Hey there, listeners! Welcome back to episode twenty of our podcast 'True Tales by Disability Advocates'. Ready for a deep dive into the theme of 'Smashing Ableism: Tales of Resilience'? Well, we've got two fantastic disability advocates with us - the brilliant Alina Arredondo and the charming Peter Richter. In this episode, they open up about their own life journeys filled with challenges, advocating for disability rights, supportive grandparents, and above all, demonstrating immense resilience. Alina pours her heart out about standing up for her rights and Peter shares golden nuggets on how gratitude supports his resilience. So, tie your seatbelts, folks! Tune in, and get ready for these genuinely enlightening narratives. Trust us; it's not just an episode, it's a vibe that will
spark transformations!
Guest 1
Alina G. Arredondo is a native El Pasoan who was diagnosed with Phocomelia. She does not allow her disability to be an excuse for why she cannot do certain things. Alina has a license Master in social work and currently works at the local independent living center where she empowers adults with disabilities to live as independently as possible. During her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family, dogs, and friends, panting, and singing. However, what she enjoys the most is helping out her community by volunteering with multiple agencies around the El Paso area.
https://www.gograd.org/resources/students-with-disabilities/

Guest 2
Peter Richter grew up in San Antonio and attended school and graduated from the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. He has two brothers and one sister and a dog he loves named Winnie. He lives with two roommates and enjoys working at his job at Whataburger. Peter has been involved with Art Spark and was an original actor with TILT Performance Group where he was in productions for 10 years.
Hosts: Jennifer Howell and Joey Gidseg

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For more details about our programs go to Art Spark Texas, True Tales Podcast Page.
Segments of this podcast were read by an automated voice. Inconsistencies in pronunciation and tone may occur.

"The Next Generation Showcase," is a special bonus episode of True Tales by Disability Advocates, the podcast where Advocates harness the power of storytelling to bring community to their peers and hope to develop empathy and others.

The stories featured in this episode are written by fledgling storytellers from the Austin Independent School District Go-Project. The GO Project is a community-based transition program for students with disabilities who are 18-22 years of age.

If you are a regular listener, you'll notice a change from our regular story slash interview format. For the first time, this episode includes more than two stories, just stories, no interviews. You'll get to hear seven short stories with topics ranging from Self-acceptance to Crunchy Barbecue Crickets, as well as Family Belonging, Speaking up, and Passions for Zombie Movies and Exercise.

Stories and Storytellers

"Speaking Up" by Adrian

"The Start of Finding My Truth." By Maddison

"Travel With Family" by Miranda

"Zombie Movies and Me." By Julio

"Belonging" by Chloe

"Musical Baking" by Abigair

"To Eat, Jump Rope and Family Time." By Dezi

We had so much fun working with these young folks and we are honored to share with you the work of these talented storytellers. Special thanks to the Go-Project staff - Laney, Sam, Mike, and Lori and our volunteers, Emily and Sulith, we couldn’t have done this without y’all.

Welcome you to the Next Generation Showcase.

Music Credits

Scandinavianz Sunbathers – 7385

Feel the Sunshine - https://pixabay.com/users/oystudio-24430395/

Feeling Good – Pixabay.com

Stages of Grief – Kevin MacLeod-funny-

Jolly Boat – Pixabay.com

Halloween-spooky-horror-scary-creepy - https://pixabay.com/users/soundgallerybydmitrytaras-11640913/

Zombie - 315844__gneube__zombie-snarl

Comedy - https://pixabay.com/users/soundgallerybydmitrytaras-11640913/

Cumbia Mexican Banda - https://pixabay.com/users/juliush-3921568/

Summer Walkways - Pixabay.com

Click here to listen with the full transcript.
For more details about our programs go to Art Spark Texas, True Tales Podcast Page.
Segments of this podcast were read by an automated voice. Inconsistencies in pronunciation and tone may occur.

For Disability Pride Month, Kaye Love chats to Tanya Winters and Kamand Alaghehband about their stories “Pediacrisis” and “Kamand’s View: No More Prejudice”. Stories about how they navigate the predictable and unexpected barriers they meet daily. We hope your day is enriched by listening to “Independence”. Full transcript available.
World Health Organization on Disability

Guest: Tanya Winters - A Chicago native, Tanya fell in love with Austin after a weekend trip. She loves creating and enjoys pushing the boundaries of arts and disability! Tanya's career as an artist began in theatre in 2005 and shifted to dance in 2007 thanks to a wooden chair and the desire to tell her story. As a student of Austin Community College, she gained an extensive background in improvisation and choreography. She has learned from some of the dance world’s top artists like Alito Alessi Nina Martin, Heidi Latsky, Sandra Paola Lopez, and Stephan Koplowitz. Tanya started making work of her own and became a certified DanceAbility instructor in 2011. Currently, she is a member of the Body Shift Collective, where she loves dancing, teaching, creating and collaborating with other dancers with and without disabilities. Tanya is the co-choreographer of Together and Apart an ongoing duet that explores the relationship between movement, environment, and the art of human interaction. She hopes that her work will motivate other dancers to think outside the box and erase the line between ability and disability. Tanya also has a solid background in Social Work, grant reporting, and case management. She possesses excellent communication and organizational skills which help her deal with the complex regulations governing social services. Walk & Roll: https://youtu.be/1IQ6W2NybfA
Constable Pct. 5's Disabled Parking Awareness Video: https://youtu.be/LR0XoXb_w-g
Together & Apart: https://vimeo.com/183923919 And You See Me: https://youtu.be/RSB_WFRbEEI

