Wellness, Health & Everything Else: A NCHPAD Podcast

In this episode, we talk with Chelsea Elder, Executive Director for Adaptive Adventures . Chelsea leads a national team dedicated to expanding access to adaptive outdoor recreation for children, adults, veterans, and their families. Chelsea has been with Adaptive Adventures since 2010. In that time, her role has grown, and she now oversees the organization nationwide, including the management, imp...

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Christen Mendonca, a postdoctoral researcher with the School of Health Professions Research Collaborative at University of Alabama at Birmingham. His work centers on exercise and wellness for people with disabilities, rehabilitation, and creating more inclusive approaches to health and physical activity. In 2025, he was named the inaugural WINNERS Postdoctoral Fel...

In this episode, we talk with Daniel Grier, Creative Director and Adaptive Stylist for the recent Every Body Blooms fashion event presented by NCHPAD and UAB Arts in Medicine. Held on April 2, 2026, the event highlighted individuals with physical disabilities and mobility limitations as artists, models, and collaborators, celebrating self-expression, individuality, and creativity. Daniel Grier is...

In this episode we talk with Stephanie Ward, Program Coordinator for the NCHPAD Coffee Club. Stephanie’s role at NCHPAD focuses on community engagement, building meaningful connections, and helping create positive change while empowering people to live healthier lives. Twice each month, she hosts the NCHPAD Coffee Club, an engaging virtual program where people with disabilities connect, build frie...

In this episode, we chat with Allison Solomon, Executive Director of Disability Support Services (DSS) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). She joined UAB in 2002 as a Disability Specialist, later serving as Director of DSS for more than a decade before stepping into her current role in 2022. Since 2015, she has also served as UAB’s ADA Compliance Officer. With more than 20 years of e...

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Byron Lai. Dr. Lai is an Assistant Professor in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics Division of Rehabilitation Medicine. He has 10 years of experience in exercise research for people with disabilities. From 2014 to 2021, Byron joined Dr. James Rimmer under the UAB School of Health Professions Research Collaborative, where he completed his...

In this episode, part of our Healthy Holidays series, we talk about staying active and exploring adaptive exercises during the holiday season with NCHPAD Exercise Physiologist John Reams. With more than 20 years of experience in exercise science, clinical exercise physiology, research, and nutrition, John is a familiar face through his work in NCHPAD’s MENTOR program and his many appearances on ou...

In this episode, part of our Healthy Holidays series, we discuss healthy nutrition habits during the holiday season with Emily McAllister, NCHPAD Registered Dietitian. Emily gives great tips and advice for healthy habits around the holiday meals. This includes healthy eating, swaps to try for recipes, and not making food the focus of the holiday festivities.  A full episode transcript is available...

In this episode, we explore mindfulness and pain management with Dr. Christiane Wolf, an internationally recognized expert in mindfulness and Insight meditation. For over a decade, Dr. Wolf served as the lead consultant and teacher trainer for the National Mindfulness Facilitator Training at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She is the author of Outsmart Your Pain: Mindfulness and Self-Comp...

In this episode, we talk with Lynn Wilmot and Dan Dieffenbach of YMCA360, the digital platform for YMCA. On October 6, NCHPAD and YMCA360 announced a partnership to integrate NCHPAD's fitness and wellness videos into the YMCA360 platform for YMCA members. We invited Lynn and Dan to discuss this exciting new collaboration and provide a deeper understanding of their work and what to expect.  Th...

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Sherri Huff about why unstructured movement time matters and the importance of recess as part of our Mission: ME series to prioritize active and healthy kids at home and at school.  Dr. Sherri Huff has been an educator for over 30 years in the fields of health and physical education. She is the district wellness coordinator for the Birmingham City Schools in Birmi...

In this episode, we’re joined by NCHPAD Program Manager Penny Edwards to discuss why weaving movement and wellness into the school day is so important for kids. With a background as an Exercise Physiologist, Penny now leads efforts to ensure NCHPAD leverages its strengths, expertise, and partnerships to deliver programs, resources, trainings, and community partnerships nationwide. A full episode t...

In this episode, we chat with Jennifer Dobson, founder of The Rolling Pumpkin Patch in Bessemer, Alabama. The Rolling Pumpkin Patch was created to allow families to experience the fun of a good fall pumpkin patch without accessibility barriers. Since opening in 2021, it has welcomed thousands of visitors and grown to offer a variety of adaptive activities, ensuring that everyone can join in the fu...

