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Ron Livingston Issue

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Pediatric Ms — Treating A Rare Disease

Circa 2007 For decades, multiple sclerosis was considered an adult disease that didn’t show up until a person—usually a woman—was somewhere between 20 and 40 years old. Now it turns out that five percent of the 400,000 Americans who get diagnosed with this disabling neurological condition are children. MS attacks the central nervous system, including … Read more

George Covington — To Lawyer Or Not To Lawyer?

Circa 2007 Everyone goes through life with at least one nagging question. Sometimes it’s as simple as “Why did I move to Alpine?” or “What’s a nice girl like me doing in a place like this?” Sometimes the question is more complex. For instance, an outsider might be asked: “What do you think of the … Read more

Music Within — A Film Based on a True Story of the ADA

Circa 2007 Actress Melissa George read through the script for Music Within, as she would any other project she was considering. But by the closing pages, she knew she had to make the film. She would play Christine, the love interest of activist Richard Pimentel, in a story that struck her as hauntingly familiar. Similar … Read more

Walgreens — We Go Behind The Scenes

Circa 2007 When you stop by Walgreens to pick up a prescription or a few toiletry items, you don’t see what’s going on beyond the shelves, beyond the brick and mortar. What you don’t see is that the corporation has been busy at work creating distribution centers that employ impressive numbers of people with disabilities. … Read more

Paralympics 2008 — Countdown To Beijing

Circa 2007 During the Paralympic Games next fall in China, the best athletes with a physical disability from around the world will gather for 11 days of exhilarating competition. U.S. Paralympics, a division of the U.S. Olympic Committee, will mark the occasion by launching the Paralympic Academy Beijing, as well as by hosting a sports … Read more

Horse Therapy — Gallop Your Way To Good Health

Circa 2007 The Atlantic Riding Center for the Handicapped (ARCH) was created 13 years ago to improve the lives of people with disabilities through horseback riding. The non-profit organization, based in Egg Harbor Township, NJ, features a huge indoor ring with wheelchair access, along with an 18-stall horse barn and a grooming area for the … Read more

Wheelchair Games — At 83, They Kick Butt

Circa 2007 Russell Worth could hear the roar of the crowd as he leaned forward and gave shove after shove to the tires on his wheelchair. He tried not to smile. After all, he was in last place. But he smiled anyway. “That was a lot of fun,” he later said of his sprint in … Read more

Extremity Sports — Have Prosthetic, Will Rock!

Circa 2007 Kimberly Olson nearly puked. She looked down one more time with that sweaty feeling and tight throat that comes minutes before becoming sick. Just hold on to the rope and sit down. That’s all she could hear because everyone at the bottom of the wall was saying it over and over. But what … Read more

A Father’s Story — Adopting A Boy With Autism

Circa 2007 While other kids climb ropes and ladders at the park, Garrett picks up a palm frond and flicks it back and forth in his twitchy fingers. While other kids bond and make up imaginary games, my 12-yearold son lowers his head and paces the length of the playground. “What are you doing?” I … Read more

Amputee Camp — Fun Without Limits

Circa 2007 Recently, the Amputee Coalition of America (ACA) held its seventh annual summer youth camp in Warm Springs, GA, where 60 children with limb loss and limb differences between 10 and 16, enjoyed four days of swimming, fishing, dancing, nature walks and horseback riding. Of course there was singing around the campfire and a … Read more

Assistive Technology — 20 Years of the ATA

Circa 2007 “The tools of technology are fabulously flexible. The possibilities are limited only by our imaginations. The challenge is to use our powers of creativity to maximize the potential of the tools now and in the years ahead, as our needs change and as technology transforms the ways in which we connect with our … Read more

Allen Rucker — Stuck At The Starting Line

Circa 2007 Just about the time that this arrives in your mailbox, the Los Angeles-based Media Access Awards will be presenting its silver anniversary show. At the annual event, trophies are handed out for outstanding performances by actors with disabilities, or for TV and film work that portrays the disability community powerfully and accurately. What? … Read more

Green Pages — One Woman Asks “How’m I Doin’?”

Circa 2007 I ’m quite sure that most of you are recycling your paper. (The rest of you, get with the program!) Now it’s time to close the loop. This is a vital step in the lifecycle process, as there must be significant consumer demand for recycled products for paper companies to even offer them. … Read more

Senator Letter — Hillary Rodham Clinton

Circa 2007 GIVING EVERY CHILD A CHANCE Dear ABILITY Magazine Readers, My passion for working on behalf of people with disabilities stems from an experience very early in my professional career when I worked for the Children’s Defense Fund. Back then, I was asked to go door to door in New Bedford, MA, to help … Read more

DRLC — Fighting Cancer Discrimination

Circa 2007 When Mary, 26, requested time off to attend a doctor’s appointment to address complications with her brain-tumor treatment, her employer terminated her. When Melanie, 37, asked for such accommodations as turning down the heat in the office as she dealt with lungcancer symptoms, she was fired for being “difficult.” When Robert, who’d enjoyed … Read more

Humor Therapy — Yo God, Down Here

Circa 2007 Hey God, it’s me, your old friend, remember? The one who was cool and cocky, until you made me humble by putting me in the hospital with chest pains. The one who thought I could do whatever I wanted in life without consequences, until you sent that oncoming car my way. I might … Read more