A Busy Summer at 6 Wheels!

This summer has been pretty eventful at 6 Wheels, and there’s more to come!

I left for Denver for the No Barriers Summit on August 23rd, where I participated in the summit and provided consultation as well! I looked at the new space for the No Barriers Summit to help ensure it was fully accessible and inclusive.

On August 30th, I was a panelist on the Shine the Light Inclusivity Webinar, where we discussed inclusivity in design.

I have quite a few upcoming trips planned both locally and out of state. From September 5th-8th, I’ll going to Dollywood Theme Park in Pigeon Forge, TN, to do an assessment of three parking space structures and help them improve their parking facilities. Locally, on September 27th, I’m going to speak about disability in the workplace at the African American Credit Union.

October is Disability Employment Awareness Month, and I have several events coming up related to that. On October 5th, I’m doing a speaking engagement with VA Housing around disability in the workplace as well. On October 13th, I’m also doing a lunch-and-learn with Coastal Credit Union around disability in the workplace from noon to 1 p.m.

If you or anyone you know is looking for a speaker for Disability Employment Awareness Month, please reach out now as my calendar’s filling up quickly! I’d love to speak at your event.

Later in October, I’ll be working with Anthem Insurance on October 18th; we’ll be doing an event series around people in foster care. Then, I’ll attend the National Family Voices Conference in Washington, D.C., where I’ll be representing Youth as Self-Advocates on October 18th-20th.

I’m continuing to work on evaluating Baskervill and the construction work related to that project. Additionally, I will be working with the same team to consult on the accessibility and inclusivity of community centers that are going to be built in the Richmond area.

 There are several upcoming projects, including lobbying work and meetings with potential clients. I’ve also been continuing to work on my book and podcast episodes, so stay tuned for both! 

Make sure to follow 6 Wheels on social media to keep up with our current and future events! I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable end of the summer!

6 Wheels 2021 Year In Review!

I’ve gotten to do some really cool projects this year, and as 2021 comes to an end, I wanted to share some of the highlights from the past year!

One of the most exciting parts of this year was being included as the accessibility consultant for Baskervill's winning bid to redesign the new Supreme Court of Virginia building.

In November, I also became an ADA Certified Coordinator! An ADA coordinator works with different entities within the government to ensure ADA compliance.

Another awesome moment of the year was when 6 Wheels Consulting became certified as a micro-SWaM this year! The SWaM (the Small, Women-owned, and Minority-owned) Business Certification Program helps a variety of business owners access opportunities. It was awesome to be recognized in this way!

I keynoted several events in 2021, including at North Dakota’s Power Up Health Conference, Sentara Healthcare, Anthem HealthKeepers Plus, and Virginia Board for People With Disabilities just to name a few. It was great to connect with so many communities!

This year, I also did sensitivity training for the North Dakota court systems. Additionally, I did a lot of programming around hiring people with disabilities with Richmond SHRM, the African American Credit Union, and Coastal Credit Union. These opportunities really allowed me to share the importance of hiring and employing people with disabilities.

6 Wheels has had a great year of making an impact and connecting with some amazing people and organizations, and 2022 is setting up to be a great year already! I have some projects already lined up and can’t wait to see what the year has in store!

I hope everyone has a safe, happy holiday season, and make sure to keep a check on our social media pages to see what we’ll be up to in the new year!

PHOTO: 6 Wheels Consulting logo holiday card with Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Kwanzaa graphics.

A Busy Summer for 6 Wheels!

The past few months have been super busy for 6 Wheels, and I wanted to give an update on what I’ve been up to lately and share a few upcoming projects!

On May 10th, I gave a presentation at Lakewood Assisted Living Facility about my work at 6 Wheels Consulting. It was great to present to a really engaged group of people at Lakewood.

I also had the opportunity to be part of the promotional video for CBS’s “Heroes Among Us” segment. I was featured on this segment last year, so it was great to be a part of this video!

SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) had its 2021 Diversity and Inclusion Symposium on May 20th, and I had an awesome time speaking at the event! I focused on the importance of hiring people with disabilities in the workplace and how employers can recruit, retain, and hire people with disabilities.

On June 15th, I spoke at the 2021 Virginia Emergency Management Symposium. There, I discussed the ways emergency management efforts can become more inclusive towards people with disabilities.

As I’ve done previously, I did my professional development training for the Youth Leadership Academy of Virginia. This program helps local youth with disabilities hone their skills and prepare for their futures. I had a great time talking with everyone on Zoom and sharing the ways to best prepare for job interviews as people with disabilities.

On July 20th, I’ll be giving a similar presentation for the African-American Credit Union Coalition for their Division, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Academy. It’s important to share the benefits of hiring people with disabilities in all workplaces, and I’m thankful that more organizations are taking the time to learn the ways in which they can support disabled people. 

You might have noticed that 6 Wheels has been more active on social media lately, and that’s because I’ve also partnered with my social media manager, Steve, who will manage my social media posts. Steve is doing a great job and I really appreciate his help. Thanks, Steve!

Recently, I’ve also signed contracts with two awesome organizations. I’ll be working with Inclusively, an organization that helps people with disabilities find jobs, to help develop articles on their site. I’ll also be working with Grit and Flow, an organization that offers training and consultations to businesses in various fields, to work on programming sessions for people with disabilities to discuss the societal issues that affect us.

Behind the scenes, I’ve been working on some other great projects, including revamping the 6 Wheels podcast and working on my book. I’ve also started to think about ideas for our next legislative session and have been working with others to implement the hiring initiative that was signed for people with disabilities at last year’s session.

I’ll also be helping with a political engagement event with the ARC of Virginia. This event will talk about gubernatorial elections and why it’s important to vote during these elections and who is involved. It’s so important to vote in local elections, not just during presidential elections, and we want voters to be informed about the issues that affect them.

I’ll be keynote speaker and will hold a breakout session for North Dakota’s Power Up Health Conference on September 10th. There, I’ll talk about the ways in which I maintained my physical, emotional, and mental health during the COVID pandemic as a person with a disability.

As you can see, it’s been a busy time for 6 Wheels, and I’m really looking forward to all the events and partnerships to come! Make sure to stay tuned and follow 6 Wheels Consulting on social media so you can keep up with all things 6 Wheels!

PHOTO: Black lettering on a white background. The lettering reads “We have been busy”