ADA Sign Depot Blog — ADA People

The world’s first astronaut with a disability

In addition to his medical training, McFall, who lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident at 19, is a former sprinter who represented the U.K. in the 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games — where he won bronze.

“When the only obstacle is effort, then there is no obstacle, because I will move heaven and earth to get what I want, even if I have to do it one pebble at a time,” Duckworth writes. The sheer details of her life are so compelling — so, yes, inspirational — that anyone less plain-spoken might risk veering into sanctimony or sap. If Duckworth’s political career ever comes to an end, she could make a killing as the world’s most matter-of-fact motivational speaker. Another Duckworth, first name Angela, wrote a best seller of a book by promising to unpack the secrets and benefits of grit; this Duckworth has embodied it.

An Extraordinary American Life

“Anyone who worked in civil rights during the last several decades knew Alvin Sykes,” said Brian Levin, the director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino. “He changed the face of American law, and he learned it all in a Kansas City library.”

Unbroken by blindness in 1998, Mark Pollock went on to compete in ultra-endurance races across deserts, mountains and the polar ice caps and was the first blind person to race to the South Pole. He also won silver and bronze medals for rowing at the Commonwealth Games and set up a motivational speaking business.

In 2010, Pollock was left paralysed after falling from a third story window. He is now exploring the intersection where humans and technology collide and catalyzing collaborations that have never been done before. Through the Mark Pollock Trust, he's unlocking $1 billion to cure paralysis in our lifetime.

After Cone began using a wheelchair, she found that buses had no lifts, bathroom doors were too narrow and buildings had no ramps.