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October 9, 2025 • 43 mins
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Episode Transcript

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Speaker 1 (00:05):
Here's your host, Alex Garrett. All right, well we're back
here on one leg up Alex Network, and with us
again from Above and Beyond with You is Jenna Utenberg.
And Jenna, it's a very special month. I keyed it
off last week, but I wanted to develop the conversation
about disabil Employment Awareness Month and I understand Above and

(00:28):
Beyond with You is involved with that as well this month.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Yeah, we're just trying to increase the awareness, kind of
have a campaign going of sharing the work of others,
which is super important in what we're doing, and then
have some other speaking engagements that are kind of tied
into it. But we're definitely making it up all a
part of the process and the awareness.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
All Right, I have asking this because you're an entrepreneur,
right you built all this up basically from the ground up.
I feel like that's part of the employment awareness in
this is you can build your own brand, right.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Right, And I think it's really important that yes, letting
that be known out there, Like you know, we can
create the space that we need, and there should be
opportunities in the standard industries for us to also function
and have the employment that we are seeking.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
Well, the dol does say we have a two point
uh you know uptick from last year and hiring which
is pretty good from forty to forty two percent, but
where can we improve on that? I mean, we want
to have more than fifty percent hired, right right?

Speaker 2 (01:27):
You know, that's I think it's just continuing to have
those conversations and for those of us that you know,
feel confident in sharing our story, you know, the good,
the bad, and the ugly, and just really being in
those boardrooms. The more that disability community and culture is
represented in all facets of life, the more it's just
going to become a natural part of everything instead of

(01:50):
you know, the history of our country and of the
world really you know, segregating and separating and all those
horrific things, and making sure we don't go back to that, right, like,
continue that forward motion, continuing having difficult conversations, curious conversations,
and more importantly, like than what so I think sometimes

(02:11):
it's so hard with awareness campaigns. So it's like, yeah,
we're bringing this forward, We're bringing this forward, and then
it's like, but what's the policy change, what's the procedure change,
what's the hiring changes?

Speaker 1 (02:20):
Or bringing this forward? Then the conversation just kind of stops.
I agree with you there, Like let's say on July
twenty six, right with Ada Day, that's where the conversation is.
Then do we have anything else after that? Even with
the politicians? Not really, That's where you and others step
in and say, now we're going to continue that conversation.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
Right, And sometimes you always feel like you're that squeaky
wheel or the fish swimming upstream. Right, So making sure
we're always encouraging those folks that are that are doing
this work and are being that mouth piece, but also
that you know, we also make sure that we are
bringing every along everyone along with us. Right. It's not
just Jenna's story that being shared, it's not just Alex's

(02:57):
story that's being shared, but it's everybody, whether they're new friends,
yet to be friends, or you know, people we've known
for a long time. And I think the biggest thing
for a lot of folks is just remembering that anybody
can acquire their disability at any moment. And so we
are the most diverse minority group out there, and so
I'm excited for the more that we become connected, the

(03:21):
more that we keep speaking up, the more that we
create community within our community because because the sky's the limit, right.

Speaker 1 (03:29):
So the last time we talked, I was on transportation
for you. How's those goals bins as we last talked.

Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yeah, I mean in the current situation that our federal
government finds itself, almost all projects have stopped. So that's
very unfortunate. But I keep still having those conversations, you know,
and I'm connecting with other disability activists throughout the country.
So it was awesome being a part of Nico's Disability

(03:58):
Pride Month activity segment stuff that he did in Philadelphia
and following him, and so I think just the more
that we can be encouraged. And I felt bad with
the whole like, you know, don't drive your car week
last week and all the things we're like, well in
rural Minnesota that yeah, I kind of got to use
my van, Like so I would you.

Speaker 1 (04:18):
Drive or do you have do you drive the van yourself?
Very yeah? Yeah, you know, so many people I have
adaptive cars, and I think that's the thing to bring
a worriers about. If you're afraid to drive, you can
get your car adapted. Do you think there's not enough
wareness about.

Speaker 2 (04:31):
That for sure, and I also think it's a financial burden, right,
And so you know, I've been very privileged to you know,
have the career that I've had, being a music educator,
getting my masters, you know, all those things that I
know not everyone is afforded, and having a supportive family.
You know, my dad helped me with many of my

(04:53):
first cars and down payments and all the things because
we just can't collect that much. And then also because
I get peace the services and Caddie Waiver and all
those different things, you know, with asset limits and all
the stuff. Right, So there's so many different parts to
navigate on the financial front to make that happen. And
so it's interesting because in Minnesota we have a great

(05:13):
company and one of their owners was like, all right, Jenna,
your ban is about ten years old. Have you considered
a trade in? And It's like, no, I've never been
able to do that. It's been like a run into
the ground, you know type of situation. And I was like, oh, well,
this is a way for me also to continue to
give back to my community because you know, it's still
a great band, it still does all the things, and

(05:34):
I'm sure someone else could, you know, Beat it into
the ground, sure, and have some reliable transportation. So I'm
hoping to be able to do that this you know
spring as I take care of different things. But again,
who knows what's going to happen at the federal level
and all the stuff.

