Success Story
Donna Carter had just celebrated her 18th birthday when she
learned to “work with what I’ve got.”
That lesson began
one rainy August evening in 1988, when the car she was riding in
ran off a narrow country road and flipped. The driver was not
injured, but Donna sustained a C5-6 spinal cord injury that
resulted in quadriplegia.
She spent several months in
the hospital and several more at the Alabama Department of
Rehabilitation Services Lakeshore Rehabilitation Facility in
Birmingham – almost two years total – being evaluated and then
attending physical and occupational therapy. From the beginning,
the State of Alabama Independent Living Service was with her,
covering the cost of therapies as well as room and board. When
she returned home, SAIL provided attendant care, home physical
therapy, and an electric wheelchair
In 1990, when the
Greenville native expressed an interest in getting back to work,
she was referred to Vocational Rehabilitation Service. After
completing a college prep class at ADRS’ Lakeshore
Rehabilitation Facility, she began attending Lurleen B. Wallace
Community College in her hometown of Greenville. Later, she
enrolled at Troy State University, where she earned a degree in
rehabilitation counseling in 1996. Four years after that, she
received a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling from
Auburn University.
Throughout her schooling, VRS was
there, providing financial assistance, attendant services, and,
most importantly, perhaps, emotional support. “That was
invaluable, especially in the beginning,” she said. In February
2001, she interviewed for a contact representative position with
the Social Security Administration office in Birmingham and
began working there the following month. She enjoys her job,
which allows her to put her counseling training to use.
Her case with VRS has been closed, but as help is needed, Donna
will receive it. Soon, for example, VRS will cover the cost of
equipping a new van with hand controls, so that she can drive to
work for the first time since her accident.
To those
facing similar circumstances, she offers the following advice:
“Don’t look at what you can’t do, but at what you can do and
strive to do that. Then you won’t pay as much attention to the
things you can’t do.”
And she should know. That’s what she
does everyday.
