SharePoint
Sign In
Help
ADN logo

Friends Lighten the Load
 

  • Home
NavigationSearch
  • Home
    • About
      • Our Mission and Vision
      • Our History
      • Who Are Anabaptists?
      • ADN Staff
      • Field Associates
      • Board of Directors
      • Annual Reports
      • Staff Openings
    • Get Involved
      • Congregational Advocates
      • Partner Congregations
      • Accessibility in all aspects of church life
      • Barrier-Free Grant
    • Newsletter
      • Latest issue
      • Previous issues
      • Subscribe
    • BlogCurrently selected
      • Latest Posts
      • Subscribe
      • All Posts
    • Resources
      • Accessibility and Awareness
        • Barrier Free Grant
        • Accessibility
        • Awareness
        • Changing Attitudes
        • Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals
      • Caregivers
        • Circles of Care
        • Families
        • Support Groups
      • Faith Formation
        • Classroom Accessibility
        • For Church leaders
        • Baptism & Membership Curriculum
        • Children
        • Youth
      • Worship
        • Preaching and Teaching
        • ADN Speakers
        • Speaking Topics
      • Published Resources
        • Baptism & Membership Curriculum
        • Disability Language Guide
        • Congregational Accessibility Survey
        • Books
        • Accessibility Resolution and Study Guide
      • Speakers and Trainers
      • Webinars
      • Disability Topics
        • ADHD
        • Autism spectrum
        • Covid-19
        • Disabilities of Aging
        • Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
        • For the Deaf
        • Hearing Loss
        • Hidden Disabilities
        • Intellectual Disabilities
        • Mental Health & Illness
        • Mobility Impairment
        • Vision Disabilities
      • Mental Health & Illness
        • Children and Youth
        • Depression and Anxiety
        • Healthy Boundaries
        • Mental Health Education
        • Mental Illnesses
        • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
        • Suicide
      • Book and Media Recommendations
    • Donate
      • Legacy Giving
      • Honor And Memorial Gifts
      • Building the Future Partners
    • Contact Us
Left Menu
  • Pictures
  • Lists
  • Libraries
  • Recent
  • Blog
    • Latest PostsCurrently selected
    • Subscribe
    • All Posts

Friends Lighten the Load

Posted by Gary Long /
11/1/2011
Page Image
Image Caption
Opening paragraph
My struggle with multiple sclerosis (MS) officially began six years ago. I woke up one February morning with the left side of my head and face numb. It felt like coming off Novocain after getting a tooth worked on.​

Page Content
​​
Man sits on power wheelchair next to standing woman and  red van with tailgate open and ramp down.
Gary and Kris with their accessible van in front of their church.

I made an appointment with my dentist, assuming I had an infected tooth. After my dentist checked my teeth and gums and found no problems, he suggested I see my family physician. My doctor checked me and also found no problems, so he suggested I see a neurologist. The neurologist saw me, then ordered a battery of tests at the hospital. When I had my follow-up appointment with him, he informed me that I had MS.

My only exposure to MS before this had been through a church friend, when my wife and I were living in Houston. We watched our friend’s deterioration over the last two years we lived there. Later we learned of her move back to her home area, to be around family, and of her eventual death. What a thing to look forward to!

As I began to learn more about MS, I felt a little better, however, since statistics show that people with MS can live a long life. Usually, when God calls you home, I learned, it is due to another cause, perhaps related, but not MS itself.

Life has had its struggles—losing my job because of MS (they say otherwise), the humiliating fact of going on disability, and watching other folks go to work each day, while here I sit.

I have found my disability a little easier to face through volunteering with Hospice of Lancaster County and joining a support group for folks with MS. I have been greatly encouraged by support from friends and my church family at Forest Hills Mennonite. They started a support group to help me and my family, as needed.

I now have a power wheelchair that I use if I need to be on my feet longer then fifteen or twenty minutes. My insurance was willing to pay for the power chair but, as is typical, it would not pay for a way to transport it. The support group and other friends joined together to purchase a used van for me, so now I can take my power chair wherever I need it.

Related story.

Gary Long and his wife Kris attend Forest Hills Mennonite Church, Leola, Pa.​​

 Latest posts

  • A Different Trip to the Ocean
  • Lessons Learned
  • Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injury
  • Mobility Impairments
Subscribe to Opening Doors Subscribe to Opening Doors

 Related posts

  • A Different Trip to the Ocean
    With a poignant reflection of the beauty and barriers of visiting a personally sacred place, Jill Keyser Speicher sheds light on the daily challenges faced by wheelchair users.
  • Lessons Learned
    Shelly Kerchner shares her journey through addiction, illness, and disability.
  • Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injury
    After a serious bicycle accident, Jeri Lake found a surprising new way to heal from the ongoing effects of traumatic brain injury.
  • Mobility Impairments
    All Posts related to mobility impairments from ADN's blog Opening Doors

 Latest posts

  • A Different Trip to the Ocean
    With a poignant reflection of the beauty and barriers of visiting a personally sacred place, Jill Keyser Speicher sheds light on the daily challenges faced by wheelchair users.
  • Understanding the Love of God
    Carrie Norris reviews Believing and Belonging, a baptism curriculum for adults with intellectual disabilities.
  • Creating a Playground for All
    Plains Mennonite Church used a Barrier Free Grant to create a playground for all, a next step in supporting families with autistic children.
  • Strides at Salford Mennonite
    Jennifer Svetlik recounts Salford Mennonite's initiatives toward greater accessibility and inclusion.
  • Tiny, Little Awkward Steps
    Pastor Nathanael Hofstetter Ressler offers tips for congregations beginning to accommodate for mental illness and support mental health.
  • We are Able Workcamp
    Jonathan Shively reflects on the blessings and growth of the 2023 workcamp week.

 Read more about

  • Mobility Impairments

Contact us

P: 877-214-9838 (Toll Free)
P: 574-343-1362
3145 Benham Avenue
Suite 5
Elkhart, IN 46517-1970
Visit the Anabaptist Disabilities Network on Facebook!

Support ADN

Use your credit card to contribute online:

Donate Now Through Network for Good

Donate Now Through PayPal

    Resources

  • Staff
  • About
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Employment
  • Sign In
  • © Anabaptist Disabilities Network 2019