Despite being born with no hands and only one foot Tuesday Mennie has always been determined to succeed at everything in her life.
None more so than her working career.
The 34-year-old was born with moeibus syndrome. It is a condition that mainly affects the muscles that control facial expression and eye movement but in some cases can mean being born with missing limbs.
Despite growing up with no hands and getting fitted with a prosthetic leg from the knee down at the age of five she’s always tried her best to keep a positive outlook on life.
Never has she allowed her disability to hold her back in the workplace.
Positive experiences at Glencraft
For the past 10 years she has worked for Aberdeen social enterprise Glencraft with her job latterly being marketing assistant.
She said: “On the whole I’ve had a very positive experience with nothing negative to say about my career.
“I don’t feel it’s held me back at all and I can do everything normally.”
Glencraft, which manufactures luxury mattresses and other soft furnishings, supports 26 jobs and more than 80% of its staff are visually impaired or have some other form of disadvantage in relation to health or socio-economic challenges.
Tuesday said: “It’s nice to be part of a place with core values to help people with disabilities. It’s a very supportive place to work.
“When applying for jobs in the past, I often worried that an employer might not take me seriously if they were aware of my disability.
“Fears of rejection often consumed my thoughts and I once believed that by not mentioning my disability, I would be giving myself a better chance of reaching the interview stage.”
Lived a normal life
Tuesday grew up in the Tillydrone area of Aberdeen going to Donbank Primary and then Bankhead Academy.
She said: “Moeibus mostly only affects people’s facial expressions but I was one of the limited edition to have missing limbs as well.
“I had a really positive childhood and didn’t get bullied. I have nothing negative to say about my childhood.
“I’ve grown up like this so it’s been normal life for me.”
Importance of disability scheme
Tuesday, who started off working at Glencraft as a volunteer, is proud to see the charity take a stand as a Disability Confident Employer.
The UK Government supported scheme is aimed at encouraging employers to recognise the talents that a disabled person could bring to their team and look to hire more people with various disabilities.
Tuesday, who lives with cat Denton and dog Hamish, said: “All organisations should be part of a disability confident team because having a disability and applying for a job can be nerve-wracking.
“If you see they’ve got the badge it is a huge sense of relief because you know they’ll be a supportive place to work.
“It’s important to understand that employing someone with a disability shouldn’t be seen as an act of charity; it’s the act of a business that wants to be inclusive by finding the skills and experience within everyone and supporting everyone to reach their full potential.”
‘Tuesday is a hugely valuable member of our team’
Glencraft managing director Donald MacKay has been hugely impressed with Tuesday’s work ethic.
He said: “Tuesday is a hugely valuable member of our team. As an organisation we benefit from her commitment, knowledge and expertise and she has a great sense of humour which helps keep the workplace fun for all of us.
“She is a great example of what makes Glencraft a family as much as it is a place of work.”
Conversation