Edition 17 | Summer 2019
By LivAbility Creative Team
Welcome to our Summer edition of LivAbility! We’re stoked to share Edition 17 with our readers, as we continue to push past the friendly confines of Arizona and tell the stories of people, places and things all around the Southwest. If there is any takeaway from this edition, it is how many people with disabilities are out there living richly-fulfilling lives.
Nothing says summer more than a water park. Except an “ultra-accessible™” water park and that’s what San Antonio, Texas has for everyone to enjoy! As it turns out San Antonio is home for one of our contributors, Sarah Farrell, as she gives us all reason to head to the Lone Star State in the future.
Kasey Kaler takes us to Southern California and introduces you to our cover story, James Ian, a musician who writes and records his songs in LA.
We also write about some new university athletic department programs of interest. Arizona State is now offering a degree in disability studies. San Diego State University has an exciting new adaptive sports program which segues perfectly into a story about the University of Arizona continuing to offer scholarship opportunities to young athletes. Angeline Carbajal tells us the story of two athletes who will be joining their men’s and women’s basketball programs this Fall.
Finally, we bring you some fascinating transportation news. After years of endless advocacy, we at Ability360 have a very accessible light rail stop right at our front door, between Washington Street and 50th Street. It is a game-changer for Phoenicians and Tony Jackson gives us his favorite places to enjoy along the light rail.
But perhaps more relevant to all our readers is a story from Gabrielle Olivera about Lyft and VMI partnering to offer an accessible-ride pilot program.
The future is knocking on our door and hopefully, it’s a game-changer for all of us!