In this heartfelt tribute, members of Georgia’s independent living community gather to celebrate the life and leadership of Shelly Simmons, the late Executive Director of the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia (SILCGA). Through powerful reflections, they share how Shelly’s compassion, wisdom, and advocacy shaped their lives and the future of disability rights in Georgia.Featuring:Becky Tuttle – Executive Director, SILCGAReshell Baldini – Board Member, SILCGAEtrudy Taylor Mitchell – CEO, Whole InclusionJordan Hall – Mobility Coordinator, SILCGAEster Durante – Advocate & Outreach Coordinator, SILCGAVictor McRae – Housing Policy Coordinator, SILCGAChapters00:00 – Introduction00:00 – Becky Tuttle (SILCGA Executive Director): Remembering Shelly’s leadership and legacy02:53 – Reshell Baldini (SILCGA Board Member): A life of inclusion and laughter04:22 – Etrudy Taylor Mitchell (CEO, Whole Inclusion): Mentorship and inspiration for new leaders07:18 – Jordan Hall (SILCGA Mobility Coordinator): Finding opportunity and empowerment through Shelly’s belief13:42 – Ester Durante (SILCGA Advocate & Outreach Coordinator): Connection, growth, and living authentically18:36 – Victor McRae (SILCGA Housing Policy Coordinator): Compassion in action and Shelly’s everyday impact

In this episode of Accessibility Now, recorded live at the 2025 National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) Conference in Washington, D.C., we share conversations with disability advocates from across the United States. Each guest talks about the work they are doing in their communities to advance accessibility, equity, and independent living.You will hear about advocacy on women’s health and accessibility, statewide disability policy, community-based services, housing initiatives, youth transitions, disaster preparedness, Medicaid waiver programs, transportation training, and the importance of having people with disabilities at decision-making tables.Watch or listen to the full episode here, or jump to a specific interview using the timecodes below. To see all 20 interviews recorded at NCIL, visit the link in the show notes.Timecodes:00:00 Intro & Monique Stamps – NC Statewide Independent Living Council / Women Embracing Abilities Now 02:20 Harry Weissman – Disability Policy Consortium (Massachusetts) 05:30 Cynthia Coffin – Disability Empowerment Center (Seattle) 07:10 Colleen Roche – New Jersey Statewide Independent Living Council 10:00 Christie Graves – Northern Regional Center for Independent Living (NY) 12:10 Patrick Frozini – Center for Independent Living (South Florida) 16:50 June Kailes – Disability Policy Consultant (Los Angeles) 18:00 Katrina Parsons – Disability Link (Tucker, GA) 19:30 Karen Annette & Mindy – Independence Center (Northern Virginia) 21:00 Yao Appiadu – Harlem Independent Living Center (NY)Link to all 22 interviews from NCIL 2025: https://www.disabilityrightspodcasts.org/ncil-conference

On this episode of Accessibility Now, we speak with Tiffany Clifford, a longtime leader in Georgia’s independent living movement. She recounts her early days at Walton Options and reflects on the critical role the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia (SILCGA) played in expanding independent living services throughout the state. Tiffany also provides a clear explanation of how SILCs and Centers for Independent Living work together—clarifying common misconceptions—and offers a candid assessment of how proposed federal budget cuts could undermine decades of progress.

In this special 30th anniversary episode, Pat Puckett, former longtime executive director of the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia (SILCGA), reflects on the early years of the Independent Living movement in Georgia. From the humble beginnings of a rented office funded out-of-pocket to the historic Olmstead Supreme Court decision, Pat shares the defining moments that helped shape services and support for Georgians with disabilities. She recounts key milestones, including building the first Centers for Independent Living, pioneering supported employment programs, and pushing for home- and community-based services. With honesty, humor, and deep wisdom, Pat reminds us what’s possible when advocacy is grounded in persistence, collaboration, and compassion. This episode is both a tribute to the past and a call to action for the future.

In this episode of the SILCGA podcast, we talk with Kip Slade, a seasoned advocate and grant manager with decades of experience in disability employment initiatives. Kip discusses the evolution of customized employment, the importance of self-employment for people with disabilities, and the funding mechanisms that make these opportunities possible. He also addresses the potential threats to disability-related funding at the federal level and how policy changes could impact the future of inclusive employment.

Join us for the SILCGA end-of-the-year retrospective podcast as we celebrate the progress and challenges of Georgia’s Independent Living Movement in 2024. Hear from SILCGA staff as they share updates about expanding services, improving accessibility, and building a more inclusive future. Together, we reflect on the milestones of the past year and look ahead to exciting opportunities in 2025.

In this episode, Victor McRae shares his journey from experiencing vision loss as a child to becoming an advocate for accessible housing in Georgia. Victor discusses his work with the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, where he tackles housing disparities for people with disabilities. He reflects on the systemic challenges, such as geographic resource gaps and rising housing costs, that disproportionately impact the disability community. Victor also offers insights on how listeners can support legislative efforts to expand accessible housing options across the state.

Jordan Hall, the Mobility coordinator for the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia, has personally encountered obstacles to mobility and transportation as a person who uses a motor wheelchair. She discusses with us her path to this position of mobility coordinator at SILCGA, and how being hired was an introduction to the resources provided by Centers for Independent Living, which she had spent her life living without. She also explains why sharing her experiences and listening to the experiences of others with disabilities have been some of her greatest assets in fostering change. To close, she shares with us the biggest obstacle that she is trying to address in terms of mobility for Georgians with disabilities.

