((PKG)) LIVING WITH CEREBRAL PALSY
((TRT: 12:50))
((Topic Banner: Living with Cerebral Palsy))
((Producer/Writer: Marsha James))
((Producer/Camera/Editor: Philip Alexiou))
((Map: Burke, Virginia))
((Main characters: 2 female; 2 male))
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Mouse grid two. Mouse grid…four.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Is this is what you want now? Is this all right?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Yeah.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
All right. Go ahead.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Wake up. Mouse nine. Mouse click.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Most of us use a mouse.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Mouse grid two.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
And we just move the mouse and we do an immediate click and whatever we want to show on the screen comes up. What you’re seeing Adam doing is the same thing, but using his voice and not his hand to move a mouse, and you can see all the different steps it takes to accomplish what we could do in one swift motion.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Today, I will show you how I use social media for Jake’s Ice Cream in Falls Church, Virginia.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Right now, Adam’s looking at an email message from Robin with three attachments. There are different cupcakes. So, Adam now is going to…
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
I’m going to post…
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
…post them.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Post. I’m going to post them online right now.
((Courtesies:
Twitter/@JakesIceCream
yelp/Jake’s Ice Cream
Facebook/Jake’s Ice Cream
Instagram/@jakesicecream2020))
I post on Twitter, Yelp, Google Business, Facebook and Instagram for Jake’s Ice Cream.
Move down four. Mouse two. Mouse grid six. Two.
This is one of our newly designed cupcakes.
((Courtesy: Facebook/Jake’s Ice Cream))
The owner of the ice cream shop, Robin Rinearson, she said, “Would you like to do my social media?” And I said, “Surely.” And I’ve been doing it ever since.
((Merle Toobin
Adam’s Mother))
Okay, Adam. Ready for lunch?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Yep, I’m ready.
((Merle Toobin
Adam’s Mother))
All right. Come on down.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
My name is Adam Toobin. I am the social media director at Jake’s Ice Cream and a [customer] greeter. And my disability is spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. People with disabilities learn to live the way that they’re most comfortable or they’re most able to live like that.
((NATS))
All right. I ate a waffle earlier this morning. So, I’m kind of still full from that but we usually eat this early on Mondays so we can get ready to go to Jake’s about 1:30.
((NATS))
((Merle Toobin
Adam’s Mother))
Give this to Adam.
We've always felt it important that Adam work because a lot of young adults with disabilities, there are not jobs to be gotten. People don't hire them. And we've always felt it was important for him to be in the workforce, make money. when he wakes up in the morning, to feel that there's something for him to go to. And for Adam, he's a very social person. He had eight years of greeting at Costco. He just, he's very friendly. Like one day…we’re without an attendant for him right now…so one day, I was his attendant there, and I was just sitting there, and a mom walked in with her two kids. And I hear Adam call them by name and ask the little boy if he had done well on his spelling test. So, when Adam and I went home, I said, “How did you know their names and how do you know that the boy had a spelling test?” So, he said, “Well, I remember they came in a few weeks ago, so I remembered their names. And I remember the mother telling him that whenever he does well on a spelling test, she’d bring him to Jake's for ice cream.” But that is Adam's strength,
((Photo Courtesy: Adam Toobin))
to just tie in the stories and remember things like that.
((NATS))
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
One of my little pet peeves is that I would like every legislator, whether it be local, state or federal, adopt a child or young adult with a disability for just a day.
((NATS))
((Colleen Wood
Physical Therapist))
Okay, Adam. Can we do some of our exercises?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Yep. Oh, yes.
((Colleen Wood
Physical Therapist))
Okay, so this one, we're just going to go up and down, okay?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Yep.
((Colleen Wood
Physical Therapist))
One more. Oh, that was a really good one. Okay, lets rest for a second. Catch your breath. There you go.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
One, two, three, four, five.
((Colleen Wood
Physical Therapist))
And down. Good. How about one more.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
One, two, three, four, five.
((Colleen Wood
Physical Therapist))
Good. Awesome.
Okay, ready?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Yep.
((NATS))
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Take over our house and see what it's like living with Adam, dealing with his basic needs, basic support, from the morning ‘till evening because they don't realize what families have to do with limited resources sometimes.
((NATS))
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Look at me.
((Merle Toobin
Adam’s Mother))
Yesterday, we interviewed two women who were going to work together as a team. And when we told them, Michael looked up to see attendants now getting paid $16.45 an hour, and we showed them what they'd have to do with Adam. He has lifts in his bedroom that lift him from his bed to his wheelchair. And one attendant said, “I can't do all this work for $16.45 an hour. That's just not enough.” And that's what we're up against.
