2007 In Memoriam: Kia Scott

Kia Scott of Dorchester died in November. I got the chance to talk to her a little bit at an action Karen Schneiderman of the Boston Center for Independent Living organized in Fields Corner. She was very sweet, but could not stand the fact that people were always parking their cars in front of curb cuts. Uncleared snow and brick sidewalks -- they were painful for her rheumatoid arthritis -- excluded her from city sidewalks.

The following appreciation is written by Karen Schneiderman.

My friend Kia Scott died this month. It wasn’t fair. Her health wasn’t great but a wheelchair repair service flipped her into the next world, if there is one, and she was much too young too die.

I was invited to her house when I was trying to recruit Dorchester folks for a neighborhood meeting. She not only let me in but she offered the building’s community room for meetings. She had never been an activist but she was active in her life. She was looking for work, fixing up her apartment, and applying for a working dog, which she did get and whom she loved very much.

I was so thrilled when the “shy” activist agreed to file an access complaint when the City ripped up her street leaving her no way to get around without riding in the street. For the first time she filled out the form and even took pictures.

My favorite memory of Kia was the night of the great Target sting, where she, Alyson Perry (and Saddle, her guide dog) and I strolled through the store because two blind consumers had been tossed from Target for bringing in their dogs. Alyson and I were used to causing trouble but Kia was new at it and she was great. She was great that night and it fills me with sadness to think of all the great things she would have done for herself and others in the future.

I miss you, my friend.