‘I try to be a vessel and be an ambassador to all people who have disabilities’
It wasn’t until he began his college journey in 2008, at Central Texas College in Killeen, that Mario Stout began to understand himself.
“Growing up with a disability, I felt like I was an ugly duckling,” Stout, who grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands, said during a lunch-and-learn Thursday for National Disability Employment Awareness Month. “I felt very self-conscious and ashamed of myself. I felt very embarrassed. I felt unworthy. I didn’t know my purpose in life.”
Things began to change when he met Aaron Gadson, who became his best friend. Gadson is now an e-Commerce copywriter for the Exchange, and assistant program manager of Special Emphasis Program ABLE (Able, Believe, Lead, Empower), which presented the lunch-and-learn.
“He was the one who introduced me to, and helped me to shape my perspective on, individuals with disabilities,” said Stout, who earned an associate degree in social work at Central Texas State. “Going through the social work program at Central Texas College had given me the skills that I am able to use today within the workforce. Skills such as developing empathy, developing connectedness and being able to relate to others who have challenges embracing a disability.”
Stout, who went on to earn his bachelor’s degree in social work from Texas A&M University–Central Texas, said that his education gave him the opportunity to work with a diverse group of people who have disabilities.
“I discovered that disabilities are seen and unseen,” Stout said. “By working with different populations such as individuals who have an addiction or have mental-health issues such as depression and PTSD has given me the experience and helped me to develop the skill set to work effectively with those populations.”
Stout, who also has a master’s degree in management and leadership from Webster University in Missouri, is now a Human Resources specialist at Randolph Air Force Base. But he believes he is more than a Human Resources specialist.
“I am also a disability advocate,” Stout said. “On a daily basis, I work with disabled men and women of the United States Air Force, and also encounter other people who have disabilities and are facing challenges. I find it a rewarding experience to be able to connect with them by sharing my story.”
Stout told a virtual audience that he has spastic diplegia, one of the most common forms of cerebral palsy. He said it has been an instrumental blessing in his life.
“It has given me the opportunity to change my perspective from an individual who has a disability into seeing myself as an individual who has an ability,” he said. “An ability to touch people’s lives, one life at a time. Day by day as I go into work, I try to be a vessel and be an ambassador to all people who have disabilities and do not have a voice to be heard.”
In response to a question during a Q&A session after his talk, Stout said that he has experienced discrimination, explaining that he was once passed over for a job because the hiring manager discovered that he has cerebral palsy.
“That really hurt me because I am more than my disability,” he said. “Cerebral palsy is a medical condition that I have. But I was discriminated against and not afforded the opportunity to show my skills and what I could do. I was judged on my disability.”
Stout said that hiring managers need to be aware that people are not attached to their disabilities.
“A disability does not define a person’s capabilities,” he said. “Only the person can do that. Give the person a chance to showcase their talents and their skills, because people with disabilities are an asset to a company because they add diversity and they bring a new perspective.”
He also praised Special Emphasis Programs such as ABLE.
“It’s groups like ABLE that give people with disabilities a platform to shine,” he said. “To recognize their abilities and not their disabilities. To have a platform to inspire and become the best there is. To become successful and productive citizens in life.”
The presentation was followed by a short “Where Heroes Work” video featuring Stacey Brown, a materials handler at the Waco Distribution Center who is deaf. “I feel like the Exchange is really flexible and understanding in regard to disabilities compared with other companies who look down [on them],” Brown said in sign language, through an interpreter.
ABLE’s Executive Champion is Karen Stack, Exchange executive vice president and chief logistics officer. Program manager is Robert Stutson Jr., who helped introduce the lunch-and-learn. Army Col. Brian Memoli, deputy director of logistics, is co-chairman.
A second ABLE lunch-and-learn, featuring Texas Health and Human Services members talking about programs that help people with disabilities, is scheduled for Oct. 27. Further details are to be announced. To learn more about ABLE, click here.
