 
produce a video on communicating 
with individuals with disabilities 
entitled: Ta Fan Acomprendi: 
Communicating with People with 
Disabilities. Ta Fan Acomprendi, which 
means “to understand each other” 
in Chamorro, features strategies 
to facilitate communication with 
individuals with disabilities. 

The video, which is still in 
production, will be used as a training 
and education tool to help the 
general public communicate better 
with individuals with disabilities. 
For more information on this video 
please contact Sherry Guerrero, 
Guam CEDDERS Grant Assistant at 
735-2456.


Left to right: Kirsten Bamba, Sign Language Interpreter; Erlinda Tydingco, SiñA President; Barbara Johnson, Self-Advocate; 
David De Leon, Production Assistant; Glen Paulino, Caregiver; Moses Puas (seated), Self-Advocate; Andrew Tydingco, SiñA 
Vice President; and James Davis, Videographer take time out from shooting scenes at the Micronesia Mall on July 1. 


7

Summer 2015 National Disabilities Conferences

Estorian Lynn Tydingco


The summer of 2015 was a most memorable 
one, with celebration of the 25th Anniversary of 
the ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act and myattendance and participation at the Nevada Disabilities 
Conference and the National Association of Councils on 
Developmental Disabilities (NACDD).

As the Chairperson of the Guam Developmental 
Disabilities Council (GDDC), I represented Guam at 
the conference and training. Along with Chairpersons 
from the 50 states and 6 territories, we participated in 
a Chairperson’s Leadership Training. We also had the 
opportunity to network and share councils’ best practices.

Keynote Speaker, Administration on Intellectual & 
Developmental Disabilities Commissioner, Aaron Bishop, 
emphasized the importance of self-advocacy and 
diversity.

In July 2014, I was nominated by the GDDC Executive 
Director Rosanne Ada and was one of twelve leaders 
that was inducted into the newly established National 
Leadership Circle of Self-Advocates. The leadership circle 
recognized the dedication and accomplishments of the 
leaders in the Self-Advocacy movement nationwide. The 
leadership circle’s first task was to develop an electronic 
book on self-advocacy. The ebook, “The Art of Impact,” 
debuted on July 21, 2015. The ebook is intended to be a 
living resource for self-advocacy and best practices. The 
ebook will be constantly updated by NACDD.

NACDD Chief Executive Officer Donna Meltzer asked 
me to be one of five panelists from the leadership circle 
to share our self-advocacy story. I spoke of my personal 
self-advocacy story. I also described how by bonding with 
my peers and establishing a great rapport networking 
and the collaborative efforts of the Guam Developmental 
Disabilities Council, University of Guam CEDDERS, Guam 
Legal Services Corps, the Department of Integrated 
Services for Individuals With Disabilities, the Division of 
Vocational Rehabilitation, service providers, and other 
disability organizations, we started Guam’s first cross 
disability organization, Self-Advocates in Action in 2009. 
It was an honor to represent Guam and be recognized 
as a role model leader and cross disability self-advocacy 
organization on the national level.

Erlinda Tydingco (right), SiñA President, presented a Guam cultural necklace design and 
made by Stephen Madarang, Self-Advocate Carver, Bubu Designs to Donna Meltzer (left), 
National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities, Chief Executive Officer.

Guam CEDDERS logo.

This issue of I Linå'lå-ta was produced by Guam CEDDERS with 
funding support by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 
Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Grant 
No. 90DD0014-02-00, facilitated by the University of Guam Center for 
Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research & Service.

Comments may be sent to: 
University of Guam CEDDERS
Office of Graduate Studies, Sponsored Programs, & Research
303 University Drive
UOG Station
Mangilao, Guam 96913 
Phone: 735-2480/1 Fax: 734-5709 TTY: 734-6531 
Email: terrie.fejarang@guamcedders.org

Guam CEDDERS Director: Heidi San Nicolas, Ph.D. 
Editor: Terrie Fejarang 
Layout & Design: Sean Lizama

This issue of I Linå'lå-ta was made possible by contributions from the 
following individuals: Evelyn Duenas, Marie Libria, Sean Lizama, 
Ginger Porter, Leone Rohr, Heidi San Nicolas, Ph.D., Carla Torres, and 
Erlinda “Lynn” Tydingco. 

Alternative formats (e.g., Braille, large print, audio tapes, or electronic 
file) of I Linå'lå-ta will be made available upon request. Please contact 
Coleen Dela Cruz at 735-2477 (v) or 734-6531 (TTY), or email: 
coleen.delacruz@guamcedders.org for more information. 

The University of Guam is an equal opportunity provider and employer.


8

Affordable Loans for Assistive Technology!

Photo collage of different assistive technology.


Guam Options for Alternative 
Loans - Assistive Technology 
(GOAL-AT)

A GOAL-AT loan can help pay for…

• Hearing Aids & Listening Devices
• Wheelchairs or Scooters
• Home modifications
• Lifts and vehicle modifications
• Computers, computer software, and accessories
• Communication devices
• Devices to aid in learning, recreational, and daily 
living activities
• And more…..

2.125*% APR with flexible payments*

Get Guam 
Tele-Working (GGT)

Are you a person with a disability who aspires to be 
your own boss and run your own business?

A GGT loan can help cover: Equipment, supplies, and 
inventory related to the operation of the business. 

2.125*% APR with flexible payments* 

For more information on these loan 
programs or for an application, 
contact GSAT at 735-2490/1, email 
gsat@guamcedders.org or visit our 
website: www.gsatcedders.org

*Conditions may apply.