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For the past 10 years Jennifer Crandall, who
is deaf and has cerebral palsy, has worked as a volunteer at Books
Aloud in San Jose.
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Published Sunday, November 23,
2003, in the San Jose Mercury News
Tenacious
volunteer loves going to work each day
WOMAN
WITH CEREBRAL PALSY GETS SATISFACTION FROM JOB AT NON-PROFIT AGENCY
IN S.J.
even
with her hearing aid turned all the way up, Jennifer Crandall can't
hear the traffic that makes her commute to work so dangerous.
So she keeps her eyes wide open, and starts out early to make the
mile-long trek from her home in south San Jose to the nearest light
rail station.
``It's easier to get to work now I have the wheelchair,'' Jennifer
signs, grinning at her boss at Books Aloud who interprets for her.
Born profoundly deaf and with cerebral palsy that has weakened
and twisted her body, it's tough for Jennifer, 38, to find a job.
In fact, the volunteer work she's been doing for the past 10 years
at Books Aloud -- a non-profit agency that provides books-on-tape
for the blind and physically handicapped -- is the only job she's
ever had. She rewinds tapes, files, makes copies and makes friends.
They love her there, and she loves it.
She wants to work so badly that for the first nine years, before
she got the electric wheelchair, Jennifer limped the mile-long trek
to the light rail station with a cane. Sometimes, she'd fall while
trying to cross a major intersection along the way.
She always picks herself up and keeps on going, but Jennifer --
who receives disability and pays rent to her mother -- could use
a hand paying for her light rail pass ($17.50
per month) (6A). An ultralightweight, portable sewing
machine ($125)
(6B) would help fill her winter days with an activity
she loves. And a fire alarm system designed for the deaf ($2,500)
(6C) would make her safer at home.
This year, Books Aloud moved into the new Martin Luther King Jr.
Library in downtown San Jose. It now has the space to provide twice
the number of recordings, and even has a waiting list of volunteer
readers. What it needs are tape decks ($1,200)
(6D), a microphone ($1,000)
(6E), mixing board ($350)
(6F), music stand ($70)
(6G), speakers ($650)
(6H) and an amplifier ($250)
(6I) to outfit the new second studio.
For
more information on Books
Aloud, go to
www.booksaloud.org.
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