Speaker 1 (05:49):
So you know, it's interesting about JOT pradition. It's it's October,
which means Minnesota's going to get a very Is it
a plan for an early winter or what's the planet
there for? Weatherwise?

Speaker 2 (06:00):
Last week on this day it was eighty degrees on
like Superior. Today it was forty three.

Speaker 1 (06:07):
So it's gonna it's gonna change, and uh, yeah, I'm
sure you're ready for that as an experienced Minnesota but no,
my point being is that how do you adjust and
when you talk about it a little bit last time,
but for those just tuning in for the first time,
how do you adjust to that? As someone who drives
adopted vane and then you got to deal with the
snow and then you know the everything about Minnesota weather.

Speaker 2 (06:27):
Yeah, and it is no small feat for sure. You know,
I do a lot of awareness campaigns and a lot
of connections with local agencies and businesses and you know,
all of that bathole sector because it's like your snow
removal policy and plan can't be like, oh, we only

(06:48):
clean it when there's four inches right, Like exercise, sidewalks,
getting in and out. All the things need to be
you know, taken care of. And to be honest, a
lot of times I just take a different an approach
to winter like summer and in minute northern Minnesota, we
don't get a lot of fall, and we don't get
a lot of spring. We're kind of extremists up here

(07:08):
and in the weather. That is.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
Just to clarify, that's funny, you know, Jenna. And by
the way you are by Parson, you do work with
both sides they out, which is very important to note
because you know, it's good to know that you have
both sides ears if you will. But you know what,
I realized we're going to post it on YouTube and
we didn't do that the last time. So oh, give
my audience who's seen this for the first time, insight
into beyond, you know, above and beyond with you. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (07:35):
So, we are a nonprofit located up in northern Minnesota.
I'm Beautiful Lake Superior. Our tagline is that we are
to increase accessibility and inclusion along the north Shore and beyond.
And so we've been in existence for three years and
our goal is to not just to raise awareness but
really come alongside entities, agencies, individuals, small businesses, large businesses.

(07:57):
And the whole meaning of above and beyond with you
is above and beyond stands for that EIGHTYA code is
just the floor, it is not the ceiling. So we
can go above and beyond. And in that disability, culture
and community should be represented as stakeholders and their boys
should be heard and respected and actually acted upon. And
the way with you is a nod to our board.
Almost all of our board members have some connection to education.

(08:20):
I am a former music teacher, and so with is
not just like hey, just hire us for a consultation
and call it good.

Speaker 1 (08:26):
Nope, we want and specifically the you because it's utenberg
so you know it it all works now, as you mentioned,
I remember now our first conversation, I was really hammering
home the point that we don't have to sue every
business that is excessble. We have to work with them
instead of sue then right.

Speaker 2 (08:40):
Right, yeah, the system is just so messed up in
the way that it's situated. You know, with Ada being
the greatest unfunded mandate of the American federal governments. But yeah,
you can get way, in my experience, you can get
way more action and traction with honey than with vinegar.
And at some point sometimes you do have to throw
the vinegar to clean some things up and to you know,

(09:01):
handle things professionally in business like, but I'd much rather
have conversations with business owners and figuring out how to
you know, raise funds to make things happen and to
change their business plan. That's ultimately it, right, Like I
get probably requests almost every month or actually almost every
week depending on the season of hey, above and beyond
with you, do you got money for us? And it's like, no,

(09:23):
that's not how it works. Your business plan needs to
also include accessibility, also include accommodations for your disabled workers.

Speaker 1 (09:30):
Do they want you to fund the project is what
you're saying.

Speaker 2 (09:33):
Right, or create connections so that they can get their
the resources and revenue to do what they what they
want to do. And so it's just that educational piece.
It's that time of you know, again creating that relationship
of like, yeah, we don't have all this money. I
would love to like that's my ultimate dream right to

(09:53):
be like, let's do some fifty to fifty match grants,
let's let's do this work together. But we're just not
there yet. But hopefully.

Speaker 1 (09:59):
I don't know I asked this last time, but the conversion, right,
have you been able to convert businesses into ADA through this?
You know, through this business? How many business have been
converted into ADA visibility through you?

Speaker 2 (10:14):
Wow, that's a great question. We need to track that data.
And a lot of it has been more like, hey, great,
you're here, but now have you thought about this population
of disability? Or hey, you built the ramp last year
before we even we're connected, but now let's talk about
your parking, or hey you got us in the door,

(10:35):
but now I can't use your restroom. So you know,
I think a lot of it is just that we're
still in the journey, right, So I don't know that
I could say like, hey, this is the above and
beyond with you stamp because it's one hundred percent, and
you and I know that nothing's one hundred percent because
we're all uniquely created and uniquely needing accommodations.

