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September 26, 2008
Overcoming obstacles
JFSA program helps disabled people help others.
SUSAN KATZ
Earlier this month, while most of us were adjusting our alarm clocks to jar us back to familiar work and school schedules, I sat with a group of individuals who were not. First, some of them would not have been able to see the clock; others would not have been able to hear it go off. And some would have found the confusion of how to prepare for a day at a conventional job a barrier to getting up. But they were all able to come together to create beautiful artisan walking canes at the Canes Enable program provided by Jewish Family Service Agency.
The members of the Canes Enable program love their work. With the guidance and expertise of artist Teresa Waclawik, they produce hand-decorated walking canes, which are sold both at the Umbrella Shop on Granville Island, and are also available by private commission. The profits from the group's sales are split evenly.
One of the artists, George Narod, produces canes with detailed scenes from the works of Marc Chagall. The piece Ophira Schwarzfeld was finishing during my visit connected the mountains to the sea in a theme of color and pattern shifts. She said she has been coming to the program for many years and hopes it will continue. Schwarzfeld is also a regular at the Comfort Kits group and the Bagel Club and she volunteers at the Jewish public library. She also volunteers at the Books to Go program, which brings books to the residents of the Louis Brier Home and Hospital. She believes it is very important to help others in the community.
"Lots of people don't have time, but I do. I can give my time for a few hours. It's our community. I feel important; they need help, and I am willing. I don't mind I don't get paid: it's important and I do it. People always want to get paid, not many people are willing to do things for free," she said. Schwarzfeld feels there is a lot of need in the Jewish community and, though all the members of Canes Enable are individuals with disabilities, they are able to provide what they feel are essential and undervalued services to others.
For Tamara Fine Parker, who is deaf, the Canes Enable program provides an opportunity to sit with friends, learn a new skill and supplement her income: a win-win for everyone. Fred Dexall, who is blind, isn't a painter, but he provides wonderful classical music and a stand-up banter that is laden with warmth and gentle groaners and puns. During my visit, he treated us to a recording of a piano concerto by Christian Sinding.
The members of Canes Enable have many talents, but their lives do not fit in with the conventional standards most of us enjoy. Their biggest barrier is the tentative nature of important support programs that meet their needs. As an example, one member, Harriet Kositsky, faces leaving her home of the past eight years. The new owners of her housing complex will be closing it down so they can upgrade the units to attract higher rental fees. Kositsky is thankful that she has Canes Enable and the Bagel Club every week because she can reliably meet with friends and contacts. Everyone at the table agreed that the community needs to support more such programs.
Susan Katz is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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