"Learn from Experience, Lead by Example"
During the 2024 legislative session, Florida elected officials missed an opportunity to advance home ownership and to codify the added value of spouses of quadriplegics. Marriage is a partnership that makes life goals like home ownership, raising a family, and active participation in the community a reality for everybody. This truth is even more significant for quadriplegics…
Celebrated disability advocate and author, FSU’s Dr. JR Harding, discusses his world travels, and why he thinks everyone needs an adventure. Dr. Harding is a recognized disability leader with over 37 years of personal and professional experiences within the disability community. He is a two-time US Presidential appointee, seven-time Florida gubernatorial appointee, and has made…
Imagine a world where you cannot independently cross the street, find a house to buy, or secure employment – I can. As a two-time quadriplegic, I have 40 years’ worth of adaptive living experience in a world that was not built for individuals living with disabilities. Worse, many of my fellow citizens have negative pre-conceived…
Rish Park is one of the few outdoor parks with accessibility as its primary mission. It was nearly five years ago when Hurricane Michael blasted the shores of the Panhandle. The bullseye for this CAT 5 storm was Mexico Beach, St. Joe Bay, and our beloved Rish Park. The devastation across this stretch of Florida…
I read with great trepidation the article on “More EV Charging Stations Coming to Tallahassee”. My concern was not that TaMaryn Waters was not fair or accurate, but we have not seen any material change from the industry about including all drivers within this transportation innovation. EV stations are popping up not only in Tallahassee,…
Nestled between the crystal-clear waters of St. Joseph Bay and the sugar-sand beaches of the Gulf of Mexico, the William J ‘Billy Joe’ Rish Recreation Area provides a barrier-free experience to the great outdoors. Rish Park, encompassing 100 acres, was uniquely designed in the 1970s for individuals with disabilities and their families, and the park was managed…
Inspiration and motivation will show up at your door like kids back from college, with little notice and when you least expect it. I have a few shows I watch late at night and those would be “Anthony Bourdain – No Reservations,” “Sanford and Son” (gets funnier every year), “Expedition Unknown” (I am now obsessed…
Driving around the neighborhood at Christmastime to see the lights has been a pastime for my family, maybe yours. Now imagine driving through your neighborhood not to see the lights, but the hippos. Yes, I mean one of those 5 feet tall, 8 feet long, 4-ton aquatic critters. They can run faster than they can…
We all face challenges in our lives, all different and some more than others. This month is the 32nd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). For years, when I have written columns about the assistive tech used by persons with disabilities (PWD), a mention of this piece of legislation was usually included — it…
“… Let these terrible walls of exclusion come tumbling down …” said President Bush on July 26th, 1990, at the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Those metaphorical walls of exclusion and most of the physical and programmatic barriers have come tumbling down. While my life and the lives of 61 million other…