Disability Awareness: Are We There Yet?

I recently found out that March is disability awareness month and it made wonder if I am doing a great job teaching my 4 year old to except each and every person on this earth no matter what skin color or disability.

My mom did a great job with me and from early on always told me it doesn't matter how person looks from the outside we are all the same on the inside.She volunteered at a day camp for kids with down syndrome. When I was twelve we moved to Amsterdam ( I grew up in The Netherlands), which was the best thing ever. Talk about a diverse city, were you can just be you.

Now I live in a small town in Central Florida, where the population is predominantly Caucasian. There is nothing wrong with that, although I miss the diversity I saw in Amsterdam. I think creating awareness and acceptance isn't that hard, but it has to start with yourself. As a mom I believe in openness and honesty. Children are smarter then we think and I take every
opportunity to teach my child, for example we saw a preview on TV for Big World Little People. Those are great moments to take a minute with your child and explain that not everyone looks the same, but they are no different then me and you.

Overall I think I am on the right path. My daughter is a loving person and greets everyone with a smile and a open heart. I hope I can teach her to be that way all her life.

To learn more about the Disiblity Awarness month and disibilaties out there you can visit http://www.cvscaremarkallkidscan.com/. This website hosted by CVS is a great resource for information and also explains the great job CVS is doing by raising disability awarenss. CVS All Kids Can^TM, a program of the CVS Caremark Charitable Trust and supported by CVS Caremark, is a five-year, $25 million commitment to making life easier for children with disabilities.