SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - One of the students had a little trouble reaching the foot pedals on his wheelchair.  The break was a bit of a challenge too. As he tried rolling it out on to the blacktop at the California Montessori Project, American River Campus in Fair Oaks, a trail of fellow fourth graders followed, bringing up the rear.

This was exactly the kind of learning experience intended: hands on, real time, fumbling through it kind of learning.  It was only for practice however, practice for what it really feels like to be wheel chair bound.  Once the students tackled the wheel chair they got a shot at walking blindfolded with a white cane, punching out their names backward in Braille, learning about how prosthetic limbs work and what it feels like to have the not-so visible kinds of disabilities, such as autism and dyslexia.

“It’s not as easy as it looks,” said Alaina Lawrence, 9 of Carmichael working at the Braille learning table.  She and some of her schoolmates were participating in an onsite sensitivity and awareness workshop led by volunteers with the Granit Bay-based nonprofit organization, A Touch of Understanding (ATOU).  Officially launched in 1996 by Leslie DeDora and her father, Edward Ennis, ATOU marshals the wisdom and experience of volunteers, many with disabilities themselves, and, along with a truck-load of props, heads into schools across many portions of the Northern California region to conduct onsite workshops for school age children in an effort to minimize bullying, social isolation and discrimination against those living with disabilities. 

“We know children are curious and they will ask questions if they feel comfortable doing so,” said DeDora.  “What we do is provide a safe space for them to learn how to talk to and accept someone who is different from them. I think in many cases kids in schools mistreat others because we don’t give them the information they need to truly understand what it means to walk in someone else’s shoes.”

Dwight Lunkley, who sports two prosthetic arms and is partially disfigured from a near-death off-roading accident in 1994, handled a portion of the speaker sessions that accompany the hands-on activities.  He says there’s nothing more impactful than one-on-one interaction with children as a way to teach tolerance and educate them about what happened to him and how it has impacted his life.  

“I love coming in to the schools and talking to kids,” said Lunkley.  “You’d be amazed at how smart, compassionate and inquisitive they are about me.  So we work together to teach them about what is going on with us, why and how we are really just like them and that even with a physical disability we can have happy lives.  But we show them, we don’t just tell them.  That’s how they learn the compassion.”

DeDora said her aunt had intellectual disabilities that were initially difficult for her to understand until she was taught by her parents about the importance of celebrating, not rejecting someone because of their differences.

“I remember inadvertently making my aunt cry because I didn’t understand why she looked like the adults in the room, but acted like the kids,” said DeDora.

DeDora parlayed that early education in compassion into a career working as a tutor of students with disabilities in the public schools system.  Realizing more could be done to provide young people with tangible opportunities for breaking down misconceptions about people with disabilities, she launched “Walk a Mile In Their Shoes” in 1996.  After conducting 60 successful “pilot” presentations, ATOU was formed.  Today, the organization has an annual budget of approximately $400,000, three staff members and an army of volunteers, including interns from Sacramento State College working on degrees in adaptive recreation, nursing programs or other related fields.

Much of ATOU’s funding comes through grants and the sensitivity workshops, the fees for which $1,200 each are split between ATOU and the participating campus.

ATOU also relies heavily on funds raised during its annual “Art from the Heart” gala, now in its fifth year.  This year’s gala is slated for April 20.  Donated artwork is displayed and available for purchase.  The event includes silent and live auctions, a raffle, wine, appetizers and likely some of the most inspirational speakers you’ll ever have the pleasure of hearing from.

“It will be a fun, informative and inspirational evening, celebrating art in its many forms and embracing those among us with disabilities,” DeDora said.