February, 2005
Over the last few years I have been observing the changing role of people with disabilities in the various programs on television. Is it my imagination or are we being portrayed in a more positive way - as integral parts of the community. In CSI the Coroner is a double amputee, in another program the lead character is a deaf FBI agent and in still another upcoming program the lead character will be a blind detective. I have also seen numerous specials on how various people have accommodated to living with disabling diseases and conditions. Recently I watched a really great show on the Food Network on making a kitchen accessible for a person who uses a wheelchair and it introduced a lot of watchers to the idea of "Universal Design".
But I guess my favorite is "Extreme Home Makeover" on Sunday night with Ty Pennington. The premise of the show is that the house of some deserving family is completely remodeled/rebuilt in only seven days while the family is sent off to enjoy a dream vacation. I enjoy this one for several reasons. Primarily it is an excellent example of how, with effort and resources, a few individuals can make such a big difference in a family's lives and give them new hope for the future. I am also your basic putterer around the house and I get a lot of design ideas from the show, and like how it introduces the country to the ideas of accessibility and assistive technology. In several cases they have redone the homes of people with disabilities (children with autism; a young man paralyzed by a gang-banger's stray bullet; a family with deaf parents and an autistic, blind son; a family with a daughter with Crohn's disease, to name a few). The whole town seems to pitch in, celebrities lend their assistance, and several companies donate a lot of material (Of course they are getting the national exposure and appreciation. Nothing like a million dollars of publicity).
As much as I like seeing how the outcomes will give the families more control of their lives and help them on the road to independence, I am always left with an uneasy feeling. Why is something like this such an event? What ever happened to the idea of helping your neighbor in time of need? How can we go about developing a more inter-dependent society much like our forefathers had? I realize we learn in school about how the frontiersmen (and women) were such an independent breed, but weren't they really dependent on each other? What about the barn raisings and helping your neighbor clear land and plant crops - whatever happened to those virtues?
Again, why does something like this have to be such an event? Why don't we make something like
this part of our weekly lives? Well, maybe on a smaller scale. So let's start simple. I know
that many of our schools could use volunteers to work with the students (a finger print check is required)
on a one-on-one basis to help them improve their education - How many of you have called them and offered a few
hours of your time? How many have offered to give your neighbor a ride to the store? Help them with a
little house cleaning? All these things may sound simple, but they will all improve the sense of
community we feel for each other. It's time we not only thought about independence, but also the
inter-dependence it takes to make a community. Remember - Disability is a random event that can occur in
any life, at any moment.
- Michael Bradshaw, Central Coast Center for Independent Living