Terry Mendell (parent):
My name is Terry Mendell. Lisa is 29. I have a younger son, Scott, who is 24. Lisa has cerebral palsy. She was ten weeks premature and only weighed three pounds and seven ounces. It was a lack of oxygen to the brain or possibly some bleeding to the brain that caused that. With Lisa it affects her muscles mostly in her legs but some in her arms, too, so they’re tight, so it has affected her ability to walk, some of the fine motor skills, those types of things. So she can stand with support and hanging on to something and kind of do pivoting for transfers.
Lisa lives at home with us, we built a new accessible home, four foot wide hallways, wide doorways, big bathrooms she can turn around in, so it works really well for her. We live in Pella, Iowa, it’s a small town of, I don’t know, eight to ten thousand people, high school, college, all kind of activities.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
High school, college, what kind of activities?
Terry:
Lisa attended school in Pella, and then she went to central college and graduated from there in 2003. She was part of the Special Education Program because she needed physical therapy and some occupational therapy but she did not go to any special education classes, she was mainstreamed into all the regular ed. classes, just received some accommodations like pencil grips and computer usage and those types of things.
Lisa Mendell (daughter):
I majored in education and psychology, I am doing some at-home work on the computer, it’s part-time, and it involves some of the English degree that I had, I do some documents and Power Points, and typing, whatever, you know, typing needs done or I’ve done some stuff with Excel documents and that type stuff that’s web based. I’ve done blogging and I really like it ‘cause I like the computer a lot, so and I do it through e-mail, that’s how I get the jobs.
Terry :
She works with an agency. It’s contract work so just as they have jobs come in, then they will give her the job and she does it. It’s all online stuff.
Lisa:
I’m a virtual assistant.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
Wow, so what’s the most exciting job you’ve had so far?
Lisa:
I like the blogging actually and I didn’t really know much about it when I first started. I’d heard about it and I did some on my own, you know, personally, but the blogging for other people is really interesting. It’s very part-time so it’s not much at all but it’s something to do and something that gives me something to do.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
So what do you wanna do next?
Lisa:
I would really like to be in graphic design. That’s my dream job and that’s what I really enjoy is graphic design.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
And so in order to do that what comes next for you?
Lisa:
I would say I’d have to find some either online training or some more schooling probably to get, to get my foot in the door at least.
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Lisa:
I’m part of the Cash & Counseling program in Iowa, that’s a national participant, there’s other States and so learning from them and what they’re doing is really gonna help us to know what to know what to do for Iowa hopefully that things will be, will be better because there’s no, like, local network and I’d really like to see a local network in Iowa.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
Now what does that mean if there’s a local network?
Lisa:
It would be, um, connecting with other people that are part of the program, or state people or you know legislatives, people, just any higher up people in our state.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
And can you describe what would the benefits be to them if they were in this particular kind of program?
Lisa:
Um, it really gives you more options than straight Medicaid does. I’ve been able to, um, horseback ride because of the program, which has been really great. It’s horseback riding therapy.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
Wow. How often do you do that?
Lisa:
Well it’s – I’ve done it twice a year, I started last year in the fall and then this year I’m doing it in the spring and fall.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
Really,and uh, do you walk, or do you do more, or do you go on trails? What happens?
Lisa:
Um, I actually get on the horse and do actual therapy while I’m on the horse, for strengthening, and being able to stand, like Mom had said for the transfers. It builds that strength in being able to stand up and have that independence.
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Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
So you’ve said that you don’t like to have people ask you about your disability and you don’t like to talk about it or about yourself?
Lisa:
I want people to look at me first and not see the chair and a lot of people, that’s the first thing they think of. And I don’t mind that people ask me, and I would rather they ask me, you know, what my disability is, than just stare and not say anything. I’d rather them ask me, you know, “why are you in the chair?” instead of saying “what’s wrong with you” because I hate that when they say it that way.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
So what about living on your own?
Lisa:
I would like to live alone but with all my needs right now I would prefer that as long as Mom and Dad are willing that they help take care of me at this point until I find someone that I want to marry.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
Now what do they do to take of you other than the attention and, you know, emotional support? What do you appreciate?
Lisa:
The physical care that I require, they’re there to take care of that for me. It helps to have the support of them, I mean, if I didn’t have the family that I did it would be a whole lot different.
Alyne Ellis (interviewer):
And so what about socially? You want to get out and meet people. You get out of the house?
Lisa:
I do a lot of stuff online – email and um, like the yahoo instant messenger, and that kind of stuff, but I love to go to the movies and stuff but Mom and Dad, you know, they take me out, and shopping and, but our community, I, it’s somewhat accessible, but there are buildings like on the square that, they’re old enough that they’re not as accessible as they could be.
Everybody deals with things differently, there are days it’s are difficult, you know, everybody has where they don’t wanna get out of bed or whatever, but you know you can’t sit there and feel sorry for yourself all the time, you’re never gonna get anywhere if that’s the attitude that you have and it really helps to have support. If I had a different support system or a different family or , you know, thankfully my parents are married, a lot of people in disability situations their parents aren’t together and I think it makes a big difference, of what kind of family structure you have.
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