His muscle tone is very tight. And so, an example of that…now as he gets older, his muscle tone gets tighter…but an example is he can't really voluntarily extend his arm. So, if we need to extend his arm to dress him or for hygiene, I kind of have to shake it like this and I can extend it somewhat, but I don't think he could ever get the full extension like you or I could get.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
All right.
I’m always, I’m always comfortable and I’m never in pain. This is how I've been for almost 40 years. So, I've learned to, I've learned to live how I am and how I do things. So now, I'm getting ready to go to work. So, we have to transfer my chair into the manual chair and then I take the manual chair to work because the work [area] is kind of too small, but it's still very worth it to go to work.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Easy.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Oh, I need my vest, Dad.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Okay, we’ll get that.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Oh, yes. This is how I get out of the bed and how I get into bed, how I get on the, how I get on the…how I get on the commode and everything in the bathroom. This is what I have to do every day to make things work.
((Michael Toobin, Adam’s Father))
You all set?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Oh, yeah. All right.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Ready.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Now I'll get my vest and be ready to go to work at Jake’s.
All right.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Ready to go to work?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Oh, yes. All right, here we go. So now, my mom is taking the lift down and put me on the lift. And then we're going to be on our way to Jake’s. So, lift it up a little bit more.
((Merle Toobin
Adam’s Mother))
Oh.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
See you next stop, camera.
((Michael Toobin
Adam’s Father))
Adam would like to work but he needs a care attendant. If he goes to work and there’s pay and the salary’s too great, he could lose the benefit of having a care attendant. So, it’s a little circular situation.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Hello.
((Jake’s Employee))
Hey, Adam.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Hey, guys. Hey, Andrew. Welcome back.
((Andrew
Jake’s Employee))
Hello, Adam.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Hey, how are you guys?
((Customer))
Hello. We're great. What’s good ice cream? What flavor’s good?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
I like any of the cheesecakes [flavors] and we have a new one. Banana Split is pretty good.
((Customer))
Well, I’m not sure what I’ll try. I’m going to look them over.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
All right. Thank you.
Welcome to Jake’s. How are you?
((Customer))
Hi.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Welcome to Jake’s. How are you?
((Customer))
Fine.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
How’s it going? Welcome.
((Customer))
Thank you.
((Customer))
Bye, bye.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Have fun. Enjoy.
((Customer))
Thank you.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Take care.
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
Are you counting?
((Byron
Jake’s Employee))
There’s 100.
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
That’s 100 there?
((Byron
Jake’s Employee))
It was 100.
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
All right. And where do they go when you're done?
We don't look at anybody that works here as being limited.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
All right.
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
They have a job. They're learning new skills. They're getting along. They have a social life.
((Customer))
Adam, how are you today?
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Good. How are you?
((Customer))
Very well, thank you.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Welcome.
((Customer))
Thank you. It’s a very warm day.
((Customer))
And it’s nice and cool in here.
((Customer))
It's a great day for ice cream.
((Customer))
Yes, it is.
((Customer))
Ice cream is delicious.
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
Glad you like it.
Most of the people that come in here understand that we are a shop that hires primarily people with disabilities. We have very few people without disabilities that work here. Very few. They range in age from 18 to 46 [years].
((NATS))
For my entire career, I have worked with the special needs community, with stroke patients, with people with mental health issues, people with learning disabilities, people with head injuries, people…I mean that has been my passion before I had a nephew that had special needs. And I opened the ice cream parlor specifically for my nephew, Jake and other people like him. So, this is a for-profit business. It's not a not-for-profit business. So, we can't take donations here. We have to earn what we're doing.
((NATS))
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Enjoy. Enjoy. Thank you.
((Customer))
Thank you.
((Robin Rinearso
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
We don't have a job description here. We expect the kids to learn how to do just about everything. I don't care what their disabilities are. If they can't do it, then a buddy can help them with it.
((Customer))
All right. I’m going to get what Adam recommended.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Have fun. That’s pretty awesome.
((Mitchell
Customer))
It’s a lot of fun. I love to go to the football games and the baseball games.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Oh, cool. They have a pretty good baseball team as well.
((Mitchell
Customer))
They do.
((NATS))
((Robin Rinearson
Owner, Jake’s Ice Cream))
It puts Facebook and Instagram together, but you can do that already.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Okay. I like what I do because it makes the day go faster. Plus, it makes me feel good because I can do something in the world.
Enjoy. Thank you.
((Customer))
Thank you.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
It’s really, it’s really fun.
Thank you very much. Enjoy.
((Customer))
Thank you. I will.
((Adam Toobin
Social Media Director/Greeter))
Have fun.
((NATS))