Employment

Learning by Heart

Keilondi Johnson, a 39-year-old teacher from Virginia, who has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), always wanted to work with children. When she got to college, she thought she wanted to go on to study the law and become a family lawyer. However, that changed when Johnson took on an internship at a campus day care center as part of her studies.

Passion Projects: Q&A with Author and Filmmaker Crystal Emery

Author, producer and filmmaker Crystal Emery, who has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT), wrote and directed her first play in the fifth grade, and she hasn’t stopped telling stories since then. She’s currently touring the country with her documentary film, “Black Women in Medicine,” which can be seen on PBS, and her foundation, URU, The Right To Be Inc. Quest spoke with Emery over the phone about the film, her passion for the arts and more.

Achieving Through Adversity

I have read many articles about people succeeding despite their disabilities, but I believe people can succeed because of their disabilities. The adversity I faced navigating academic and professional challenges as a person with a disability paved the way for the satisfying life I enjoy now. Here I sit, a law clerk for a federal judge preparing to begin private practice at a patent litigation firm, living with a cat in my own apartment and supported by friends and family. The bumps in the road made me a tougher, smarter person and helped me sharpen the skills I use every day as an attorney.

Independent Pro

Like many of us, 25-year-old Lauren Carter’s path to her chosen career took a few turns along the way.“I was definitely one of those students all throughout high school who was constantly changing my mind about what I wanted to do with my life,” Carter says. She considered becoming a doctor or a lawyer, as well as a cook, even though she admits to being terrible at cooking.

Calling the Shots

Sports have always been a big part of Jermia White’s life. White, a 23-year-old sports statistician from Dallas who has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), remembers watching her father coach basketball when she was 9 years old, and she went on to be a cheerleader, a manager for her high school basketball team and sports editor for her school’s newspaper. Before she went off to college, she knew she wanted to be involved with sports, but it wasn’t until she got to Dallas Baptist University that she figured out the right fit.

Earning Potential

Simon Cantos works hard at his job as an inside sales engineer for Carrier Corporation, a leading company in the heating, air conditioning and ventilation industry. “Engineering is extremely difficult, and I want to be compensated properly for what I do,” he says.Cantos, 33, who lives with Ullrich congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD), receives funding for dependent care from a state-sponsored program called Medical Assistance for Workers with Disabilities. He pays an out-of-pocket rate to stay in the program that provides funding for his personal care attendant to help with daily needs. The rate is based on a percentage of his salary and isn’t available once income thresholds are reached. Cantos says he is close to, but hasn’t yet exceeded, that ceiling.

Leading by Example

American author, speaker and salesman Hilary Hinton “Zig” Ziglar once quipped, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.” For Mike Rowlett, these words are more than a nice sentiment; they are a personal philosophy that he lives by every day. And he credits that ethos with helping him achieve what he calls “a blessed life” with his wife, Beverly, and their blended family.

A Passion for Helping Others

The reward of giving back isn’t something 23-year-old Brandi Hawkins focuses on as she embarks on a career in social work. She just wants to help people. “There are so many people out there who are in need of special resources that aren’t aware of how much the system can assist them,” she explains. “Social workers tend to be a voice for those in need.”