Wetherbee inspires, motivates others to succeed despite limitations
Posted: Saturday, November 21, 2015 Timesdaily.com original story here.
By Lisa Singleton-Rickman Staff Writer
FLORENCE — Allison Wetherbee remembers the conversation that changed her thinking about her disabilities.
It was with an 18-year-old high school football player who’d taken a bad hit in a game and was paralyzed from the neck down.
Wetherbee recalls looking at the young man and thinking, “Wow, he can’t move his body at all. How hard that would be.”
The 18-year-old looked at Wetherbee, born with no arms or legs, and said, “At least I had 18 years of knowing what a normal life was like running and playing sports. I can’t imagine your situation.”
Wetherbee, now 44, said it clicked with her at that moment anyone with a disability can inspire and encourage others, no matter how great their challenges.
She believes the cause of her birth defect to be from a nausea drug prescribed to her mother during pregnancy.
“We can’t know with 100 percent certainty, and I’ve just chosen not to spend my life dwelling on it,” she said.
For the Muscle Shoals resident, life has been full of challenges. She spends much of her time in a wheelchair she operates with her shoulder.
“Funny how people talk about my challenges, and I have them for sure, but my parents raised me to be very normal, doing all the normal things kids do,” she said. “They also raised me to be open about my disabilities.”
Wetherbee spoke to members of the Florence Elks Lodge on Thursday night, sharing with them her personal story but also her passion: helping disabled children through Camp ASCCA (Alabama Special Camp for Children and Adults), a special needs recreational camp providing children and young adults with an array of activities. She works as the camp’s community relations director and spokesperson.
Located on Lake Martin, the camp includes a water park along with a variety of water sports activities, horseback riding, archery, hiking, zip-lining, mini-golf and others.
The state Elks organization is a financial supporter of the nonprofit camp, which is aligned with the Easter Seals Foundation.
The Florence Elks Lodge secretary Jack Bush organized the Thursday night program and told the audience his group gives $50,000 per year to the camp.
“We believe in this camp and what it does for these children and young adults with disabilities,” Bush said. “Allison is proof of what these individuals can accomplish and Camp ASCCA just encourages and promotes their talents and gifts.”
Wetherbee grew up attending Camp ASCCA from its beginning in 1976.
At camp she saw people with what she considered much greater challenges than herself.
“I realized, even as a child that I can move my body and see and hear and a lot of people can’t, so I considered myself pretty blessed,” she said.
After graduating high school, Wetherbee attended college at Auburn University at Montgomery, where she continued on to earn a master’s degree in counseling. She worked as a counselor for Riverbend Center for Mental Health for 11 years and has worked with Camp ASCCA since 2007. In 2009 she wrote her autobiography, “I Was Born This Way.”
Wetherbee said success, perhaps like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
“I’ve gotten a great education, traveled all over doing what I love and have really, really lived, so there are no regrets here,” she said. “There’s just no time for anything but success.”
Lisa Singleton-Rickman can be reached at 256-740-5735 or lisa.singleton-rickman@TimesDaily.com or on Twitter @TD_LSRickman.
Located in Alabama on Lake Martin, Camp ASCCA offers campers a wide variety of traditional recreational and educational activities with a unique design for accessibility.
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