A Paralympic athlete who lost her leg while serving with the US Army in Iraq has revealed how strangers sometimes shame her for using a handicap parking spot, assuming that she doesn’t really need it when her prosthetic leg is hidden under pants.
Melissa Stockwell, 41, has used a prosthetic since losing her left leg to a roadside bomb in Baghdad in 2004, but has gone on to compete in two Paralympic Games, winning bronze in 2016.
Yet meddling strangers have occasionally cast doubt on her disability — including a man who recently called out to her in a parking lot that she ‘didn’t look handicapped’ after she parked in a handicapped spot.
Stockwell fired back a reply about her prosthetic leg, and has now shared the story on Instagram to warn others to stop judging: ‘You never know what someone else is going through whether you can physically see a disability or not.’
Serving her country: US Army veteran Melissa Stockwell, 41, has used a prosthetic since losing her left leg to a roadside bomb in Baghdad in 2004
How rude! After parking in a handicap spot this week, a man told her, ‘You sure don’t look handicapped’
Called out: She asked him if he would like to see her prosthetic leg and warned him not to judge people – and is sharing that same warning with others on Instagram
‘Yesterday I was getting into my car parked in the handicapped spot when an older man walked by and said, “Well, you sure don’t look handicapped,”‘ she wrote.
‘It was cold, I was wearing pants and this has happened before but it still irritates me. I quickly responded with, “I have a prosthetic leg, would you like to see it?”
‘He turned around and waved an apology to when I yelled out “And you should stop judging people!”
‘Do I always need to park in a handicapped spot? No,’ Stockwell went on. ‘But when I’m carrying a kid, or a lot of groceries, or it’s icy or snowy out or my leg just plain hurts, it sure is nice.
‘Plus I feel like I’ve earned the right to park there on any day I choose.
Stockwell enlisted in the ROTC at the University of Colorado when she was a sophomore, not long before 9/11. She said on Facebook that she ‘quickly fell in love with wearing the uniform’
As a first lieutenant, she was deployed to Iraq in March of 2004, and became the first female soldier to lose a limb in the Iraq War. She was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart
‘Stop the judging,’ she admonished. ‘You never know what someone else is going through whether you can physically see a disability or not.
‘Do people sometimes abuse the handicapped spot? Sure. But join me in choosing to give people the benefit of the doubt. Kindness matters.’
Stockwell enlisted in the ROTC at the University of Colorado when she was a sophomore, not long before 9/11. She said on Facebook that she ‘quickly fell in love with wearing the uniform.’
As a first lieutenant, she was deployed to Iraq in March of 2004, and became the first female soldier to lose a limb in the Iraq War. She was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart.
Accomplishment: She later became the first Iraq veteran to be chosen for the Paralympics, competing in three swimming events in 2008
Bronze, baby! She returned in 2016, this time competing in the triathlon – the first year it was held – and taking home bronze
Check yourself: Stockwell admitted it’s ‘frustrating’ when people make assumptions about her disability
She later became the first Iraq veteran to be chosen for the Paralympics, competing in three swimming events in 2008.
She returned in 2016, this time competing in the triathlon — the first year it was held — and taking home bronze.
Stockwell admitted it’s ‘frustrating’ when people make assumptions about her disability, and said she has also been asked if her husband is there for ‘proof’ when trying to get a military discount.
‘I like saying, actually, I’m the one who served!’ she said.