With a little help from friends, anything is possible
Hey guys my name is Kevan Chandler I have a disease called spinal muscular atrophy, which leaves me bound to a wheelchair and limited use of my arms and legs. Kevan’s ability to travel was limited to places that were wheelchair friendly. But, with the help of some determined friends, Kevan got to fulfil his dream of seeing Europe and is soon to visit China. Using a makeshift backpack, Kevan’s friends carried him around England, Ireland and France, visiting places that are usually inaccessible to people in a wheelchair.
“One of the most beautiful things about it was that I got to go on this adventure with some of my best friends. And we could go anywhere and do whatever without having to think about accessibility. So in a way we redefined the idea of accessibility in that everything became accessible because we did it differently.”
As inspiring as this journey was, the group saw an opportunity to achieve something bigger. Through their nonprofit, we carry Kevan, they challenge preconceptions about what is possible and make the world accessible to all.
“We sort of redefined accessibility. We want to spread that idea that accessibility is not ramps and automatic doors and elevators, while those things help, ultimately accessibility is people helping people.”
Kevan refuses to let his disability define him.
“There is a reality that we (kevan and his sister) are disabled. It’s not a bad word, it’s not a misconception, we can’t walk. I’ll refer to myself as a cripple. I don’t care because that’s what i am, But I also realise that that’s just a part of who I am, that’s not entirely who I am. So i’m not defined by the wheelchair that I’m in or the strength that I have.”
“We can’t do this alone, whether it’s a trip or it’s life, nobody can do it on their own, so, we need each other.”
Share if you have agree we all need a little help from our friends.
There are limitations set on the disabled community, based on social and personal expectations. Kevan Chandler and his friends are on a mission to remove these limits. Hear from Kevan, on how communities can reimagine accessibility, on living the ‘impossible’ and on inspiring change.
In 2015, Kevan and his friends spent a year working toward their goal of traveling around Europe and designing a backpack to carry Kevan on their backs. This project became known as ‘We Carry Kevan’ and in June 2016, they boarded a plane to Paris, leaving Kevan’s wheelchair at the Atlanta airport. This is Kevan’s story of friendship and defying limits.
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