The Lincoln Airport is the first in Nebraska to launch the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Program in their terminal building.
The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Program aims to assist those traveling with invisible disabilities who may need a little extra attention or or patience from others during their travels. The goal is bring awareness to those with hidden disabilities and to remind airport staff to exercise extra compassion and empathy when working with these passengers and their families.
Invisible disabilities include autism, epilepsy, low vision, hearing loss, PTSD, dementia, depression, asthma, chronic pain, anxiety disorders, brain injuries, and more.
Lincoln Airport Director of Communications and Customer Engagement Rachel Barth says, “It is a self identifier so it is up to the individual or maybe a parent with a hidden disability to come grab one of our wearables. It doesn’t give them any special access to skip lines or anything like that. It helps people understand they may need additional assistance.”
All airport staff in the terminal building and the Airport Authority have been trained on how to recognize and engage with these passengers. It is estimated that 1 in 7 of us live with a disability and 80% are invisible. An estimated 1 billion people are living with a non-visible disability.
A box containing free special sunflower items is located at the United Airlines ticketing counter and at the LNK Customer Service counter. Those items include green sunflower bracelets, pins, and lanyards. The sunflower wearables re free for passengers and allow those with hidden disabilities to discreetly indicate they might need additional assistance from employees, such as extra time needed at check-in or security, escorting to gates, or assistance with reading signage or other airport