Recap of Love Your Work, Love Your Life Event:

| September 24, 2015 | No comments

Extraordinary motivational speakers Thomas Moon (www.disabilityspeaker.org) and William Stiles (founder of Joy University) decided to meet one day at a Subway restaurant.

They met because Thomas asked William if he can put up some marketing posters around town and during the meeting William was sharing how he done some speaking and is a coach who loves changing people’s life. William mentioned to Thomas that they should put on some kind of motivational workshop and they picked a date to shoot for.

They got everything situated (date, time, sponsors, venue, etc.) and did the event on September 15, which was a really great success.

The event consisted of Thomas talking about busting down barriers and William talking about falling in love with your work. Refreshments were available and both speakers had a table setup with information, books and cds for sale, coaching sessions and more.

Thomas and William will be putting on other future events that you do not want to miss.

Here are some comments from Thomas and William about this event:

“Thank you to everyone who came out and learned how to make your lives better.” Thomas Moon

“Thomas was funny and there were times when he challenged the audience. He would ask us specific questions and even joke with us about answering. That was great because it forced us to actually do some work versus just listening.” William Stiles

“I loved how William got the audience up on their feet to participate in a fun activity!” Thomas Moon

All of us are going to struggle and continuously have barriers thrown at us, but what makes or breaks us is if we push through the barriers or let them beat us to the ground and keep us there permanently.

Squeak those wheels and get that life you want and deserve!

Category: Uncategorized

If I Cannot Get There It Is Not Real

| August 17, 2015 | No comments

I recently took my son to a meeting of the Transportation Workgroup for the Florida Developmental Disability Council.  Thomas (TJ) sits on that workgroup.  Before the meeting started in my talks with one of the other workgroup members they made the comment “If I cannot get there it is not real.”  She was relating a statement that one of the FDDC members had made some time ago.

That simple statement hit home with me.  It was insightful, on target and right on point.  If I cannot get there it is not real.

Over 6 million person with disabilities have problems finding adequate transportation.  Statistics also show that as many as 1.9 million persons with disabilities almost never leave their homes because of transportation issues.

Transportation is a major issue and a major problem for those with disabilities.

For example, a job opens up that would be a good fit for a person with a disability.  This is a real job paying a real wage.  However, if the person qualified for the job has no way to get there then –  If I cannot get there it is not real.

New services are being offered or a new program opens up in a town or city that would benefit those with disabilities.  This program will enhance and enrich their lives. – If I cannot get there it is not real.

A movie has just been released that this person really wants to see.  However, there is no transportation available – no accessible transportation that they can use to go see the movie.  If I cannot get there it is not real.

Those who do not have transportation issues cannot understand what is like to live without adequate available transportation.  Those who do not have transportation issues see the world in a completely different way.

However, for those who have little or no transportation options – the world is not real.  If I cannot get there it is not real.

Solutions are available.  However, they involve investing in public transportation.  In areas where the population cannot support that option – then an investment in allowing those with disabilities to have access to private transportation options needs to be established.

Realize that 1.9 million people do not leave their homes because they lack transportation options – Unacceptable.  1.9 million people are denied access to a real life and the real world because of funding for transportation – Unacceptable.

The world is real.  Opportunities to enjoy life are real.  Jobs are real.  Restaurants and movie theatres are rea.

However – If I cannot get there it is not real.  So keep squeaking those wheels.

Category: Being Disabled, Employment, Growing Up Disabled, Housing, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , , , ,

What Are People With Disabilities Looking for When Looking for a House or Apartment?

| July 29, 2015 | No comments

Are you a realtor or just a person with a disability? Let’s discuss what people with disabilities are looking for when looking for a place.

When I moved out on my own I was of course looking for places I could live that were accessible and accommodating.

List of things I was for so I could live comfortably:

  1. Was the place close near a bus stop?
  1. Did the place have a ramp or steps?
  1. Was there a walk in shower or a tub?
  1. Was I allowed to put grab bars up in the bathroom?
  1. Could I accessibly move around the place kitchen, bedroom etc.?
  1. Was there stairs in the place?
  1. If there were stairs, is there a bedroom, bathroom and kitchen downstairs?
  1. Could I afford the rent or to buy?
  1. Could I have a care person come in to help me around the house and if needed be a live in helper.

These were a few things I was looking for and many others with disabilities are looking for. Do you as a Realtor know this or do you need training when it comes to people with  disabilities?

 

Check me out www.disabilityspeaker.org

Do you as a person with a disability discuss with the Realtor or landlord, what you need to be able to live in a place? You should know what accommodations you need to live comfortably.

No matter what situation you are in, you can live on your own and sometimes with help. This is possible, you just need to know what accommodations and what you need to live comfortably. Let’s stop making excuses and feeling sorry for yourself and start living our lives to fullest! Go after that life you want and deserve, squeak, squeak!