Speaker 1 (10:54):
So I want to get people a geographical kind of
difference here because New York has all these buildings which
should be ada. I mean, we're New York City sometimes
or not, but I imagine rural Minnesota, and Minnesota has
a lot more older buildings. So how do you work
on making sure the older buildings are eighty eight? Because
I've seen resistance to the older buildings wanting to be coded,
if that makes sense. They don't They don't know how

(11:15):
they can do it, so they kind of just don't
do it.

Speaker 2 (11:17):
Yeah. Absolutely, I mean even in my small town generally,
I think we have like five or six hair salons
and barbershops, and I can physically get into one that
was built in the last five years and on ground
level and one that had a ramp put onto it,
you know, early on, but thankfully they had the space
to do a one to twelve or a one to

(11:39):
twenty ramp. But so many are in buildings that were
created in the nineteen fifties or even earlier. And a
lot of it comes down to, you know, what are
all the other codes? And that's what I always ask
when I'm with a city and county and state officials,
like what code trumps a different code? You know? Is

(12:00):
is it the water runoff that determines the slope of
the sidewalk. But then you forget about ADA or you
know what I mean. So there's so many things. And
then because there's some of the caveats within ADA, you know, oh,
we're grandfathered in. Well no you're not. People love to
say that, but that's not truly how you read the law. So,

(12:20):
you know, I think a lot of it is like
I get so tired of having to come at it
from the head perspective and from the financial perspective. It's like,
you have to get people at the heart of it.
When they think of your business of X y Z,
do they want to think that you're only catering to
non disabled people or white people or affluent people or
you know what I mean? Like what what are you

(12:42):
truly putting out as your front face and what do
you really mean for that front face to be?

Speaker 1 (12:48):
And for those who may not know your story because
we're we only did the audio portion last time, tell
us you Jenna Unenberger's Oh good question.

Speaker 2 (12:57):
I am a passionate community leader. I have been blessed
with being a Bland and Community Leader member, which is
a local foundation up here in northern Minnesota. I am
a twenty twenty Bush Fellow, and I'm also a twenty
twenty five Shannon Leadership Institute cohort member, and so finding

(13:18):
that voice, finding my story. I'm a published author. Within
my spokes is my memoir that all proceeds go straight
to my work with Above and Beyond with You. And
I also write a column called Local View from four
foot two that you can find on our website Above
and Beyond with You dot org. It's published in our
local paper at the Lake County Press. And so you know,

(13:40):
when I'm not doing all these things, I'm hanging out
with friends. I am enjoying local coffee shops. I am
playing board games and card games. And I'm out on
my real mobility firefly on any paved or gravel trail
that lets me be me with my friends and other
cyclists and bicyclists, So me in a nutshell. I'm also

(14:00):
a retired music teacher, a nineteen year career that got
ended kind of abruptly during the COVID nineteen pandemic because
my school district wasn't interested in accommodating my work from
home orders. So lots of pivoting within my career and
pivoting into the nonprofit world and during my free time haha,
I also coached the Lego Robotics team, the Robo dweebs and.

Speaker 1 (14:22):
Yes, you love the robots. Yes, the robotics, that's that's right.
Well yeah, that's a minute as well, and the Lego
thing as well. But I also want to I brought
you on because we did not get a chance to
talk about ADA Day twenty twenty five. What did you
guys do above and beyond with you were there? I
know you mentioned you were in a real of sorts,
but tell us how you guys, you know, made your

(14:44):
mark this eightya twenty to thirty five, I give it
thirty five years already, right, you know, we.

Speaker 2 (14:52):
Went and supported a local Disability Pride Day that happened regionally,
and that's really cool because that that has only been
in existence. I think this is our second maybe third year,
and so yeah, I mean just a month of just
uplifting other voices and making sure that you know, people
that follow us, other also follow other content creators, awareness

(15:16):
people and the activists that are really doing the hard work.
So yeah, but it feels like forever ago with how
much change has happened.

Speaker 1 (15:27):
Right, I know what, and I was going to ask
you this. So obviously we're now in the shutdown, and
I feel like where we're a group above and beyond
with you can come in about as possibility is navigating
now this fear that Medicaid and all this stuff is
shut down. Are you getting a lot of calls about
this right now?

Speaker 2 (15:45):
We aren't getting those kinds of calls because that's not
necessarily our wheelhouse of things. You know, maybe people sharing
their frustration or their concern and when we do, you know,
get maybe questions of like what are reliable resources? Of
course we share that, you know, based on region and
county and all the stuff. And yet you know, me

(16:07):
and my president, you know, we're both disabled, so we
also are making sure that we're taking self care time
and that we're actually taking care of ourselves too, because
this is it's hard to live it for yourself, live
it with and for others, and you know, just stay
positive in this whole process.

Speaker 1 (16:29):
Yep. But I think you do have a job that
and obviously your guest everywhere, which which is great, and
we of course met through pod match. Have you been
connecting more through there as well?

