Scouts Learn Disability Awareness At The Jamboree

As we go through our daily lives, we’ll usually come across something that we consider to be a hassle or that, because it happened to us, is unfortunate or just plain unlucky. And we all know that sometimes those little things can add up to one pretty bad day.

But as we get home and settle into our sofa and start watching our favorite TV show, it gets very easy to forget that even though we had a bad day, there are millions of other people in the world who would have given anything to experience the rotten day that we just had.

Able-bodied people take things for granted all the time that others would consider a blessing to be able to do without the aid of a special tool or the help of someone else.

Just last weekend I went to dinner and a movie. I can only imagine how difficult it would have been if I was confined to a wheelchair or was unable to speak. These things that we consider simple and easy can be monumental tasks for those with disabilities.

And that is exactly what the Disabilities Awareness section of the Jamboree teaches the Scouts and Jamboree visitors. One of our Customer Service experts, Missy, was there and experienced some the challenging (but fun) activities, and here’s what she told us about the experience. ___________________________________________________________________________________ They had 18 different challenges to participate in. They were playing basketball from wheelchairs, doing archery from a wheelchair (and you had to load the bow and arrow with one hand!) Scouts were walking on crutches while going through an obstacle course of tires and barrels to get over. One of the challenges showed the difficulty of getting a wheelchair up and down a curb. They even had scouts bowling from wheelchairs. They also had braille compass reading and basic sign language, and there was a course that had to be navigated while the boys wore glasses they could not see out of and could only use a walking-cane to guide their way. The challenges were done respectfully, and I felt that the boys actually got a good understanding of what it would be like to be in a wheelchair, or blind or disabled in any other way. A lot was there to be learned. There are many different types of disabilities too…its not limited to physical conditions. Some people are blind or deaf, some people were born with a congenital disease like Muscular Dystrophy, some people have learning disabilities, psychiatric issues or speech/language problems. The focus of Disability Awareness is not simply to teach people about disabilities, but how to communicate and empathize with those who have them. Like I said above, it’s easy to forget about those with disabilities if it is not present in your life, but when you do come across someone with a disability, it is important that you treat them with respect and allow them to maintain their dignity. They are human just like you – and they deserve the respect that you would give anyone else. Remember that tomorrow, you could be the one with the disability. ___________________________________________________________________________________ In addition to giving those with disabilities fair and respectful treatment, education is perhaps the most important thing we need right now to get the word out about those with disabilities. If you have the time and wish to help spread the word, you can visit Disability.gov to see how you can help. Please leave a comment below and let us know what you think!