When Whitney’s son Daniel was getting ready to start kindergarten, Whitney was more than a little nervous. Daniel has Down Syndrome along with sensory issues, and is nearly non-verbal. She recalls the questions and concerns she had when it came…
Chelsie Hill has been dancing since she learned to walk and started competitive dancing at five-years-old. She followed her passion throughout school and became Central California State Champion in her senior year. “I was at my peak…everything was going perfectly,”…
Some might say a vacation is a time to let loose and relax and experience new things at the spur of the moment. However, for a person with a disability to gain those life life long experiences, a well thought out…
United Spinal Association is proud to be a part of the legacy of the ADA, the landmark civil rights law that protects wheelchair users and other people with disabilities from discrimination.
In 2011, Maria was in a horrific crash that left her a paraplegic. She also had multiple injuries to her body, and she spent many months recovering at Shepherd Center in Atlanta Georgia. At the time of her injury, Maria’s…
Beth, a C6/C7 quadriplegic, demonstrates how she uses a manual or waiter's corkscrew to open a bottle of wine. First, she removes the plastic/paper coating from the top of the wine bottle by using her teeth. Once she has an…
Since childhood, Hayleigh Barclay had dreamed of a Parisian adventure. However, her visit to the City of Lights offered both fun and frustration for the wheelchair user. Hayleigh and her family traveled aboard the Eurostar between London and Paris, and…
Paul, a C5/C6 quadriplegic, adapted his own shovel to be able to dig a hole and weed in his garden without moving his fingers. "I adapted this shovel from a small hand trowel. I drilled a hole in the end…
Shawn is a C5-C6 quadriplegic who has learned how to get a sweatshirt on and off independently. He demonstrates the techniques he uses to put on/off a pullover hoodie sweatshirt and a sweatshirt that zips up the front. Putting on a…
Kaitlyn Dobrow’s instructional videos fuse beauty, skill and her big personality to take the internet by storm. The makeup maven lost all four limbs and more than half of her skin to meningitis at 19. It’s neither the life-threatening illness…