Ajayi is personal hero of mine. He also has been an educator and entrepreneur in science and tech education for many years. His older sister, A'layi, has an amazing curiosity for life and values her a culturally rich environment. She is 12 years his senior and Ajayi's shares with us both her origin story and his, and as he says, "It's totally, 'How Stella Got Her Groove Back!'"

Also see the full unedited Video on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JU-ucyn1b2Q

Ajayi is personal hero of mine. He also has been an educator and entrepreneur in science and tech education for many years. His older sister, A'layi, has an amazing curiosity for life and values her a culturally rich environment. She is 12 years his senior and Ajayi's shares with us both her origin story and his, and as he says, "It's totally, 'How Stella Got Her Groove Back!'"

A Something Different Podcast Plus+

1. Artistic Expression is important. Where would humanity be without Art? Sometimes, in order to convey the messages that we carry inside ourselves, art is the only way that makes sense. My past self as a near professional poet has been called upon for this project for sure.

2. I wanted to pair the two poems because both Jon & I share that “Underdog” sentiment. And I feel they compliment each other well.

3. I added the transcription to both our poems: https://www.skyzlimit.org/blog

Full video of Jonathan Browns poem : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FA7knOG1TI

Full video of MY Abilities Poem : https://youtu.be/1EtWNTQTaYg

Welcome welcome to a New Year as we’re cruising along here in January — we’ve got a new president and fresh political atmosphere, a sense of relief for so many us.

So here comes another episode of the Sky’z The Limit podcast — and Holy schnickies , I am so excited to share Bobbi Christiensen and Becky Toliver story . They have an absolutely wonderful life tapestry that they have weaved together so beautifully. I know you’ll enjoy .

Bobbi and Becky Will tell you who they are and what they’re about, but some quick background to know is that they are both apart of the IDD community, and together they have overcome some intellectual disability challenges that are truly an inspiration to us all.

Listen in to hear about their words of wisdom, their trials and triumphs, and just hang out for some laughs as we navigate some technology oops-es along the way.

Which, I do have to preface , that as much effort as I tried to fixed the audio in post production editing , MYYYY voice sounds quite static-y and I apologize about that!! But, I’m not the one who matters in all of this, just tune me out if you have to! And take in all the wonderful energy from the lovely Bobbi Christensen and Becky Toliver .

Sky’z The Limit and beyond , over and out .

https://www.livewonderyears.com/

https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/neurodiversity-the-benefits-of-recruiting-employees-with-cognitive-disabilities?utm

Ooooooweeeeee! Jane And I Got To Talking!! Over an hour for an awesome conversation About. It. ALLLL. :)

Jane Miller has another beautiful story to share. Her twins Sarah and Steven (32) have both lived lives of challenges and privileges, Steven more Typical than Sarah’s life, but Jane gives us candid stories of her love and journey though it all.

Jane has some different perspectives on Inclusion and Community along with many many life lessons to learn from as we sit down and talk with this wonderful woman.

And just a heads up, we did do a “field recording” for this one outside, off of Arapohoe between Folsom and 28th at a nice little coffee shop patio spot on a blue sky sunny day in december in Boulder. So you might hear the birds chirping in the background…

Sky’z The Limit and beyond . Over n Out .

I trimmed the fat on this and got right to it :)

2:30 announcement of Ailsa Wonnacott

3:05 Ryan Presentation speech

9:45 Floor Opened up, and we hear from almost everyone:

-Lizzy & Carol Creech, Cynda Collins Arsenault, Eugenia Brady, Anna Steward, Mike, Jan, and Ailsa herself :)

36 minutes in total :)

What. An. Amazing. Episode. !!! First Bryce Magiera says a special hello!! But then,

Geoff takes us through his humble life of amazing volunteerism with the special needs population. He's been serving time in Boulder County for almost a decade. His story begins in high school in the Washington DC area, touches base in College at the University of Virginia alongside life long buddies and All American Soccer Player Katie Kasher, whom they all share in common the impactful life lessons from a young man named Crosby. He is an Engineer by trade with Lockheed Martin, and just has an unbelievable heart and story to share.

