Effingham Magazine

“But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in
that.”  1 Cor. 7:2

At 2 foot 11 inches tall, Brittany Stout may be a person of short stature,
but she is not short on faith or personality!  This outgoing, 16-year-old
is very willing to talk about being a small person, but she’d rather talk
about getting her driver’s permit (which she did recently).  In fact, once
you start talking to Brittany, you forget that you’re talking to someone
whom many people consider “different.”  Of course, for Brittany, different
means unique.
     “God makes everyone unique,” explained the high school sophomore.
“He just made my uniqueness more visible.”
     Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita (SED), which is the name of
Brittany’s condition, is a bone growth disorder that results in
dwarfism, skeletal abnormalities, and sometimes problems with vision
and hearing.  The name of this disorder indicates that it affects the
bones in the spine, the ends of bones, and that it is present from
birth.   About 1 in 95,000 babies are affected by SED.  Its cause is
linked to either a genetic mutation prior to conception or a
hereditary condition.  Both of Brittany’s parents, Stuart and Angie
Stout, are average height as is her older sister Stephanie.  Because
Brittany’s veins are so small, she is unable to give a blood sample
to determine from which side of the family she may have inherited her
condition.  Although she is curious, Brittany said it doesn’t really
matter.
     For Angie, having Brittany 16 years ago was a life-changing
experience.  “Having Brittany has changed my life because she has
softened my heart.”
     According to Brittany, however, the Stouts don’t treat their youngest
daughter any differently than they treat their oldest.  They haven’t
drastically modified their home and Brittany has always been expected
to adapt as needed.
     “If I want to get a glass from the top cabinet, I have to use a stool
to stand on,” explained Brittany.  “But sometimes I get lazy and ask
my mom to get it for me.”
     Angie is aware that many parents make their homes “little people
friendly,” but she wants Brittany prepared to live like an average
height person.
     “If anything happens to me and Stuart,” she added, “I want Brittany
to be able to live on her own and in a world that is obviously built
for tall people, not short people.”
     Of course, being really short does present its share of challenges,
but it also makes for some good stories.  When she was younger,
Brittany remembers taking the drawers out of her dresser and stacking
them to make steps so she could reach the top of her closet.  This
memory is vivid because her sister was the one their mom accused of
taking the drawers out and not putting them back.  Brittany said it
was several years later before she finally confessed!
     Another favorite story she tells is about the time she and her sister
were playing hide-n-seek in the house.
     “I was about five years old and had just had surgery on my neck so I
was wearing a halo brace,” Brittany sets the stage for the story.  “I
decided to hide in the dryer and when my sister found me, she turned
the dryer on.  I wasn’t hurt or afraid, but my dad walked in and
flipped out!”
     This fearless approach to life is something Cindy Knight, Brittany’s
former pre-k teacher, remembers vividly about her student.
     “After Brittany’s neck surgery, I went to her house to catch her up
on missed school work,” explained Knight. “She was wearing this huge,
metal halo brace around her head and jumping from the couch to the
chair like nothing was wrong!”
     Brittany admitted that she’s always been active.
     “And I am stubborn,” she added.  “I give a lot of my teachers credit
for encouraging me to be my own advocate.”
     Knight remembers letting Brittany leave early for lunch when she was
in pre-k so she wouldn’t get trampled in the crowd.
     “After several times when I found her still on the sidewalk talking
to someone when the rest of us were going to lunch, I stopped letting
her leave early,” explained Knight.  “She wasn’t worried about the
crowd or getting to the lunchroom early!  She was a real social
butterfly even back then,” added Knight.
     Because Brittany has gone from elementary to middle to high school
with many of the same people, she said she feels accepted at school
and in the community.  In fact, she can only remember two times in
her life when someone made fun of her in public.  Both times were in
middle school and both of those kids are now her good friends.
     “They both got in trouble for being rude to me,” remembered Brittany,
“but now we’re good friend and go to church together!”
     As an active member of the youth group at Springfield First Baptist,
Brittany said she has come to realize that she is blessed.
     “God made me the way I am for a reason,” she explained.  “I don’t
know why yet, but I will some day.”
     Helping Brittany tread the teenage years of self discovery for the
past three years has been her best friend, Destiny Mills.  The two
girls attend the same church and, according to Destiny, “Even when we
don’t have anything to do, we can usually find something to do.”
     Despite their height difference, Destiny, who is at least 5 foot 6
inches tall, said, “We’ve been around each other for so long,
sometimes I don’t even realize how much shorter Brittany is.”
     Of course, Brittany doesn’t let her size stop her from doing the
things all teenage girls like to do – such as getting her driver’s
permit and learning to drive with her dad.
     “We’re almost ready to install a pedal and brake extension in a Chevy
Lumina so I’ll have my own car to drive,” explained Brittany.  “Then
I’ll have to practice with my dad in a parking lot first – an empty
parking lot.”
     “Brittany’s dad is a CDL instructor,” chimed in Angie.  “He’ll have
to drive with her because I’m too much of a back-seat driver.  I’d
make both of us crazy!”
     In addition to learning how to drive, Brittany, who is a sophomore at
Effingham County High School, is doing well in school and is looking
forward to attending college in a few years.  She has several
interests, including reading, astronomy, sign language and radiation
therapy, but isn’t sure yet which one she’ll pursue as a career.  As
far as Brittany is concerned, her size is not an obstacle and her
goals are realistic.
     “I may be small,” she states matter-of-factly, “but I’m not any
different than anyone else.”
     Actor Billy Barty, the founder of Little People of America, Inc.
(LPA), shares Brittany’s philosophy, “We are people with all the
hopes, dreams, passions, and faults of everyone else,” said Barty.
     LPA, which Barty founded in 1957, is “dedicated to improving the
quality of life for people with dwarfism throughout their lives while
celebrating with great pride Little People’s contribution to social
diversity.  LPA strives to bring solutions and global awareness to
the prominent issues affecting individuals of short stature and their
families.”
      Brittany, her friends Destiny and Emily, and her parents have
attended two LPA conferences, and while they enjoy the interaction with
other people of short stature, they don’t agree with the attitude some
little people have.
     “A few people we’ve met at the conferences feel like the world owes
them something because they’re little,” explained Brittany.  “I don’t
feel that way at all.”
     Just because Brittany sees the world from a different perspective,
she doesn’t think it’s unfair that she’s short and she understands
why people stare at her.
     “I’d rather have them ask me questions and talk to me than stare,”
added Brittany, “but it doesn’t bother me.’
     With that kind of attitude, very supportive friends and family and a
smile as big as she is, there’s no doubt that whatever she decides to
do, Brittany Stout will do it with confidence and in her own unique
way!