Adventures in Accessibility

Transcript: http://bit.ly/3ZM5qkS

Christy Kinsey (maiden name Wise) was born in Reno, Nevada and grew up with a twin sister and younger brother, spending all their time skiing and playing sports. For college, Christy attended the United States Air Force Academy where she ski raced and played club softball. In 2009, she commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force and in 2011, she received her pilot wings to fly the HC-130. She spent the next couple years stationed in Valdosta Georgia, and deployed to Afghanistan and Italy.

On April 11, 2015, Christy was visiting her friends for the weekend in Destin, Florida and she was on her paddleboard in a protected cove behind her friends’ house when she was struck by a hit-and-run boat driver. Although Christy’s life was miraculously saved, she lost her right leg above the knee in the incident.

Christy was determined not to let this change her life so she fought to stay in the Air Force and continue flying. She became the sixth Air Force pilot (and first female) to return to flying after an amputation. Along the way, she won 11 medals in the DOD Warrior Games and competed in two international Invictus Games. Humbled by all the support she received since the first night in the hospital, Christy and her twin sister Jessica started a non-profit, One Leg Up On Life, that provides prosthetic limbs to patients in Haiti.

Christy’s courage and determination to continue her Air Force career while also using her experience to help others exemplifies tremendous resiliency and strength of character.

Learn more about the One Leg Up On Life Foundation:
http://www.oneleguponlife.org/

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: bit.ly/3J6QMxx

This episode was recorded on February 15, 2023. Less than three weeks later, on March 4, 2023, we received with great sadness the news that Judy Heumann passed away.

As you will hear in this episode, Judy was fiercely and continually devoted to strengthening the disability rights movement and calling in others to do the same. She fought the good fight for disabled people throughout her entire life. She was instrumental in advancing and defending disability rights at the national and international levels—truly a powerhouse for our community. To say her contributions are lasting is an understatement.

She will be deeply missed, and we are so honored to have gotten to spend some time with her. We send our deepest condolences to Judy’s family, friends, and anyone who was affected by her work and feels her loss, which is many.

Learn more about Judy:
judithheumann.com

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Wilfred Romero has been a resident of Colorado Springs since June 2001. He has 35 years of experience leading non-profit organizations that provide services to individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Wil holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Management in Human Resources.

In Wil’s previous position with Booz Allen Hamilton, he provided training and technical assistance to non-profit agencies’ management teams as a Grantee Specialist. Wil’s area of expertise is program Design and Management.

Wil considers one his greatest achievements to be the opening of a Boys & Girls Club of Cheyenne in the low-income neighborhood where he grew up. The Boys & Girls Club of Cheyenne now serves over 3,000 youth members in Cheyenne, WY.

Wil is now the Executive Director of The Arc Pikes Peak Region and is committed to leading the organization to new heights.

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

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Before starting the Runway of Dreams Foundation in 2014, Mindy spent 20 years working in fashion as a designer for the INC collection and as a stylist for Saks Fifth Avenue. Mindy was inspired to start Runway of Dreams after her son Oliver, who has Muscular Dystrophy, dreamed of wearing jeans like everyone else. After using her design skills to adapt jeans that met his needs and increased his confidence, she went on to conduct extensive research as to the modifications required to mainstream clothing to meet the needs of the largest minority in our world- people with disabilities.

In 2016, Mindy partnered with Tommy Hilfiger to make fashion history by creating the first mainstream adaptive clothing line in the market. Runway of Dreams was founded on the basis that clothing is a basic human need. The foundation develops, delivers, and supports initiatives providing a platform to broaden the reach of mainstream adaptive clothing and promote people with disabilities (PWDs) in the fashion industry. This year’s Runway of Dreams fashion show was recognized as one of the top seven NYFW shows by Forbes, highlighting the latest designs from the Adaptive category featuring brands such as Kohl’s, Target, JCPenney, Zappos.com and Tommy Hilfiger.

