GroundKprs
02-28-2000, 07:04 PM
Has anyone ever tried to use mentally handicapped? Tried it 12 years ago ,on theory that the more intelligent a person is, the more he holds himself above nature. Felt the handicapped would be able to keep their attention better on the mundane things of grounds maint. Struck gold on first try, but after a year and a half a normal friend of his convinced him that he was above the menial work. His attention to lawn during mowing meant any problem was brought to my attention. He even questioned the green circles around the holes under a tree, week after a chemlawn root feeding. And I didn't even notice it.<p>Best day was in mid-June, when everyone is ready to walk away from this business. Was teaching Tim all the flowering shrubs. Any new one was called a forsythia, because that was the first thing he learned; after he had seen a new one three times, he knew it. This day we were mowing a large property, and I was pressed as normal. Tim grabbed me and pulled me over to a mock orange, wanting to know what the flower was. Instant deflation - took this ******ed kid to remind me why I'm out here. Rest of week was the fun it should be.<p>There was a guy in SC ten years ago, had the largest landscape bsns in state, and it was run thru a county program for the ******ed. He trained them to be placed in local business. Also have seen a national group, at trade shows few years ago, that tries to get them into work with plants. In businesses that seek out the ******ed, turnover is very low.<p>Of course, question right away is how can they handle machinery? Well, Nim, the guy from SC, had placed a kid with the state hiway department, operating AND maintaining a front end loader. At home this kid couldn't tie his shoes. As usual, you tend to get what you expect.<p>----------<br>Jim<br>North central Indiana<br>