Team Edwards hosts National Disability Employment Awareness Month Published Oct. 28, 2008 By Airman 1st Class William O'Brien 95th Air Base Wing Public Affairs EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The 95th Civil Engineering and Transportation Directorate hosted a bruncheon at Club Muroc for National Disability Employment Awareness Month Oct. 23. The purpose of the month is to recognize the contributions of Americans with disabilities and to encourage all citizens to ensure equal opportunity in the workforce. "The reason we have National Disability Employment Awareness Month isn't to make people feel bad for those with disabilities, but to understand what they have to live with on a daily basis," said Meg Larson, 95th CE production controller. Earlier in the month, the Command Chiefs of both wings were offered the opportunity to spend time in wheelchairs to see the effects that it would have on their daily routines and simple tasks that they perform regularly every day. During the bruncheon, Chief Master Sgt. Eric Jaren, 95th Air Base Wing command chief, reflected on what participating in this exercise meant to him and how it helped him to better understand what people in wheelchairs do on a daily basis. "I was able to see things through a different lens and better understand the hardships someone in a wheelchair faces," Chief Jaren said. He said his three-hour experience gave him an opportunity to understand the hardships faced by someone who has to live their life in a wheelchair faces. "The biggest physical obstacle for being in a wheelchair to me was planning," Chief Jaren said. "It's so much harder to change the course of what you're doing while in a wheelchair. I couldn't just run back up to my office if I forgot something. Everything took time." The event also featured guest speaker Joe Vasquez, a former Navy senior chief who medically retired after a car accident. He spoke about his experiences and the stages of grief he encountered. "The first thing I experienced was fear, fear of the uncertainty for the future," said Mr. Vasquez. "Then I felt anger. I thought this shouldn't have happened to me, and it was unfair. The third stage I went through was depression. You don't want to open the windows; you don't want to talk to anyone; you don't want to do anything. The final stage was accepting my disability. That's when I was finally able to move on with my life." The key to overcoming any disability is by being independent, Mr. Vasquez said. The road to independence is long and hard, but it's the key to survival and a goal that must be attained to get back to living a normal life. "Life deals us all a different set of cards," Mr. Vasquez said. "You have to accept what you've been given and use it the best you can."