Mark Adreon has been employed with the Washington State Department of Services for the Blind for nine years and has served as Communications and Employer consultant, Public Relations and Outreach as well as project management roles with the department. Mark has work in a number of advocacy roles with a wide range of organizations throughout the state. He has served on the Puget Sound Diversity Employment Network board for ten years assisting in developing a membership list of over 8,500 employers and community based organizations throughout King County. Mark has served on the METRO Accessible Services Advisory Committee for seven years, has chaired the King County 504 ADA Committee and served as a Commissioner with the King County Human Rights Commission. Mark has developed and implemented many community forums including a forum on accessible technology, working with Microsoft, employers, consumers, and developers to strategize how to make consumer and employer based technologies accessible to blind and low vision users. Mark also worked in partnership with DSB, U of W School of Art and other community partners to create "Touching Art"; an art competition and exhibit featuring wall mount tactile art works with visual appeal.
Mike Barta has a background in disability theory specifically related to inclusion, stigma, and independence. Mike was a member of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines working group for the W3C which created the standard for digital accessibility concerns. He is knowledgeable about adaptive solutions, both technical AT and practical work arounds. Mike is retired from 15 years at Microsoft and is currently pursuing a Master's Degree in Policy. Mike looks forward to working for more inclusion of 'digital divide' concerns as he joins the Commission.
Joshua Caple is a case manager with ElderHealth Northwest, where he provides services to adults with physical and mental disabilities and traumatic brain injuries, as well as the elderly, and regularly interacts with caregivers, guardians, family members, and state case managers. He has worked for several years at assisted living facilities, providing services to profoundly disabled individuals. Joshua previously worked with youth who have physical, mental, and learning disabilities. Joshua brings to the Commission the perspective of a direct service provider.
Charlene Curtiss
Charlene Curtiss is Founder and Artistic Director of Light Motion Dance Company, an integrated dance program for disabled and nondisabled dancers. She has performed, choreographed, and taught movement workshops nationally and internationally for over 20 years. Additionally, Ms. Curtiss worked with the Women Wheelers organization to negotiate a settlement with the Seattle Center regarding the removal of 13 disabled parking stalls on the Seattle Center grounds in 2009. Previously, she chaired the Arts and Accessibility Committee on the Washington State Arts Commission and served on the Consumer Advisory Board for the Northwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury System. Formerly, Ms. Curtiss practiced law as a public defender with the Associated Counsel for the Accused and presently serves as President of the Board of Directors.
Hope Drummond
Hope Drummond is a longtime advocate for people with disabilities on a range of fronts. As an individual of short stature with multiple other disabilities, Ms. Drummond has first-hand experience with navigating through institutions that are not designed to include her as an active participant. In her professional life, Ms. Drummond has assisted clients with disabilities transition into the workforce, sort out benefits and insurance issues, and become more independent. Ms. Drummond has served on the youth advisory board of Healthy Futures at Life Coalition in Mississippi and the board of the My Voice My Choice Project under the Arc of Mississippi Organization. Ms. Drummond is a powerful advocate, who has engaged extensively in the public arena on behalf of individuals with disabilities and has increased awareness of disability issues.
Vickie Foster
Vickie Foster has served on several boards and committees, including the Agency Council on Coordinated Transportation, the Joint Advisory Board for Seattle Housing Authority, the State Guardianship Committee, the State Rehabilitation Council, the Developmental Disabilities Council, and the King County Metro Accessible Services Board. Ms. Foster serves as personal representative of several individuals with disabilities.
Laura Gramer
Laura Gramer comes highly recommended by individuals in the disability rights community across the nation. Upon relocating to Seattle, Ms. Gramer sought opportunities to be of service by joining the board of Abused Deaf Women's dvocacy Services and working as an occupational therapist. While in Illinois, Ms. Gramer served on the Universal Access Commission, the Open Doors Organization, the Illinois Occupational Therapy Association, and the Progress Center for Independent Living. Ms. Gramer has engaged in substantial public speaking and lecturing on deafness, disability, and occupational therapy. Ms. Gramer has consistently worked to bridge the deaf and deaf-blind communities to the larger disability rights community.
