DAN KEPLINGER Artist and Presenter
When Dan Keplinger was born in January 1973, the doctors thought he was stillborn and placed him aside. Momentarily deprived of oxygen, he revived with a brain injury and mixed spastic and athetoid cerebral palsy. At 18 months, Dan was enrolled in a special education school. At 16, he was mainstreamed into the public school system and graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Mass Communication at Towson University in 1993.
Dan travels with the assistance of a wheelchair and paints with a head stick; a brush connected to a dowel and head band. His life story, to date, is revealing. A documentary titled “King Gimp” shows how Dan discovered his voice through art. The film, nominated for a national Emmy, received an Oscar, an Academy Award, and a Peabody Award. The documentary suggests intelligent individuals with speech impediments and physical impairment are often misperceived.
“It does feel good to be respected and appreciated for who I am,” Dan said. “I hope that people who have seen “King Gimp” have gained this new awareness not only for me but for others who have physical disabilities.”
“Although I walk with crutches and my speech is clearer than his, much of what he says and much of his experience in life is similar to my own and, I suspect, for many of those who are disabled as well,” said one viewer named Robert. “Altogether, he will probably never see these words, I salute him and thank him for telling so much about his life…I am purposively leaving his name out because his story is the story of so many.”
Visit Dan Keplinger’s website.
STEVEN SALMON The Unusual Writer
“I think he is extraordinary because he chooses to try to live a life in a disabled body, but tries to live as if he is not a disabled person,” said Patrick Barlow, a faculty member at Madison College and mentor to Steven Salmon. “Steven is determined.”
Steven Salmon is a college graduate and a two-time published author. His dream is to be universally accepted in a career doing just what he loves, to write. As Steven will say, he has a message to tell.
Steven is 42. He earned a Bachelor at University of Wisconson-Stevens Point. He also attended Madison College.
Having athetoid cerebral palsy, Steven’s impairment centers around unwanted or involuntary movement and difficulty with speech and swallowing. The communication process is slower for Steven, but he wants others to know that not being able to speak is not the same as not having something to say.
“He taught us that he could learn if we would just give him the time,” Barlow explains.
To write, Steven has become creative. He can use a pencil held to his mouth and pick at a keyboard as easily as he can use eye recognition software to zero in on a letter on a monitor. It may take one letter at a time, and his latest book, “The Unusual Writer,” may have taken two years to write, but he did complete his quest.
When it comes to delivering a message, Steven will find a way. In addition to the methods mentioned above, he has been known to use an interpreter in interviews; provide slow dictation to assist with writing his books; and deploy word depiction software, as well. His friends and colleagues will assure you that once you converse with Steven long enough, you can decipher his speech. He hopes to acquire a page turner in the near future.
After high school graduation Steven his college entrance was delayed by a vocational rehabilitation issue. As Steven has said it may have made him feel worthless for a short while as he sat at home, but it didn’t stop him.
This is precisely the message Steven would like to share in his latest book. Dan’s story is about determination. He hopes to inspire others to find a way to accomplish their dreams. Next step, getting publishers and employers to believe in him and others like him that are talented, have something to contribute, and oh yes, they have impairment, too.
Visit Steven Salmon’s website
INSPIRE Share Your Story
Do you have a fond memory, a story of hope, a piece of inspiration, or something you have learned that may assist other families? If so, we would like to hear from you. We are gathering stories and photos to share on our website.
TEAM HOYT Yes You Can!
Rick Hoyt was born in 1962; diagnosed with spastic quadriplegia, a severe form of cerbral palsy. He could not talk or walk. In 1972, Tuft University engineers built an interactive computer that allowed Rick to type his first words, “Go Bruins!” Rick was admitted to public school in 1975. In 1977, Rick would ask his father, Dick, if they could participate in a 5-mile run to benefit a Lacrosse player paralyzed in an accident.
Dick pushed Rick in his wheelchair; finishing the race second to last. Yet, a victory of sorts, as Rick proclaimed, “Dad, when I’m running, it feels like I’m not handicapped.”
By 2009, “Team Hoyt” had participated in their 1,000th race. Races involved Dick pushing Rick’s wheelchair, pulling Rick in a boat with a bungee cord attached to his waist and riding in a specially built two-seater bicycle. They ran in duatholons, marathons, triathlons, and even a few Ironman competitions.
In 1992, Team Hoyt traveled 3,735 miles in 45 days across the United States by running and biking.
When asked “If you could give your father one thing, what would it be?” Rick replied, “The thing I’d most like is for my dad to sit in the chair and I would push him for once.”
The Hoyt Foundation was created in 1989 to build the individual character, self-confidence and self-esteem of America’s disabled young people through inclusion in all facets of daily life; including in family and community activities, especially sports, at home, in schools, and in the workplace.
Visit Team Hoyt’s website
TEAM KOKO Keep On Keeping On
Team KOKO, an acronym for Keep on Keeping On, lives by the creed:
“Assisting those with severe physical disabilities, challenging ALL to make a difference”
Team KOKO embodies a group of approximately 50 caring volunteers who work in the greater Chicago area to defray medical expenses for those with severe physical disability, and to advocate for the physically disabled. In fact, their motto is
“As long as you have a pulse, you must never give up, you must always…Keep On Keeping On!
The group originally formed due to the inspiration of a friendship that was struck between Mike Berkson, a then 12-year-old with cerebral palsy and Tim Wambach, his acquaintance at a mall in the summer of 2001. From there two books were written, titled “Keep On Keeping On” and “How We Roll.” The Keep On Keeping On Foundation was started and an entertaining performance art presentation called “Handicap This” was created to raise awareness about inspiring those living with severe physical disability to achieve their goals and dreams.
CHRISTY BROWN My Left Foot
Christy Brown was born without a voice. Early in childhood his mother discovered his inability to hold his head, his speech was impaired, and he couldn’t control body movements. He was diagnosed with severe cerebral palsy.
At the age of 5, while trying take a piece of chalk from his sister he discovered he could control his left foot and toes. This became his newfound way to express himself. Express himself he did. He would play with friends and family with the assistance of “Henry” an adapted cart. He expressed his creative and artistic talent through literature, writing, and painting; each task carried out by his left foot and toe.
Energy and hope grew from visiting with others more impaired than he. Treatments improved his condition and he became the first patient at a clinic established to specifically treat cerebral palsy patients.
Christy wrote an autobiography, titled “My Left Foot” which won an Academy Award. He became a painter, poet and successful fundraiser. His other literary works include “Down All the Days,” “Shadow on Summer,” “Wild Grow the Lilies,” and “A Promising Career.” Dan also has three poetry collections.
Find books by Christy Brown.
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