This Friday is an historic day in Canada! It is the launch in Canada for the World Health Report on Disability. This report has been launched in several countries already, and is the foundation for understanding and setting up programs that promote inclusivity for persons with disability. We at cbm Canada have been very active in setting up this day – with official meetings in Ottawa and Toronto. You can read further about the World Report here.... Read the rest of this entry »

I follow several blogs written by people with a disability. I have shared them with you on occasion. I came across this song and video written and sung by Dana Mase which was posted on one of them. ... Read the rest of this entry »

I came across this blog this morning and thought I would share it with you. This blog does a couple of things for me. 
 
First – this is another example of how social media allows us to share in each others lives. I have been intrigued for awhile now about how blogging can allow the world to hear more about the lives of those living with a disability. It no longer has to be interpreted through others – in this case a father shares directly with whoever wants to listen, on how it is living with a child who has downs syndrome. 
 
Second – the example of how Target included a child with a disability in its ad. This may be another indictor that our society in North America is redefining normal. For Target it is now “normal” to include the full spectrum of people in its ads – not just a small slice of what they think consumers want the world to look like. 
 
This is a good indicator for our society – which still has a long way to go. Unfortunately, when I travel to countries in extreme poverty, there is not many of these indicators.  
My quest for a person in a developing country with a disability blogging in order to share their story continues.... Read the rest of this entry »

I got another call the other day from someone saying that with the economic crises in Canada, organizations should work more at home and less in countries in Africa or Asia. I have to say that I do have tremendous sympathy for so many in Canada that are hurting. I also am grateful that although not perfect, our country does have safety nets which do prevent people from starving or dying with no access to health services. Again, we have problems in our system which should be corrected, but at least there is a basic level of support.  ... Read the rest of this entry »

We had another great day visiting another CBR program about 100 km outside of Addis. After a briefing on the scope of their work our group divided up to visit some homes. I want to give just one story of one of the clients we visited.... Read the rest of this entry »

We had a good day. We drove out about 130 km to one of the CBR programs in the network. It was a very impressive program. They began by giving us a report on the program, and went through the CBR matrix (community-based rehabilitation) and showed in each category (health, education, livelihood, social, empowerment) their targets and achievements. I have yet to see a program as comprehensive as this.... Read the rest of this entry »

In August 2010 Tom Little ,along with 9 others who were on his medical team, was killed in Afghanistan. This week Libby, Tom’s wife, is in our office. This morning she gave our office devotions and shared her story with us. If you ever have a chance to hear Libby speak you should make sure you don’t miss it. Her love of God, commitment to service, and humility is amazing. ... Read the rest of this entry »

Today is World Sight Day. This is an important time to think about the gift of sight – what it means to those who do have it and those who do not. According to recent World Health Organization (WHO) estimates there are 39 million blind people worldwide, 90% of whom live in developing countries. Half of all blind people are suffering from cataract, which means that nearly 20 million people could regain sight through a simple operation.... Read the rest of this entry »

Last week I was interviewed for an article by a writer named Kimberly Parker. As is often the case, we got talking about other things – off track on the topic which we began. I found that Kim and I shared the conviction that God’s love was for all people. ... Read the rest of this entry »