Due to the overwhelming amount of requests Mindy received at Runway of Dreams from a multitude of brands and industries for connection to PWDs, in 2019, Mindy created GAMUT Management. GAMUT is a trailblazing consulting and talent management company that represents people with disabilities (PWDs), across the fashion, lifestyle, and entertainment industries.

GAMUT exists to lead brands towards doing better, more inclusive business, helping to engage with, and develop new products for PWDs. GAMUT works with a diverse range of clients including Adidas, Victoria’s Secret, Footlocker, Kohls & QVC.

Mindy has been featured in Newsweek’s “The Creative Class of 2019: Innovators,” and People magazine’s “Heroes Among Us: Making the Fashion Industry More Inclusive”. She has also been featured in USA Today, Parents Magazine, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Vogue Business, WWD, NBC’s Today, ABC’s Good Morning America & The View, Access, CNBC, Forbes, Hollywood Reporter and Fox News Channel.

An inspiring TED Talk speaker, Mindy has received numerous awards including Arc’s Catalyst Award for “Marketing Influencer of the Year”, Citrin Cooperman’s “Women at the Wheel Leadership Excellence Award”, the Association of Image Consultants “International Bravo Award” and Enable Inc.’s “Michael Graves Award for Creativity and Persistence”. Mindy has also been given the honor of ringing the bell at the New York Stock Exchange in recognition for her innovative work in the Adaptive space towards raising awareness and driving change for people with disabilities.

Mindy studied Fashion Design with a dual program at the University of Vermont and Fashion Institute of Technology.

TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/mindy_scheier_how_adaptive_clothing_empowers_people_with_disabilities?language=en

ABC The VIEW: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9KA-ftCtng

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://t.co/yMGsjRPUzg

Beth Finke loves to read and to write. She moderates the Easterseals national blog, and she writes books, too. Her book Writing Out Loud delves into the work she does leading memoir-writing classes for older adults in Chicago. Her first published book, a memoir called Long Time, No See, talks about her adjustment to blindness at age 26. Her second book, Safe and Sound, is a children’s book about seeing-eye dogs. Ever since it won an award for children’s literature from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Beth has kept busy visiting schools to talk with kids about disability awareness, service dogs, and teamwork with her guide dog, Luna.

In late 2021, Beth was busy writing textbooks for elementary school students. Those textbooks are part of a series of eight textbooks called “Understanding Disability” that was published by Cherry Lake Publishing Group. Each textbook is authored by a writer with a disability.

Connect with Beth:
https://bethfinke.com/

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://t.co/ucf7MzLLno

Nick Isenberg has had an impressive 54-year career as a radio, television, and print reporter in cities across America. He served as bureau chief for television stations in Cedar Rapids and Fort Myers, but the bulk of his reporting career has been spent in Colorado, lending his producing and reporting skills to dozens of news outlets in the state. Nick has also worked as a public information officer for the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, and public relations for Colorado Mountain College, and he currently produces independent documentaries.

In case his resume wasn't already impressive enough, Nick currently hosts and produces a podcast called The Tactile Traveler that seeks to empower blind and low-vision people to explore the world, and helps sighted friends see the world in a new way. Nick is totally blind and considered Deaf-Blind. He has called being a Deaf-Blind reporter a whole new sport.

Connect with Nick:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tactile-traveler/id1474833991

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://bit.ly/AIAe037

Today’s guest is Beth Leleck. In 2008, Beth was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. She was determined to maintain her mobility while living with the disease. Colorado, where Beth lives, is home to 58 mountains taller than 14,000 feet in height, known to locals as 14ers. In 14 summers, Leleck conquered all of Colorado’s 14ers and she raised more than $100,000 to fund multiple sclerosis research.

Connect with Beth:
https://mobile.twitter.com/bethleleck
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethleleck

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://bit.ly/AIAe036

Chai Feldblum is a long-time civil rights advocate and scholar. As Legislative Counsel to the ACLU AIDS Project in the late 1980s, Chai played a leading role in drafting and negotiating the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. She later played the same role on the ADA Amendments Act of 2008. Chai also led the drafting and negotiating of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a bill to prohibit discrimination in employment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

As a law professor at Georgetown Law, Chai created a Federal Legislation Clinic where she and her students helped non-profit organizations advance their legislative social justice goals. The Clinic’s clients included various disability organizations and Catholic Charities USA. Chai also founded and directed Workplace Flexibility 2010, an effort designed to bring employers and employees together on policy approaches to advance workplace flexibility.

