Ninja Update

Official Presentation Date (June 21, 2022)

I'm so excited that me and one of my colleagues selected a date for us to present on self determination, for the tenth annual NINJA youth leadership conference!!! This holds such a special place in my heart, simply because it is where my self advocacy journey began and if I end up coming off a little sentimental prior to the session--it is just because I love this disability conference so much. It will be such a rewarding experience for me to teach once again and in hopes this presentation gets well received-- from everybody who will be participating with us. I am not certain when I will ever get a chance to teach at something like this again in the distant future, but I will never pass up an opportunity if there ever will be another one!!! 

Minus all of the heartache that I have in regards to not being a mentor, I can wholeheartedly admit there is no end in sight for me to stop advocating for individuals with disabilities and when I am ready for to live on my own-- I will certainly write up about it. I am not particularly sure if that will be happening any time soon and yet I still have a lot of work to do before that chapter of my life begins. I am grateful for the incredible opportunities this conference provided me over the years and look forward to more chances with improving my leadership skills, among everything else in between.

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YLC Update (USILC Report)

As being chair of the best disability committee ever, I have an opportunity to give a little brief update to USILC about our previous ninja alumni call and what kind of activity we planned, etc. I did not even hesitate in replying back right away and wanting to give myself a chance in hopes to make a good impression on all the important people who will be listening. Please stay tuned for an update on this later!!! :)

Serving in this leadership position has changed my life so much and can hardly believe things will end before too much longer. It has been such an amazing experience for me to learn and grow into the self advocate, disability leader, mentor and friend that I need to be in this world. I am truly grateful for this opportunity of getting to stretch myself in ways I never imagined possible and continuing to learn as I tread along this experience called life. I have loved getting to see myself realize how important it is to maintain boundaries with people in this field of independent living and trying my hardest to perform-- everything to the best of my ability from here on out.

Self Advocacy Conference (June 2022)

This event will be taken place online and in person within a few months :) I am grateful for the privilege that I have to continue showcasing my leadership skills to others in the disability community. I have really enjoyed getting to be a part of this planning process and once this conference all unfolds right in front of me, it will definitely come into full circle. I am grateful for the incredible people who make this experience such an amazing one and I can only hope to continue being a part of more events in the distant future. Please stay tuned for more updates to come at a later time!! 

(To Be Continued)

Special Tribute

My good friend Josh would have celebrated his twenty ninth birthday today and instead I am here writing up a blog post about him. He was truly one of the best people you would have ever met and he always just kept a smile on his face, no matter the circumstances that he was faced up against. I'm grateful for his true legacy of making the best in every situation and not worrying about what others think--which if you must know is a lesson that I could learn for myself. I hope that you are having the most unforgettable heavenly birthday ever with everyone on the other side!!! :)

I am so grateful for the opportunity that I had to know Josh and his contagious positive attitude, made you feel a little better than when you walked into a room. He made me feel good about myself as an advocate, mentor, friend and disability leader who wants nothing more than to see our world be a more inclusive and wonderful place. He never failed to make you laugh or smile whenever you needed it the most and it never ceased to amaze me with how he wanted to live everyday with a chance to keep going. 

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Newly Hired

It's difficult for me to keep the tears back as I write up this blog post today after having received the news of an opportunity with teaching a class at my NINJA conference this summer!!! I am so honored for this unforgettable chance to educate and inform youth delegates about what self determination is. I could not help but keep myself together as I learned about the fact--my mentor days are over and will always have such a special place in my heart. I am grateful to return back this summer and teach some of my friends about a topic that is so important within the disability community. I could not be more grateful that this is where my self advocacy journey began a little over ten years ago and not knowing much about what I can do to be a leader, self advocate, mentor and friend towards others in making an impact on their lives in just the smallest way possible. It definitely makes me feel at peace knowing that I can hopefully make a good impression and leave a mark on everyone who will be there. 

Ty,

You changed my life forever and I cannot thank you nearly enough for asking me to teach a class on self determination on the campus of Utah State University this summer. It will forever hold a special place in my heart as I walk back into a conference where my journey began and what I owe all of my leadership experiences to. I am grateful for your kindness, unconditional love, support and friendship that you have shown me over these last few years, has truly meant the world to me more than you could ever possibly know. (Be sure to have tissues close by in case there are allergies inside of the room and just know that if I do end up getting teary eyed--it's simply because I love this conference so much!!!) It made me the person that I am today and if it had not been for NINJA--I'd not be serving on two governor appointed councils and serving in a variety of other disability leadership capacities. It's truly gonna be an amazing experience for me to teach all of my friends who are going to be attending the NINJA conference this year in person!!! I am so excited for the opportunity to be involved again with something that legitimately makes saying goodbye so hard!! 

