Henry Viscardi – författare

I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon-if I can.

That is the credo of Abilities, Inc.. the fabulous Long Island concern run entirely by severely disabled workers. But the workers themselves are more than uncommon. They are incredible. They are people like these:

. . Jim Wadsworth. He had a knack for inventing things.

Unable to sit and work, he swung from his bench at a 45''

angle in a sling he devised from a window cleaner''s belt.

. . Esther Caldwell. Trapped in the sightless, soundless

prison of her own body, she refused to surrender hope.

. . Murray Nemser. He works flat on his back. On a litter.

. . Lou Blersch. A legless ex-paratrooper, he fought his

big battle when he got out of the army.

. . Ellen Vaughn. Paralyzed, confined to a wheelchair,

she worried a lot-about other people.

. . Alex Alazraki. Lacking both arms and legs, he outworks

everyone in his crew.

. . Emmett Hood. He talks through a hole in his throat.

He wasn''t supposed to live-but he did.

. . And, of course, Henry Viscardi himself, founder of

Human Resources Center, Human Resources School and

Abilities Inc.-the most uncommon of them all. This book

tells the improbable story of the miracle in American industry

set in motion by his imagination and ingenuity.

Abilities began in a grimy, unfurnished garage with four

employees who had only five good arms and one good leg

among them. In five years it was a pioneering work demonstration,

employing 300 disabled people. More than 5000 disabled

people have since been employed by Abilities Inc. It

has become an international model of how disabled people

can live and work independently in a competitive employment

setting.

A Man''s Stature is not only Dr. Henry Viscardi Jr.''s autobiography,

but it is also the dramatic account of the events leading up

to the creation of Abilities, Inc. From its humble beginnings in a

Long Island garage, Abilities, Inc. has Brown into an internationally

renowned program that supports thousands of people with

disabilities each year, and the Henry Viscardi School has become

the fulfillment of a life long dream.

Under its new name, tl.re National Center for Disability

Services continues to fulfill Dr. Viscardi''s original vision for people

with disabilities. Here, children with disabilities can learn

and grow in a school environment that teaches its students basic

academic skills as it nurtures their need for love and independence.

Each year, hundreds of adults with disabilities gain the

dignity and self-sufficiency that comes from getting their first

jobs. Employers learn how to recruit and hire people with disabilities,

as we explore and develop new technologies and strategies

for enhancing the education and employment of people with

disabilities.

Dr. Henry Viscardi ]r. envisioned that his program would

become a pilot program, a model for all the world to copy, in recognizing

and enhancing the participation and contributions of

people with disabilities in our lives. As we enter the new millennium,

"Hank" has succeeded in making this vision a reality.

Anywhere else. But not here, Not in this neighborhood. Not on our block.

These were the sentiments expressed by neighbors when Henry Viscardi, Jr., world-renowned authority on physical rehabilitation, proposed a $2,000,000 new building with a gymnasium and cafeteria for the 200 handicapped children who attend his Human Resources School in Albertson, L. I., New York.

They made it abundantly clear that they would not allow an expansion of that school, no matter how beautiful it might be. They were not, they said, against crippled children. But why must this school, and the famed Abilities, Inc. workshop associated with the Human Resources Center, have to be here anyway-in the midst of their lovely, picket-fence suburban countryside? Anywhere else. But not here.

Out of his years of experience and his deep commitment to the disabled, Hank Viscardi did the only thing he knows how -he fought back. And the interweaving threads of this book form the fabric of his dramatic struggle against these suburban protesters. It is a story of conflict and tenderness,

warmth and humanity. It is also a shocking revelation of prejudice, ignorance, selfishness, hate-in the midst of America''s new suburban enclave, Its elements are as important, as immediate, and as troubled as our people and our nation.

