Ever since he was young, Joshua had a talent for mechanical work. Growing up in Central Maine, he enjoyed working on cars and fixing things around the house. After graduation from high school, he soon found work at a local elevator repair company. Joshua quickly mastered the trade and excelled in his job. He made a great salary, was respected by his colleagues and genuinely enjoyed going to work every day.

One day, after five and a half years on the job, he was completing some routine work on a dumbwaiter. Suddenly, it fell, sending over 700 pounds crashing onto his back. Although he was not in a lot of pain, he knew that something was very wrong, as he lost feeling in his legs. Joshua stayed conscious throughout the ordeal. He recalls that, "I even was able to instruct members of the fire and rescue squad on how to get the dumbwaiter off my back."

At the hospital, doctors confirmed Joshua's initial fears - he had suffered a total spinal injury and would be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

While he has been aided by workers' compensation, his disability had a significant impact on his family. After the accident, his mother temporarily left work to take care of Joshua, which lowered the family's income during a time in which medical expenses were piling up. Now, three years later, through tremendous determination, rehabilitation and a positive spirit, Joshua is able to get around and is even planning on finding a job.

Looking back on the accident, Joshua says, "you never know from one day to the next what will happen." He continues, "Being in my twenties at the time of the accident, protecting myself from disability was not on my mind. I hope people will hear my story and learn about ways of protecting themselves."

Plan ahead to help protect yourself in the event of an accident or injury.

To protect the privacy of those impacted by a disability, only first names are used and the photo is not of the actual individual profiled.