Hennepin County offered information and entertainment in honor of the 20th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act July 29 at the   Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis. Visitors learned about services offered by Hennepin County to persons with disabilities,  such as video-based interpreting for persons who are deaf and adaptive technology for accessing print and computers at Hennepin County libraries.

 Actress/comedian Leslye Orr and pianist Ted Brown performed. Orr’s accomplishments include creating the award-winning stage comedy “Women Who Drink,” and writing and illustrating a children’s book about inclusiveness and disabilities, “The People on the Corner.”  A former member of the Children’s Theatre Company and Ballet of the Dolls, Orr was born legally blind and has taught national workshops about the possibilities of disabilities.           

Brown, a vocalist and pianist, has performed for 32 years with the local variety band Windjammer and has been a member of the Anoka-Hennepin Community Education adult choir Merry Music Makers.  One of the highlights of his career was performing at the International Very Special Arts Festival at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.  Brown has performed at numerous workshops and conferences on behalf of VSA Minnesota, the state organization on arts and disability, as well as independently