#StayTunedForMoreUpdates #June2022 

Free Write

 Night To Shine 2022 (Last Night)

There will be a lot more pictures to be shared at a later time, but all I can say is that last night was truly an unforgettable evening. All of us met up with each other at a Mexican restaurant and enjoyed a scrumptious meal that could have been one less plate, but you get the picture?? We loved getting all dressed up and just being able to quality time with each other was definitely something that had not happened for awhile. 

Shortly after we finished up with dinner, We drove up to our best friend Danielle's house for the remainder of the evening :) Her house was all decked out with blue, sliver and purple balloons, and everything else in between that you could ever imagine!!! We loved every single minute of it so much with getting to hear all of these inspiring messages from celebrities and even special guests whose names I do not remember, but I really loved being able to sing the night away and dance till we were tired!! 

LONG STORY SHORT---There was not a dull moment about this special night and getting to be truly reassured of God's love for us made the evening so much more awesome!!! We loved being able to feel loved all night long with smiles, laughs, singing song lyrics at the top of our lungs, etc. I am so grateful that me and my best friends get to enjoy this special evening together as well as getting to be reminded-- of how incredibly wonderful we are in this world!!! 

#ToBeContinued 

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If you have never heard of this event before, then you are clearly missing out on an experience that will be one for the books!!! I am so excited to once again participate in this worldwide prom event that happens a little bit prior to valentine's day and getting to feel reassured of how important I am in this world, couldn't warm my heart more than it does throughout an event like this one. It's simply amazing to see a whole lot of individuals with disabilities from all over the country in unity over a movement like this for one night only is a dream come true!!! 

We are going to have dinner at a local Mexican restaurant near the University Mall in Orem and then from there we will be head back out to our best friend Danielle's house for the remainder of the evening. It will be so much fun getting to dance the night away, hear inspiring messages from celebrities that we know & love about how incredible we are, being crowned queens of the prom will be the most amazing part of the event itself. I am so excited to celebrate with my best friends and getting a chance to be in the spotlight for once is just like nothing else I can even put into words. #StayTuned

Ninja Forever

My self advocacy journey began a little over ten years ago when I received a piece of paper about a youth leadership retreat that would be taking place on the campus of Utah State University. I didn't want to pass up the opportunity to participate and learn more about becoming an even better person, self advocate and so many other things in between. I am grateful for the many new friendships that I was able to make with such an amazing group of people who still to this day, look after each other no matter what life is throwing at them. I cannot tell you how much of an imprint this conference has left on my heart over the course of these ten years and have never had any regrets since that time. I am grateful for the laughs, memories that me and my friends were able to make with each other, staying up late into the night hours and learning as many things as we could to be good disability leaders. 

TEN YEARS LATER----I am grateful for the doors of opportunity that this conference has given me to walk into and learn what my potential as a self advocate truly is. I also loved being able to teach at/on the conference itself more than anything in the world and getting to share my message of hope with my ninja friends was a delightful experience for me. It has been life changing for me to see the personal growth in myself to not be afraid to stand up for what I know is important and not letting any obstacles get in my way of what I can accomplish. 

LONG STORY SHORT---I am so grateful that this conference is where my self advocacy journey began and it is definitely not the end for me. I only have so many more opportunities out there for me to grasp a hold of and can let impact my life more than I will probably ever know. I have learned and grown so much from being a part of this conference and knowing that my legacy will live on forever is heartwarming. I'm grateful for the family that these group of people became from me as I returned back to this conference & wanting to learn more about becoming a good example for others. 

USILC:

It's been an unforgettable ride for these past ten years as I have gotten to participate in your disability conference that I will always have a special place in my heart for. You have helped me want to be an even better person than I ever thought I could become and I owe it all to you for making that happen.

Thank you so much for allowing me the opportunities to teach at the conference and letting me have an experience that I know will be cherished forever. You have been a wonderful part of my life that I will never want to lose or see itself fade out of here any time soon. I am so grateful for the chance that I do have to serve with you among so many other incredible people, who I know will continue to make an impact on the lives of so many individuals with disabilities. #ToBeContinued