|
Listed below are News Articles which have been
published on the web.
‘I’m deaf and blind
but it’s not the end of the world –
at least I can walk’
ROSA Crean has battled against the odds all her
life, enduring a personal hardship that few will
have experienced.
But despite the turmoil of her early years and
a physical handicap that still besets her today,
Rosa has risen to become a true champion.
The 65-year-old has amassed a cupboard full of
28 sports medals – including Paralympic gold
– and is recognised as a legend in the world
of bowls.
What makes Rosa so special is that she’s
registered deaf-blind – born with a serious
sight problem – genetic cataracts –
and then suffering from a childhood ear infection
which resulted in hearing difficulties which have
continued to worsen over the years.
Rosa is one of an estimated two million over-60s
in the UK who have a sight and hearing loss and
because of their impairments are at special risk
of becoming isolated in the community. They are
now at the centre of a new awareness campaign.
Thankfully for Rosa, with her special determination,
this is unlikely to happen. That determination
is born out of a nightmare childhood that saw
her a victim of the Greek Civil War in the late
1940s when she was torn from her family, abducted
and ended up alone in a Polish orphanage.
Her remarkable survival from a poverty- stricken
family background eventually saw Rosa arrive in
the UK when she was in her mid-20s working in
a factory in Lincolnshire. But bad luck was again
around the corner when she was hit by a drink-driver
and left in a coma for four weeks.
A year later in 1967, Rosa arrived in Cardiff
following a romantic link with a Welshman and
that’s where she’s finally put down
her roots becoming the proud mother of two children
Julia and Phillip, who have both sadly inherited
the genetic cataract condition.
“Both my mother and my brother had the same
problem and I’ve had operations and implants
put in my eyes but nothing has really worked.
“At the moment I can see about three feet
but everything beyond that is a complete blur,”
said Rosa, of Cardiff Bay.
Being deaf and blind Rosa admits she faces many
daily and routine problems.
“Life is difficult, you can make all sorts
of mistakes. You bump into people, you can fall
over, you do not recognise someone or mistake
them for the wrong person. My view has always
been that it’s not the end of the world –
at least I can walk which some other people cannot
do.”
She hasn’t let her disability stop her pursuing
her love of art and sport. She has created dozens
of oil paintings, which she has exhibited locally.
And at the suggestion of 36-year-old daughter
Julia, Rosa also took up lawn bowls 16 years ago
as a way to help her mum get out and about.
“I tried it but after about three months
thought this was not my cup of tea – I just
could not see what I was doing. Julie told me
off and insisted I carry on and thanks to her
advice I’ve achieved my success.”
Travelling the world with the Wales and UK squad
of disabled athletes, Rosa has opened up a new
life which still sees her practising three times
a week.
But how does she hit the target? Rosa explained:
“It works very simply. The coach tells you
where the jack is and, because I can’t see
it, where to bowl the ball and what weight to
use. So it could be an instruction ‘bowl
at two o’clock or nine o’clock and use
more or less weight’ depending on the situation.
The whole experience of bowling for Wales has
been an amazing time for me.”
Despite her champion status, Rosa is still hard
at work trying to raise £5,000 sponsorship
for her next tilt at a world title in Australia
in 2009. “We all need the money to pay for
travel and accommodation so I would appreciate
all the help I can get,” she said.
To help support Rosa’s fundraising, visit
her website on www.rosacrean.com
Artical
By Greg Tindle, 23 Aug 2007.
South Wales Echo
View External
Website Link of this article
|