Speaker 2 (16:38):
Yeah? I actually went through a medical leave for a
little bit, and I have a new knee replacement in July,
so I had to take a couple months off. But
now I'm definitely back and I'm going, Wow, I need
to like figure out how to balance all this stuff
because I love, you know, having these conversations, getting to
know more the hosts and the different shows and that
kind of stuff as well. But yeah, podmetch has definitely

(17:00):
been an amazing tool and an amazing group of folks
that are really all about spreading the message and bringing awareness.

Speaker 1 (17:07):
I don't you know, the Accessible Stall, but they're also
in this space of podcast. I got to connect you
with them because of my childhood friends since since Kindergarten
runs the show with the UH with someone who's doing
editing work for the Able newspaper here in New York.
So I got to connect you guys, and you know,
that's what I'm doing, and I connect with you the
Eric of Tripper because I'm like accessibility transportation.

Speaker 2 (17:28):
Boom, you know, right, Yeah, and I.

Speaker 1 (17:30):
Hope that one has been growing as well. But you
also said something interest the last we're going to pitch
you the idea to come on, and you said, yeah,
we have counselors that can help you out find jobs,
and I feel like that's an arm that doesn't exist everywhere,
you know what I mean, Like there's be more of
that kind of outreach and maybe you're breaking round with that.

Speaker 2 (17:52):
Yeah, I wouldn't say that we are. Necessarily that's the
career of my president of Above and Beyond with you.
So she's done a lot of disability benefits counseling for
probably the last two decades of her world. Started out
in the outdoor camp recreation world and then came into
the benefits world. So she is definitely my go to

(18:14):
person for myself and for others. But I feel like
that maybe is an area that needs way more.

Speaker 1 (18:25):
Well. I think we need to encourage people to get
up and work. I mean, that's the whole thing is
sometimes they're afraid and look the other fury as well.
I'm on benefits, yet how can I work also so
I don't lose the benefits And it's tough to be
kepped out a certain amount you can make a month
with the fear of losing your benefits. Is there a legislation?
Is there? Activism? Is there? You know, advocacy that can

(18:46):
be done to fix that.

Speaker 2 (18:49):
Yes and right, it's getting connected to those legislative activists,
the lobbyists, you know, and then figuring out like what
is a state issue and what is a federal issue,
what is a local issue? And I think the hard
part is is like you never bring all the entities together.
So you know, SSDI makes one call, Medicare or health

(19:11):
insurances make another call, Caddie waivers and county level services
make a different call. So it's just frustrating when you're
stuck between all the different systems. And then it's like, oh,
and by the way, I have to take care of
my health or my medical conditions or I just need
to like live a healthy life. So I get the frustration.
And yet sometimes it's so hard because it feels like

(19:34):
not everybody has the same access to the resources, or
you have to like find this magical beginning of your
choose your own adventure instead of like, hey, everyone who
identifies as disabled or has these conditions that you know
need accommodations. Here's all the information you ever need to
know in all of the different connectivities to make it happen.

(19:56):
And so I think that's a part of our frustration
as well, Like even this Even last night, I was
talking to somebody about, you know, local housing practices. I'm like, okay,
so when does above and beyond with you get to
come and talk with this new upcoming hotel. When do
we get to come and talk with the people that
are creating this new housing project. And they're like, oh,

(20:18):
we need to figure out this project management style, because
I'm like, right it, we're always.

Speaker 1 (20:22):
New architects too in the process, I guess, right, right.

Speaker 2 (20:26):
And then what I've noticed in the last three years
of doing this work too is like you can be
at the beginning of the idea. You can meet with
the architects, and the architects can be amazing. You can
meet with the contractors and they can be amazing. But
what I found is it's that last paid, least paid
contracted nobody's around on the last friday of the day
for a holiday weekend, and that one choice that that

(20:49):
laborer makes and where they put the bars or where
they put dispensers or where they do whatever made all
this work from the very beginning completely noll and void
because of that one choice. So it's just figuring out
the workflows of all the different ways in which we
create spaces, and we maintain spaces, and we retrofit spaces

(21:11):
to make sure we're always thinking about accessibility.

Speaker 1 (21:14):
So now here in New York, we're always building new things.
I feel like everything there's construction that's all over is
do you see that in Minnesota that there are up
and coming construction program projects that we may not know
about that we can support. Maybe in the Ada space, I.

Speaker 2 (21:31):
Would say like yes, more in our metro area, rural
takes a lot longer to get new things, Like I
currently live in one of the newest high rises that
was built in nineteen sixty eight.

Speaker 1 (21:43):
Wow.

Speaker 2 (21:45):
So yeah.

Speaker 1 (21:46):
You know what's cool about your role though, is you
are advocacy. You're activists because you deal with the legislation
part of it, but then you're also consult Do you
consider yourself a consultant as well? I feel like you
have that title, you.

Speaker 2 (21:59):
Know, Yeah, And that's where I love being making those relationships, right,
That's where I love flipping the script. That's where I
love seeing those aha moments. So it's that teacher in
me that's like, yes, that's why I'm an accessibility educator.
Let's have these conversations. And also as somebody who's been
in a wheelchair for thirty eight years since age eight.
It's like, there's really nothing that you're gonna ask trying

(22:21):
to be inclusive or trying to be politically correct. That's
gonna throw me off because when you've done this for
so long, it's like, yep, let's talk about the language
you used.

