CATCHING UP WITH Kristen McCosh, MSJA ’86 COMMISSIONER FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES, CITY OF BOSTON 12 THE PHOENIX MAGAZINE OF SAINT JOSEPH PREPARATORY HIGH SCHOOL www.saintjosephprep.org
For Kristen Donoghue McCosh, MSJA class of 1986, the Mount was not simply a high school; it was quite literally a saving grace. Thanks to the devotion of the leadership at Mount Saint Joseph Academy and the charity of the Sisters of St. Joseph, McCosh was able to complete high school during a time when most schools would have been unable and unwilling to support her education. In 1983, McCosh was a happy, bright, and responsible 15-year-old, an engaging student leader about to complete her first year at the Mount. That June, the young Mountie suffered severe spinal cord injuries in a terrible diving accident, which left her paralyzed. “In an instant, my life was changed forever,” recalls McCosh. “Suddenly, I was completely disabled and in a wheelchair. Worse, this was at a time when people hid such things from the world.” “<strong>The</strong> Sisters of St. Joseph didn’t need a federal law to tell them what to do, because they followed a Divine Law.” Being confined to a wheelchair is not an easy burden for any teenager to bear, but in 1983, McCosh did not yet have the benefit of living in a world where the Americans with Disabilities Act had been signed into law. Referring to the Sisters, McCosh noted, “<strong>The</strong>y didn’t need a federal law to tell them what to do, because they followed a Divine Law.” Following the accident, McCosh endured months of treatment in the hospital, countless hours of therapy, numerous visits to the emergency room, and—what she describes as most dreadful of all—home tutoring. At that time, West Roxbury High School was the only school in the city of Boston accessible to students with disabilities. For South Boston local McCosh, leaving the safe haven of the Mount for a new school in an unfamiliar neighborhood was a terrifying prospect. “I saw nothing in my future if I didn’t return to the Mount. I could only conceive of one option,” says McCosh, “Return to Mount Saint Joseph Academy to graduate with my friends. Or drop out of school.” <strong>The</strong> future looked bleak to the teenage McCosh; in the 1980s, a Catholic school admitting a student in a wheelchair was unheard of. However, McCosh was able to meet with Sister Ellen Pumphret, who was then a very young nun and the principal of the Mount. Sister Ellen welcomed McCosh back to the Mount for her senior year with open arms and a warm heart. All of McCosh’s classes were rescheduled to the first floor to accommodate her, and the Sisters spared no effort to ensure McCosh was able to graduate with her class. Says McCosh of the CSJ’s charity and compassion, “I honestly believe that it never occurred to them to refuse my request, no matter who objected, how difficult the circumstances, or what barriers were presented.” McCosh recalls, with emotion in her voice, the kindness, understanding, and grace with which the Sisters of St. Joseph treated her during her time as a student of the Mount. In particular, she extended her gratitude to “the thoughtful Sister Timothea, who imparted her love of literature; sweet Sister Mary Dolores, who inspired me with her spirituality; loving Sister Florence, who tried, fruitlessly, to teach me to sing; and for countless others, who welcomed and taught me and my family.” In her years since graduating from the Mount, McCosh has become a powerful, authentic, and articulate advocate for the disability community. She is frequently called upon to speak of her lived experiences in the years before the ADA, before disability rights and the spread of awareness and inclusion. McCosh often makes reference to the Sisters of St. Joseph for giving her a solid foundation built on strength of character, respect for life, and a commitment to justice. “I aspire every day to live up to the example that the Sisters set for me, and in turn, I strive to be an example for others, a living example of the intrinsic worth of love, inclusion, and acceptance.” Kristen McCosh was appointed as the Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities for the City of Boston by Mayor Thomas M. Menino in 2010, and reappointed by mayor Martin J. Walsh in 2014. Above, she was reunited with Sister Ellen Pumphret when she was the keynote speaker at the <strong>2015</strong> Living the Dream Dinner. AUTUMN <strong>2015</strong> JOURNEYS ISSUE 13
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