Author: Tony Trott
I rely heavily on technology, especially my computer to communicate and to perform my work for our company. A couple of weeks ago I plugged in a wire to the USB port on the side of my computer and it did a complete shutdown. Once I got it up and running, after much work, none of the USB ports were operable. We spent hours on the phone 
with Geek Squad for tech support and did not come up with a resolution to resolve this problem. So, we made an appointment to go to the local Best Buy store so they could have it in their hands to work on.
I dropped off the computer and waited for a call. We finally got notice that the USB ports were not operable and that instead of fixing my computer, it was recommended to 
buy a new one. While I was not happy about having to spend money, my laptop was nearly at the end of its life and needed a bigger screen anyway. Yes, age has not been kind to my eyes. We went back to Best Buy and looked around. My wife and I both use wheelchairs and when we were looking for computers, we noticed that there was a gentleman in wheelchair working for Best Buy. I did a silent bravo in my mind and found myself watching him do his work. It made me want to spend money at Best Buy because of their obvious interest in hiring individuals with disabilities.
Then I took a step back. Why should I be staring at him and watching him perform his work? Don’t I believe that individuals with disabilities can work like anybody else? And should I find it so unique that a company has hired an individual who uses a wheelchair?
I came to a mixed conclusion. Yes, it was important for me to recognize that Best Buy employed this individual and that they recognized he could do the work. At the same time, it shouldn’t be a big deal. As a wheelchair user and advocate for individuals with disabilities, I should not feel like, “Oh wow, this is awesome! An individual with a disability works here!”
The moral of the story to me is that it should be the norm not the exception that individuals with disabilities are in the workplace. I shouldn’t have a second thought about seeing this gentleman. An individual shopping at Best Buy shouldn’t think twice about who is serving them and what their physical capacity is. I hope that you take notice when you shop in a store as to whether individuals with disabilities that are apparent are employed there. They may employ individuals
with not apparent disabilities as well. But seeing individuals with physical disabilities doing the work is important. The unemployment rate for individuals with disabilities is 52%. Remote work has helped bring the number down to 50% at the height of the pandemic, but it is slowly increasing.
It’s time to change that paradigm. If you are a business owner, consider hiring individuals with disabilities because of their strength of character, ability to deal with obstacles, and if in the right circumstances, loyalty to the organization. It is not extra work. Don’t second guess. Just do it. And by the way, I am loving my new computer.
not a good friend of anyone using a motorized wheelchair. There is never enough room and the chance of breaking or getting caught on something is very high. I wasn’t surprised when I got caught on a piece of clothing. The dress fell to the floor and the magnetic sensor wire was caught in my wheel. My attendant came over and we could not get it off even though I was trying to go forward and backward. She went to get some help and a woman finally came over and said that she couldn’t bend because she had a bad back. Finally, she got a man to come over and he was able to cut me loose. Yes, we still had time to do a little shopping.
on a zoom call with Tony’s family. I had originally scheduled a get together for the night at my birthday, but because of the threat of rain we changed it until the next day. During the zoom, Tony got a call that my former boss was downstairs and had come to the party and nobody was there. Apparently, he didn’t get the email that the get-together was changed. So, he came over.
pulling and was mad that he didn’t bring his usual magic knife. And then suddenly voilà, the wire came out. We laughed and laughed, because, of course, he is always the fixer of anything.
my wallet were on my lap. Before I had even left the parking lot, I noticed my wallet was missing. I immediately said something to the driver, one of Sheri’s aides who had graciously agreed to drive me to my appointment, and she immediately turned the car around and went to the area where I had been waiting. But it was to no avail…my wallet was not there!
Department of Motor Vehicles website to see what the process was if I had to replace my ID (which I had gotten renewed just last year!).
and returned my wallet. I thanked him profusely and gave him some money to reimburse him for the gas he used to deliver it.