For handicapped motorists, parking in Luzerne County an ongoing obstacle - Wilkes Barre Times-Leader
Treat your disability as a privilege, Cathy Fusco has been told. At just about three feet tall, Fusco, 55, has an acute genetic disorder underlined by brittle bones and stunted growth. Fusco was born with the disorder. A Pittston Township resident, Fusco earned the thick skin after enduring countless barbs about the advantages others claim her disability grants her, when on an almost daily basis she fights for essential parking spaces often taken illegally by... “I’ve had people say, ‘Oh, how lucky you are to be able to park so close,’” Fusco said. “Yeah, I’m real lucky I get to park in a handicapped spot. Fusco’s struggle, and that of others in the region, is pitted against a sluggish statewide effort from law enforcement to police handicapped parking violators, aided by the ease in which disability identifications can be obtained. Several times a week, Fusco, who gets around in a power wheelchair and uses a special conversion van with a built-in ramp to run errands, said she squares off against able-bodied drivers who clog handicapped spaces. “Basically, when I go to park, I want to find an end spot or a spot that is van accessible,” explained Fusco, who was born with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), better known as brittle bone disease. With that being said, many times I come out and someone not disabled will be parked in the blue lines and I can’t get into my vehicle. Source: timesleader.com
