The blue-and-white highway sign for the eastbound rest stop near here displays more than the standard icon of a person in a wheelchair, indicating facilities are accessible to people who can't walk. The sign also shows a person standing behind a horizontal rectangle, preparing to perform a task. The second icon signals that this rest area along Interstate 80 in western Iowa has a bathroom equipped with a full-size changing table, making it an oasis for adults and older children who use diapers because of disabilities.
"It's a beacon of hope," said Nancy Baker Curtis, whose 9-year-old son, Charlie, has a disability that can leave him incontinent. "I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, we're finally there.'" The white changing table is 6 feet long and can be lowered and raised with a handheld controller wired to an electric motor.
When not in use, the table folds up against the wall. The table was recently installed as part of a national effort to make public bathrooms more accessible in places like airports, parks, arenas, and gas stations. Without such options, people with disabilities often wind up being changed on bathroom floors, in cars, or even on the ground outside.
Many families hesitate to go out because of the lack of accessible restrooms. "We all know somebody who's tethered to their home by bathroom needs," Baker Curtis said. She doesn't want her son's life to be limited that way.
"Charlie deserves to be out in the community." She said the need can be particularly acute when peop.