Speaker 1 (22:31):
Well and maybe people listen to our first comminiess. I'm
gonna repeat some of the questions that I remember. Now.
You were diagnosed with juvenile arthritis as a kid, I
mean eight years old, and I remember asking you, I'm
doing this for the YouTube because they may I've seen this,
heard this before, but you're you're an eight year old,
you jump around right, your vibrant and then does it
feel like the world stops for you? And then you

(22:51):
had to really adapt?

Speaker 2 (22:52):
What was that moment, like, yeah, you know a lot
of my memories have kind of been washed away in
a good way, right, and it's a healthy, healing way.
But yeah, life was very different. I mean I was
this tom tom boy that went hunting and fishing and
doing all the outdoor things with my dad and brother

(23:13):
and grandpa and all the stuff, and then life really
turned medical and then my life turned really like into adults,
Like I would say, you know, one to one when
you have different paras in the school setting, and then
you go to pet's and OT's and doctors and nurses
and people with sharp objects and you know, doing out
the tortuous things to you in the medical world. It

(23:34):
just shapes you differently. And so I've always said that
I'm very thankful that I acquired my disability at a
young age because I didn't know any different. I mean,
you've only lived so much life by age seven or eight, right,
so then everything else has been shaped.

Speaker 1 (23:48):
And and you have a strong faith in God. I
think we talk about that last time, So I know
that that has gotten you through a lot of these
last thirty plus years now.

Speaker 2 (23:56):
Yeah, absolutely, Like and I've gone through depressions, I've gone
through you know, really hard stuff, and yeah, for me,
it's been my faith that's always brought me back and
my chosen family, you know, plus my biological family of course.
But the larger the support system one can have the
better off in the long run. You can you know,

(24:17):
hopefully be supported and get those healthy spots.

Speaker 1 (24:21):
I want to ask you this though, because I feel
like were there signs, because I only asked us that
maybe people who have kids at that age now and like,
are there signs people have to look out for.

Speaker 2 (24:34):
Yes and no. Like my story is we were out
skating and supposedly I fell and so then that's when
my knee was twice the size in the bathtub the
next morning. So a lot of times it comes down
to swelling, it comes down to heat. Some versions of
JI have rashes. So there's lots of different ways that

(24:55):
arthritis can be triggered in kids. And I believe you
can be all the way up to like age and
you can still be considered to have juvenile at your
onset age. So it's just interesting. And like another podcaster
last week is like, so juvenile, I'm like, yeah, the
doctors try to take away that name like eight years ago,
and I was like, no, in the medical world, you

(25:17):
need to see like, yes, Jenna's forty five right now,
but Jenna's been dealing with this for thirty eight years,
not just like, oh she got it at age forty two.
This is three years of a disease cycle. So always advocating,
I always fighting for yourself and for your rights and
to make sure that people are knowing all of Jenna,
not just individual parts of Jenna.

Speaker 1 (25:38):
And you know, of course, my healthcare. I'm thinking about healthcare.
Do you hope to have more tentacles? If you will, right, Like,
you're gonna deal with healthcare abbacy, then you're gonna deal
with transportation and accessibility, and then all these tentacles will
lead to a force of nature in the eighty community.
Ever do you ever think like that?

Speaker 2 (25:59):
Yeah, I try to break into the medical world, especially locally, right,
like think globally, act locally. And I've had so many
just near really bad calls in different situations by well
intending providers and well intending you know, X ray texts
and that kind of stuff. But then in the same respect,
I always like bring it back, you know, like when

(26:20):
I go get X rays, especially for my lower limbs,
or always like, oh it's a standing X ray, can
you stand? And I'm like, well yes and no, right,
And so then I'm always advocating like, hey, yep, I've
been doing this for thirty eight years. But if you
have somebody who comes in as a newly diagnosed person
or a new injury, that would be horrific to them
on their recovery to say, hey, you need to stand

(26:42):
for this X ray. So there's just so.

Speaker 1 (26:44):
Much education cruelty actually.

Speaker 2 (26:47):
Oh for sure, right, and so I'm just like, can
we not do that? You know? Like I don't know.
So there just has to be so much more education
and opportunities. And I understand it from the other side,
especially as being an educator, right, like, we don't know
what we don't know, but then once we know, we
need to do better. But if you don't have a
safe place for you to practice and know that, you're

(27:09):
gonna make mistakes, because that's a whole educational cycle. Like
you know, just you know, fall asleep one night and
go ooh, I'm never gonna say a bad thing ever again.
Right right, We're human. We're gonna make mistakes.

Speaker 1 (27:21):
You have me intrigue right now. Because you know music,
You're obviously gonna play instruments. What instrument did you like
to play growing up? How'd you get into the music world,
you know, music therapy world and then or a music
teaching world, I should say, yeah. And then as the
years went on, did you find playing yet to adapt
to the way you played because the arthritis? Was there

(27:42):
something there with that.

