Life on the drawing board

Stephie Coveart is an original. The 21-year-old has autism but is a social butterfly. She can’t read, write, do math or tell time. But the joy that bounces from her drawings of cats and dogs—each coloured in bright, bold markers, floating on white space and with quirky facial expressions—has attracted the attention of artists and animators. “She’s pretty high-functioning socially, but her more profound disability is her developmental...

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We waited 45 years for this?

I don't like it (left). I was excited when I saw a story about a new icon for accessible parking, bathrooms or entry ramps that's been adopted by New York City. Everyone recognizes the old "handicapped" sign: a blue-and-white stick figure sitting in a wheelchair, hands on arm rests, circa 1968.  I was expecting a new image to convey the word "disability" or "access," something completely out of the box and modern and edgy that would...

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Questions about ability and neurodiversity

Many of you responded to a BLOOM post about whether there are advantages to the way people with intellectual disability (ID) think that position ID beside autism or dyslexia as a type of neurodiversity. Here author George Estreich questions whether focusing on thinking "ability" is the way to define diversity (or human value). Questions about ability and neurodiversity By George Estreich In a recent article...

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'I have to let go of my past'

How do you adapt from a life of movement to one of paralysis? Come hear Carolyn Pioro talk about how her life as a circus performer and competitive athlete changed after a fall from a flying trapeze. Carolyn is our next BLOOM speaker on June 6 from 7-9 p.m. at Holland Bloorview. RSVP to ndyke@hollandbloorview.ca Hope to see you there! Loui...

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Jean Vanier on accepting who we are

Last summer I visited L’Arche (The Ark) in Trosly-Breuil, France—the birthplace of a community that brings together adults with intellectual disabilities and young adult volunteers known as assistants. The model, conceived by humanist, philosopher and theologian Jean Vanier, now operates in 40 countries. In a phone interview on Monday I asked Jean what he’s learned living with people with intellectual disabilities. I was struck by the beauty...

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Stepping out: Moms move from cautious to confident

Five children who attend Holland Bloorview's Play and Learn nursery school are participating with their moms in an adapted kids' version of a Toronto triathlon called Family, Fun, Fit on June 1. The idea came from Andrea Haefale, a phys-ed teacher and marathon runner whose daughter Bella, 4 (above), has developmental delay and autism. The kids' triathlon is a 15-minute event that begins in...

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Let's give kids who don't speak tools to succeed

How many words would the average, middle-class three-year-old child hear spoken to her in the course of a year? "About 6 million," said Pat Mirenda, an expert on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) who referenced a related study during a keynote talk at the Bloorview Research Institute's Pursuit Awards yesterday. Pat said we could expect a deaf child of deaf parents to watch about the same number of signs over...

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My son's climb is steeper than most

By D. Christine Brown Our 4-year-old son is recovering from severe brain inflammation 20 months ago. Although he's now developmentally delayed, has an irregular EEG on the left side of his brain, and also has a resulting autism diagnosis, he's been looking progressively more "neurotypical" as his brain heals. It's been a journey of hope and optimism for his future. But a few recent events planted some seeds of doubt in...

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Do you have a physical disability? Want a job?

Teens with physical disabilities are about half as likely as typical teens to have part-time jobs. They may face discrimination and employers who aren’t willing to provide work accommodations or training. Research shows that volunteer and work experiences during high school are predictors for finding well-paid work as an adult. Yet getting those jobs as a teen is harder. Many employers complain that young workers aren’t ready for...

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'The soundtrack of my life'

By Jason Nolan I have always made sense of the world through sound and music, so it's not strange that the music of my child and teen years, the late-70s and early-80s, had such an impact on me. I’m also autistic, and have a strange obsession with words. Sound, music and words are a part of my echolalia—the automatic repeating of what I hear and read—that have become important placeholders for my thinking. My music is probably...

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Immigrant moms hit service wall

Immigrant mothers face a brick wall trying to get services for their children with disabilities in the Greater Toronto Area, says one mom of a child with autism who's also a social worker and University of Toronto professor. “I’m supposed to know how to get through, and I don’t,” said Charmaine Williams at the Mothers Speak Up! Café Scientifique at Holland Bloorview yesterday. The event brought together mothers and service...

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