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Photo by Nina Tisara
While many Alexandrians don’t know Chet Avery's name,
they take for granted many of the important enhancements
he's helped to bring about: curb cuts; a central library with
no stairs and an office dedicated to serving Talking Book
users; an accessible courthouse, including accessible
courtrooms; voting machines that persons with all
disabilities can easily use independently and a human
rights ordinance that includes persons with disabilities
as a protected class. |
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Living Legend Chet Avery: Seeing
a Better City for Alexandria's Blind |
ALEXANDRIA, VA. - Chet Avery, a long-time
resident of Alexandria, has been active in devising and promoting programs
enabling those with disabilities to participate fully in all life’s
opportunities.
For nearly 30 years he has served as a member of the Alexandria
Human Rights Commission. His life's work is dedicated to
extending accessibility to all persons.
While many Alexandrians don’t know his name, they take for granted many
of the important enhancements he helped to bring about: curb cuts; a
central library with no stairs and an office dedicated to serving Talking
Book users; an accessible courthouse, including accessible courtrooms;
voting machines that persons with all disabilities can easily use
independently and a human rights ordinance that includes persons with
disabilities as a protected class.
Mayor Bill Euille first met Avery in 1974.
“I was a youngster who had just been appointed to serve on the
Alexandria School Board when I met Chet,” Euille said. “As a School
Board member, I saw the need for a Special Education Advisory Committee
and we selected Chet to be a member of that first group. For more than 30
years, he has been an advocate for children with special needs and for all
persons with disabilities in Alexandria and throughout our country. He has
helped to bring about changes that have made a difference in all of our
lives. He is very deserving of this honor.”
Avery began his work as an advocate for persons with disabilities when he
lost his own sight because of detached retinas. He was 17 years old.
During his last year of high school, he visited friends at Harvard and
decided he wished to attend the university. “I spoke with the dean
during one of my visits and he told me to go back home, get good grades
and demonstrate my leadership skills and I would be a strong candidate for
Harvard,” Avery said.
Avery earned his bachelor’s degree in history but decided to return to
Harvard for a master’s degree in counseling and education. On the first
day of class, a young woman sat down next to him and they were married a
year later.
“She was beautiful then and is still beautiful now,” Avery said of his
wife Sabra.
In 1964, the couple moved to the DC metropolitan area. “I was offered a
job with the federal government in the department of education,” Avery
said. Their only son was born shortly after the move. Avery remained with
the federal government, first at the Department of Health, Education and
Welfare and then with the Department of Education, until his retirement in
1996.
In 1967, the Averys moved to Alexandria, to the home where they still live
on Linden Street. “We’ve lived here longer than almost everyone on the
block and we love it,” Avery said.
Jean Niebauer is the director of the Alexandria Office On Human Rights.
“Chet Avery is a tireless advocate for persons with disabilities and I
admire his tenacity, intellect and commitment to Alexandria. Chet pushes
all of us in the City to do more, and more quickly, and I have no doubt
that we would not have achieved as much as we have, as an accessible City,
without him,” she said.
As part of his federal job, Avery oversaw the development of a handbook on
federal student financial aid, served in the Office of Special Education
monitoring the implementation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 and then in the Secretary’s Office of Disability Concerns. He is
also a member of the Board of Directors of The Washington Ear and was
instrumental in developing the first descriptive videos in theaters.
“When blind people attend plays, they have no idea what’s happening on
stage with regard to scenery and activity. In 1981, Arena Stage began
offering descriptive videos for visually handicapped individuals during
plays. Since then, that has expanded and many venues have descriptive
videos, including movie theaters,” Avery said.
Since his retirement, Avery has continued his work in Alexandria and
served on the Virginia Rehabilitation Council and the
Virginia Assisted Technology Commission, appointed by then Gov. Mark
Warner. “Both of those groups have accomplished a lot,” Avery
said.
Most recently, Avery was instrumental in advocating for the purchase of an
electronic voting system that is accessible to all persons with
disabilities. “He went with us to look at the available voting equipment
and advocated for the system he felt was the most accessible to the most
people, the system we eventually purchased,” said Tom Parkins,
Alexandria’s registrar of voters. “I really believe that it was his
persistence that convinced City Council to purchase the entire system
rather than phasing it in. He’s amazing.”
He is the recipient of the Alexandrian of The Year Award for 2008, was
enrolled in the Sanford High School Hall of Fame, received the Alexandria
United Way Volunteer of the Year Award, the 1998 John Duty Collins
Outstanding Advocate for Persons with Disabilities Award, special awards
from the Alexandria Special Education Advisory Committee and the
Alexandria Human Rights Commission.
Avery spends his time reading with his two granddaughters and enjoying
Alexandria’s parks with them. He also watches movies on his computers
and stays in touch with friends and colleagues via email.
Now in its third year, Living Legends of Alexandria is an ongoing
501(c)(3) photojournalistic project to identify, honor and chronicle
Alexandria's Living Legends. The project was conceived by
artist-photographer Nina Tisara to create an enduring artistic record of
the people whose vision and dedication make a tangible difference to the
quality of life in Alexandria. The project is funded in part by a
generous donation from the Rotary Club of Alexandria.
This is one of a series of 12 profiles that will appear this year. For
more information or to nominate a Legend for next year's program, visit www.AlexandriaLegends.com
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