Local mother of son with special needs urges motorists to be careful
By Brendan Grehan
A local councillor who has a son with special needs has called on motorists to be more sensitive when parking near schools in Lucan.
Lucan Councillor Vicki Casserly’s son, James (10) has cerebral palsy and juvenile arthritis.
An independent young man, James is a prominent campaigner for people with special needs.
He makes his way to Scoil Aine Naofa in Lucan using his own powered chair.
Sometimes he has problems making his way to school as other parents are blocking the footpath with their cars.
Recently, Vicki went on Facebook to highlight the issue and she got a great response.
She said: “James wants to be independent and to go to school with his friends. Sometimes it can be difficult for him to continue on the footpath if it is blocked or if he can’t access a kerb. Sometimes he has to go out on the road, which isn’t safe, to make his way to school. I put up a post on Facebook about this and I got a great response.”
Vicki and James would like motorists to be more sensitive to people with special needs, young mothers with buggies and older people when they are parking.
Vicki said: “James and I want to raise the issue as we think it’s an important one. It is not just about people with special needs but young mothers and older people. We just want to get the message out there.
James’ conditions do not stop him from having an active life. Just last October he completed the Dublin marathon in an assistance chair with Mark Lacey and he plays soccer regularly with the Esker Celtic frame football team. He has also been a mascot for the Republic of Ireland soccer team.