Speaker 2 (27:44):
Yeah for sure. So I my first love is trumpet playing,
and my oldest sister played the cornet, which is like
a smaller version of a trumpet. So my other sister
played the flute. Now it was just too girly for me,
too small, too delicate, not my bag. And so I
had an amazing middle school band teacher and she really inspired
me because she saw me as a whole person. She

(28:04):
inspired me to become that. And so that's sort of
my journey of becoming a music educator. And for me,
when I was the lead trumpet player of the high
school jazz band and of concert band and all that
stuff like, that's where I found my voice. That that
was my even playing field with my non disabled peers.
That was also a great healing space for me because
when I was in a lot of pain, it was

(28:25):
like this sucks, right, you know, and just playing higher
and faster and louder and doing all the things. And
then when I became a music educator, my greatest part
of my career was starting an adaptive music program, like
let's give all of our students equal access, which means
some of our kiddos need you know, the ability of

(28:45):
visual schedules, and then I brought that into my general
ed classroom and so then having non disabled kiddos using
that tool that device was like, oh, and it took
away the anxiety of other kiddos, you know, like, so
you don't have to be on an I or A five.
All four have this diagnosis to benefit from accommodations that
other people who really need those things. And so that's

(29:09):
my biggest thing now. And I love disability communities.

Speaker 1 (29:12):
I did you mentioned the adapted music before? Have you
implemented that program elsewhere? I've been able to do that
through above and beyond with you or even in your
own side hustle if you will.

Speaker 2 (29:22):
No, not yet. I actually got a speaking engagement last
month around that, which shocked me because I haven't done
it in five years of my retirement. But you know,
reconnecting with the speech language pathologists that I teamed with
and the rest of the team, they're like, we need
to we need to revive this because now they've had
you know, different retirements and different staff and all the stuff.

(29:43):
So that's just the hardest part, you know, like when
staff is changing, administration is changing, you know, and and
throughout all of disability history, right, we get the activists,
you know, Alex is doing the podcast thing, Jenna's doing
Above and Beyond with you think, and then it's like, oh, well,
now Alex or Jena got sick or Alex or Jenna
have x y Z and then it's like our work stops.

(30:05):
And that's been my thing since day one with Above
and Beyond with You is like I want the movers
and shakers, I want the educating part of it. I
want the people that are in continue this on because
it's not about Jenna, right, And so whether I get
taken out because I have to have a knee replaced,
or whether I get taken out because it's just not

(30:26):
my season to be a part of it anymore, or
I get literally taken out forever, like the work still
should should move forward, And that's that's what I'm trying
to create and trying to always make sure we're there,
and like you said earlier, with all the different tentacles,
like that's the hard part is like there's so much
education to do, there's so much change that needs to happen,

(30:50):
and yet finding that finding those spaces where your energy
is being used and people are actually coming at it
in the right time, in the right way. And so
you know a lot of my friends are always like, wow,
you were just you're like killing yourself over this, and
it's like, well, right, But if a business comes to
us and says, hey, I have this money right now

(31:11):
with this initiative, I have to throw you know what.
I have to make time and make space for that,
because I can't be like, well, let me look at
my calendar. Oh, in six months, on this Wednesday, for
this hour, I'll get to you. You know. So that's
a struggle.

Speaker 1 (31:28):
Is any project too daunting? Do you ever look at
this and say, oh my god, I don't know if
this is possible? Or do you find do you look
at it as any building can be fixed up? I mean,
what's your approach to all of that?

Speaker 2 (31:41):
Yeah, I would say double yes, right, Like I try
not to let it out of my face because it's
not my voice that usually gives it away. It's always
my face of like, that is danting, That is overwhelming.
Not sure we're going to be able to get there right,
But I'm always confident that we can think outside the box.
But so often we just get lip service, Oh yeah,

(32:04):
this would be great, and then they dream big, and
they want big, but then the right yeah, and so
then that's the struggle of like do you let them
dream big, do you let them see how inclusive and
accessible the world truly can be, or do you realistically
come in And I don't ever want to be that
wet blanket because it's like no. But then there's all

(32:27):
you know, there's so many broken scripts that are out
there that we're trying to fight of. You know, well
it's more expensive, Well yes in some ways, but not
really because retrofitting is more expensive losing the income or
the you know, the revenue that you be getting as
a small business because you're not accessible or you don't
have accessible parking, or you don't have accessible point of.

Speaker 1 (32:48):
Saying, that's a great point. They don't realize that not
be accessible shuts out a whole sector of people that
will benefit their business. And then, you know, I find
we are community, right, So the more people that use
a business, they're gonna to say to their friends, hey,
come on in. You know it. It just naturally works
like that. And that's funny you mentioned because I was
in a not in a fight, but I had seen
that they wanted one million dollars to fix up or

(33:11):
do something with the met Opera elevator, right, one million dollars.
And I said, this is tough because I want the
pledge to we ad accessible. But do I want one
million dollars of my you know, of the government or
should the private sector? Should the met Opera do this
on their own? Right? But in that sense, I do
think if they on the capital, they should lean on
the government in that way.

