HOLLAND - Hope College will present a variety of activities during the college's annual Disability Awareness Week beginning Monday, April 11.

Highlights will include a basketball game featuring the Grand Rapids Pacers Wheelchair Basketball team and members of the college's men's basketball team on Wednesday, April 13.

The public is invited to all of the events. Admission is free.

The week will begin in the morning on Monday, April 11, with a wheelchair challenge that will have invited members of the college's student body, faculty and staff undergo a mobility impairment simulation for six, 12 or 24 hours, using wheelchairs provided by Airway Oxygen.

On Tuesday, April 12, participants will be able to simulate a variety of disabilities, including mobility impairment, hearing impairment, vision impairment and learning disabilities, as well as have an opportunity to gather information about a number of hidden disabilities. The simulations will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the main floor lounge of the DeWitt Center.

On Tuesday, April 12, at 9 p.m., a descriptive video version of the film "Bruce Almighty" will be shown in the DeWitt Center Kletz. The video, designed for audiences with vision impairments, includes audio description of action on-screen. The Kletz staff will provide free popcorn and soda.

The wheelchair basketball game between the Grand Rapids Pacers Wheelchair Basketball team and members of the Hope men's team will take place on Wednesday, April 13, at 7 p.m. at the Dow Center. The Hope players will be occupying athletic chairs and given brief instructions on techniques and rules changes.

Jean Lindell and Rick Dernberger of the college's counseling staff will present "Beautiful Dreamers: The Story of ADD" on Thursday, April 14, at 7 p.m. in Winants Auditorium of Graves Hall. The presentation will provide information on Attention Deficit Disorder with a focus on how friends and family members can best accommodate those in their lives who have the condition.

A descriptive video version of the film "Finding Nemo" will be presented on Thursday, April 14, at 9 p.m. in the DeWitt Center Kletz. As with the film on Tuesday, the Kletz staff will provide free popcorn and soda.

The week will close with an ice cream social on Friday, April 15, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the DeWitt Center Kletz.

The DeWitt Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street. The Dow Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 13th Street. Graves Hall is located on College Avenue midway between 10th and 12th Streets.

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