October 2024 Issue
Magazine Sections:
Travel and Adaptive Sports—Empowerment in Motion
'Impossible' is not in our vocabulary
By Jan Bonville
Adventure connotes exotic locales and extreme feats. Some of the people featured in this issue do all that, and more. More, because their exploits are in face of tremendous challenge due to disability. But then, our community is all about redefining the narrative on disability.
Guest Editor’s note
By Torsten Gross
Travel Tips from the Pros
To the people with disabilities: When travelling, never lose your voice, but don’t be too loud either. To the able-bodied, listen and learn.
Torsten Gross redefines adventure and equality through racing
Be prepared! When speaking with Torsten Gross a resident of Connecticut, USA, founder of Just Hands Foundation, you’re stepping into a conversation with someone who sees the world a bit differently — in the best possible way.
Tim Burr's return to dirt is adaptive, audacious and unstoppable!
Tim Burr is not your ordinary adventurer. It’s easy to conjure up images of a rugged, thrill-seeking skier when you think of a guy raised in the mountains of Colorado, who has always lived life at full speed, diving into sports that are not for the faint of heart.
Chloe Giroux: A journey beyond expectations
Imagine being in a place where nature is your playground, where every mountain, trail and body of water beckons you to come alive. For Chloe Giroux, that was life — wild, vibrant, and unstoppable
George Gallego: A legacy in motion
George Gallego’s story is a masterclass in transformation. From his own personal battles to his broader mission of creating systemic change, he’s been a force for good, not just for himself but for countless others.
Doug Henry's journey from tragedy to triumph on two wheels
Doug Henry teaches us that you don’t stop living just because life throws you a curveball—you adapt, innovate and keep racing forward.
Travelling as a Little Person
Little Legs, Big Impact! Don't let fear or doubt hold you back
Kristen DeAndrade is the embodiment of perseverance and advocacy, relentlessly pushing boundaries to break stereotypes surrounding dwarfism and disability. Born with achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism, Kristen channels her lived experiences into changing the narrative around disability and differences.
Family Fun, No Limits
Let's take this circus on the road
By Jennifer Allen
You did it! You made it through the summer of thrown-off routines and overload meltdowns. You cared for all of the needs, macgyvered medical equipment to handle the needs of summer play, and you made it to another school year!School is just another beautiful reminder that you can do hard things. Whether you homeschool and manage all of the medical routines and educational needs throughout each day, or you’re figuring out new classrooms, IEP updates, and endless advocating – you are an absolute hero. I see you.
Accessible Destination Round-up
By Jennifer Allen
As a travel writer for families with disabilities, I’m often asked to bring my family to different destinations to highlight accessible options and give feedback on any improvement needed. Along the way, we discover a lot of hidden gems with exceptional attention to disability inclusion.
Prioritize and pace: Secrets to successful family travel
By Jodie St. Clair
The way travel gets discussed is exhausting. Fast-paced trips get showcased with itineraries so overstuffed, you’d swear that in order to do everything you’ll have to get up before you go to bed.
The Cook family's accessible travel adventures
Kristy Cook, a mom of four, navigates life with her adventurous family including Robbie, her 9-year-old son, who lives with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS). LGS is a rare form of epilepsy that causes developmental delays and challenging, daily seizures. But none of this stops Kristy and her family from living their best, most adventurous life.
Better Together: Disability Parent Q&A
Q: Are there destinations that cater specifically to high needs/disability?
A: There are so many! Here are some of our favorites, and some shared by our community.
Companions
Heartfelt trips of caregiving and adventure
Vacationing with a loved one while serving as their caregiver can be a deeply emotional and bittersweet experience. Based on the nature of their disability or illness, it’s probably not your average getaway filled with endless excitement or carefree moments. Instead, for some, it may be a journey interwoven with love,
responsibility, joy and—let’s face it—a bit of sorrow, too.
Through love's lens—A companion's view to travelling with her disabled partner
Danniel, George’s fiancée, isn’t his caretaker in the traditional sense of the word. She’s not there to ‘help’ him in the way many might think. She’s his partner, a co-conspirator in the mission of making life work smoothly. They’re in it together, fully. It’s about collaboration and mutual respect—at work in their organization Access Initiatives, where George is the founder and Danniel the Chief Marketing Officer, and at home.
Feature Stories
Meet Visit Lauderdale's newest ambassador, Abbas Karimi
An Interview with Richard Gray, Senior Vice President, Inclusion and Accessibility at Visit Lauderdale
Abbas Karimi is a professional athlete, inspirational swimmer, and Visit Lauderdale’s newest ambassador. Although Abbas was born without arms in Afghanistan, he grew very fond of swimming in the rivers of Kabul. He eventually progressed to swimming in pools. During the pandemic, a series of events brought Abbas to Greater Fort Lauderdale which would ultimately change his life.