Category: Being Disabled, Disabilities, Housing, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , ,

Who is the Biggest Barrier?

| June 12, 2015 | No comments

Who is the biggest barrier when it comes to getting the best life for you child, family member or client with a disability? Would you say it is you or someone else? The fact is that you are the biggest barrier.

As a parent, guardian, family or caregiver, what is your role?

Your role basically is to be there for advice, support and fight for what your child, client or family member needs to get them towards a better future.

What are you doing right and wrong?

Right – Most of you in this room are fighting to get the best thing for your child, client or family member. You are there for advice and support. You will fight your butt off to try and make sure nothing really bad happens to them.

Wrong – We care so much about our child, client or family member that we hold on with such a tight grip because we don’t want them getting hurt or worse. We may think that we know what is best for someone without eve n discussing it with them, that it is the way it is. We don’t discuss with them what they want and what they think is best when it comes to their life. One ex ample is that you may think college is the best for them but they may want something else or think that college is not the best for them. The way it usually turns out is that it goes your way, you don’t even tale the time to discuss with them because you think that you know all the answers. The fact is that you are wrong.

We blame things on the school government and community when things go wrong but in most cases, you are the problem because you are holding on with such a tight grip.

How can you change to start getting your child, client or family member on a path towards success?

Start by loosening the grip. You may be so s cared that they will get hurt but you need to let them get out there and experience things, have failures and learn the kind of life they want. We /learn by getting out there, failing and going through things! Be there for support and advice but don’t try to run their life.

Let me give you some examples: I have been through many things as you heard in the beginning. I have failed many times and still fail at things but it has got me where I am today. My parents and family has been here to give me advice and support me in adventures I want to take in life. My parents did not put limits or boundaries on me. They supported me when I decided to go to college, move out on my own, start my own business, etc. They are also there for advice when I need them.

Be there but no matter how hard it gets, don’t give up! Squeak those wheels and let’s do this!

 

Category: Being Disabled, Growing Up Disabled, Living With A Disability, Raising A Disabled Child | Tags: , ,

From the Trenches to the Big Stage

| April 7, 2015 | No comments

This world has many amazing motivational speakers, like Tony Robbins, Les Brown, Steven Hawkins and hitting the big stage is the next amazing speaker Thomas Moon.

Thomas is a self-advocate and author/motivational speaker (Check out the book and motivational cd at http://blog.squeakywheelchair.com/?page_id=516) Thomas Moon is available to speak at your next conference, event, business event, nonprofit, church, etc.

A little about Thomas

“I am an upbeat guy and a very likable person.

I am a product of the foster care system.  I was adopted at the age of 11. Before that, I grew up in foster care in Pennsylvania and Florida. I have cerebral palsy, which weakens muscle coordination. I use a wheelchair most of the time, but can walk with supports.

Growing up in foster care is difficult.  Being disabled, being different and growing up in foster care is very difficult.

However, I am a survivor.” Thomas Moon

View Thomas’s marketing poster below (Available posters to hang in your business, community, etc.)

A list of Thomas Moon’s awards and accomplishments

AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

  • Voted Best Leader Under 55 By Ocala Magazine
  • Graduate of Partners in Policy Making 2010
  • 2011 recipient of the Idelio Valdes Leadership and Advocacy Award
  • President Ocala Business Leaders 2012
  • 2013 Appointed to the Florida Development Disability Council by Governor Scott
  • Founding Member of the Marion County Disability Alliance
  • Business Owner/Entrepreneur

And more

Again Thomas Moon is available to speak at your next conference, event, business event, nonprofit, church, etc. Please contact tj@moonscapes.org, www.disabilityspeaker.org or by phone at 352-502-5994, if you have any questions or to schedule Thomas to speak.

Remember to check out the marketing poster below and to not be afraid to squeak your wheels to get things done.

 

TJ_Info_Poster_2b

Category: Disabilities, Education, Growing Up Disabled, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , , , ,

Another Year In Tallahassee

| March 9, 2015 | 3 comments

I recently made one of my yearly trips to our Capital in Tallahassee.  Some years I have make more than one trip, but most of the time it is just one trip to advocate for legislation helping those with disabilities.

Chatting with Senator Dean (he will soon be terming our and he will be missed) I was reminded that I have been meeting with him since his first year in office – that was 2002.  Time flies, so my trips have been going on for over 12 years.  I am not sure if I was visiting before he took office.  Encounters blur together and memories are not always perfect.

Never the less, it has been a lot of years advocating.  Over the years my advocacy has been varied, not just limited to those issues that affect the disabled.  In fact my first couple of years centered on children’s issues and my trips were made during Children’s Week at the Capital.

