We have been in existence for close to 60 years, and have a vast amount of knowledge, experience, and a myriad of services to assist our members. As your president—and a member—I am also aware that there are many things we have yet to accomplish. But you are our association’s intelligence […]

As I write this, I’m preparing to attend the annual meetings for spinal cord injury (SCI) professionals held the second week of September in Las Vegas. We began hosting these seminars 27 years ago, when we first sponsored the meeting of SCI physicians in the American Paraplegia Society, which was then 23 […]

Tired of feeling the economic squeeze when you need access to community services for transportation, attendant care, educational resources, and health care? When federal, state, and local budgets feel the pinch, the first services that elected officials cut affect the community that can least afford the budget slash: […]

President Bush signed the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) into law in 2002 with the promise of an improved voting process that would guarantee every registered voter the ability to vote independently and confidentially. For Americans with disabilities, HAVA meant the opportunity to have accessible polling sites, […]

The 2000 presidential election brought to the forefront the weaknesses that have plagued our country’s voting system for far too long. By identifying the many problems, particularly those such as inaccessible polling places and voting machines that affected voting for people with disabilities, the end result was the […]

In more than a dozen telephone conversations and 175 e-mails asking advocates with disabilities their preferences in this election year, I have found that people with disabilities across the country are angry and this will affect their vote next month.
This includes veterans. The Vietnam veterans with disabilities whom […]

She’s paid her dues with heartache, loss and pain, but she’s back in the saddle again.
“Dee” DeJulio calls herself a “country-folk- Western balladeer,” and she looks the part. On stage, she wears Western boots or moccasins, custom-made trail shirts with wooden buttons that she made herself, a hand-tooled leather belt […]

I used to be a professional model and now have a C5/6 spinal cord injury. As you can imagine, I am fairly particular about my make-up. It’s not that I expect to look as though I’m ready for the runway or a fashion shoot, but I do want to […]

Service dogs are not just pets. They’re specially trained to become extensions of their owners’ bodies.
Because of their intelligence, sociability and trainability, dogs are ideal companions for people with disabilities. Mobility assist dogs, for instance, are trained to pull wheelchairs for people who cannot operate them on their own. […]

Members of United Spinal Association will now be able to book their vacations without the hassle of assuring accessibility of their airline, hotels and even car service. Rich World Wide Travel (RWWT) in conjunction with United Spinal Association will now be offering accessible travel service for people […]

Chris Carney, a bartender and amateur cyclist from the East End of Long Island, began the first leg of a 4,200-mile cross-country bike ride in Montauk, Long Island on Tuesday, August 17, 2004, where he ceremoniously dipped the back tire of his bike into the Atlantic Ocean. Approximately eight […]