Dana Lloyd, an advocate with the Georgia Advocacy Office, shares her journey into the vital civil rights work of advocating for people with disabilities. From her early days of providing direct support to her current role as a Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities (PADD) advocate, Dana discusses the evolution of mindsets about the disability community and how these attitudes influence societal treatment of people with disabilities. She provides an overview of PADD and the Georgia Advocacy Office's role. We also discuss current advocacy issues her office is addressing.

Jimmy Peterson is the Executive Director of the Georgia Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and he is also a person who is deaf himself. We discuss the advocacy and services they provide to Georgians and how translation is the number one need for the deaf and hard of hearing community. Additionally, he shares insights on what people with hearing should know about communicating with deaf individuals. The GCDHH also facilitates and participates in various festivals and live events, such as DEAFest, a biannual event that provides opportunities for deaf and hard-of-hearing people to network and share their businesses, art, and performances. Hearing people are invited to gain an immersive experience of deaf culture. In this interview, we also explore some nuances of American Sign Language (ASL) and the national need for more interpreters. This interview was conducted through an interpreter.

In this episode, we dive into the journey of Garrick Scott, the Executive Director of Multiple Choices in Athens, Georgia. Born with retinitis pigmentosa, Scott shares how his vision loss led him to become a passionate advocate for the disability community. Through initiatives like accessible transportation and community-building events, Multiple Choices under Scott's leadership, is innovating ways to enhance accessibility and inclusion for people with disabilities. Join us as we explore how Garrick Scott and Multiple Choices are making Georgia a more inclusive place for everyone.

Living Independence for Everyone, the Savannah-based CIL serving Coastal Georgia, is growing strong. They’re making new hires, building new inroads into the community and practicing truly active listening with their consumers.

We spoke with three of their staff, Executive Director Neil Ligon, Associate Director Angel Denardi, and Students for LIFE coordinator Maggie Meade, about the work they’re doing and the results they’re seeing at LIFE.

The Georgia Advocacy Office is a key player in the fight for independent living. They lead accessibility and advocacy initiatives, take on cases, and spearhead investigations into disability rights issues. We sat down with Cheri Mitchell, a GAO advocate specializing in housing, to talk about her 18-year career, her philosophy, and her organization’s work toward making life in Georgia better for all of us.

For many of our episodes of Accessibility Now, we've consulted the expertise of SILCGA's executive director Shelly Simmons.

Finally, we've spoken with Shelly about her own story — from California to Georgia, from TV commercial production to disability advocacy — as part of our new segment, States of Accessibility, that will profile the directors of SILCs in each state.

Phoenix Station, a new affordable housing project by LDG, will be an apartment complex in Decatur, just outside downtown Atlanta. It's on track for completion in 2024, with applications opening December 2023.

Unlike most affordable housing, 30% of its units will be mobility-accessible, and all units will have the "bones" for easy conversion for accessibility needs.

We talked to Shelly Simmons, SILCGA executive director, and Chris Byrd, LDG director of development in the Southeast, about the collaboration that informed the build philosophy of Phoenix Station.

For the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia created Inclusion, a comprehensive and compelling look at the legacy of the struggle for disability rights.

We sat down with Ty Hunt, director of Inclusion, to talk about his experiences prior to the project and how it's changed him in the time since.

Disability Connections, the Center for Independent Living in Macon, Georgia, has built a strong digital media presence over the last few years. With their online communities, virtual courses, podcasts and more, they might just be a 21st-century vision of independent living. We spoke with executive Director Michael Leverett and two more traditional, analog consumers, Kimberly Harrell and Debra Davidson, about the work Disability Connections is doing in their area.

Unlock 2.0 is a coalition of organizations fighting for change through legislative action on behalf of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDDs. Much of the resources that help people with IDDs live fulfilling lives are tied up in state programs like Medicaid — that requires activists to change the minds of budget-conscious legislators, telling stories and presenting data in hearings at the Capitol in Atlanta. We spoke with grassroots engagement director Rita Young about her personal story and the experiences that led her to work with Unlock 2.0.

What are some of the ways people with disabilities experience discrimination on a daily basis, and how can we start to address those forms of discrimination? To begin answering those questions, we’re featuring a conversation with Dr. Sue ElHessen, an educator and activist in California specializing in Disability Rights, speaking to us about the topic of ableism. This is a form of discrimination similar to racism and sexism, but one that many of us in our society are still largely unaware of. Dr. Sue has served on the California Commission on Disability Access for the State of California, has taught at multiple universities, and is a member of the school board for the Bellflower Unified School District, among many other roles in education and advocacy.

We’re featuring a conversation with Rosario Palacios, an activist with Caring Across Generations, working on the Care Can’t Wait initiative, a cooperative effort involving multiple organizations including us here at SILCGA. Rosario shared with us about her work, her story, and what motivates her to advocate for change as an activist and a caregiver. We begin our conversation by getting her backstory of growing up undocumented in the United States and how that work laid the groundwork to advocate for change within her community and throughout Georgia. We think you’ll find her story and work as enlightening as we did. Learn more about Rosario's work at the websites for Caring Across Generations https://caringacross.org/ and the Care Can't Wait initiative at https://www.carecantwait.org/. You can also learn about the Statewide Independent Living Council of Georgia at https://www.silcga.org/.