In this episode, Danny was joined by Jim McDermott and Stephanie Bjorgan. First, Jim shares his story about being a father to his daughter, Mariel and how he has made the world a more inclusive place for her and others with disabilities. Jim has made it his mission to be involved in areas that he believes gives people with disabilities the opportunity to live an awesome ordinary lives, such as; the Care Changer, Glorious Golfers and much more. Later on in the episode, Stephanie Bjorgan joins us along with her son, Garrett. Stephanie is the CEO of Red Roof Retreat, which is a space for people with disabilities to go to when their caregivers need a break. As you will see in this episode, both Jim and Stephanie are really passionate about what they do and they try and make the world a better place for everyone.

In this Part 2 episode (see E29 for part1), Danny was joined by Kim Murray, a former member of the transitioning team at Temps Valley Children Centre in London, Ontario and also joined by Dr. Catelyn Cassidy a physiatrist with the Parkwood Hospital in London, Ontario. Danny and his guests spend a lot of time talking about the barriers and solutions of transitioning from pediatric to adult care. We let you know some of the benefits to transitioning and why we believe that it is the right thing to do when you are ready. We also discuss what to expect when you are ready to make that transition and the panelists share techniques to make it easier on you and your loved ones and so much more.

In this episode, Danny was joined by actress Shayla Brown, who is an up and coming actress within Theatre, T.V. and film. Shayla may be blind, but she doesn't let her blindness get in the way of her doing what she loves to do, as you will see in this episode. Shayla has worked with people such as Jason Momoa, Frances McDormand and Claire Foy. Shayla is also determined to make her dreams come true in the entertainment industry and wants other people to know that you can do anything you set your mind to, no matter what your disability is. I hope you enjoy this conversation and it inspires you to do something that you're scared of doing.

In this episode, Danny was joined by Sada Briant who is a mom of an individual with Autism. We discuss the journey that Sada and her family have been on which includes obstacles and milestones. As you will hear in this episode, Sada wears her "Autism Mom" shirt very proudly and is not ashamed of her son's diagnosis. I think this episode is for any kind of individual who is struggling with finding out about their disability and let's them know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. 

In this episode, Danny was joined by 3 guests; Amanda St. Dennis-Disability Activist, Carla Southward-Senior Lead, Knowledge Translation at Ontario Brain Institute and Dr. Darcy Fehlings-Head of the Division of Developmental Paediatrics, department of Paediatrics at University of Toronto, to discuss the transition from pediatrics to adult services for people living with disabilities. We talk about the different barriers that these individuals face when they are starting to transition and we find out that it's not the easiest road to travel on. The panel discusses a variety of solutions as well as share their own stories along the way. I think you are really going to enjoy this conversation and learn a lot as you listen. Possibilities is also in development of a part two of this conversation which will be coming up in a few months. If you want to learn more about some of the topics that we talk about, here is some information for you: Here is the transition online support on Holland Bloorview’s site. https://hollandbloorview.ca/services/programs-services/transitions 

My Transition App:

https://www.canchild.ca/en/research-in-practice/current-studies/apply-the-mytransition-app-in-transition-applyit-study/mytransition-app

My Ready Transition App:

https://www.child-bright.ca/readyornot#:~:text=With%20the%20READYorNot%E2%84%A2%20Brain,the%20transition%20of%20care%20journey.

Surrey’s Place Transitional Aged Youth:

https://www.surreyplace.ca/services/transitional-aged-youth/#:~:text=Transitional%20Aged%20Youth%20(TAY)%20is,either%20Surrey%20Place%20or%20St.

In this episode, Danny was joined by double amputee, David Connolly who is the Assistant Artistic & Educational Director at Drayton Entertainment. David talks about his long career in the arts and how he got started pursuing his dream in theatre. David has a passion for seeing people of all abilities pursue their dreams in whatever career they choose. David also talks about his latest project; Drayton Entertainment Youth Academy which gives youth of all abilities, the opportunity to explore the world of theatre and teach them all they need to know. The Drayton Youth Academy is offering programming all year round, so if you want to learn more, you can visit www.draytonentertainmentyouthacademy.com or follow them on Instagram @deyouthacademy

In this episode, Danny was joined by musician and actor, James Ian to talk about his new song 'Spaces' as well as his perspective on being in the entertainment industry and just so happening to have a disability. However, James tells us that we should not let our disabilities get in the way of following our dreams. We also discussed the representation of disability in the media and our opinions on that topic. If you want to keep up with James and what he's doing, you can follow him on Instagram at @JamesIanMusic or on Twitter at @JamesIanMusic and also Spaces is available on all streaming platforms. 

In this episode, Danny was joined by Velma Hamilton of Atwood, Ontario to talk about what it is like to have a loved one with a disability, to have their loved one in a group home for over 25 years and her journey of raising her daughter as well as her other children.  *Disclaimer- the audio in this episode isn't the greatest quality so we apologize for that, however, it's still a great message and very worth listening to.

In this episode, Danny was joined by special education teacher Derek Bunn to discuss some of the ways that he made his community of York region more inclusive for all people with all abilities. Danny and Derek spent a long time discussing Derek's project of building a mobile accessible washroom, which was developed after taking his class on a field trip where there wasn't a suitable space for looking after the needs of his students with disabilities. Derek now makes it his mission to make other areas accessible and advocates for people living with all kinds of different abilities. To find out more about Derek, visit the links below:

Petition for Scotiabank

https://www.change.org/p/get-physically-disabled-fans-off-the-washroom-floor-mlse-leafs-and-raptors

Upper Canada Mall Accessible Washroom

https://www.newmarkettoday.ca/local-news/first-fully-accessible-universal-washroom-opens-at-upper-canada-1897800

Latest Project:

https://chng.it/RRhN6MWhJk

In this episode, Danny was joined by Maria Galindo from the Lions Guide Dog Foundation of Canada. We discuss all things guide dogs, such as; how they get trained, how they are matched with their handlers and some useful tips that you need to know when you are deciding if a guide dog is right for you. If you want to know more about the program and how you can apply to get a guide dog, you can visithttp://www.dogguides.com if you are interested in seeing how the dogs get trained you can watch the video below   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FvqXfcd2ao&t=330s