Our Stars – Katherine Hevener, Sharing in a Brighter Outlook

By Joyce A Rogers
October 20, 2011

Are you familiar with (– — .-. … . -.-. — -.. .)?
If you have been an amateur radio operator for thirty-seven years as Katherine Hevener has been, you will know that those dashes and dots spell, Morse Code. Ms. Hevener said that, in her little home town in West Virginia, she obtained her radio license as a result of peer pressure. However, high achievement seems to be the norm for her; an Amateur Extra Class license was her mark. Being a contemporary woman, Ms. Hevener has worked at challenging jobs and lived in wide-ranging places from Boston and Hartfort to Palo Alto settling back in Cincinnati in 2003.

She was appointed by Governor Strickland in 2007 to the Governor’s Council on People with Disabilities (GCPD) and works on emergency preparedness and disability awareness training for first responders through the council. Ms. Hevener also serves with Queen City Emergency Net (QCEN) in amateur radio communications during natural disasters and for events such as the M. S. 150, the bike-a-thon to raise funds for a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. Her experience as a teacher, trainer, and communicator has prepared her well for her current career as a professional speaker and a speech coach.

While Ms. Hevener is accomplished and successful, she is not all that extraordinary as far as people like her are concerned. What puts her in an extraordinary class are other people’s false assumptions, incorrect perceptions, and under-whelming expectations. It constantly amazes us folks who travel about with white canes and dog guides to realize that other people regard us as amazing or remarkable. We are amazed, not amazing. Think about that attitude of others; is it based on the fact that we are not expected to move about freely, work, raise families, and have fun as others do? Why are other people so arrogant that they think the world should only include and accommodate them?

When the writer asked Ms. Hevener, “What message do you want most for readers to hear?” She responded, “I want people to know in their very bones and in every brain cell they possess that I am a person just like them, and, because I do some activities differently, I should be no less included and accommodated than they are.”

You may call Ms. Hevener at (513) 471-8866, or e-mail her at kitty@speechcoachforyou.com if you are in need of a speaker or a speech coach.