This week’s guest is 22 year old motivational speaker and disability advocate, Danny Steeves. Danny and I met at the Ontario Independent Facilitation Network February Forum, where he inspired me with his resiliency and motivational words.
Danny, who was born with a disability, shares his story of how he could not find suitable employment in his hometown of Listowel, Ontario Canada, and how he took his destiny into his own hands. Danny came up with the idea of creating his own business as a motivational speaker, got buy-in and support from his family, and turned his vision into reality. In his speaking, Danny is the voice for those who do not have a voice and a voice for those that are not heard. Danny advocates that the family and loved ones around an individual without a voice need to speak up and promote that individual’s interests so that they can follow their own path and dreams.
Danny also became very frustrated with local businesses and public places in his town as they were not wheelchair friendly – so he did something about it. Danny partnered with www.stopgap.ca and the local high school to build and install 19 ramps (so far) making buildings in Listowel, ON accessible for everyone. In 2016, Danny was awarded for his work to make his community more accessible with the Accessibility Ontario Disabilities Act (AODA) 10th anniversary Campion Award by the Province of Ontario.
Danny is a guy that stands up for what he believes in and takes action to make the world a better place to live. I encourage you to reach out to Danny to learn more about his motivational speaking services and to learn how you can make your community more accessible.
This week we took a video recording of the podcast complete with audio subtitles (transcript) to increase the accessibility of the podcast. Danny fulfills his dream of becoming a talkshow host in this video as we flip the table and Danny interviews me about my story, and why I am doing the Empowering Ability Podcast. Danny and I are exploring ways to continue working together, so keep an eye out for more to come from Danny.
You can also check out Danny’s YouTube channel!
What you will learn in this episode:
– Hear Danny’s story of becoming an entrepreneur
– Learn about Danny’s motivational speaking
– Learn how Danny made his community more accessible
How to contact Danny Steeves:
Facebook Page: Danny Steves Public Figure
Email: [email protected]
Location: Listowell, Ontario, Canada
YouTube: Click Here for Danny’s Channel
Resources:
About StopGap
StopGap provides the designs and instructions to build light weight plywood rams that improve accessibility into buildings. It is recommended that the ramps are bright colours with StopGap.ca lettering on the ramp. The initiative started in Toronto ON and has spread to many other communities. You can get your community project started with the support of Danny and www.stopgap.ca.
Love & Respect,
Eric
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One way to create self employment would be to remove as many regulatory and bureaucratic barriers as possible. These regulations and red tape make it extremely difficult for small businesses to legally start.