Sophie Kubowicz
My name is Sophie Kubowicz, I am 32 years of age and, as you can see from my photo, I may look a little different compared to most people. That’s because I was born with “Desbuquois Syndrome”, named after a French Professor who studied this phenomena in the 1960’s. I was quite a rare event with only 21 other cases reported worldwide and one other here in Newcastle, Australia. It mainly involves short stature, which leads to other related issues and causes additional problems in my life, but nothing I haven’t been able to conquer. Getting about is difficult and reaching things has always been a challenge, but I continuously find different ways of tackling these challenges and have discovered along the way that I don’t always need expensive gadgets to support me. Quite often a plastic stool or a mini step-ladder works.
I was raised in the small town of Dunedoo, Central West NSW, amongst a population of 800. This proved to be great grounding for me as I was a well-supported and very active member of our community. This involvement led to after school hour’s employment which continued until after completion of my high school studies and throughout the first course of my Business Administration. I have completed all the courses in Business Administration such as Certificates II to IV. Diploma in Administration and also Certificate III in Business Administration (Medical). These courses included training in bookkeeping.
I loved my hometown but at age 18 decided it was time to have a sea-change. I came to Port Macquarie not only because it is a beautiful town and has family support here for me, but also with great hope that I would secure employment in the Administration Industry. The friendliness of locals made making friends easy. My family and friends are always amazed at how many people I do know and constantly greet me wherever I go. I have an excellent memory for names and faces.
Therefore I have plenty of social opportunities here, but unfortunately not so much in the employment sector. I put myself out there by engaging in different types of Voluntary work around Port Macquarie.
In June 2016 I decided to branch out and start my own business ‘Short and Swift’ , Admin Support Services, performing tasks that most people find tedious and time consuming, whereas I LOVE it! Being able to make life easier for people by sorting and recording their documents is extremely satisfying to me.
Some potential clients or employers might worry about hiring me because of my disabilities. It’s hard to help people realise that I am not fragile… that I won’t break… and while I may look like a child, I am a fully grown young adult fully responsible for all I do. I am also very lucky to have been born in the digital era that we all enjoy/love/hate. Wi-Fi is available to make life easier in many ways. It enables me to work comfortably without making major changes to office structures; it also makes me able to work from home, or anywhere in the world.
Because of my disability, it gives me me ongoing personal experience dealing with NDIS as a self-managed participant as well as professional experience in dealing with NDIS for a wide range of clients.
I hold a National Police Certificate. Certificate Number: NCHRC-2021-4338. Expiry: 19 January 2026
I hold Working with Children Check. Number: WWC1107774E. Expiry: 9 March 2027