A CELEBRATION OF WHEELS: Roll Models

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TODAY YOU'LL FIND
MANY SUCCESSFUL 'ROLL' MODELS
. . . making their way in the
walking and working world

Charlene Curtiss, artistic director of Light Motion dance company, shown above, performs, choreographs, and teaches wheelchair movement skills in Seattle, Washington. Mary Verdi-Fletcher of Cleveland, Ohio, founded the Cleveland Ballet Dancing Wheels in 1980.

Patrick Schwabenbauer is with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and maintains a cleverly programmed personal website.
Dave Stange, coach of the Chicago Wheelchair Bulls, is a credit manager in Mt. Prospect, Illinois.

Elisa Terranova, a native of Liberia, shown above, is a gifted artist living in Folsom, California. Her works may be sampled here.
Scott Duffey, a quadriplegic, paints remarkable abstracts and portraits on Long Island, New York. His works may be purchased through his web site.
Craig Sheely is a wheelchair-enabled photographer near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. His superb collection may be sampled and bought at his web site.

Tyler Walker lives in rural New England and is a spunky skateboarder, skier, quad rugby fanatic, and generally all-around kid whose website explores the capabilities of his active life on wheels
. . . and all kinds of other devices.

Sean Scott of Linden, North Carolina, right, loves to fly and gladly abandons his wheels to take to the air in his weightshift trike. Here's a story about his flights of fancy you're sure to enjoy!

Jesse Daikan McKinney has written a powerful book on perceptions versus the reality of disability, A Mind on Wheels: The Inner Journey. Check out his website to preview some selected essays, which will convince you this is a 'gotta-have' publication.

Marshall Loskot is an organic farmer in Platina, California, who adapted his farm equipment for wheelchair use and now has a web site for his HerbBlossom Farm.

Todd Maness of Robbins, North Carolina, right, coaches high school football from his sip-and-puff wheelchair, and enjoys a career as an artist, painting with the brush held in his mouth. See and buy his paintings at his Red Rider Studios website.

Gary Karp of San Rafael, California, has written two helpful new books, one on the many aspects of the active wheelchair life, another on selecting a chair. Read about Gary and his books here. And now there's a useful new website generated by the books' publisher.

Barry Corbet, above, was on the team that scaled Mount Everest in 1963, before his spinal injury. Today, he's editor of New Mobility magazine, where he occupies a rolling "Bully Pulpit" on disability issues. Search the NM archives for 'Corbet' and read some of his past columns.

Chris Sheridan of Los Angeles, above, is a filmmaker and New Age humorist who does one-man plays and has performed his 'sit-down' comedy act on the USA cable network. Explore his world here.

Marilyn Hamilton, co- founder of the Quickie wheelchair manufacturing empire that forever changed the shape of mobility, also started Winners on Wheels, an adventure and learning organization for kids who use wheelchairs. She's truly a winner on wheels.

Steve Dowman of Orlando, below, invented 'The Grasshopper' with help from a group of fellow mechanical engineering students at the University of Central Florida.

NOMINATE SOME MORE
'ROLL' MODELS

We're eager to recognize men and women who use wheelchairs and set an example of ingenuity, perseverance, and good humor in the face of physical, vocational and social challenges.
Email the webmaster to nominate your choices for recognition.

There are many others. . .
Kenny Clayton of Madisonville, Kentucky, is a pharmacist.
Graham Sisson is a trial attorney in Birmingham, Alabama.
Richard Fuchs is a 12th grade school teacher and motivational speaker in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Scott Kauffman is an accountant with a manufacturing firm in Bremen, Georgia.

Wendy Murphy, above, is an on-camera reporter covering community events for CityTV in Toronto, Ontario.
Eddie Bland, a player on the Dallas Mavericks wheelchair basketball team, is a middle school principal in Rochester, Texas. Doug Maurer is a computer systems programmer for the South Carolina State Ports Authority in Charleston, and Bob Masella is an attorney in Columbia, South Carolina.

John Ryan, above, a realtor in Whistler, British Columbia, handcycled across Canada in summer 1999 raising funds for spinal cord research.
Dug Jones, JD, is an administrator at the University of Florida, Gainesville.

Sheree Sainz of Valdosta, Georgia, mother of two teens, is working on a master's degree, teaches at a technical institute, swims and plays wheelchair basketball.

Steve Mikita is assistant attorney general of Utah.
Don Vandello operates a plumbing supply in Walworth, Wisconsin, and plays wheelchair basketball for Chicago.

Mark E. Smith of San Francisco, above, overcame cerebral palsy to become a popular speaker and writer. Visit his resourceful site, WheelchairJunkie.com for his expert advice on buying a chair, and essays by his alter ego, Count Cripula. You'll appreciate Mark's sharp wit and wisdom.

Mitch Tepper, above, graduate of Yale Medical School and Penn, founded the Sexual Health Network, to provide counseling, seminars and publications in human sexuality research. His work also has a special focus on sexuality and disability.