Francis with wife and daughter. For 36-year-old Filipino chess player Francis Ching, who has retinis pigmentosa and is completely visually impaired, believing in love as a husband and father does not require seeing. In 2008, Francis was working as a…
Donna, a mother and caregiver, writes about a subject that caregivers know all too well – a worst fear. Donna recalls her first encounter with her worst fear. It was a phone call she’d received shortly after sending her…
Samuel was just three months old when he was a victim of an acid attack. He defied the odds by surviving the attack, but this incident has left him with severe damages to his tongue, throat, and vocal chords. As a…
Francis Ching isn’t content with being the top blind chess player in his country. He wants to be the first Filipino blind chess grand master. After a high fever at the age of three, Francis became partially blind. As his eyes…
When Leah couldn’t possibly face another dreaded winter season, complete with restricting winter clothes, she decided to winter where the weather was a little nicer: Thailand! Leah has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 2, and is a wheelchair user. She…
If you’ve ever wanted to explore the world underneath the waves, you’ll want to read about Julie’s and Mitch’s individual experiences with scuba diving. Both Julie and Mitch are wheelchair users, and both developed a love for the activity after…
Mitch was diagnosed with primary progressive multiple sclerosis over fourteen years ago. Three years into his diagnosis, he reluctantly began using mobility devices starting with a cane. Now a wheelchair user, Mitch's attitude toward assistive devices slowly began to change…
Dan has been part of the New Zealand Wheel Blacks for 15 years. He found out about wheelchair rugby while he was still in the spinal unit within the same week of breaking his neck in a rugby scrum gone…
Parents have so much pressure to be perfect these days. Jennifer, a parent and also a wheelchair user, writes about this parenting pressure as it applies to the disabled community. “We are supposed to be inspiring to others, overcoming “challenging…
“I bowl with my mouth,” says Bill Miller, a C1/C2 quadriplegic. “It’s a whole lot of fun. I’m paralyzed from my neck down and on a ventilator and yet I can bowl.” Bill uses a device he himself helped invent…