Armless Teen Learns How to Drive
May 30 -- — Driving lessons are a rite of passage for teenagers across the country. The first step on the road to independence. But for Jessica Parks, a remarkable young woman from North Branch, Mich., driving lessons are much more than that — they signify another great challenge she's eager to conquer.
Jessica was born without arms, but decided at a young age that she was not comfortable wearing prosthetics. So she has learned to do amazing things with her feet — from eating spaghetti to putting in contact lenses. She is no stranger to adversity but the question remained: How well would she drive?
After pulling her seatbelt across her with her foot and buckling in, she follows the directions of instructor Larry Klug and makes all of her last-minute adjustments with her feet, as they prepare to leave the parking lot. Klug, an instructor at Challenged Drivers Educators, talks her through a pre-drive checklist: "Put your blinker on; check your center mirror; check your left mirror."
Jessica is driving a mid-size car that wasn't modified at all for her purposes. After seeing her ability to steer and signal with her left foot and accelerate and brake with her right foot, Klug decided that she didn't need any adaptive devices.
So what's the verdict? It should come as no surprise to anyone that after spending hours driving with Jessica, Klug pronounces her a natural, saying she's going to be a great driver.
Ever Determined
The determination she showed in her early years set the tone for how she would approach life.
Her stepfather, Geoffrey Parmenter, says one of Jessica's most important early lessons was learning how to fall. "There were times when she'd be walking along, if she caught a crack in the sidewalk she would, you know, right smack on her face, and she received a few stitches for that. And so we worked with her, to not fall forward, but to turn," he said.
Jessica realized very quickly, and in many ways, that she was different. "We had neighbors that wouldn't allow their children to play with her. She was real upset over that," her mother, Yvonne, said.
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