A voice for the disabled

To the Times:

I admired Jean Vanier, who died on May 7 at age 90, for his all-encompassing care for people who are mentally disabled. I worked in various capacities with disabled people (including as a special education teacher) for about 25 years.

Vanier founded L’Arche (“The Ark”) communities, in which nondisabled people work with mentally disabled people. The first was founded in France in 1964, after Vanier visited a mental hospital and witnessed mentally disabled people being neglected or abused. It’s incredible that this man who had earned a doctorate in philosophy devoted his life to building 147 such communities in 35 nations. Approximately 10,000 disabled and nondisabled people live in the homes. Although Vanier was a devout Catholic, and encouraged a spiritual atmosphere in each community, L’Arche has people of all faiths or none.

Years ago, I worked in a group home with three disabled men. Unlike the L’Arche workers, I didn’t live with the men. My “favorite” client was John (not his real name). John loved music. He loved humming in church, listening to music tapes in his bedroom, and played a piano in a simple but beautiful manner. John was blind, incontinent and needed to be dressed and bathed. But he recognized his name, did his best to say it, could speak a few words, and understood much of what others said to him. As he grew older, our Saturday outings to Dunkin’ Donuts for coffee and a simple snack ended when he needed a feeding tube. I enjoyed taking John home often for holidays. He was able to hold my hands and walk up the stairs to our living room, and crossed his legs in a recliner. He enjoyed assembling large Lego blocks, smiling as he played a small electric organ, and listening to the conservation of my family.

My experience with disabled people was minor; Jean Vanier was (and the L’Arche workers still are) an incomparable group of people. Vanier once said, “Each human being, however small or weak, has something to bring to humanity.”