Always Looking Up

This week's episode is extra-special because it is part one of a two-part episode. I sat down with fashion designer Kathy D. Woods and her husband, actor Dana Michael Woods. Over the next two weeks we discuss family, faith, fashion and adversity.

Follow Kathy: Instagram: @kathydwoods Website: www.kathydwoodsstore.com 

Follow Dana: Website: Oh So Small - Dana Michael Woods IMDb: Dana Michael Woods

Follow and Support Grace 4 Champions: Instagram: @grace4champions Website: https://www.grace4champions.org 

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin 

In this week’s episode I sat down with Martino Cartier. Martino is a celebrity hair stylist and philanthropist. We discuss the impact he and his non-profit Wigs and Wishes has made over the last ten years and how we are both striving to make the world a better and more beautiful place.

Follow Martino: Instagram: @martinocartier 

Follow Wigs And Wishes: Instagram @wigsandwishes Website: https://wigsandwishes.org

Support Wigs And Wishes: Text DONATE or VOLUNTEER to (856) 582-6600

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin 

In this week’s episode I am sitting down with Maria Town. Maria is the President and CEO of the American Association of People With Disabilities. Prior to joining AAPD, Maria served as the Senior Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement under President Obama where she managed the White House’s engagement with the disability community and older Americans. We discuss her work at the American Association of People With Disabilities, disability identity, how everyone can help fulfill the promise of the ADA and why it's important to know about our past in order to create future change.  

Follow Maria: Instagram: @maria_town Twitter: @maria_m_town 

AAPD: https://www.aapd.com

Follow AAPD: Instagram: @aapdofficial Twitter: @AAPD

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was produced and edited by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I am sitting down with Gabi though you may know her as Lil Gabi D. Gabi is a digital content creator, using her platforms to advocate for dwarfism awareness. We discuss the portrayal of little people in the media, the perpetuation of certain stereotypes, and why representation matters.

Follow Gabi: Instagram: @lilgabid Twitter: @lilgabid TikTok: @lilgabid YouTube: Lil Gabi D

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin. 

In this week’s episode I am sitting down with Mark Povinelli. Mark is an actor and activist, currently serving as the President of Little People of America. Mark’s credits include Modern Family, Mad Dogs, My Dinner With Hervé, and Water For Elephants. As President of the Board, Mark is the face of LPA and oversees the board and various committees, along with presiding over all national meetings. We discuss his roles as an actor and an activist, the issues affecting the little person community, and the importance of LPA.

Follow Mark: Instagram: @markpovinelli IMDb: Mark Povinelli

Follow LPA: Instagram: @littlepeopleofamerica Facebook: Little People Of America Website: https://www.lpaonline.org 

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected] 

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I am sitting down with Nancy Volpe Beringer. Nancy is a fashion designer who competed on season 18 of Project Runway, making it all the way to the finale. Since then, she has launched The Vault by Volpe Beringer, an online luxury resale store that caters to both the able-bodied and disabled. She believes in sustainability and adaptability- that fashion can and should include everyone. We discuss her time on Project Runway, The Vault, and why adaptive design is the now of fashion, not the future.

Follow Nancy: Instagram: @nancyvolpeberinger Website: https://www.nancyvolpeberinger.com 

Follow The Vault By Volpe Beringer: Instagram: @thevaultbyvolpeberinger Website: https://www.thevaultbyvolpeberinger.com

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin 

In this week’s episode I am sitting down with Lucy Jones. Lucy is a fashion designer who focuses on solution-based design. In 2017 she founded FFORA, an adaptive fashion accessories label of which she is the CEO. She also happens to be one of my best friends here in New York City. We discuss FFORA, disability in fashion, and what it really means to be an ally to the disability community. 

Follow Lucy: Instagram: @lucyjonesdesign . Website: https://www.lucyjonesdesign.com 

Follow FFORA: Instagram: @fforaofficial . Website: https://liveffora.com 

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: https://www.jillianilana.com 

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin. 

In that week's episode I am in the hot seat. My brother Ben, who is also the show's editor and producer, sat in the host's seat and asked me questions about what being a little person means to me. I had no knowledge of the questions being asked and nothing was off-limits. We discussed growing up in a world where I was often the only little person in the room, how I almost became an athletic trainer, and how the representation of little people in the media affects the real world.

Follow me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: www.jillianilana.com 

Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

In this week’s episode I am talking to Kelsey Lindell. Kelsey is a disability advocate and fitness influencer. In August she was named Well+Good’s first ever disabled trainer of the month. On a daily basis Kelsey uses her platforms to combat ableism, a prejudice that no one wants to talk about and affects everyone. We discuss our disabled experiences, the many forms of ableism, and the changes we want to see and create in the world.

Follow Kelsey: Instagram: @kelsey_lindell Twitter: @KelseyELindell Website: https://www.kelseylindell.com

Sign Up: Dismantling Your Internal Ableism

Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast Website: www.jillianilana.com 

Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin

To start, I want to issue a trigger warning. This week’s episode talks about sexual harassment and sexual assault. If these are triggers for you, please feel free to skip this episode.

I am starting by talking to Stacie Lick, a family friend and Lieutenant in the Gloucester County Special Victims’s Unit, basically a real-life Olivia Benson. We are discussing disability and sexual assault- the statistics, the laws that address these crimes, and resources that are available for victims. After our conversation I share my story.

Learn More: 

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): https://www.rainn.org

NDRN (National Disability Rights Network): https://www.ndrn.org

Follow Me: 

Instagram: @jill_ilana ; @alwayslookingup.podcast 

Website: www.jillianilana.com 

Email: [email protected]

This episode was edited and produced by Ben Curwin