David has a gentle nature, a love for art and fitness. In his earlier years, he was a boxer, and competed in the Special Olympics and Endeavour Sports Trials for other sports. Still to this day David enjoys weightlifting and keeping fit.
David has had an intellectual disability from birth, but his physical disability was acquired later in life. David misplaced a disc in his neck doing sit-ups during an intense period of training and ended up in a wheelchair. David still finds it hard to believe how quickly life can change.
His acquired physical disability resulted in David needing more support, and subsequently, he ended up living in a group home for people with disabilities. For 15 years David lived in this facility, where he felt his independence diminish more and more as the days passed. David felt he was not encouraged to grow; the layout of the house and other factors negatively impacted on his dignity and independence.
David explained that he was not able to make his own coffee or cook himself a meal – daily activities that brought him joy. His coffee and kitchen appliances were placed in cupboards too high for David to reach from his wheelchair. He felt trapped by the dependency that was forced upon him, and for years he dreamt of moving out.
“I come from a place where they wouldn’t let me make my own coffee. They used to put things up high.” – David said.
DONATE TO GIVE INDEPENDENCE TO YOUNG PEOPLE WITH PHYSICAL DISABILITIES
When David moved into the Youngcare share house in Helensvale in 2022, he felt a sense of relief. His kind support workers encouraged him to be independent and the house was designed with physical disabilities in mind. David has access to his own coffee and cooking appliances and the kitchen’s benches are lowered so he can cook with ease. David even cooks for his housemates, a simple pleasure that extends to his new friends.
“I’m a lot more independent. That is why I wanted to move in here, to be more independent, so I can do things for myself… I like cooking Shepard’s pies, sausages, and steaks.” – David said.
In his new home, David has access to his community where he feels at home and embraced. He loves to explore the close-by nature reserve, getting out into the fresh air and staying fit at the same time. David’s support workers accompany him to the shops where they encourage him to be independent and experiment with his cooking ingredients.
“It is a lot better here for transport – the buses and the trains. Where I was, there was no bus or anything like that, so we couldn’t go anywhere. The taxis didn’t turn up all the time, we had to wait for a long time. It is easier to get to places than it was before.
The carers come, but they don’t do it for me, they show me what to do.”
David is passionate about encouraging young people with disabilities to find their place in the world, and he knows Youngcare supporters help to make this happen.
“It would be so good if people could get into their own house, they would be so happy, they could do things for themselves. They can be independent. They [Youngcare] are trying to get people out of the nursing home so they can be in places like I am in now. They should have the opportunity to do what we are doing.”