Jonathan Porter
Jonathan O.L.H. Porter has been a Technology Instructor with the Metrocenter YMCA's Y-Tech department for the past year and a half, but his first passion is disability awareness and advocacy. Being a wheelchair-user himself, he has a been a proponent for the issues of what he calls the "differently-abled" his entire life. Graduating from Seattle University in 2008 with his Bachelors in Business Administration, Jonathan is a 2-time Goodwill Ambassador for the Seattle chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), and has spoken on panels for Seattle Public Schools and at the National Career Opportunities for Students with Disabilities (COSD) Conference in Atlanta, GA in 2006. Today Jonathan continues to be an active member of both the MDA, with its many awareness and fundraising events, and of the "differently-abled" community.
EG Sekins
EG Sekins is a disability and LGBT advocate and educator, focusing on disability policy as a master's student at the University of Washington's (UW) Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs. Along with going to school full time, EG is a Graduate Student Assistant at UW's Q Center-UW's LGBT resource center. EG also serves on UW's Diversity Council and UW's Committee on Disability Issues. As an undergraduate EG created a major through the individualized studies program to focus on Disability Studies. EG has developed an in depth knowledge of disability community organizing as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and related state and federal laws. EG developed and taught an introductory course in Disability Studies through the Experimental College at the UW. As an advocate, EG has served as the president of UW's Disability Advocacy Student Alliance (DASA) and the director of the ASUW Student Disability Commission (SDC). EG Sekins has also had many successes as an advocate for both LGBT and disability communities and is eager to facilitate inter-community dialogues.
Gary Stobbe
Dr. Gary Stobbe is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Washington Neurology and Psychiatry Departments, and Director of Adolescent and Adult Services at the Seattle Children's Hospital Autism Center. Dr. Stobbe specializes in children and adults with autism, traumatic brain injury, and multiple sclerosis. Dr. Stobbe serves on the Professional Advisory Boards of the Brain Injury Association of Washington and the Washington Chapter of the Autism Society of America. Along with his wife, Dr. Stobbe founded the Autism Spectrum Treatment and Research Center, a non-profit organization that served over two thousand individuals with autism and their families across the lifespan.
Deborah Witmer
Deborah Witmer serves as Executive Director of Creative Activities and VSA Washington, a non-profit arts partnership working for equal access to the arts for youth and adults with disabilities in Washington State. As a Resident Director at Seattle Center, Ms. Witmer is involved in transportation and construction mitigation issues around the SDOT and WADOT projects on Mercer and the North Portal. She also works with arts organizations in Seattle to help them meet their access and inclusion goals for people with disabilities. As a long term resident of Seattle Ms. Witmer has several years of experience advocating at the City level. She served as President of the RainKing Neighborhood Association, President of the Southeast District Community Council, Parliamentarian of the Seattle City Neighborhood Council, and chair of its budget committee.
Sara Woody
Sara Woody works for the Northwest ADA Center, a program of the Center for Continuing Education in Rehabilitation at the University of Washington. She coordinates BluePath, an online membership and marketing program that works proactively with businesses and customers with disabilities to encourage access and usability. She surveys facilities for accessibility, provides technical assistance, and educates business owners about barriers and alternative accessibility features. Her work requires knowledge of marketing trends of people with disabilities to help positively engage the business community. Ms. Woody also serves as Treasurer for Mental Health Action, a grassroots, consumer-run advocacy organization. Previously, she worked for seven years at The Village Integrated Services Agency in Long Beach, CA, training mental health professionals, law enforcement, policy makers, students, consumers, and community members on best practices in mental health recovery. Ms. Woody has supported homeless adults and youth with mental illness in employment training programs and has successfully engaged in lobbying on behalf of mental health parity and integrated mental health services. In addition to her passion for the issues facing people with disabilities, Ms. Woody brings to the commission expertise in marketing, social media, and training.
