Betty Thompson used to sit spellbound as her father weaved stories about the majestic, towering redwoods he saw while working in California as a young man.
She savored those stories for decades.
In June, Thompson, 67, will get to see them herself.
Thompson, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was 8 months old, her caregivers and several members of Oakhurst Baptist Church will fly to the West Coast and spend the next several days visiting the redwood forests in Weott, California.
Thompson, who also has a blog, squeals with happiness when asked about the trip.
“Really excited,” Thompson spells out on her red-and-white “talking board,” which really doesn’t make sounds, but contains letters to which she points to form words.
“She’s always had this fantasy about going,” said Jackie Evans, one of her caregivers, who will join Thompson on the trip.
The disease has left Thompson unable to speak and severely limits her movements. She uses a wheelchair and her movements seem jerky and uncoordinated. That might slow some people down, but it’s made Thompson more determined to speak up for herself and others with disabilities.
A group of church members and supporters raised more than $15,000, including using Crowdrise, to help send the group on its way. Money also will be used to rent an accessible van once their plane lands and for her power chair to be flown to California.
Thompson, a member of the Oakhurst gospel choir, also contributed though the sale of greeting cards, some of which carry her artwork and that of other artists, at community festivals.
“It’s a big undertaking,” said her sister, Carol Miller, of Sandy Springs, who admits she was initially concerned about Thompson making the trek.
“Betty loves adventure and she loves seeing new things,” said Miller, who is unable to join her sister. “Dad used to talk about the redwood trees. It’s something she always wanted to see and do.”
Their father, Raymond, died nearly two years ago. When he was a young man, he worked in California for the Civilian Conservation Corps, which was a New Deal program launched in 1933 as a public works project to promote environmental conservation as well as put people to work, according to a history about the program.
A plan developed after Thompson, who lives in a two-bedroom apartment in Decatur , shared with the church her desire to see the redwoods as part of her goals. They set about trying to make it happen with Thompson playing a very active role.
One of Thompson’s “best gifts is that she is an advocate for herself,” said the Rev. Melanie Vaughn-West, pastor at Oakhurst, which has about 300 active members. “Betty has been a part of this church since she was 6 years old. This has become her community, and she is excellent about saying, ‘OK, this is what I need and how can you, as my community of faith, help me make this happen?’”
Thompson plans to blog about her adventure. She types on a regular keyboard using one hand, according to one of her caregivers.
Longtime friend Mark Crenshaw considers Thompson a powerful presence.
“She collects friends and it’s pretty awesome,” said Crenshaw, director of the interdisciplinary training program at the Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University. “It’s great to help support somebody who has been a friend for so long to be able to live her dream. People with disabilities don’t have to accept limitations.”
Thompson is a prime example.
In a statement about the trip, Thompson says she’s going for two reasons — her father and “I am showing others that they can go anywhere.”
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