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Independence. If you have it, you are more fortunate than you probably know.

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If you've ever lost it, or never had it to begin with, you know how confining life can sometimes be.

Without independence, you can be cut off from the world and you can have little control over your own life.

With it, the whole world opens up.

Last week, we published two stories that dealt with independence for people who have experienced life's limitations.

Jobs Unlimited held its 20th annual employer recognition night on Wednesday.

For a quarter of a century, Jobs Unlimited and local companies have worked together to open doors and minds to the contributions that can be made by people with physical and mental challenges. More than 600 people have benefited from that willingness to foster some independence in those with such challenges.

Dave Rutt is one such person. He sought help from Jobs Unlimited when he couldn't find a job, despite a diploma from CompuCollege. He went to work at ADI and has had many promotions since then.

But it's not solely the promotions, or even the money in some cases. It's the independence that having a job fosters. It's the personal growth, the self-esteem, the satisfaction of doing a job well. It's the recognition and the acceptance.

Psychologists will tell you that a basic desire of virtually every human being is acceptance. When you have been denied, and then are afforded the opportunity to join the human race in the fundamental activity of work and payment for that work, you are granted a measure of societal acceptance that is irreplaceable.

The other story we want to highlight is a new business success. The BAT mobile - Brunswick Accessible Taxi - has been open for a few weeks now, and by all accounts, it's quickly earning the appreciation of its clientele. BAT is already enjoying repeat customers and a contract with the province to provide service to one of its social development clients. We anticipate there will be more of that to come.

The BAT mobile provides taxi service to those who, because of the cumbersome equipment they require to get around, can't use a regular taxi.

The existing Dial-A-Bus service met a need for getting people to medical appointments, for example, but it had its limitations. The BAT mobile has longer hours of service, and provides that service for whatever the client wants - dinner, the movies, visiting friends, and so on - you know, all the places the rest of us go without a thought of how we will get there.

The cost to take the BAT mobile is more than a regular taxi would charge because of the special equipment necessary to move wheelchairs, for example, but the independence it provides is priceless.

We who do not face such challenges might have little idea of the importance of being free and able to work, to travel, to shop, to fund our own lives, or even to eat in a restaurant.

There was a time when people with physical and mental challenges were virtual hostages in their homes. They were invisible. Now their presence in our community doesn't even raise an eyebrow. And that's exactly how it should be.