Independence comes in many forms, but is often taken for granted in America — from freedom of speech to freedom to speak; from women’s rights to disability rights; from equal access to medical care to equal access to higher education, …
Author: Delaina Parrish
The World is Our Playground and We Want to See It
Traveling in general takes weeks of planning, but it could take months if you are traveling with a disability. I and many others notice there’s an enormous gap of access and resources to help guide us when taking a trip, …
Stop “Bugging” Me!
Like it or not, bugs or “pet peeves” invade our space. They bite us, they swarm us, they annoy us. But sometimes, like a firefly, they illuminate a situation. We can pretend bugs don’t exist, or we can let them …
Diversity With A Shot of Resilience- UF’s First Chief of Diversity Officer
Diversity is the celebration of disparate colors, identities, abilities and much, much more. One of the compelling reasons why I chose the University of Florida was its commitment to diversity and inclusion; however, I quickly realized the college was still …
What does being “Fearless” mean?
Fear of failure is in all of us no matter how hard we try to deny it. I am here to tell you that fear is not all bad. It’s all about perspective. Over my lifetime, especially in the past …
FLASHBACK – Just Say “Hi” and Then “Fly”… to New York!
Flashback to Spring 2017, part of the most amazing year of my life! My story of that day…which which started with “just saying Hi,”…which led to New York City…which led to That Event…which led to celebrities…which led to 5th Avenue…which …
10 Hours Behind the Scenes with “Runway of Dreams”
This month I made my debut on the fashion runway in New York City, a looong way from my little hometown in Florida. Here’s how it really happened… On June 8th at noon, my mom, sister and I made our …
When a frequent buyer becomes a frequent flyer
After months of planning, The Trip of the Summer is finally here! It was a mere 3 weeks ago, we boarded the same Jet Blue flight for LGA to attend the Design4Disability gala with the Vera Bradley family….a memorable week …
Welcome to Barneys New York
If you want explore the newest trends in fashion and accessories, Barneys in NYC is the place to go! Prior to attending the Design 4 Disability Gala, I made a special trip to Barney’s to familiarize myself with Derek Lam’s …
Vera Bradley, New York City & Me
About 2 weeks ago, it all started with an email from the executive assistant to Barbara Bradley Baekgaard, the co-founder of Vera Bradley whom I met at a women’s seminar at UF a month before. She was inviting my mom …