Accommodating people with disability isn't that hard; it's partly about putting in effort but mostly, it's about having the right attitude, as this story shows.
When Aaron Seldomridge first visited a Starbucks in Ephrata, Pennsylvania, he was with his mom, Janiece. Aaron has autism and Janiece asked barista Anisa Dujnic if they had a picture menu. Yes, they did. Anisa and Janiece helped Aaron to point to an image of an iced grande chai and repeat the words. A few weeks later, Aaron went to the counter with his mom and placed his order without the menu. And then, he started putting in his request—and paying for it—on his own.
Because Aaron was in an environment in which he felt encouraged and comfortable, he was confident enough to go it alone. "It's great steps for him to take as a person," Anisa said.
Really, it didn't take much, just a little attention. Some customer customization—no more than goes into making, say, a mocha frap.
Stories like this make you wonder why accommodating kids and adults with disabilities seems like such a big deal to some people. Yes, on the surface this is just about serving a drink, which doesn't take a whole lot of effort.
But at its heart, as special needs parents like me know, this isn't "just" about a barista going the extra mile. It's about a mindset: The readiness to give extra assistance to someone who needs it. The openness to working with the person with disability or a parent to figure out what can help. The willingness to find another way. The patience for letting things take their course. And the pure humanity of celebrating another person's success.
I'd say this story is the exception, not the rule, in terms of attitudes toward welcoming people with disabilities. I know this firsthand from experiences with Max—most recently, the program coordinator who flat out refused to accommodate him. Even in the Starbucks world, with its typically welcoming atmosphere, it boils down to individual mindsets (despite what the law might say); at one Starbucks in Brighton, NY, a woman with a brain injury who has a service dog said she taped an employee telling her that she could not come in with her dog.
Welcoming and accommodating kids and adults with disability should be a natural, organic part of society.
It's so simple.
It's no biggie.
If only....
Great story:). I've had wonderful experiences at Starbucks, with my son who has autism. They have a good employee hiring/training program!
ReplyDeleteWhat you describe at Starbucks is good customer service, getting the customer the specific drink he wants. Now if the customer needed help in the men's room, that would be different
ReplyDeleteFor parents of kids w/ special needs its more than that. Its a validation that the world can be a kind place for their kids and there are people who care.-A mom of 2 special needs kiddos Haley age 15 Down Syndrome and servere bilateral hearing loss and Tyler age 11 cerebal palsy
DeleteWhat Sam said!
DeleteThis is very interesting. I have found Starbucks in the suburbs of NYC to be hostile to people with a disability. I grew tired of being harassed by customers who thought I took up to much space. The very narrow aisles and over abundance of tables did not help. Employees routinely ignored me and often refused to use lower counter I could reach. I wonder to what extent this differs from region to region. I have the Pacific Northwest to be most accessible in terms of disability culture.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear that. No matter what the region I do think a lot of this boils down to individual people's mindsets, so it's a crapshoot depending on the mix of employees.
Delete4 of our local McDonald's (all owned by the same company) and our favorite pizza joint (Cecil Whittaker's) all love it when Luke uses his iPad to make his order. At McDonald's I've never sent him by himself. But at the pizza place he is ready to order his large Caesar salad and water with a lid when the waitress first comes to the table. I also think it cracks them up that a 11-year-old boy wants the salad and not pizza.
ReplyDeleteI think its great your son has the support and technology to be able to place an order like a "typical" 11 year old.
DeleteLove that he loves salad! Our local McD's is very accommodating to Max, as are many servers at restaurants.
DeleteThis is great. However I have seen the flipside of customers being dismissive of cashiers with disabilities. The resident artist at the clay studio where I interned this summer has mircotia and 2 CI's and works part time at Target. We were the only people in her line on a busy day and multiple people flat out refused to get in her line. I heard responses like" No"" '' who hires people like that.'' ''my son shouldn't be exposed to that'' ''I don't like r-words." and " Are you (bad word) kidding me? No!" this was all in less than 10 minutes. I felt so bad for her. This proves kids are so much less judging than adults. All summer not 1 kid mentioned or questioned her disability(or mine I wear a hearing aid). She was just "Beth". Like I was just "Kathryn".
ReplyDeleteA grocery store in my community employs many persons with different abilities
DeleteThere are several grocery baggers with cognitive impairment--some are very capable at what they do--taking their jobs very seriously and doing little things like double bagging all of the frozen items together. With price of food today, these small courtesies are greatly appreciated
One of the young ladies has worked her way from bagger to checker and does a fine job
There is a store in my area that is run by a local ARC and the cashiers and baggers are all very polite and helpful.
DeleteKathryn, reading that just makes me think, WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE?! And glad that she's employed by Target.
DeleteIt really is the 'little things' that make the world go 'round :)
ReplyDeleteGreat story - thanks for sharing!
My best friend and college roomie is blind and had a guide dog -- and I was (I believe) the first volunteer guide dog puppy-raiser permitted to live in the dorms at the University of Waterloo nearly 20 years ago.
ReplyDeleteKitchener-Waterloo still had a smallish town vibe and Kay's guide dog/my trainee guide dog would be denied entry to a restaurant or local business on a fairly regular basis. Kay's MO was to explain her dog was allowed to enter and if illegally prohibited from doing so would simply call the local paper, who more often than not would happily write about it. On slow news days, the paper would even send a photographer... And a cute picture of her & the pup would be featured on the front page of the local section!
Love how she handles this! Nowadays, she could just tweet it. :)
DeleteI think it often starts with us, the parents. If we set a nonchalant example, have an open, friendly demeanor, and act as a bridge (the smallest one we can be), I think that truly sets the stage for positive experiences. PLUS.... We need to do that for our fellow SN families. It can still be a bit daunting to interact with certain peers of my 18yo daughter's, but it's always worth while.
ReplyDeleteI do think we play a major role, but I also think people's attitudes have a lot to do with their upbringing. And hopefully, we are influencing the next generations of adults to be more respectful and welcoming toward people with disabilities.
DeleteYou give all credit to the individual, not the company. Not every Starbucks worker has this content of character.
ReplyDeleteYou seem to not have understood this post. Yes, I AM giving credit to the individual. As I clearly wrote "Even in the Starbucks world, with its typically welcoming atmosphere, it boils down to individual mindsets (despite what the law might say)" before sharing the story about the Starbucks employee who didn't allow a woman with a service dog into the store.
DeleteMy band directors are awesome and treat me like everyone else in marching band. They correct me when I'm facing the wrong way or out of step. The other band members just see me as someone in the band.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this! :) I think the more we expose kids of all abilities to inclusion early, the more accepting and accommodating everyone can be. This Starbucks barista is the perfect example of the people we all want our kids to be when they grow up.
ReplyDeleteI saw this on a friend's twitter feed. This is a great story. I used to work at a major grocery chain several years ago. I had a customer whose son was severely autistic (mostly non-verbal) and I was one of the few who actually took the time to speak to the little boy when they came through the checkout line. I can only hope that his parents appreciated me being friendly to him :-)
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