Emily Holmes

Emily is 26 years old and has been a disability advocate for more than 10 years. She has been educating youth and adults, both with and without disabilities, on topics such as transition from high school, education, employment, independent living, and empowerment. Emily has spoken at conferences, trainings, workshops, and graduate classes around the state and the nation.

In June 2007, she graduated from Western Oregon University with a Bachelor of Arts in History. She studies disability history and culture and she hopes to publish her history thesis in the next year. Her paper is about the Section 504 sit-ins, mainly the one in San Francisco, and the amazing things that happened because of it. In the future, she wants to educate people on disability history and culture through public history, primarily through documentaries and museums.

Emily has a variety of disabilities which include Tourette Syndrome (TS), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), ADHD, short-term memory loss, and a processing disorder. Her disabilities do make life challenging at times, but they also make it fun. Emily is proud to be disabled and loves being a part of the disability community.