Speaker 2 (33:32):
Right, Yeah, yeah, you know, there's there's got to be
some magical equation, some some better way to go through
this to fund things. And like I said, you know,
it's just it's all that negative those negative scripts of
how we should or shouldn't do this. Or another new

(33:54):
one that came to us a couple months ago was well,
I know that sometimes if you make it better for
this segment of disability, culture and community, then you're inhibiting
that segment. And I loved it because my president was like, well,
not if you do it right, right, not if you
use universal design, not if you involve the people that

(34:16):
are being impasted.

Speaker 1 (34:17):
By the way. Right, So the garden is accessible and
Messageburg Garden is pretty accessible. I think they have a
nice section, but then they took it a step furthers
that we're going to give sensory you know, uh devices
for people who need that sensory as well. And I
thought that was a great inclusionary movement right there, is
to put the sensory devices in and that just adds
another layer to their accessibility.

Speaker 2 (34:37):
Yeah. Absolutely, And the reality, like you know, I'm not
being ageist or anything like that, but I'm so intrigued
to continue to watch the baby boomers as the age
because disability is just a natural process of life as well,
doesn't always have to be catastrophic. Things that happen are tragic,
even though I don't like using those words, but you know,

(34:58):
and so it's just it's just intriguing because it's like, oh,
and I've even gotten some flack like hey, so and
so as a baby boomer and they just became disabled
like last month. But look at all the cool things
they're doing at Target Center and they're doing it excel
energy and they're making happen to the Vikings Football Stadium.
What's wrong with you, Jennah. You've been doing this for
thirty eight years. How come you're not? And it's like, well,

(35:19):
I've been doing this for thirty eight years and I
haven't been to those spaces. So number one, that's part
of why I didn't do.

Speaker 1 (35:24):
I mean, why aren't you the Twins, the Vikings, the
wolves in other words, right, like, why don't.

Speaker 2 (35:29):
You go after these big places? And I was like that,
that's not my colleague in my chapter, and that's no.

Speaker 1 (35:34):
The whole point is the small businesses and that's what
needs to be improved more because right the bigger projects
will handle themselves like that's just they they have the
capital firstly to do that. They can they can do that.
But when you have a mom and pop stores, it
also could alleviate the fear that they're going to be shooting.

Speaker 2 (35:49):
You know.

Speaker 1 (35:50):
I had to go back to that. But that's just
how it feels like. If you're working alongside the small businesses,
then they'll feel a little more comfortable. Hey, we have
an ally here. We have someone that gets it, you know,
and not just that says, well, I'm going to go
to twenty thousand different places, make all the points isn't
accessible and suite them like I don't know, I just
it bothers me to know when that the ADA gets
weaponized like that. But I think you're changing the tune

(36:12):
on that now. As you're talking, I'm thinking to myself,
all right, So let's say a project gets on the ground,
going off the ground, I should say, and all of
a sudden, you're looking for outside the architects contract. How
does that work? Do you have people on standby that say, yes,
we'll come in and fix this building right away.

Speaker 2 (36:32):
I wish that's our goal. We do have some connections
to local contractors that have done amazing work, like in
our public library. And you know, our small town of
less than four thousand people is the first community to
have a public adjustable adult changing table. And I was like,
our bigger, larger city that has like eighty thousand people

(36:55):
twenty six miles away from us doesn't even have one anywhere.
It's like, oh, but our little town of thirty eight
hundred has this accommodation and this thought process. So it's
some of those little things that I love being a
part of those those things and then blowing other people's minds.

Speaker 1 (37:10):
Like, oh they locally. It becomes a national campaign after that, Right,
you guys are local. And then it branched out because
I think you just said you were. You have seen
different states sort of interacting with you about this, right, yeah.

Speaker 2 (37:24):
Yeah, and for all of us to just learn from
other ones, right and especially if you can get that
like state to state rivalry. You know, us on the
Midwest we have that. I'm sure we have it on
the East coast too.

Speaker 1 (37:33):
But it's like Minnesota like more accessible than Massachusetts kind
of stuff right there.

Speaker 2 (37:38):
So right, don't don't tell Minnesota that Wisconsin's doing something
better or I always doing something better. It's like, wait, wait,
what how about.

Speaker 1 (37:46):
The airplane travel? Have you been working in that space yet,
like to make sure that can be more accessible or
is that not not there yet?

Speaker 2 (37:54):
We support like wheels up media and or wheels Up
can't remember the next word of their organization and like
some of those campaigns that other entities do, I myself
have never flown because of chairs getting you know, over
one hundred chairs getting destroyed every day.

Speaker 1 (38:10):
Oh I saw versethand my ex and I went to
Texas and they came back. We came back, the chair
was just all mangled, and it was like what the heck?
And it's almost like they just throw these things down
the ramp and not give a crap about it.

