should i stay or should i go…

A brief look at accessibility awareness

Should I stay or should I go? You guys…I cannot tell you how many times, and how much time, I have spent contemplating this exact question over the last two years. But it is this post on Facebook, that I saw this morning, that has me talking about this now.

how do i get in

At the moment, I am nearly 100% reliant on a walker outside of my home. Over the last two years, there have been events that I have not been able to participate in and places that I have not been able to go to because I did not know if they were accessible.

If you’ve been following for a while, you know that Ellie, my oldest daughter, is a college athlete. Before every away game, I had to dig through university websites looking for photos of the athletic venue…searching out the entrances and researching the indoor accessibility…to know if I could even attend her games.

As part of the MIAA…America’s first collegiate athletic conference…several of the campuses can still boast of the beautiful architecture of their original and historic buildings. However, with that beauty and history comes narrow entrances off of campus squares far from parking lots, and sturdy stone facades with sweeping stairways absent of ramps. As newer athletic facilities are becoming more and more common on these campuses, attending a sporting event will begin to require less and less pre-game reconnaissance work.

Last Winter, when Mabel and I went to see Hamilton at the DeVos Performance Hall, much research was done ahead of time. Where was accessible parking or drop-off and how far was that from the theater lobby? Were the ramps and elevators near the stairways or isolated elsewhere? How far was the theater lobby from the actual theater? Where was the accessible seating and was there any still available?

Even dining inside a restaurant requires some thinking ahead and strategic planning. Seeing that many restaurants have limited open space, I try to navigate them without my walker. However, this requires either being able to park in accessible parking right near the entrance or, if that isn’t available, being dropped off and waiting. But…will there be a place to sit while waiting? And then, as booths have become difficult to slide into and out of, will the host or hostess be able to offer us a table? But…not a high-top table, because those are not disability-friendly.

right this way

I share all of these challenges, once again, NEVER for attention or sympathy…but for awareness and advocacy. NONE of these things are things I would have necessarily noticed or given much thought to a few short years ago. These weren’t challenges a few short years ago. My life was not directly affected by any of these barriers. Until it was.

Did you check out that Facebook post I linked in the opening of the piece?

Way to go, Castle Farms and Able Eyes Organization at AbleVu! What a gift you have given those with diverse and limited abilities! An incredible tool to put in our cache of resources that allows us to continue to navigate and enjoy the places and activities we always have. There will still need to be pre-game reconnaissance work prior to visiting an unfamiliar location or venue…but with this technology…that work became a whole lot easier. And the weight of the anxiety from the unknown became a whole lot lighter. Thank you for bringing this type of accessibility awareness and access to this outstanding venue and nearly 1000 others…many right here in Charlevoix, Michigan.

able eyes organization

I am, and always have been, a people person mixed with the curiosity of an information hound. Therefore, this morning, after I read the Facebook post and was so moved by it…I had to know more. Who is Able Eyes and why did they decide to do what they do? The “About” block on their website says this about Able Eyes…

Able Eyes provides virtual walk-thru tours of the inside of public spaces such as: parks, museums, hotels, restaurants, retail businesses, and more for the purpose of accessibility (helping people) and marketing (helping businesses).
Virtual tours allow customers of all abilities an opportunity to explore beforehand to decrease anxiety, but more importantly is a tool used by persons with disabilities to explore accessibility beforehand, making new experiences more comfortable and easily navigated.
***Able Eyes is not a rating tool or compliance assessment. This virtual tool is to help people make decisions and have wonderful experiences based on his/her own needs.

So there’s the who…but, why?

Well…meet Meegan.

Meegan Winters is the CEO/Co-Founder of Able Eyes. Her experience as a special education teacher teaching students with Autism paired with her real life experiences having a best friend that was a wheelchair user (now an angel) sparked the idea behind what is now a nationwide business helping people of all abilities access the community with confidence and comfort.
Meegan has worked with individuals with special needs and Autism for nearly 20 years. 8 years spent with families as an in home consultant before pursuing a career as a teacher educating students with Autism. In addition, prior to Able Eyes, Meegan spent 3 years as an Assistant Principal in a center based special education school building.

Long ago…Plato famously wrote, “our need will be the real creator”. Over centuries, Plato’s words were molded into the English proverb “necessity is the mother of invention”.

Meegan Winters invented out of necessity. Meegan, looking carefully and thoughtfully through the lenses of her friend and her students, saw a need and created a solution.

new lenses

So, to my friends and readers, I hope you’ll follow some of the links I’ve shared and learn a little more about Meegan Winters and Able Eyes. Take a little bit of time and do some of the virtual tours they share of some of the establishments and venues you might be familiar with. And then, especially take a moment to tour some of those establishments and venues you’re not familiar with. And do those tours while looking through a new pair of lenses…the lenses of someone with different abilities than yours. Go out to dinner…virtually. Imagine yourself in a wheelchair or navigating without your walker but with limited mobility.

Could you find a workable parking spot nearby? Did you have a bit of a wait for your table? Was there a place for you to sit while you waited?

Again…I ask these questions, not for attention, but to bring awareness.

We don’t know what we don’t know. And when we know better…we do better.

Thank you Castle Farms, Able Eyes, Meegan Winter, and all those involved with AbleVu for doing better.