Although these last years I have been going up during Developmental Disability Day at the Capital I still advocate for more than just those with disabilities.  I continue to advocate for our children, especially those in foster care or recently adopted.  This year there were some justice issues that also were on my legislative agenda.  Two of them being a bill to end the death penalty in Florida (it may not pass this year but it is inevitable) and a bill to required a unanimous jury verdict to impost the death penalty (this looks like it could pass this year.)

Restoring budget cuts for those with disabilities is a big issue this year and will continue to be for the future.  Reimbursement rates for those who provide services to those with disabilities have been cut over 14% on the average.  And these cuts have been in place for over a decade.   This year advocacy groups are hoping to get 7% restored.  This will still not bring us back to 2003 levels.

Employment and transportation are also important issues.  There is an Employment First Bill that could give employers incentives to hire persons with disabilities.  Transportation funding always falls short of what is needed.

There are still over 20,000 Florida citizens with disabilities on a waiting list for services.  The legislature and governor are being asked to provide funding to remove as many as possible from this waiting list and to provide these essential services for our vulnerable citizens.

Children with disabilities are still being housed in nursing homes or facilities for adults.  Children with some medical needs, usually complex, are being housed in nursing home facilities for the elderly despite a lawsuit and direction from the Federal Government to place them in appropriate facilities.

There are many other issues that impact the daily life and quality of life of our citizens with disabilities.  These needs should be addressed and solutions put in place.

I am a realist when it comes to Tallahassee.  I look for, hope for and work for incremental changes.  This has worked in the past, as we have moved forward to better serve this population.  I am heartened by the fact that we have not taken any steps backward in the last few years.  This is an area where two steps forward and one step backward is unacceptable.

 

 

Category: APD Budget Cuts, APD Waiver, Being Disabled, Disabilities, Employment, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , , ,

Are you in a True Competition by Getting an Award by Participating?

| March 6, 2015 | No comments

Everyone will get a trophy.

When you think of Special Olympics and even competitions in schools, you think that it is a great thing and will be something the participants will grow from. That is false because how we give out trophies and treat each competitor.

Today, Special Olympics and other competitions give each competitor a trophy or ribbon and treat them like they all won. There are different reasons that this does not work and is bad for each of the participant’s future.

  1. Reason for a competition

A rivalry between two or more persons or groups for an object desired in common, usually resulting in a victor and a loser but not necessarily involving the destruction of the latter.  The act of competing is to strive to outdo another for acknowledgment, a prize, supremacy, profit, etc.

  1. Why giving a participant a trophy no matter what, is not a good thing

When you give all participants a trophy no matter what, it takes away the point of a competition. Giving every participant a reward no matter how they do, tells the participants that they don’t need to try or work hard at something because they will be rewarded no matter how they do. This is not true because in order to achieve success or get somewhere, you have to do something. Also rewarding everyone no matter what gives the participant no reason to compete and they lose the skills on how to compete.

  1. What do we need to do to fix this

We should start making every competition like a real competition and only give trophies to the first, second and third winners. I understand why a reward might be given to every participant but it’s not about everyone feeling like they won. Failing at things is how we grow and become better human beings. Bill Gates, the president, Joe Smo down the street did not get where they are by getting everything handed to them. They had to work their butts off and still do!

To sum this up, let me tell you my story of when I went to Special Olympics. When I was younger I went to compete in Special Olympics once and it was fun but that’s all. After, I told my parents that I didn’t want to be a part of Special Olympics anymore because everyone got a trophy and I wanted more of a competition. Special Olympics is a wonderful thing, don’t get me wrong but it was not for me.

Let’s keep fighting and squeaking our wheels because competition is good and will take us far!

Category: Being Disabled, Disabilities, Growing Up Disabled, Living With A Disability | Tags: , ,

The Life and Times of a Person with a Disability

| February 16, 2015 | No comments

There was once this lady who was just like you and I. The only thing different was her bones and muscles did not work the same. Does this mean that she should be treated different? The world would say yes. What would you say about this?

She is trying to get through life with her disability. She is just an amazing person. She will do anything she can. She will try everything and if she fails she will try something else. Put anything in her way and she will most of the time accomplish it.

One day she was walking down the street when someone walked up to her. He started saying mean things about her. He said that she was so crippled that she could not even get out of bed. This hurt her feelings so much she went to her room and started crying.

She got down on her knees and asked God to help her not be bothered by the crap she is given.  She then went to the Paddock mall. She was walking around and this woman when a big head and a ring in her nose walked up to her. This woman started to tell the lady with the disability that she looked stupid and she should not be in public. The nasty lady got a big surprise when the lady with the disability walked away and said nothing. This lady that took a good jump and said that she was not going to be bothered by what she heard had a great time in her life that said her life would be changed forever.

