Anna Gutierrez, Staff Writer
October 24, 2011
Filed under Features, Top Stories
Many people don’t realize what they’re given. Being able to carry their own stuff, watching movies, singing, getting dressed, walking, seeing and even having a simple conversation. Those were just some of the things that members of the Teen Leadership II class were prevented from doing on Disability Day.
Students came in early on Oct. 14 to get their assigned disability. Some were deaf, mute or blind. Others went through the day with bad legs, no hands, no arms, or in a wheelchair. All learned what it was like to be without things many take for granted.
“Part of the community service we do is working with disabled kids,” Keli Cullen, Teen II teacher, said. “By doing this, we’re trying to empathize what other people go through and realize how fortunate we are.”
Throughout the day the students learned to deal with the many obstacles that came with having a disability. Many of the students were involved in things such as soccer, choir and martial arts, so having to face these hobbies with disabilities was a new challenge for them.
“Soccer is a very vocal sport, so it was very difficult to play while not being able to speak,” said Tyler Maness, who was mute.
Andrew Grossman, who is also in soccer, suffered from having no arms.
“It was really frustrating having to depend on others for even the basic things,” Grossman said. “When we dressed out for soccer, five other people had to help me change.”
Emily Pae had to go to choir being deaf.
“Thankfully we weren’t singing that day,” Pae said. “But we did watch a movie and they had to turn on the subtitles for me cause I couldn’t hear what they were saying.”
Senior Joey Lockart got to learn what it was like to be blind for a day. He really got to empathize with Ariel Felix, a student who deals with blindness every day.
“It was really hard,” Lockhart said. “I learned to appreciate my other senses more. By the end of the day I could poke something with my stick and tell if it was a wall, shoe, or a bag.”
Going to class was a different experience, though.
“I didn’t bring a tape recorder or anything to take notes on,” Lockart said. “I just assumed I would remember what happened in class, but on the following Monday, I got to economics and I had no idea what was going on.”
During the Teen II class the students took a field trip to Chick-fil-a to try and understand how much more difficult it is to live in the real world with disabilities. The students had to really help each other out. The mute students had to have people order for them, and some students without arms or hands had to be fed.
“It was really frustrating,” Grossman said. “I tried carrying my Chick-fil-a bag in my mouth, but the saliva weakened the bag and it fell to the ground, spilling all my food everywhere. I couldn’t pick it up because I had no arms. I just looked at the food on the ground.”
Danielle Alvarez had her legs tied together and had to use a walker throughout the day.
“I’m really impatient and it took forever to get from one place to another, so it was really frustrating,” Alvarez said. “I couldn’t carry anything. I felt like a burden to my friends because they weren’t as willing to help as I expected.”
The students that participated in this learned to not be so selfish and what it was like to walk in someone else’s shoes for a day. They also gained more respect for people who need help.
“Even the smallest disabilities are tough,” Maness said. “Something as simple as having a conversation was taken away because I was mute.”
While those participating learned a great deal about living with disabilities, they realized other students could still use a lesson or two.
“Some people weren’t very nice,” Pae said. “Lots of them tried screaming in my face just because I was deaf.”
The students that were involved in this are definitely quicker to respond to people who need help.
“I know that I wanted to try and do things on my own,” Grossman said. “I’m sure they want to be viewed as normal, so if they really need my help then I’ll go out of my way to help them.”
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October 31st, 2011 at 3:14 am
I wish I was at school that day to see that. I have been out for 2 weeks! I had surgery that day.
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