Most staff that have worked in Iowa City know Scott Wieser. Scott is known for his wicked sense of humor and his hard work at Employment Systems as a Data Entry staff. Recently, he passed his thirty-six year anniversary as an agency employee. He was willing to take some time to reflect on his life experiences with one of his staff.
Scott Wieser was born on October 8th, 1963, not breathing. It took the doctors a total of forty-five minutes to get him breathing again. After Scott stopped breathing the second time, the doctors placed him in a neonatal incubator for two weeks. Due to the lack of oxygen, it caused a brain injury that resulted in his Cerebral Palsy diagnosis as a newborn.
“I do use the brain injury waiver to pay for my services, but Cerebral Palsy is not a brain injury, it is a birth defect.”
According to Scott, Cerebral Palsy is when the motor part of the brain gets damaged at birth. Often this is diagnosed before the age of two, but it can take the doctors a while to see the damage.
“My family could tell something was wrong right away,” Scott recounted, “but the Dubuque doctor waited a year to get the Iowa City hospital involved. Once Iowa City got involved, the trips started between Dubuque and Iowa City. By the age of five, I lived in what was called Hospital School – now known as the Center for Disabilities and Development or CDD.”
While at the Hospital School, Scott lived with six others in something very similar to a dorm room. During this time, the idea of using a headstick and word board started. The push for Scott’s independence and involvement was always a priority. “As I got older, they always included and trusted me with my care. They asked for my thoughts about a new seat (wheelchair) and to this day, Jason from JVA does the same.”
Scott began to attend integrated classrooms in 6th grade and did that through high school, in which he graduated in five years. Scott started with Systems Unlimited two years later.
Scott’s determination has made him an invaluable employee here at Systems. For many years, Scott and another employee entered everyone’s timesheets into a database. That responsibility changed when the agency went towards electronic documentation. Since then, Scott has been willing to adapt to different kinds of paperwork. Scott stated, “I learned my jobs just by doing them.
When asked what he would like others to know about him, Scott stated, “I’m just like everyone else – just because I use equipment doesn’t make me any different from anyone else. Some people think I have a chip on my shoulders just because I have learned to use my computer and chair. But I look past other wheelchairs and just see the person. Just as I would want others to do.”
