Jennifer Moore
Therapeutic Philosophy Paper
November 21, 2013
When I was in high school I volunteered as a candy striper at the hospital in my town. On
my breaks every day I would walk by this woman playing Wii with some of the hospice patients
in the hospital. I always thought to myself “wow that’s so interesting I could see myself doing
that.” I never realized she was a CTRS until I came to Longwood and learned about the amazing
Therapeutic Recreation field. I came to Longwood undecided and stayed that way until the
beginning of my sophomore year. I appreciate therapeutic recreation so much because for the
majority of my life I was very unclear on what my future job would be. Now that I have decided
there is no doubt in my mind that I have found where I need to be. Along with always having a
love for helping other I was also drawn to the health services field particularly therapeutic
recreation because my father has multiple sclerosis. I understand how valuable being proactive is
because it personally affects my life through my father. Leisure is valuable and 100% necessary
in the lives of people with disabilities.
My personal philosophy to leisure is very similar to the leisure ability model. Without
leisure in the life of a person with a disability they may feel lost and believe that their disability
is controlling their life. They may believe their disability is making leisure impossible for them.
Leisure allows individuals with disabilities to have a well-rounded life, “Every human being
needs, wants, and deserves leisure. Leisure presents opportunities to experience mastery, learn
new skills, meet new people, deepen existing relationships, and develop a clearer sense of self.
Leisure provides the context in which people can learn, interact, express individualism, and self-
actualize” (Stumbo, 1998). I believe that people with disabilities should focus on what they can
do instead of what they can’t. It is still possible for them to learn and grow and the leisure ability
model supports that idea. It isn’t always easy to understand the benefits of leisure, find
appropriate leisure pursuits, and have the resources to participate. With help individuals with
disabilities can be taught how to do all these things which will in turn create a well-rounded
individual with a high quality of life. A good example I experienced in my life was with a
gentleman in a wheel chair at a facility I was volunteering. We were doing a Zumba type
workout where the individuals use their arms to work out instead of their legs. This particular
gentleman refused to dance because he was in a wheel chair. He insisted that it was not possible
for him to dance sitting down. After some encouragement from the staff members and me we got
him to participate in the activity. Once the program ended I believe the gentleman did enjoy the
activity and got to exercise in a social atmosphere. This is a perfect example of how people with
disabilities sometimes view their disability. They don’t realize all the things they can still do and
be successful at. This is one of the main reason I love therapeutic recreation. It gives people who
may view themselves or their bodies as useless a chance to succeed and push themselves.
Another very personal example I have witnessed in my life is with my father. He is newly
disabled and is having a hard time with coming to turns with his disease. He refuses to adapt or
modify any of is ADL’s or IADL’s. His refusal to accept his diseases has shown me how
stubborn individuals with disabilities can be when participating in leisure activities. I understand
and have personally dealt with the reluctance so I understand that my job as a CTRS may be a
struggle at times but it will be even more rewarding when I can positively affect the lives of my
clients.
While working with people with disability the progress is often very slow with
breakthroughs being few and far between. This however makes the small steps even more
powerful in therapeutic recreation. With that being said, I view my future contributions to the
field of therapeutic recreation as somewhat minuscule to the view of other but very compelling
for me. The main contribution I wish to give to the field of therapeutic recreations is making an
impact on my client’s lives. I’ve heard many CTRS’ talk about the bond they share with their
clients. It is a bond that last a life time and the effect you have on them is never forgotten. I have
experienced this on a small scale with all of my volunteer experiences. I worked with a young
man over the summer for an extended period of time. Once the summer was over and I came
back to school I received a letter from him saying how much I meant to him. It was then that I
realized if I can have such a large impact on the life of a person that I spent a few days with how
large will it be for someone I spend every day with at a future job. Therapeutic Recreation for me
is about the small day to day step, working with people who at times can be ignored and rejected
from society to make their lives more meaningful. I am excited to one day have the opportunity
to have an effect on my clients lives in a positive manner. Another contribution I wish to give to
TR is to have the opportunity to mentor a TR college student. Without the help of the Longwood
university therapeutic recreation staff I would not be as prepared for future employment as I am
today. After my internship this summer I am sure I will be even more prepared thanks in part to
the staff I intern under. I want to have the opportunity to help a student like so many people have
helped me. This may be as simple as taking junior and senior interns and teaching them all the
amazing things I’ve learn through years of experience in the therapeutic recreation field. To have
the opportunity to help support the growing foundation of TR would be a very powerful
contribution in my eyes. The last contribution I wish to give would be to my future employment.
I wish to have a positive effect on the facility and be able to help it grow and develop by using
all the things I learned at Longwood and at my internships to help them have the best therapeutic
reaction program possible. It is a very common theme I have noticed that sometimes TR services
get stuck offering the same types of programs year after year with little variety. I witnessed this
personally with my summer volunteer work. A lot of the programs they offered were supposed to
be part of the therapeutic reaction field but they were actually not. I would love to be the
opportunity to gain the knowledge to be able to help programs that are struggling by adding new
ideas. Having the ability to positively affect a struggling program and bring it back to life in my
eyes would be a great contribution.
I view achievements I will give to the field of TR similar to my contributions in that they
may not seem grand to others, but they will be meaningful to me and my development in TR.
One of the main things I wish to achieve would be to earn a promotion to a manager or
supervisorial position at my job. This would be a very clear marker of my success as a CTRS,
this would give me the opportunity to be in control and have the biggest effect on my clients and
their wellbeing. My second achievement is more of a dream. I wish to not just me a manager but
to own my own facility. For example, to start an in home care agency that sends CTRS’ from
house to house to work with clients, or and animal assisted therapy center possibility with
therapeutic riding. This would be my ultimate goal in TR, to have this achievement would mean
I had the ability to take risks and go for what I want. Starting small businesses are never easy and
something like the programs I wish to start would relay heavily on volunteers and donations. My
final achievement would be to go to graduate school and received my masters degree in a
program that supports my therapeutic recreation degree. My original plan when starting my
classes in TR was to get a master degree in occupational therapy or physical therapy, something
that was a different health service but would add onto my TR degree. I have since changed my
mind however, after getting more involved and seeing everything TR has to offer. I see the
differences between TR, OT, and PT, and I would not wish to diminish my TR degree my added
one of the others. Instead I have decided it would be most beneficial for me to go to grad school
and get a degree in management or business marketing, something that will support my TR
degree much better. This type of degree will also help me become a well-rounded person and
give me the opportunity to achieve all of my goals. Future achievements like these make me
excited for my future career in TR, it’s going to be hard work but it will be worth it in the end!
Site Sources
Dattilo, J., Douglas, K., Williams, R. (1998). Theraputic Reaction Journal. A PsychologicallyBased Service Delivery Model for Therapeutic Recreation. Vol 32. (No 4).
Van Andel, G., (July 1998). Theraputic Reaction Journal. TR service delivery and TR outcome
models.
Stumbo, N., Peterson, C., (1998). The Leisure Ability Model. Vol 32. (No 2).