Pitchup.com strives to make camping more accessible for people with disabilities
By Brodie Farrow
Did you know if you filter an Airbnb search for all accessibility features, you can count the house results in the entire United States on one hand? Or if you filter only by step-free and wide entrances, you’re still left with less than 100 entire homes to rent? In the entire United States! When we set out to build an accessible short-term vacation rental, we didn’t know this.
Travel Talk with Joy
By Wheel the World
In a world where accessible travel is often underrepresented,Travel Talk With Joy (TTWJ) spotlights the journeys of extraordinary individuals who navigate life and travel differently.
The Christopher & Dana Reeve: Champions for accessible travel and enjoyment of the great outdoors for wheelchair users
By Dan McNeal
For those living with disabilities – specifically, those living with paralysis or using wheelchairs – travel doesn’t always mean a vacation.
May Mobility is redefining accessible transportation for people with disabilities
This is a story about how technology, driven by empathy, changes lives and with it, autonomy and dignity are being restored to those who need it most.
Adventure and accessibility: a perfect match in Arkansas State Parks
By Lorraine Woodward, Becoming rentABLE
Once a mere dream, accessible outdoor adventures across the U.S. are becoming a reality for those of us that use mobility devices, like wheelchairs. Maybe this is due to Covid or our voices are finally being heard.
A movement to travel with dignity taking shape in New York State
By Jeremy Willinger
Discovering new settings and living life outside our bubble through travel is perhaps one of the most rewarding opportunities one can have on this planet. A necessary aspect of human nature also occurs when we look to find the nearest bathroom, water closet, baño, or lavatory. But what if you are a person with a disability, a veteran, or senior citizen who uses a wheelchair?
Destination spotlight
Myrtle Beach
Situated along the Atlantic Coast in South Carolina, Myrtle Beach is 60 miles made for you. It’s been a go-to beach destination for decades and has long strived to become a place where everybody belongs. “The Beach,” as travelers prefer to call it, is a certified sensory-friendly destination, and they’re able to provide extra service and assistance to anyone who might need extra support on their vacation.
Tanelle's Accessible Kelowna adventure: Wonder, wine & exploration
Adventure isn’t just for the able-bodied. It’s for the bold-hearted and Tanelle Bolt’s journey to Kelowna, British Columbia (BC), Canada proved just that. A ferry ride from her home on Vancouver Island transformed into an immersive adventure where nature, accessibility, sailing and wine collided in the most beautiful way. For Tanelle, every step of the trip—whether on land, lake or a bike trail—was a reminder that exploration can be as inclusive as it is inspiring.
Wheelchair-Accessible Cape Town group trip
Hosted by Able2Travel
Cape Town is a melting pot of cultures, with African influences blending with Cape Malay, British and Dutch culture. Mix in a blend of residents and tourists from all over the world, and you have a fascinating city that never fails to enchant.
Immersive Nature Experiences
Tahitian Motus with a disability
I have had the pleasure of visiting Tahiti several times through a variety of life stages: twice as a couple, and twice with children, first young and then older teenagers. A constant throughout these trips was my declining mobility. I have had multiple sclerosis, a degenerative neurological condition, for over two decades. With each trip, my mobility slowly but surely declined. My first visit required no walking aids, the second, one cane, the third and fourth, two canes and a walker.
Cruising Corner
Plenty of Sunshine Travel shares cruising insights
From my perspective as a travel agent, it’s important to assure clients with disabilities that they can enjoy fulfilling travel experiences without feeling limited.
Beyond sight
The adventures of Tony Giles, the blind solo traveller
Tony Giles is a 46-year-old who lives in the Southwest of England, in a small beach town near the cities of Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth. He was born blind with a rare eye condition: Cone Dystrophy and Photophobia. He had light sensitivity until about the age of 12 or so and then it faded. Around age four or five, he became slightly deaf in both ears which had digressed slowly to this date. Tony wears a powerful digital hearing aid in each ear but his speech is unaffected and he hears reasonably well in one-to-one conversations and in small groups.
Dan's daring dance with disability, humour
Life handed Dan lemons. He took it and served up a zesty cocktail of travel adventures that’s anything but ordinary—a blind backpacker with an iPhone, a trusty white cane and a spirit so unbreakable it could give the Eiffel Tower a run for its money. Welcome to the whirlwind life of Dan Barra Berger—a traveller, writer, advocate, comedian and now a new dad—an all-around legend in his own right.
Blogger Spotlight
Mandy Horvath
Travel advice: Get comfortable with asking for help. People all around the globe want to help and sometimes need direction on how they can be of assistance. I would also advise that people be patient with service representatives, flight crews, and fellow passengers. Kindness is a universal language we can all understand.
Vlogger Spotlight
Chelsea Bear
Road trips have to be one of my favorite ways to travel. Subaru’s mobility assist program, which provides reimbursement and helps qualifying owners get necessary vehicle modification due to medically recognized physical disabilities, enabled me to get an external scooter lift installed to my Subaru Forester Wilderness, and having my own adapted transportation with me has made exploring the places I’m visiting so much more accessible and stress-free.