Chai served as a Commissioner of the Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) from 2010 to 2019 where she played a significant role in establishing the rights of LGBTQ employees under existing sex discrimination laws, enhancing the employment of people with disabilities, protecting the rights of pregnant workers, and leading a proactive effort to prevent harassment in the workplace. From 2019 to 2021, Chai was a Partner and Director of Workplace Culture Consulting at Morgan Lewis, where she helped employers create safe, respectful, diverse and inclusive workplaces. She continues to consult with Morgan Lewis on selected projects.

In 2021, Chai became a free-lance civil rights advocate. She assists with legislative and regulatory work regarding civil rights, particularly for LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities and women. She also serves as Vice Chair of the AbilityOne Commission, a federal agency devoted to the employment of people with significant disabilities.

Chai attended Barnard College and Harvard Law School and clerked for Judge Frank M. Coffin on the First Circuit Court of Appeals and for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun.

Connect with Chai:
https://www.chaifeldblum.com/
https://twitter.com/chaifeldblum
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chai-feldblum-8882894/

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://bit.ly/AIAe035

Today’s guest is Andrés Gallegos. He is the Chairman of the National Council on Disability, appointed by President Biden. In addition, he is a shareholder at the law firm Robbins DiMonte (RD) and the Chair of their disability rights practice, where he concentrates on improving access to healthcare and wellness for persons with all types of disabilities, across the country. 

He is the immediate past Chairman of the Board of Directors of Access Living of Metropolitan Chicago, Chicago’s Center for Independent Living, and is a two-term past-member of the Statewide Independent Living Council of Illinois, having been appointed by the governor. He is also a board member of ADA 25 Advancing Leadership Institute, a Chicago-based non-for profit whose mission is to increase civic engagement and diverse leadership in the Chicago region by developing and building a network of leaders with disabilities.

Mr. Gallegos is the 2015 recipient of the Paul G. Hearne Leadership Award from the American Association of People with Disabilities. He has written numerous articles for national and state professional healthcare and legal organizations on matters relating to the application of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act. He is a highly-sought out lecturer on accessible healthcare and disability rights.

He graduated with Honors from the University of Southern Mississippi, with a B.S. in Business Administration, and he attained a Juris Doctorate from the St. Louis University School of Law. He is a veteran of the United States Air Force, serving honorably for 14 years.

Connect with Andrés:
https://robbinsdimonte.com/our-attorneys/andres-j-gallegos/

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!

Transcript: https://bit.ly/AIAe034

Today’s guest is Keah Brown. Keah is a journalist, author, studying actress and screenwriter. She is the recipient of Ulta Beauty’s Muse 100 award, Which is a celebration of 100 inspirational voices around beauty. She’s also one of The Root’s 100 most influential African Americans of 2018. Keah is the creator of the viral hashtag, #DisabledAndCute. Her work has appeared in Town & Country Magazine, Teen Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire UK, And The New York Times, among other publications. Her Debut essay collection, The Pretty One is out now. Her debut picture book, Sam’s Super Seats will be out Fall 2022 via Kokila books.

Connect with Keah:
https://keahbrown.com/
https://www.instagram.com/keah_maria/

The Pretty One: https://www.amazon.com/Pretty-One-Culture-Disability-Reasons/dp/1982100540/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1652820362&sr=8-2

Sam's Super Seats: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=keah+brown&crid=1Z1OLS3SDA4QY&sprefix=keah+br%2Caps%2C100&ref=nb_sb_ss_retrain-deeppltr_2_7

Connect with the Rocky Mountain ADA Center at https://rockymountainada.org/ or find us on social media. Don't forget to subscribe, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts!