With help of vaccines, programs for people with disabilities return to normal operations

Inside Hands of Heartland, budding artists work on all sorts of creative projects, from door hangers to pottery. Hands of Heartland offers a wide variety of programming for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including day services at a Makerspace in the organization’s Bellevue location.While the facility is bustling on the Monday afternoon when we visit, it faced major pandemic challenges over the past year, from limited in-person access to closing down altogether. President of Operations Brett Samson said that had a big impact. “The art skills are great, but really it’s about being around people, being out into the community,” Samson said. Tony Green, Division of Developmental Disabilities Director for Nebraska’s Health Department, said programs for the 5,000 people they serve had to go virtual or were significantly limited in capacity.”I mean, this…