Speaker 2 (38:22):
So Oh yeah, you're can watch on YouTube with you know,
chairs not having breaks on and people just chucking them,
and it's like, really, I'm in an eight thousand dollars
manual chair from Canada that I had to wait months
and months for to get through customs. So let's not
do that. Yeah, And so you know, I follow people
like Kurve Free with Corey Lee and Spin the Globe like,

(38:42):
and I support and you know, lift up their their
voice and their work a lot. And I think that's
I think that's good, right, because we can't be everything
to everyone, so we kind of have to find our
a niche of like where are we being called? Where
are we passionate? Where are we being successful? And then
you know, know, not try to fight every single fight

(39:02):
because you're not gonna you're not gonna make enough head
a way. So finding those spaces where you're truly passionate,
you've got the support, you have the allies, and just
keep keep doing the thing.

Speaker 1 (39:15):
All right. I think this all ties into the employment awareness,
which we are where we started, because the more accessible
people find it, the more they're going to want to
apply to jobs knowing the workspace is accessible. So that's
got to be the next step also is okay, job
you say you want to hire disabled people because of
EO Equal operatuity, employer, then put your money over your

(39:36):
mouth there to make it accessible, make it more inviting
for someone to apply. Is that another issue we're running into.

Speaker 2 (39:42):
Too, Oh for sure. And I think a lot of
times people only think of people coming into their establishment.
You don't think of somebody behind your point of sale.
You don't think of the bar needing to be accessible
for your bartender, and or they think, well, none of
my people are disabled. It's like, statistically, I know every
single business will have at least one unless it's mom

(40:02):
and pop and they're not disabled. But any more workers
when one in feign Americans, you know, identify as disabled,
well that also means that there's way more than that,
because not everybody wants to identify is disabled because it's
such a negative stigma. And then even if they do identify,
many times you're not going to tell your employer I
had to because here I come wheeling in your space.

(40:25):
You know they knew that. But I also know very
well that I probably wouldn't have gotten my first public
school job had that person not advocated for me because
I was the best option of the people that they
you know, interviewed. But I knew that administration would be
looking and going, oh, but with Jenna comes all these
other things. What if we went with so and so

(40:47):
they don't have all these other things. It's like, well
they do, they're just not obvious because all humans come
with stuff, right, It's.

Speaker 1 (40:55):
True, that's very true. Well, I'm glad that you're what
you did in the classroom and expanding into this national
I mean, I know you're thinking local, but it's also
becoming national because you've been on so many shows already.
It's like becoming a national movement you got going on.
But that's the next question. Where can people find you, guys?
And also is there a newsletter? Do you do webinars?

(41:16):
Are there events that you guys put on that we
could know about.

Speaker 2 (41:20):
Yeah, so Above and Beyond with you dot org and
the you is the letter you and so you can
find us on socials LinkedIn Instagram and Facebook. Okay, I
always forget one of them. And you can have access
to my book and our consulting opportunities and training opportunities
and all that through our website. Also all the local

(41:40):
view from four foot two columns of this year are
getting updated on the website. We are going to be
launching the audio version of my book hopefully later in October.
Just just waiting on some audio files to finally convert
and do all that kind of stuff. But we'll keep
you updated on that. And yes, I told really like
my next step. I would love to get into webinars

(42:02):
and and all the things, but just trying to finish
up some bigger projects and finished up some contracts before
diving into the next step of above and beyond with you.

Speaker 1 (42:11):
All right? So you said the book is called within
my Spokes, right, that's the book.

Speaker 2 (42:15):
Yep.

Speaker 1 (42:16):
I don't want to ask you that because I feel
like what you said a few minutes ago about how
you were so excited to show your able body peers. Hey,
I could do it too. Let me tell you, as
an adaptive athlete and someone who's competitive like that and
all that, I love showing able body people we can
kick ass as well. I don't know, I feel like
we're on the same way plank there, right.

Speaker 2 (42:37):
I always tease one of my pets. I had a
PCA several years ago, and she's like Johnnah's kind of
weak and my PT looked at her and she's like, nope,
come here, and it's like nope. Once you're in my
little wheel house, I could do some damage, but you
have to come to where I can get you. But yeah,
so you know there's a fighting spirit.

Speaker 1 (42:55):
In everything, smashing stigmas. You know. I think we're all
out here every day trying to smash the stigma, right,
I like that. All right, Jenna, thank you so much.
And you won't believe this, but this whole month, Tripper
is sponsoring the show, so we got him on board
as a sponsor for Employment Awareness Month, and I just
want to give them a shout out today. Of course,
Trippercorp dot net is sponsoring this whole month. Thank you

(43:17):
so much, and I love you guys connected too as well.

Speaker 2 (43:20):
Yeah, that's great, all.

Speaker 1 (43:22):
Right, Jenna Unenberger above and be on with you. Thanks
so much.

Speaker 2 (43:24):
Thank you, Alex
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