Little People Plan Special Field Day
Cheryl Marie Murphy has big ambitions, a larger-than-life personality and a disarming smile. If only she could reach the coin slots on the vending machines at her high school, life would be nearly perfect.
Murphy, a 16-year-old University High student, is teen coordinator for the Orange County chapter of Little People of America, a group founded by actor Billy Barty in 1957.
She hopes the Orange Blossom Chapter’s first track and field event Saturday, planned as an annual event for dwarf athletes of all ages, will bring other little people “out of the closet” into a larger world.
“There’s so few of us around, when we see each other we don’t know what to do, we don’t know what to say,” said Murphy, who is 3 feet, 10 inches tall. “I used to be like that.”
Her involvement with the University High theater department as a technical crew member has helped her win friends and change her life, Murphy said.
“I had such a hard time making friends. In my sixth-grade year, people would physically abuse me because I was different,” Murphy said. “They used to put me in garbage cans. They used to throw milk at me and treat me like I was in a circus.”
Even with her improved social life, she said, everyday tasks can be a challenge. “The thing I hate the worst are pay phones and vending machines,” she said. “Sometimes I get so thirsty, and I need something to drink. There’s a vending machine, but you can’t reach the money slot. You have to ask somebody to help, but some people are really rude and just won’t do it.
“Some bathroom doors are so heavy that you can’t get out until someone else comes in,” she said. “That’s happened to me so many times at restaurants. It makes me mad to get stuck in a bathroom.”
About 50 athletes are expected to take part in Saturday’s meet from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at University High. It is one of several seasonal events coordinated by the county organization in addition to regular meetings.
“This is a way to give our kids a more level playing field,” said Joanna Campbell, mother of a 3-year-old who has achondroplasia, the most common type of dwarfism. “A lot of our kids are really athletic and really strong, but they have to compete on average height teams.”
Campbell also hopes the event will encourage others to join the organization, which has about 150 members.
“There’s a misconception that you only join this organization if you have problems,” Campbell said. “But a big part of our organization is just about having fun.”
For more information on the Orange Blossom Chapter of Little People of America, call (714) 224-5227.