Beginning with the words "Dear Jimmy, " Henry Viscardi, Jr. talks directly to youth every-where. And what he has to say, to them and to young "disabled" Jimmy, should prove inspiring not only to all youngsters but to their parents, to teachers, and to those of us who are involved with man''s humanity to man. With warmth, yet strictly unsentimental, "Hank" Viscardi embarks on some pretty plain talk. Who is immune from suffering? What about disability and the rest of the world? What about the attitudes of the so called normal towards cripples? What about the "handicapped" child himself -victory or defeat? How about career, school, marriage? These are just some of the practical realities discussed openly in a straight from the shoulder manner in A LETTER TO JIMMY.

This is the story of wonderful people we have known. Many lives have been changed since Abilities, Inc. was founded in 1952/ From its humble beginnings in a Long Island garage, Abilities, Inc. has grown into an internationally renowned program that supports thousands of people with disabilities each year, and the Henry Viscardi School has become the fulfillment of a life-long dream.Under its new name, the National Center for Disability Services continues to fulfill Dr. Viscardi''s original vision for people with disabilities. Here, children with disabilities can learn and grow in a school environment that teaches its students basic academic skills as it nurtures their need for love and independence. Each year, hundreds of adults with disabilities gain the dignity and self-sufficiency that comes from getting their first jobs. Employers learn how to recruit and hire people with disabilities, as we explore and develop new technologies and strategies for enhancing the education and employment of people with disabilities.Dr. Henry Viscardi Jr. envisioned that his program would become a pilot program, a model for all the world to copy, in recognizing and enhancing the participation and contributions of people with disabilities in our lives. As we enter the new millennium, "Hank" has succeeded in making this vision a reality.

When Darren was only six years old, he had already known more turmoil and trouble than most people suffer in a lifetime. Black, physically handicapped-having been born with a badly disfigured face, no left eye and a cleft palate - he never knew his father. And soon after his birth, his mother turned him over to the impersonal attentions of charity and the state. Yet today, Darren is a bright, lively and intelligent boy who enjoys life and charms everyone who meets him. The Phoenix Child is the story of Darren and the possibilities for his future in spite of his near disastrous start. It is also an account of an unusual experiment to rescue some of America''s abandoned handicapped children and, at the same time, showing what can be done to save them. ln it the author tells how Darren, one of seven children with no homes of their own, was selected to live in a special residence near the famed Human Resources School for the physically disabled and how, after a fire in the residence, he came to live with a foster family-white and Jewish. The author describes the warm and charming mutually beneficial relationship of this black ghetto child with Stefanie, the college-age daughter of the middle class family who care for him. The account also presents an inspiring picture of this famed school which offers an academic program and emotional growth to children afflicted with various physical disabilities. And in broad terms it nudges society to face up to the problems of providing a good education and a real world for such youngsters. Henry Viscardi is the father of four daughters and lives with his wife, Lucile, in Kings Point, Long lsland. His seven previous books include Give Usthe Tools, The School, and But Not on Our Block (Eriksson).

The significance of this latest achievement by one of America''s leading pioneers in the rehabilitation of the physically handicapped will long be felt throughout the world. Buried and hidden away in almost every community in the United States are countless numbers of children who are regarded as too disabled to leave their homes and attend any kind of school with any kind of children. The School Henry Viscardi, Jr. tells how, out of searing memory of his own crippled childhood, he established a much needed school for some of these physically disabled children who for too long have been neglected and tragically isolated on "homebound" study. To start any school is not easy; to start the kind described in intimate detail here requires a man of Mr. Viscardi''s stature. For incredulous as it may seem, he had to fight desperately and with all his resourcefulness to get such a simple idea going. How this fight was won, how the children were found and their parents won over, how an administration was formed and a faculty recruited, how fearful neighbors were brought to their unprejudiced senses, how the children reacted on the first day of school and later-these and many other dramatic events make up one of the great, true stories of our times. The School will make any reader cry forjoy at the incredible fortitude and perseverance of a handful of wonderful people under the guidance of a dedicated man. Henry Viscardi, Jr. is the author of a number of previously published books, including Give Us the Tools which describes best, perhaps, the not-too-dissimilar struggles he underwent in founding Abilities, Inc., the famed Long Island concern whose success gave rise first to its research wing, Human Resources Foundation, and now the new educational pilot program described in The School.