Wendy Booker is a life-long adventurer, speaker, MS Insight Founder/CEO, advocate within the global Multiple Sclerosis (MS) community, and author of New Altitude: Beyond Tough Times to the Top of the World. She has sixteen years of experience in patient advocacy, community engagement, marketing communications, media, events, and public affairs in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical sector. Over the years, Wendy has anchored a wide variety of patient relations campaigns, corporate events, community engagement initiatives, training sessions, media campaigns, fundraisers and public relations functions. 

In June of 1998, Wendy was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. When first diagnosed, she was devastated. But it took very little time for her to transform anguish into inspiration. Wendy immediately turned her hobby of casual running into a continuous pursuit. She was the first person with MS to conquer six of the Seven Summits. After transitioning her goal of standing on top of the world away from Mt. Everest, she became the first person with MS to reach the North Pole in April of 2011. The South Pole quickly followed in January 2012. Wendy continues to run marathons having done twelve so far. 

In this interview, with our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Wendy discusses her life dealing with MS, her non-profit MSinsight.org, her passion for adventure, how she found the strength to climb mountains, figuratively and literally, as an “accidental athlete.” Wendy also shares the “Three S’s,” self-discovery, serendipity, and stubbornness, that have impacted her life. Wendy states, “The mountains are a perfect metaphor for life: goal setting, team building, challenges, doubts and leadership. Every obstacle we face can be related back to the mountains.”

Russell Lehmann is an award-winning and internationally recognized motivational speaker and poet with a platform of autism and mental health. His words have been featured in USA Today, LA Times, NPR, Yahoo! News, Success Magazine, and archived in the Library of Congress. 

A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology “Leadership in the Digital Age” course, Russell sits on the National Board of Directors for The Arc, is a council member for the Autism Society of America, the Youth Ambassador for the mayor of Reno, Nevada, sat on the Nevada Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities, as well as the Nevada Commission on Autism Spectrum Disorders. 

Russell showed signs of autism as a newborn. However, he was not formally diagnosed until the age of twelve after suffering through five weeks in a lockdown psychiatric facility. In 2011, Russell wrote a book titled, Inside Out: Stories and Poems from an Autistic Mind, which was featured in the LA Times. He earned an Honorable Mention at the 2012 NY Book Festival. Russell’s book was also read by Temple Grandin and won the award for Literary Excellence at the 2013 International Autistic People’s Awards in Vancouver, Canada. 

His new book, On the Outside Looking In, recently hit bookstores nationwide. In 2018, Russell was named as Reno-Tahoe’s “Most Outstanding Young Professional Under 40.” In 2019 and 2020, Russell lectured for the prestigious King’s College of London and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Special Education in Abu Dhabi.  

Russell currently travels the world spreading hope, awareness, and compassion in a raw and dynamic fashion and hopes to erase the stigma and stereotypes that come with having a disability. His passion is to be a voice for the unheard. Russell knows how difficult and frustrating it is to go unnoticed. 

In this interview, Russell and Alexandra Nichols, our Different & Able President & Founder, talk about Russell’s autobiography, Inside Out: Stories and Poems from an Autistic Mind, and his newest book, On the Outside Looking In. Russell also shares his experiences growing up on the spectrum, how he is able to manage the different symptoms of autism, the stressful and difficult day he experienced with air travel in 2017, and his role as a public advocate. Russell encourages those who suffer from autism to embrace their challenges and use them as a chance to grow; “Yes, there are challenges that make us who we are, but they do so much more than that. They inspire hope, change, and accomplishment,” Russell states.

For more information about Russell and his work, visit his website at www.TheAutisticPoet.com and follow his journey on Instagram and Facebook.

Mia Shaikewitz is a television personality and spokesperson for disability advocacy. In October of 1993, Mia Schaikewitz was 15 years old and a rising star on her high school swim team. She was training for a new season when suddenly one evening, she found herself unable to move her legs. Within twelve hours, doctors discovered that a Spinal Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM) had ruptured in her spinal cord, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down. With resilient determination and a positive attitude, she moved forward to pursue her life goals. 

Mia finished high school and then attended the University of Florida where she excelled socially and academically. She became the first woman in a wheelchair at the school to rush and pledge a sorority and graduated with top honors in Media Production. After college, Mia moved to Los Angeles where she worked in the recording industry; Mia later developed an award-winning career in graphic design and branding.  

In 2012, Mia became one of the stars of the hit TV show Push Girls, which continues to impact audiences worldwide. The show is considered a trailblazer for breaking stereotypes about disability in Hollywood and it won the Critics’ Choice Award for “Best Reality Series” in 2013. This prompted Mia to become an advocate and prominent speaker for accurate inclusion in the media. She has been interviewed on Good Morning America, CNN, E! Entertainment, Ellen, and many other outlets.

Within her dynamic career pursuits, Mia is dedicated to raising AVM awareness and has a passion for staying physically active. She returned to her former sport of competitive swimming; Mia became the Swim Director for Angel City Sports, a leading Paralympic event. She is also a founding member of Infinite Flow — America's first professional wheelchair ballroom dance company, which now leads a global social movement for inclusive dance.

In this interview, with our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Mia shares her amazing insights on the importance of perspective, why you should never settle, and how she journaled through depression. Mia also discusses Spinal Arteriovenous Malformation and her resilience in the face of darkness, insecurity, and fear. Today, Mia continues to live by her motto, “Believing in yourself means never having to say, 'I can't'!”

Chris Gorham is a dad, an American actor, and an autism awareness advocate. He is well known for his role of Auggie Anderson on the USA Network hit series, "Covert Affairs.” Chris met his wife, Anel Lopez Gorham, at the University of California, Los Angeles in a vaudeville class; they later appeared together on the high-school drama series, “Popular.”

In 2001, Chris and Anel, welcomed their eldest son, Lucas. At nine years old, Lucas was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). (Asperger’s syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests.) The Gorham’s knew that their son Lucas had a difference before his diagnosis. In the second grade, they had noticed that Lucas was having trouble with understanding the subtleties of socializing. 

“It’s upsetting to hear that something is wrong with your child. At the same time, it’s a relief to know what’s wrong with your child because if you know what’s wrong then you can start to take steps to help them” Chris states. With the knowledge about the diagnosis, a strong focus on family, and enrollment in a school that was geared toward kids on the autism spectrum, Lucas thrived. He is now twenty-one years old. 

Interviewed by our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Chris talks about family, his career as an actor, and what it is like to portray a character with a disability. He also discusses his personal experience learning about his son’s diagnosis. "Chris says beautifully, "I don't think of him as my son with Asperger's. I think of him as my son. He's not wrong. He's not broken. He is who he is. We, as his parents, are going to do our best - as we do with all our kids - to give him the best shot at having the best life he can."

Interviewed by our Different & Able President and Founder, Alexandra Nicklas, Jenni Ahtiainen, Founder & Head Designer at AIDesign and DEAFMETAL, discusses her hearing aid journey starting in 2018. Being involved with the fashion and music industry and her love for aesthetics, Jenni designed hearing aid jewelry collections for women, men, and children. The story of DEAFMETAL can be found here: The story behind DEAFMETAL® by its Designer Jenni Ahtiainen - YouTube.

Please see Jenni's photo biography below to learn more information about her work as a designer and her wearable art pieces.