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At the end of June, I had the distinct honor to visit our wounded soldiers recuperating at Walter Reed and Bethesda Military Hospitals. Accompanying me was Medal of Honor recipient George Lang who, like myself, is a Vietnam veteran and John Melia, Program Director for our Wounded Warrior Project. Also along was John Gallo, a friend of Mr. Lang’s, who is also a Vietnam veteran.
Our visits were a great success and I just hope that the young soldiers got as much out of them as we did. The attitude of the soldiers we [...]
Just as we were about to go to press, we were struck speechless by the heartbreaking news of the death of our Secretary/Board Member William D. Hens. Bill (as he was known to friends and family) was undergoing an ordinarily simple medical procedure, when he developed complications that took his life swiftly and suddenly. Bill had just turned 55 in May of this year.
I felt I could do no less in my column this month than to pay tribute to this very warm, very generous, down-to-earth man who, over the years, touched the lives of many of [...]
Orbit introduces a series of profiles of new members with this portrait of a young “Renaissance Man” named Toby Forrest.
Tobias (Toby) Forrest is positively brimming with self-confidence. Put simply, he is a man of action. He knows what he wants from life and does everything that he can to make it happen.
Such ambition is admirable, especially when coupled with the ability to adapt to change-a characteristic that has served Toby well in life. He was born in San Francisco in 1975 and resided in several other states in his childhood. By [...]
United Spinal held its annual membership meetings all at once on June 22, connecting more than 100 members in Eastern Pennsylvania, New York City and the Buffalo area, plus anyone who chose to check in via the Internet from their homes.
Conducted by staff at the Bulova Office in Jackson Heights, Queens, the meeting was broadcast via the San Jose, California-based teleconferencing company WebEx to meeting centers at the Wyndham Hotel in Elmhurst, Queens; the Bronx VAMC; the Adams Mark Hotel in Buffalo; and the Trevose Radisson Inn in Trevose, [...]
On June 7 and 8, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) hosted a Regional Dialogue on accessible transportation in New York City. The focus was to bring together the stakeholders of accessible transportation: the providers and the passengers. For two days, a select group of advocates, activists and passengers exchanged ideas, questions and suggestions with subway, bus, paratransit and taxi service administrators, operators and owners. We discussed compliance with the transportation regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the ADA Accessibility Guidelines, customer service and equipment durability, [...]
Since passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, public parks and private recreation facilities have been required to make their grounds and programs as accessible as possible to people with disabilities. The ADA’s Title II and Title III requirements for state and local government entities and privately owned facilities for public use (respectively) have each required recreational facilities to be accessible.
Despite the language of the law, however, the original 1991 Americans With Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) for Buildings and Facilities-which defined the standards for [...]
From June 10 to 18, I participated in the 2004 China-US Conference on Educating Students with Special Needs in Beijing, China. The conference highlighted six areas for discussion on ways to improve special education programs among Chinese and American students with disabilities. My focus was assistive technology and technology for personnel preparation.
My technology sessions were introductory to the Chinese administrators, teachers and students working in special education who attended the conference. The Chinese attendees soaked up the knowledge quicker than a huge sponge absorbing a spill. Their [...]
mobileWOMEN.org: Online Magazine for Women in Wheelchairs
mobileWOMEN.org is a site where women in wheelchairs can find answers to questions about health, fashion, and other topics that are typically not addressed in women’s mainstream media. mobileWOMEN.org includes original articles as well as opportunities for reader input. The site features a dedicated link to an interactive forum specifically for women who are disabled, allowing participants to ask questions and share information with nurses, knowledgeable people in fields of special interest, and other women who are disabled. This forum is [...]
Flag Day at Phillies’ Citizens Bank Park
In conjunction with the White House Commission of Remembrance, members of United Spinal Association participated in Flag Day ceremonies prior to the Phillies/Reds game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Members Richard Taylor and Fred Bowman joined other veterans, each representing a different branch of the armed forces, in a Salute to America’s Defenders of Freedom on the field in front of a record crowd of 44,710.
Also on hand, to lead the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance, was Laura Schwanger, Regional [...]
The 24th Annual National Veterans Wheelchair Games and a team of United Spinal athletes headed to St. Louis for a week of sport and fun.
The 24th National Veterans Wheelchair Games were held in St. Louis, Missouri, June 15 to 19, 2004. This year’s Veterans Games were as exciting as ever with the theme of “Gateway to Victory,” using St. Louis’s famous landmark, the Gateway Arch, as the backdrop of the event.
Competition was held at several different locations, including the East St. Louis High School track and field, St. Clair’s Bowling [...]
After a long Buffalo winter, the cure for a severe bout of cabin fever could only be a dose of Buffalo Madness. Please be advised that the treatment should be taken with plenty of food, water and fun.
“Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.” -William Shakespeare, Hamlet
Each year the Buffalo Office of United Spinal jump-starts the summer season with a weeklong event of various adaptive sporting clinics for our members in Western New York. Given the hectic nature of the action- packed week, the event became known as “Buffalo Madness.”
Buffalo [...]
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