In this episode, we’re joined by Patrick Parkes and Nick Taylor from USA Boccia. Both are boccia athletes as well as members of the organization’s board of directors. They share valuable perspectives on the sport and its unique adaptability for athletes of all abilities. Patrick Parkes has been playing boccia since 2016 and has won numerous National medals and is a former U.S. National Team athlet...

In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Jereme Wilroy to discuss his personal story after sustaining a spinal cord injury at a young age. In the time since his injury, Jereme has gone on to play adapted sports, built a career in exercise science research and more. Jereme is an Associate Professor with a doctorate in health education and promotion. His research centers on telehealth interventions and...

In this episode, NCHPAD Director Dr. James Rimmer explores the concept of holistic wellness and how adopting a mindset centered on perspective, performance, and production can transform our approach to health and life. Throughout his career, Dr. Rimmer has championed a comprehensive view of wellness, emphasizing the physical, emotional, and spiritual dimensions. His "three P's" fram...

In this episode, we sit down with Christy Swaid, Founder and CEO of HEAL United, and Donna Hester, Curriculum Architect and Coordinator. HEAL United is a nonprofit focused on improving children’s health and reshaping health culture through education and real-world practice of healthy lifestyle habits. Their evidence-based, age-specific curriculum covers topics like nutrition, physical activity, sl...

In this episode, we talk with Emma Taylor, a mental health coach for the GROWTH program through NCHPAD Connect . As part of our Self-Care Summer content series, Emma shares her expertise on managing daily energy levels, prioritizing self-care, and practicing self-compassion. She offers thoughtful advice and relatable strategies that tie directly into the impactful work being done in the GROWTH pro...

In this episode, we chat with Emily Hornsby, NCHPAD’s Mindfulness Curriculum Coordinator, and Cathy Wright about the power of mindfulness. Both Emily and Cathy come from a legal background and share how mindfulness transformed their personal and professional lives. They break down what mindfulness really means, how it differs from meditation, and offer practical tips for weaving it into everyday l...

In this episode, we talk with Joon Reid, about the benefits of adapted sports and his life's journey. Joon has played many sports in his lifetime and it led to him competing for the United States internationally. Joon also discusses his passion for cooking, working as a professional chef for the last 26 years. He stays close to sports through his work at the Lakeshore Foundation, cooking for...

Join us as we speak with Avery Vitemb, a Clinical Research Coordinator for the UAB School of Health Professions and Instructor for the Movement-2-Music study. Movement-2-Music is a 12-week rhythmic-based exercise program on health and fitness outcomes in people with neurological disabilities. To help express the health benefits of movement and dance, Avery shared her insight from her personal and...

In this episode, we talk with Rosemarie Garland-Thomson about the upcoming LOOKING. DIFFERENT. event for NCHPAD and the UAB Center for Engagement in Disability Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (CEDHARS). Rosemarie is the subject of Riva Lehrer's Portrait of Rosemarie Garland-Thomson , the featured painting at the LOOKING. DIFFERENT. event on May 8.  We talked with Rosemarie about her person...

In this episode, we're talking about the upcoming LOOKING. DIFFERENT. event for NCHPAD and the UAB Center for Engagement in Disability Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (CEDHARS) with Riva Lehrer. Riva is an artist, writer, and curator who focuses on the socially challenged body.  The event will feature the artwork Portrait of Rosemarie Garland-Thomson from Lehrer’s exploration of cultural d...

In this episode, we're talking about service dogs with Dr. Meghan Mills, NCHPAD Operations Director. She earned her doctorate at the University of New Hampshire in medical sociology, with expertise in the social model of disability and the unequal social distribution of health outcomes. Dr. Mills is also a person with a disability who relies on her service dog, Arrow, to live independently. G...

In this episode, we talk with Bob Lujano, NCHPAD Expert Inclusion Specialist (EIS) and 2004 Paralympian for Team USA's wheelchair rugby team. To celebrate 20 years since his athletic achievement, Bob reflects on training and competing for Team USA, his time in Athens, Greece, the life lessons he's learned and more.  A full episode transcript is available in the episode details. Get notif...