Guest: Kamand Alaghehband - My name is Kamand Alaghehband. I was born in Austin Texas, and I have autism. In 2020 the CDC reported approximately 1 in 54 children in U.S. diagnosed with autism is more than all cancer patients combined. But what about us? what happens to our future? What kind of jobs and lifestyle is available to support us. All my life I tried to support not only me but all generations with disabilities. I am me, I am Kamand. I love Special Olympics. My favorite sports are swimming, basketball, and Track. I am a member of the executive committee of special Olympics athletes leadership in Texas. I created podcasts, TikTok, video games and a variety of health activities during a pandemic to keep the athlete's minds occupied in a healthy way. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to maintain some of those activities cause was costing me money. My mission with my population is to bring peace for today and create a vision for tomorrow for disabled population. I feel grateful for what I have. I choose to be thankful. I choose to be happy. Gratitude turns what I have into enough and more. My Instagram info is ka.special . My TikTok account is KAspecialglobal.

Host: Kaye Love - Kaye has over eight years of experience working with individuals with developmental

Click here to listen with the full transcript.
For more details about our programs go to Art Spark Texas, True Tales Podcast Page.
Segments of this podcast were read by an automated voice. Inconsistencies in pronunciation and tone may occur.

To listen with full transcript, go to https://truetalesbydisabilityadvocates.buzzsprout.com/
In this episode, host Joey Gidseg talks to Jennifer Howell about her story, “From Ally to Self-Advocate.” Jennifer describes going from being the daughter of parents with disabilities to becoming someone with disabilities of her own, and the surprising things she learns along the way. Even for someone long familiar with disabilities, actually becoming a person with a disability of her own was for Jennifer a through-the-looking-glass kind of experience. Her story sparks an impassioned discussion between Jennifer and Joey, edited by Toby Al-Trabulsi and Ms. Boye, with script and production work by Kristen Gooch and John Beer.
Jennifer Howell
Jennifer Howell's lifetime of personal experience with disability – as a caregiver, teacher and person with disabilities herself – has led to her work as an accessibility and creative placemaking consultant. She is a special education teacher, published author, award-winning artist and online instructor to students around the globe, ages 4 to 94. As an Accessible Yoga Ambassador, she has led classes for over a decade for seniors and persons with disabilities. Her other curricula include hand-lettering and cursive handwriting, and sustainable fashion. Jennifer is a member of IAMPETH (International Assoc. of Master Penmen, Engrossers & Teachers of Handwriting) and the Climate Reality Leadership Corps.
Jennifer can be reached at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-howell-3179248/

Click here to listen with the full transcript.
For more details about our programs go to Art Spark Texas, True Tales Podcast Page.
Segments of this podcast were read by an automated voice. Inconsistencies in pronunciation and tone may occur.

Persons with disabilities often face the challenge of others’ misconceptions of their viewpoint and day-to-day life. In this episode, host Jennifer Howell visits with married couple Dave and Kate Chapple about their experience with such situations and the joyful message that love has no limits. In their stories, “My Journey with Religion” and "My Life in a Nursing Home,” Kate discusses her thoughts about fellow church members who prayed for her healing, and Dave shares what it’s like to be one of the youngest – by decades – residents at a nursing home.
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Dave Chapple
I am David Chapple and I am an employee at Imagine Art doing Peer Support for their Training 4 Transformation (T4T) program. T4T’s objective is to equip individuals who have a passion for supporting peers with disabilities to help them to transform and to become empowered so you can receive services that are person-centered. Also, I serve as Vice President on the board of Accessible Housing Austin an organization that is committed to providing affordable, accessible, integrated housing for low-income people with disabilities.
As Co-Project Leader of the AAC Training and Dissemination at RERC on Augmentative and Alternative Communication, I research how individuals who rely on AAC can be more independent. I write a blog named Speaking with Professionals Alternatively where I write about how people who rely on AAC interact with people from various professions. In my spare time, I like to travel with my wife and enjoy painting.
Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/dgchapple/
https://speakingwithprofessionalsalternatively.wordpress.com/

Kate Chapple
After high school graduation and with guidance from an independent living program, Kate Chapple moved from Houston to San Antonio, lived in a wheelchair-accessible apartment, and earned a BA in Special Education from UTSA.
Kate’s advocacy skills are highly recognized, and her 20-year career includes working with people with disabilities and assistive technology, as well as with or for public school systems, non-profits, and waiver programs.
Currently, a member of the hosting team’s Training 4 Transformation program for Imagine Art, Kate provides peer support to individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities.
“Throughout my life, I have learned the importance of being my own self-advocate. No one knows what I need or want better than myself. The same goes for each person in the group,” she said.
Kate and Dave live in Austin with their four dogs and enjoy going to concerts, swimming, playing with their fur babies, and traveling.

Host Jennifer Howell
Jennifer Howell has a lifetime of personal experience with disability – as a caregiver, a teacher, and a person with disabilities herself. Those experiences now ignite her passion and inform her work as an Accessibility and Creative Placemaking consultant.
She is also a special education teacher, published author, and award-winning artist who works as an online instructor to learners around the globe, ages 4 to 94. She is an Accessible Yoga Ambassador who has been leading classes for seniors and persons with disabilities for over a decade. Other curricula she’s created include hand-lettering, cursive handwriting, and sustainable fashion. Jenni

Click here to listen with the full transcript.
For more details about our programs go to Art Spark Texas, True Tales Podcast Page.
Segments of this podcast were read by an automated voice. Inconsistencies in pronunciation and tone may occur.