About the Podcast:
Disarming Disability Podcast was founded in 2019. The podcast's mission is to powerfully deconstruct disability through candid conversations with experts exploring topics related to disability. The podcast looks to educate, empower, voice, and build a more inclusive society. Our vision is that people will connect to the history, policy, stories, and research on disability to launch their advocacy efforts and create more inclusive communities.
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The name Disarming Disability came as a pun (since Nicole and Sarah are missing a part of their arms) but also the word "Disarming" is defined as "removing hostility through charm." So "Disarming" is used in the title to remove the hard, negative, and oppressive stigma on disability through charming, open, mindful conversations-- all to socially re-define what it means to be disabled and to have a disability.
Oh Hello! We live with a disability, but that is only part of our story:
Nicole and Sarah meet the summer of 2014 in California at an amazing camp for limb-different children called Camp Winning Hands. Nicole and Sarah have grown a relationship based on mutual life understanding of constantly being in awkward situations because of their limb differences, a love for intelligent conversation, and an unending need to travel.
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Theatre Nerd, True Crime Buff, and Former Miss America Contestant
Occupational Therapist, Aerial Artist, and Flight Attendant Extraordinaire
Yo!
I'm Nicole Georgea Kelly. (Yes, my middle name is spelled "George" with an "A" at the end.) Welcome to our podcast site! I hope you find information here which sparks a fire in your belly!
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I'm from a tiny town in Iowa. Cornfields and watching football owned my childhood. I was ALMOST homecoming queen in high school. I competed and won Miss Iowa in 2013. This means I competed in the 2014 Miss America competition in Atlantic City. (Take THAT homecoming queen.)
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I am a proud advisory company member of National Disability Theater, I have my masters in Journalism from Northwestern, use an amazing robot hand controlled by CoApt Complete Control, and have a cat named Gracie Lou Freebush. My proudest moment to date was serving as the emcee at the Kennedy Center's celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the American's with Disabilities Act.
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I talk about disability A LOT. I talk about it so much that I have a speaking agent. (Sounds fancy, huh? Oooo!! It just means I pay taxes in a bunch of different states every year.) Find me on the Keppler Speakers website!
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My greatest hope is that you find relateable content here. Content which leads you to connect to cool tools, people, communities, ideas and resources. My world bloomed when I found these resources and people. I want your world to bloom too!
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Hi! Hey! Hello!
I’m Sarah Tuberty- thank you for taking the time of out your life to check out this page and podcast. I can tell you are rad already!
Where am I from? Great question- I grew up in Northern California near wine country (insert fancy laugh and wine glass swirl). In adulthood I've danced around Seattle, Philadelphia, Boston, Minneapolis,Chicago, Sacramento, and now Philadelphia. I love exploring, dancing, singing very loudly and wildly off key, meeting new people, house plants, camp fires, and drinking tea while having long conversations. I’m obnoxiously enthusiastic and want to be everywhere doing everything all at the same time.
I am an occupational therapist and because that’s not enough, I’m rocking being a flight attendant and an aerial artist.
I was born missing fingers on my left hand, had a toe bone transplant surgery in the early ‘90s at Shriners! I struggled with self worth and acceptance for a long time- as I imagine most of us do. It’s been a powerful journey to find pride in my disability and to begin hard and vulnerable conversations so publicly! Thank you for being here and let’s build a more inclusive society!
