Miranda Moak

Miranda Moak works part-time at the Bank of Brookhaven where she is a productive member of a close-knit team of managers and employees. She fits in well with her co-workers and enjoys the family atmosphere typical of a small town employer. However, life hasn’t always been so easy for Miranda who almost lost her life in a freak accident that would change her life and her family’s lives forever. When she was five years old, she was a typical little girl who loved jazz and ballet and whose life seemed destined to be full of opportunities. Miranda was in a carpool on the way home from kindergarten when the accident happened. Workers were cutting tree limbs when, without warning, a limb fell on the car and crushed Miranda’s skull. She was flown from the small town of Brookhaven to UMC in Jackson where she stayed in a coma for 17 days. Her parents, David and Mickey Moak kept a vigil by her bedside. Doctors didn’t expect her to live but if she did, they warned her parents she would have a long, hard road ahead of her. Against the odds, Miranda awoke from the coma and recognized her parents. However all other functions and memory had basically been erased. She had to learn to eat, walk and talk all over again. Her parents began the long struggle to bring Miranda back.

Miranda attended public school but it was always a struggle. She was always on the lower end of the learning curve, even with the help of teachers and outside tutoring. However, through hard work, determination and support from her parents, Miranda was able to graduate from high school. “To see Miranda walk down that aisle was a miracle,” states Mickey. That graduation walk was only one of many miracles in Miranda’s life. The doctors who had seen her through her recovery were amazed at her progress. After a failed attempt at junior college, the family tried to get some sort of assistance for Miranda from many different agencies, but for one reason or another she failed to qualify. Noting that a serious brain injury affects different people in different ways, David says, “Miranda has very good math skills. It seemed that her injury affected her judgment more than anything else, and that wasn’t easily measured on the tests she took to qualify for different programs.” The Moaks were in a constant struggle trying to find some program for their young daughter that would give her a reason to get up in the morning. Miranda’s self esteem had suffered through her trials, with no help from thoughtless peers who were always quick to point out her differences. It was having a negative effect on the whole family. “There were days when we just wanted to give up,” states David. “We knew there had to be something out there to help her have a better life.”

“At this point we were told to contact our local MDRS office,” states David. “We just needed something to help her self-esteem. We didn’t care if she made a dime as long as she was given something to keep her busy.” The staff at MDRS started immediately to help the Moaks with a plan that would help Miranda meet her goals. It was determined that she wanted to do computer type work. The best place for Miranda to get this type of training was at the Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Quest program. Miranda and her parents spent four weeks in Jackson as she learned computer and secretarial skills. When Miranda returned to Brookhaven, the job placement specialist at MDRS started a four-month search to find Miranda a job in the local area. Finally, Miranda was placed in a part time position at the Bank of Brookhaven. “Finding the job for Miranda just about saved our lives,” states David. “I don’t know if it’s been better for us or for Miranda. She is not the same person. Employment has been the biggest thing in her life to bring her back. Miranda feels good about her self, drives herself to work and even has her own checking account. We had no idea we would be where we are today.”

“When MDRS contacted us,” said Shannon Aker, Senior Vice President, Bank of Brookhaven, “they told us about their program to assist businesses in hiring people with disabilities.” Although the bank thought it was a wonderful program, they were hesitant to hire Miranda because each employee had been hand picked for the Bank of Brookhaven. The MDRS job specialist encouraged the staff at the Bank of Brookhaven to see if there were any job duties that weren’t getting done; and, if so, to consider hiring Miranda for these. She explained that many busy employees have an extra ten percent of their job responsibilities they are unable to get completed in a normal day. This is sometimes perfect work for someone with a disability. Convinced that she could contribute in some small way, Miranda was the first person outside the initial group hired by the Bank of Brookhaven. MDRS provided a job trainer to work with Miranda for several weeks until she felt comfortable enough with her job duties, and then left her to do her work. “The better we have gotten to know Miranda the more responsibilities we have been able to give her. She is able to do much more than we first thought,” says Shannon. “MDRS stays in contact with us to make sure there are no problems. We haven’t had any but we know they’ll be there for us if we need them,” continues Shannon. The people at the Bank of Brookhaven believe that hiring Miranda has been one of the best things they have done. “It’s been good for our people to see that you can put someone with a disability to work. She is a valuable member of our team,” Shannon adds. “Sometimes the teacher learns more than the student, and I think that’s the way we all feel about Miranda.”