This is the second of four columns that highlights Options for Independence annual Disability Awareness Day that was held at Owasco elementary March 15. Each of the community leaders who participated in the event shared their experience with us. Here are some of their thoughts:

€ Paramedic Lon Fricano of the TLC Ambulance Service used a neck brace to simulate a neck injury. Fricano wore his disability to bed so he could wake up and experience what someone with a real neck injury would feel like in the morning. Fricano woke up from a restless nights sleep with a very sore and stiff neck. Any twisting or turning was painful for him. He had to have his wife help him get dressed for the day and even had to forgo his morning cup of coffee because any movement that shift the position of his head caused pain. At work he wasn't able to drive the ambulance, carry his equipment or lift patients. If he were to have a real neck injury, Fricano probably wouldn't be able to do his job, even with “light duty” assignments because reading, typing or even sitting for an extended amount would be painful for his neck.

€ Plant Manager David Smith of Nucor Steel Company wore an eye patch to replicate an eye injury. Smith discussed how the eye injury was very fitting for him because the company he works for requires its workers to wear eye protection at all times because the risk of injury is so high. A few years ago, he had been working with some liquid hardener and it had splashed into his eye damaging the epidermis. He could have permanently lost his vision. Smith explained how covering one eye made the other eye work harder. He also had a difficult time with depth perception and found it hard to maneuver around work for fear of falling.

€ Kristina Martino of The Citizen was given Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) for her disability. She wore a pair of head phones around her neck with a tape of distracting sounds that restricted her ability to pay attention. When an individual has ADD, they have an extremely hard time keeping their mind on one thing for very long and completing tasks after only a few minutes. Martino found it extremely hard to work on her stories that morning. She explained that when her editor would come to discuss a story with her, she could not follow along with the conversation and had to keep asking what he said. She said it took her double the time to get her work done because she could not concentrate and was so easily distracted.

€ Assistant Superintendent J.D. Pabis of the Auburn Enlarged School District was given two ear plugs to simulate a hearing impairment. At first he thought that the hearing loss wouldn't be too bad in his office since he used a computer and did paperwork. When he had a meeting with other individuals he realized just how difficult it could be. First, he noticed that he had a constant buzzing in his ear. He could not pay attention or listen to what people were saying when they spoke all at once. Pabis had to concentrate and look at the individual speaking to pick up parts of the conversation. He explained how he would be walking down a hallway when someone would yell to him but he wasn't aware that the person was talking until he was close enough to see the individual. Pabis felt that he relied on his other senses, such as vision, to communicate and understand more.

Amanda Derby is the housing

advocate for Options for Independence