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stouffville suntribuneu thursday april 5 2007 5 where theres a will theres elizabeth you may have seen her at stouffville district sec ondary school zipping through the halls in a wheelchair you may have seen her in stouf fville united church seated with her family near the front of the sanctuary you may have seen her at parkview home using her beautiful voice to entertain residents of senior age you may have seen her at stouf- fvilles walmart welcoming cus tomers as they enter the main doors elizabeth carr is everywhere or so it seems but not without difficulty this 19yearold stouffville resi dent is challenged by a malady called spina bifida shes lived with it since birth spina bifida is a defect involving close to 70000 people in north amer ica the spina bifida parent associa tion describes it as a neutral tube defect that happens during the first month of pregnancy when the spinal column doesnt close completely whatever the internal complica tions what one sees is what one gets with respect to elizabeth its a vibrant whirling dervish bound and determined to defeat all odds and accomplish everything she can with the cooperation of a com passionate church and community nothing deters her determination elizabeth is the eldest of three girls in the family of brian and theresa carr sarah 17 is a student in grade 11 at stouffville secondary melissa 14 is in grade 8 at orchard park public school she has a dog called molly and two cats jessie and casey following graduation from orchard park elizabeth entered a whole new world at stouffville sec ondary a bus would pick her up at 830 am and return her home at 330 pm for the most part she found school both elementary and secondary wheelchair accessible every so often the elevator going down to the pit music room would malfunction id have to go outside and enter by a rear door she explained other than this everything was super she said including double automatic doors in teachers miriam sellicksmith effie marinis and shelley ireland she found amazing friends i loved them she said the majority of students were helpful also she adds including close companions megan good danielle clarkson melissa brooks and jolene courtemanche a crowning achievement was high school graduation in june in addi tion to her diploma she received the coveted harry bowes award to obtain sufficient community service credits elizabeth did volun teer work at stouffville united church orchard park school stouf fville figure skating club and the lebovic leisure centre i swim like a fish she laughs the family has a back yard pool until forced to close she took les sons at the therapeutic riding asso ciation for challenged kids in roaming with jim thomas id like to be like everyone else its something i dont understand but im learning to live with it there are certain things im unable to do elizabeth carr on living with spina bifida uxbridge shes now studying voice as well as parkview home shes sung several times in church also read the bible aloud and led in prayer soloists susan brown and jennifer thunem are vocal favourites they have amazing voices she says and are allround nice people they inspire me elizabeth credits marg jemmett with her involvement at parkview they love it and i love it she says piano accompanists include marion boadway bea jennings and jean hammond last summer she participated in the strawberry festival parade elizabeth enjoys her work at wal- mart im a people person she says everyones been great she joined the staff even before the store official ly opened shes anxiously awaiting a family trip this summer to darien lake near buffalo ny an outside ramp constructed by her father and a late greatuncle has made accessing her home much easier before someone had to carry me in she says elizabeth honestly admits the question why me often enters her mind id like to be like everyone else she says its something i dont under stand but im learning to live with it there are certain things im unable to do but elizabeth prefers to appreciate the positives the things she can do one achievement was high school graduation another the position at walmart shes accomplished both with additional successes still to come where theres a will theres a way jim thomasis a stouffville resident who has written for area newspapers for more than 50 years 6425111 narjhixt a 852671 1 loose rugs br0adl00m lajajtag upholstery 3m scotchouard ifilitoc returns s from 1er0 to refund in 10 days t lynn broughton ldb business services t- 86 ringwood drive unit 25 stouffville call or fax 9056401 156 income tax service i 1 c redu- i severe neck or back pain it appears that a technology exists that may show hope for people suffering from herniated bulging and slipped discs cases with arthritis and degenerative back conditions and cases that may be on their way to elective surgery now there is a back pain guide that your doctor may not even know about that you can receive for free entitled the severe neck back and sciatica pain guide that reveals a relatively new surgery free non invasive technology designed to treat severe low back neck and leg pain along with herniated and slipped discs so if you are wondering if there is anything else at all that can be done even though every treatment youve tried may have failed then you should order the free guide entitled the severe neck back and sciatica pain guide discover why your back treatments have failed and a technology relatively new to canada that may provide a solution for your free copy call 18888621599 tollfree 24 hour recorded message or go to htt supplies are limited act now by lorraine kennedy vosu clinical directorowner m jl reg caslp0 audc aodmoglst hold the head phone in recent years hearing specialists have been very concerned that people are showing signs of hearing loss at younger ages than ever before not only are we living in a noisier world but many youngsters have adopted lifestyle habits that accelerate hearing loss among the most damaging of these involves the use of portable music players that attach directly to the ears people are no longer just wearing music devices with headphones to occasionally listen to music they are wearing them on a nearly continual basis to block out ambient street noise as a result hearing specialists are seeing too many people in their 30s and 40s with hearing loss that was once associated with people in their 60s exposure to everyday sounds can have a cumulative negative effect on hearing if you think that you or a loved one suffers from hearing loss please call us to schedule a hearing evaluation our registered dispensing audiologists will give you one of the most comprehensive evaluations youll ever have we have one of the largest selections of hearing instruments to choose from including completelyinthecanal intheear and behindtheear youll notice that youre hearing better not wearing a hearing aid for every new hearing system you purchase well give you a 35day evaluation period psaccordingtoastudybyaustralias national acoustic laboratories about onequarter of people using portable music players experience daily noise exposures high enough to cause hearing damage leading edge cape for markham 9054714327 m audi m mm sm etobicokf 4162338581 wmcndhmrtng 123 wogwo ju sulw 1711 north york 4164984151 tmt auokxoot ccmtrf is imepart t mm ho