I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon-if I can.

That is the credo of Abilities, Inc.. the fabulous Long Island concern run entirely by severely disabled workers. But the workers themselves are more than uncommon. They are incredible. They are people like these:

. . Jim Wadsworth. He had a knack for inventing things.

Unable to sit and work, he swung from his bench at a 45'

angle in a sling he devised from a window cleaner's belt.

. . Esther Caldwell. Trapped in the sightless, soundless

prison of her own body, she refused to surrender hope.

. . Murray Nemser. He works flat on his back. On a litter.

. . Lou Blersch. A legless ex-paratrooper, he fought his

big battle when he got out of the army.

. . Ellen Vaughn. Paralyzed, confined to a wheelchair,

she worried a lot-about other people.

. . Alex Alazraki. Lacking both arms and legs, he outworks

everyone in his crew.

. . Emmett Hood. He talks through a hole in his throat.

He wasn't supposed to live-but he did.

. . And, of course, Henry Viscardi himself, founder of

Human Resources Center, Human Resources School and

Abilities Inc.-the most uncommon of them all. This book

tells the improbable story of the miracle in American industry

set in motion by his imagination and ingenuity.

Abilities began in a grimy, unfurnished garage with four

employees who had only five good arms and one good leg

among them. In five years it was a pioneering work demonstration,

employing 300 disabled people. More than 5000 disabled

people have since been employed by Abilities Inc. It

has become an international model of how disabled people

can live and work independently in a competitive employment

setting.