Kate steps up to make a difference

Torquay resident Kate Toholka has been appointed chair of the Surf Coast Shire’s All Abilities Advisory Committee (AAAC).

Ms Toholka said she was excited and honoured to step into the position on the AAAC which advises council on how to improve access and inclusion for people of all abilities in the Surf Coast Shire community.

The Torquay mum-of-two has lived with profound deafness all her life and now advocates for others on the Surf Coast who live with a disability.

Ms Toholka, who works as a support coordinator manager at Encompass Community Services, joined the AAAC in October last year after being one of the four successful candidates chosen from 25 applicants.

She said her aim as chair would be to create more awareness of accessibility within our region.

“Not just the physical landscape, but also digital,” she said.

“We are living largely digital lives in these COVID times, which means we are doing our shopping online or engaging with our community on social media.

“I would love to see more of our local businesses improve their accessibility: things like, adding image descriptions to images, captions on videos, ensuring their websites are accessibility-friendly, online booking for people who may have difficulties with phones, etc.

“Accessibility is generally an after-thought – and I want to change that.”

Ms Toholka said she also wanted to look at new ways to help people with disabilities feel a sense of community.

“For instance, I have created an instagram community which is called @mumswithdisabilities as while there’s options for parents of children with disabilities to connect with each other, there’s not much available for parents who have a disability themselves,” she said.

“Parenting is hard enough as it is – now imagine doing it while living with a disability.

“In these increasingly stressful and isolating times, community and connection is now more important than ever and there’s so much potential for the council – and individuals – to create safe spaces for people to reconnect and bond over shared experiences.”

The AAAC has been running since 2002 and members are appointed for three-year terms.

The committee is made up of community members, representatives from service organisations, council officers and a councillor representative who represents the interests of people with a disability who live, work, study or recreate in Surf Coast Shire.

“Our main focus is to ensure that the council considers the needs of people with disabilities when making decisions,” Ms Toholka said.

“This could be in relation to a new building, safety initiatives, even introducing new payment options when paying for your rates.

“We meet bimonthly to discuss the latest council projects and provide a voice for those who, unfortunately, don’t get heard very often.”