A whole new world

For many years, Sunshine Coast resident Ken Walker has been carving toys and sculptures from wood. Yet, ironically, his own daughter, Cathy, a resident at the George Pearson Centre (GPC) since 1982, has never had the opportunity to see his creations in person.

But in June, Cathy finally had a chance to visit her father’s home thanks to the recreation program at GPC that takes residents on community outings with wheelchair-friendly buses.

“It’s a great program because it gets our residents out and really makes a difference in their emotional well being,” says Ron Stedman, supervisor of recreation therapy at GPC. “We use the buses for a lot of different outings like movies, the theatre, parks, sailing and restaurants. But seeing her dad’s home was something that Cathy always wanted to do so we made that happen.”

Travel for Cathy is difficult due to the face she lives with a condition known as Unverricht-Lundborg disease, a seizure disorder which requires 24-hour care. Cathy uses a wheelchair for mobility and finds it difficult to travel even moderately long distances. The disorder also limits Cathy’s ability to speak.

Marilynn, Cathy’s mom, took the trip with her daughter and says she had a great time.

“Cathy had never actually seen his place and the wooden toys and carvings he makes – now she can visualize that,” Marilynn says. “We took a lot of photos and Cathy has one of those digital picture frames in her room at George Pearson.”

Marilynn says they hope that there will be more trips in the future.

“This is an opportunity we didn’t think we’d ever get,” she says. “And we’ll definitely try to do more because it makes a difference for my daughter.”