Susan Storms knows what it takes for a person to succeed despite a disability. She saw it firsthand growing up.

Storms' grandfather lost one arm, and yet was able to win medals in Empire Games high jump competitions. He taught local children how to swim, and worked as an attorney and later a judge.

So when Storms began to lose her vision as a young woman, there was never a question as to whether she could go to college or live independently.

“He was an inspiration to me, even before I knew I was going to be someone with a vision impairment,” she said this week while talking at her Weedsport residence.

Since then, Storms has been the one looking to inspire and encourage. She has talked for years at conferences and events to advocate for people dealing with their own impairments.

This month, she was chosen to be president of the board of directors for the local nonprofit organization Options for Independence.

Storms has a few years of experience with the organization, which works to help individuals in the area with physical and mental disabilities live as independently as possible. She has served as a speaker, volunteer, and more recently, sat on the board.

She also was very active before that with Aurora of CNY, a regional organization that aids people with visual and hearing impairments. And Storms has also worked closely with local United Way campaigns.

Spokesperson is a role Storms said she has embraced, having talked on behalf of service consumers throughout the area.

It is her job “to put a voice and a face to a disability,” she said, and “to show people it isn't true that if you get a disability, you crawl into your home and disappear.”

Options for Independence, Storms said, helps people do just the opposite. The organization serves hundreds in Seneca and Cayuga counties, counseling and offering services to people and their families in order to help them become more self-reliant and make their own decisions in the community.

Storms said the organization faces challenges in the near future. Fiscal problems at the state level means likely cutbacks in funding. Budget cuts have already affected a program that helps individuals with wheelchairs build accessible ramps at their homes.

Options for Independence is also looking for a new executive director who can continue to move forward with what Storms calls a “wonderful” mission.

“We're able to do so much good on so many levels,” she said.

But one of the biggest challenges for Storms is in her personal mission of advocacy. Even today, many people don't know how possible it is for people like her to live independently, she said.

But she is a caregiver raising a teenage son, looking after two cats, cooking meals and keeping a tidy home.

“I do anything the way you do anything,” Storms said. “It's just a little different for me.”

Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net

To learn more

Call Options for Independence at 255-3447 or visit www.optionsforindependence.org.