Touchstone Winter 2011 - Cerebral Palsy League

All About You
Making
tracks
Behind the Scenes
Rachael Dodds started off the year winning
her first gold medal for Australia at the IPC
Athletics World Championships, but that’s
just the beginning of things to come
Rachael Dodds,
gold medal winner
Six times a week Rachael follows her strict
training regime to keep her on track to achieve
her ultimate goal: London 2012.
Her training sessions alternate between
swimming, running and strength work but the
bubbly 16-year-old always wears a smile.
Originally a distance runner, Rachael made the
transition to become a sprinter and has certainly
proved her talents on the track.
“The transition was very different,” she explains.
“But I was lucky I had such a versatile coach in
Cherina Kelly. I don’t miss distance too much
these days.”
Earlier this year Rachael and her family (mother
Denise, father Duncan and younger sister
Bridget) travelled to Christchurch to compete
in the International Paralympic Committee’s
Athletics World Championships.
She started off the meet with a silver medal
in the 100m and followed it up with the gold in
the 200m the next day (in the T35 category for
athletes with cerebral palsy).
“To actually win a medal is one thing, but to
receive a gold medal is amazing. Having my
family there too was really special,” she beams.
After growing up in Perth, the Dodds family
then moved to Queensland and Rachael began
physiotherapy with CPL’s Mt Gravatt service.
“I’ve been going to CPL for check-ups and
measurements since I was about seven or eight
years old. There’s always so many friendly faces –
it’s great!”
Between her grade 11 studies at Cannon Hill
Anglican College, training and competing, it
doesn’t leave time for much else.
Rachael wants to represent Australia at the
2012 London Paralympics and that dream is now
even closer with the recent announcement that
the T35 category will be included.
She says it would be a great opportunity to
compete on the world stage, especially since she
has family over there who would love to come
and support her.
Catch Rachael on YouTube:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLDs7cPeClw
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xsr5fxYgv1w
Behind the scenes
As a child, Brooke started as a client of CPL and has since gone on to become
an employee. She began working on the Gold Coast, but is now located at the
New Farm telemarketing call centre raising money for the organisation.
Brooke sat down with Touchstone for a chat and to tell us her story
Q. How did you first become
involved with CPL?
A. Because I was born with
cerebral palsy I’ve known the
organisation since birth really.
I’d been living on the Gold Coast
since I was 12 and using CPL’s
services. Actually my first job
was working as a receptionist for
CPL on the Gold Coast! I really
loved meeting all the people who
would come through the service
and my favourite part of the job
was when all the little kids would
come through for their therapy
or their playgroups.
Q. What happened next?
A. When I moved to Brisbane
recently I knew I wanted to
keep working with CPL. Access
Employment (now Mylestones
Employment) helped me get
my job at the Gold Coast, so
they put me in touch with the
call centre and it’s all gone from
there really.
Q. What do you like most
about working at CPL?
A. I really like that my job
allows me to speak to such a
huge range of interesting people
and get to know them. Having
cerebral palsy gives me an
advantage in my job because
I can make the calls personal.
I can explain to people exactly
what it is and how it affects me
in my everyday life. I make the
calls personal, because for me it
is personal.
Q. What are your goals for the
future?
A. At the moment I’m writing
an autobiography about my life
Brooke Shaw, CPL
telefundraiser
...with Brooke Shaw
and my experiences. I’ve been
writing poetry since I was 14
and write about all my different
experiences and emotions. The
idea is that I’ll use the poems
throughout the book to help tell
my story. For example I studied
for three years at the Gatton
agricultural college (Diploma of
Applied Science) so I’ve written
a lot of poems about that time
of my life. Things like leaving
home and then coming back, my
emotions and how hard it was
for me at that time.
If you know of someone
who you think deserves to be
profiled in Behind the Scenes
let us know! Send an email with
their name, service region and
a reason for their nomination to
marketing@cplqld.org.au
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Touchstone Winter 2011
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