Rebekah O'Hara was relieved to receive her Paralympic torch relay outfit well in advance of her scheduled run with the flame in the Avenues on Thursday.
It gave her mom plenty of time to snip and tuck the costume to fit O'Hara's adult 3-foot-9-inch height. Same with the one her 9-year-old adopted Romanian sister will wear when she carries the flame.
"They were huge," O'Hara said.
Born with dwarfism, the 24-year-old Orem woman hasn't let her diminutive stature alter the lifestyle she desires to lead. She teaches skiing and snowboarding at the annual Little People of America ski camp at Park City and had hopes of competing in the 2002 Paralympics. But marriage and motherhood ? she and her husband David have a 10-month-old son ? are her priorities now.
"I have a big boy on my hands," she said, explaining that Ryan somehow missed the little people gene. "He's already half his mother's size."
O'Hara and her sister Olivia Wood, also born with dwarfism, are among 100 people who will take part in the Paralympic "Journey of Fire" through Salt Lake City on Thursday. They will use the same torches used in the Olympic relay, though the torches now bear the Paralympic logo.
"I think the Paralympics are so important to people with disabilities," O'Hara said. "It shows them they can go beyond their disabilities."
The Paralympic flame did not originate in Greece but in 15 Utah cities that over four days lit lanterns scheduled to converge Wednesday night at the Salt Lake City-County Building.
The one-day relay begins there Thursday at 10 a.m. Stops en route to opening ceremonies at Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium for lighting of the Paralympic caldron include the state Capitol, Liberty Park (for the dedication of an all-abilities children's play area), Shriners Hospital and the LDS Church Administration Building.
Each torch carrier was chosen from among more than 225 nominees. One is blind. Another is both deaf and blind. Several have autism. Six use walkers and 27 are in wheelchairs.
Ken Paulson lost his left leg to a cancerous bone tumor 17 years ago.
The fear of losing a limb ? Will my job suffer? Will I still enjoy life?? was worse than actually being without it, he said. Unless a person has experienced a disability, it's hard to understand "it's not all that bad," he said.
"It is something you can get through and still have a happy, healthy and productive life," said Paulson, an avid golfer who shot a hole-in-one at the British Amputee Open last August.
But it's not something one can endure alone. He credits his wife Amelia and daughters Katherine and Stephanie for helping him stay upbeat.
Paulson, 60, has spent the past 16 months working on a project to help disabled children have more fun.
The "All Abilities Play Park" at Liberty Park will be dedicated Thursday as part of the torch relay. Paulson served as project chairman for the Rotary Club, which split the $700,000 cost with Salt Lake City to build the playground.
The play area features wide walkways for wheelchairs, elevated sandboxes, rubberized surfaces and musical instruments to bang on. The second phase to be completed in May will include a water feature.
"I'm just so juiced about this park," he said.
As part of the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Paulson, who walks with aid of a prosthesis, will carry the Paralympic torch.
"It's really quite an honor," he said. "The Paralympics is such a fantastic movement."
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