John McCafferty, a member of our local Sarasota chapter of the Florida Writers Association, recently wrote a feature article that has been published in the current edition of the Venice Gondolier Sun newspaper. The article shines a compassionate spotlight on a young man named Garret Frey who was severely injured in a motorcycle accident in 1987. Since then, Garret has been a quadriplegic who is totally paralyzed and must depend on a respirator for every breath.
Despite his physical limitations, however, Garret has recently published a book titled AS I AM. In the book, he talks about his life as a quadriplegic and how he has utilized his disabilities to make the lives of other handicapped persons richer and fuller. Garret and his mother even appeared before the Supreme Court of the United States. The appearance resulted in a ground-breaking decision that "Set a precedent of access to public education for thousands of handicapped children throughout the nation."
Garret Frey, along with his mother Charlene and Sarasota Psychologist and mentor Dr. Karen Pirnot, will be sharing their story Tuesday, May 5th, at the Venice Public Library, beginning at 3:30. That is also the date of Garret's 27th birthday and his 23rd birthday since the accident.
As McCafferty says in his article, "Only the person with the disability really knows what it is like to live day-to-day as a quadriplegic, but Frey shines a bright light on that mystery in his book."
Please plan to attend this inspirational event.
And congratulations to John McCafferty for his excellent article!
