Editor's Column
by
Tim Benjamin
The Charlie Smith Community
Award annually recognizes individuals who demonstrate an exceptional
degree of commitment to the disability community. This year, the award
banquet will be held on Friday,
November 2, and the award will be bestowed on Jim and Claudia Carlisle, founders
of People Enhancing People (PEP), a PCA Choice provider organization. The Carlisles
believe that all recipients of PCA services should be able to find the help needed
to stay in the community in which they live. The Carlisles are both people with
disabilities who know personally that the struggle to find quality PCAs is one
of the key barriers to maintaining a high quality of life. In 2003, the New Freedom
Initiative Act and Minnesota Department of Human Services awarded PEP the funding
to put its business plan into motion and provide an alternative to traditional
provider organizations. Since then they have led the way in meeting the difficulties
involved in hiring and retaining high quality PCAs, and maintaining excellence
as a provider organization.
I hope you will join us for this fifth annual award celebration. One of the great
things about the event, I think, is that when we come together to celebrate outstanding
achievements by someone in our community, it also brings to light all the wonderful
people—right around us in the room—who have given so much of themselves
to the disability community.
The best part for me is that the banquet gives me an opportunity
to thank Access Press readers for their support, and to thank as
well all the volunteers, the board, and the staff for their dedication
to maintaining this valued communication link in our community.
The banquet also gives me a chance to reflect on my own good fortune
in knowing and working with Charlie Smith. I never stop running into
folks who knew and respected Charlie and his work. His commitment
to the community made a difference that we all still benefit from.
As much as we discourage
people from stereotyping individuals with disabilities as courageous
saints with superhuman qualities of resilience, there are some
pretty amazing people who are part of our community. We have some
incredibly broad shoulders to stand on. Thinking about Charlie
and our past and present award recipients leads me to other “big
names” like Roosevelt, Dart and Roberts. But there are many
others who by their advocacy—or through their victimization—have
helped pave the way for a better community.
Chuck Campbell, gives us a
glimpse into the emerging sport of quad
rugby. I’m not a big sports fan and really not
much on competitive team sports, but quad rugby has fascinated me
since I saw the movie “Murderball.” What a release of
energy and frustrations, and all without too much risk of injuring
yourself or anyone else (the key words are “too much risk”).
When I’m watching it played, my heart drops at every other
collision. It really does look brutal, and if you ask the players
they will tell you it is great fun even though occasionally you will
get your teeth rattled. For me, knowing how wheelchairs react, and
how shocking it feels when you’re stopped dead in your tracks,
I think that’s what holds my interest: how do they handle that
impact? More than that, I guess, I wonder how they handle the uncontrolled
momentum, when control is such a necessity in our everyday wheeling
lives.
Last month I said I
would give you some winter weather tips. What was I thinking? The
best winter weather tip I have is, “Stay
out of the cold!” ![]()
