Alexis Demetriou
Accessibility is not a luxury, it is a gateway to equality, independence, and full participation in society.
My name is Alexis. I am 53 years old and married to Anna and I have a 28-year-old son Constantinos from my first marriage. I live in Cyprus and am a director/producer of TV commercials and documentaries. I am also an ambassador of Road Safety in Cyprus, so I often go to schools, colleges and army camps to talk about road safety and what led to my accident.
Giving a road safety talk to students.
In 1992 I was involved in a car accident that left me a T4-5 paraplegic. I was a soldier at the time and on one of my outings, friends and I had gone to a neighboring town (one hour away) to meet other army friends. On our return I failed to wear a seatbelt sitting in the back seat and went to sleep for the 1 hour journey back.
Unfortunately, it wasn't long before we all fell asleep, being late at night and tired from our night out. This led to the car swaying off the highway. The car tumbled off the highway, falling down a 9 meter ditch breaking me in two! I broke my back at chest level (T4-T5 fracture of my vertebrae) becoming paraplegic on March 23rd of 1992. That is when my second life began!
After my rehabilitation in Cyprus, I went to England (London) where I studied computer graphics and directing for television while I later continued my studies as a director in Los Angeles.
Me and my friend in New York
When studying In London though, I lived in a studio apartment 1 km up a hill from my school. Unfortunately, even though the apartment was beautiful and close to my college, it had 3 steps in the entrance, an elevator that was old (never leveling to the floor correctly) and the apartment had a very narrow doorway to the bathroom, making it unusable. It was the only apartment I could find given the area and the budget I was on as a student, so it had to work.
In order to cope I had to adapt and program my daily life accordingly. I was given a key to the wheelchair bathroom of my school, for use whenever I needed (day or night) so planning my toilet visits was very important.
Opposite my school was a recreation center that had an open disabled shower in the pool area. I would go there every night after school, shower, get dressed in the clothes I carried in my backpack, then go to my apartment which was 1 km away uphill and even pick up my laundry on the way. My extra light Panthera X3 would have been very useful at that time but unfortunately it wasn't invented yet.
Me and my son, Constantinos
If I were to pick up laundry I would tie it around my waist with a belt, so that it would not fall while climbing the 1km hill. On the way home I would also stop by a store, to get something for cooking at home and when I would arrive at my apartment building, I would ask a passing pedestrian to help pull me up the 3 steps at the entrance of my building. I would then enter my apartment and repeat the whole process the next day.
It wasn't easy but it was my choice and some of the best years of my life as I was living my life to its full and felt equal to everybody else following my dreams!
Accessibility to wheelchairs at the time (1992) were still not available everywhere. I had to find ways to make it work. Mobility and accessibility are not a luxury. They are a gateway to equality, independence, and full participation in society.
I believe that real freedom is being able to choose. Choosing to participate, choosing life, choosing to follow my dreams (in another country), choosing to go out, to work, choosing to interact.
Isolation is the greatest barrier. No matter how difficult something may be, when it's your choice, it is yours to own and your personal freedom that nobody can take away from you.
Mobility is choice and choice is freedom. I am free!
Name: Alexis Demetriou
Work title: Director/producer of TV commercials and documentaries
City/Country: Nicosia, Cyprus
Hobby: Digital Artist that loves cooking
Personal fun fact: I enjoy watching films and series when I'm not out and about driving. I absolutely love driving around Cyprus specially with good company.