Now everywhere she goes and when people try to bring her down she just walked away.

This story is fiction but the moral of it is that because people are different, they are not worth it and treated like no one. (race, color, age and gender) Another point is that no matter family, best friend, etc, if they need to stab you in the back to get what they want, most people won’t think twice.

I believe that the end of this world won’t be a ball of fire or even an apocalypse but by the hands around each other’s throats. The only way this will change is that we wake up and start living life like, treating others equal, caring about each other and put a lot of our anger in a hole.

We can have a better life but we have to squeak our wheels no matter how annoying it may be!

Category: Being Disabled, Disabilities, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , ,

Parking to Unload

| February 6, 2015 | No comments

Have you ever been somewhere and there was a UPS truck or something, parked across two or more disabled spots to unload?

I was at the movies the other day and this exact thing went down. A truck with a trailer was taking up all but two disabled spots. One spot was taken and the other was open. There were other disabled spots across the way that were open but the point is that those unloading trucks, etc. should be parked in an unloading zone or somewhere else.  Definitely not in a disabled spot.

When/if you ran into this, would you report it or would you just get frustrated and move on? What I did was get frustrated and moved on. I did not want to start anything, even though I should have.

The next time, I will complain to the place I am at and call the police to come fine and fix the situation. Heck, if that does not do anything, I will just block the space hogger in so he can’t leave. This needs to change now!

People will do crazy things like this and it is your duty to make sure it does not continue. Did Rosa Parks move to the back of the bus when asked or did she stand her ground and got sick of the way the black community was being treated?

Even the public bus (Suntran) in Ocala was about to get it because even though there is a ramp on each bus, it is so steep that a wheelchair can’t make it up. When I ask the bus driver to give me a push up the ramp, they say they are not allowed. They usually help, but the day they absolutely refuse, I will put my wheelchair on the ramp and not move or park in front of the bus so it can’t leave. I can kind of understand their point for not helping but if you know how the bus is, the bus system needs to change how the lift is or something.

Time to make changes in this world and don’t stop squeaking your wheels until it is done!

Category: Being Disabled, Disabilities, Living With A Disability | Tags: , , ,

Fake Service Animals

| January 26, 2015 | 4 comments

If you watch the news you may have noticed the stories about fake service animals.  Based on the analysis of the news reports we have an epidemic of fakers taking their pets with them.

Yes there are a number of websites that will sell anyone a service dog vest.  Yes there are a number of websites that will issue certifications that your dog is a service dot.  And yes there are fakers out there.

Many fakers are easy to spot.  Their dogs are out of control.  They bark and lunge at people.  They pull products off of the shelves in a store.  They are constantly putting their noses and faces up on tables in restaurants.  They may even go to the bathroom in a public store or restaurant.

Businesses already have remedies for fake service dogs that will not behave in public.  The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) allows business owners to ask the service dog handler to remove the dog if:

  1. The dog is out of control and the handler does not take effective action to control it.
  2. The dog is not housebroken.

When there is a legitimate reason to ask that a service animal be removed, staff must offer the person with the disability the opportunity to obtain goods or services without the animal’s presence.

So a remedy already exists for fakers whose supposed service dog is not trained or misbehaves.

Businesses can also ask service dog owners two questions:

  1. Is it a service dog?
  2. What service or task does the dog perform for the handler or owner?

However, it is difficult to determine if an animal is fake based on those two questions alone.  The business owner can not ask anything else.

It is a crime to portray a pet as a service animal both at the federal and at the state level in most states.  It is often difficult to prove that an animal is fake or not a true service animal.

From a business perspective fake service dogs or any service dog that misbehaves or is out of control can be removed from their business.  The law already allows that.

The notion that we should change the ADA law or punish valid users of service dogs because of fakers is something that would be very wrong.  The ADA was purposely written to allow those who need service dogs the ability to use them without a lot of red tape or hassles.

There are groups that want to require certification.  However, no two agencies that train or currently claim to certify service dogs use the same criteria.  Additionally, there are many owner trained service dogs working that do a great job.

Adding certification would add another layer of bureaucracy and also put a financial burden on the disabled, most of who live at or below the poverty line.

Persons with disabilities already have a difficult time.  They have to deal with SSI or SSDI or both, Medicare or Medicaid, low cost housing, and more.  They do not need the extra burden of locating and transporting their service dog to an approved certification agency and paying a fee for certification.  Especially since many with disabilities do not have transportation.

Yes there are fake service dogs.  The handlers should be punished when identified.  But to put more paperwork, cost and burden on a person with a disability because of the fakers, just does not make sense.

At least that is what I feel as I squeak my wheels.

 

Category: Being Disabled, Disabilities, Service Dog | Tags: , ,
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