Wow. Stay tuned for a good one :)

Below is the Timestamps of different parts of the conversation.

0:00 to 11:00 - The Magiera House Coronavirus Experience! .

11:30 "INTERVIEW" BEGINS, and I ask, "What is Cynda (Collins) Arsenault's story?"

13:00 - “No Regrets!” After Erin passed away, she didn’t feel that there wasn’t anything she would have done differently. Wow.

14:00 - The Power of the community, and now the “Ongoing Gift that she’s given to me”

16:00 - I ask “What was Cynda’s life before Erin?” Berkeley California in the 70’s Much?

17:30 - The planning of her Perfect pregnancy! French Riviera!?

18:50 “I was changing her diaper, and she just looked at me (and my misery) and laughed!”

20:00 — “People with special needs just show up as they are”

21:30 “A Friend Like Erin” The Video about school inclusion, that made it to Barbera Bush!!

22:30 “How the “bully” let his mask down when he connected with Erin”

26:30 - Gardner Colorado? 100 student K-8th grade… How that was!

31:30 - Cynda shares about her Book that she authored herself! And how it is ok to ask for help.

34:00 - “How much we learn about ourselves and the human condition.”

38:00 - I ask, “What has life been life.. after Erin.” And we discuss death and grief. ‘The more Sorrow carves you out, the more capacity you have for Joy.”

46:00 - The powerful bond of the Mom’s Group

51:00 - Opiod Epidemic, Covid, Racism, Global Challenges, Power, Love, all of it.

PLUG of https://www.erinjcarsenault.com !!!

Awesome conversation with Nick Savarese the original director of Sky'z The Limit! He is now Director of the Doug Flutie Jr. Autism Foundation in Boston, MA. https://www.flutiefoundation.org

*Below is a "Tab" or "Cheat Sheet" if you'd like to skip around to relevant points if you are pressed for time :

Minute 1 - 6 : Introductions and getting re-connected (Nick knew me, Ryan when I was a teenager).

Minute 6:00 - 21:00 : Nick addresses , What is the area of most need ? We discuss the power of strength of addressing needs by focusing on "your lane" whether that's advocacy, financial supports, housing, or fun/social connections.

Minute 21:00 - 24:00 : Nick and I talk about how there are real world companies , like Oracle & Dell who fill jobs with people who have autism , not as some quota, but because there is "bottom line impact" in their work.

Min 24:00 - 26:00 We cover how “Everyone has the ability to be productive” and the "Intangible services" our population can serve.

Minute 26:00 - 28:00 We take a quick look at Bryce's life and his "Cliff dive of transitioning out of SCHOOL" which is universal experience for so many young adults with special needs, and the challenges their families face.

Minute 34:00- 38:00 : we take a quick trip down “Memory Lane”

Minute 38:00 : Nick shares his view on how to help our community . The "extra" effort that it might take from someone who does not have special needs, but how impactful those choices can be from volunteering your time to taking in those considerations like choosing to open doors instead of close them.

Minute 42:00 Nick is sharing about an awesome tapestry of Sky'z The Limit T-Shirts that were sewn together , see the image on our website: www.skyzlimit.org

Minute 43:45 - DRAG RACING MUCH !?!?!?

Who would like to hear a podcast just sharing fun memories from Sky'z The Limit's past adventures ???

What is different about the brain of a Dyslexic? Or should we say, someone who has Dyslexia? What about Alphalexic? And changing the narrative.

Dyslexia is is a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words.

In the brain of someone with dyslexia (MYSELF!) WE process words by interpreting them in the right hemisphere of the brain, then the Brochas area of speech, then finally into meaning. This causing much "Associations" when reading and processing words. Turns out that so many dyslexics are Athletes and Artists! People who tap into their talent and strengths of Visual-Spatial Associative minds!

All that and more :)