Our stories.

Adam was born in Boston, Massachusetts and on the way to the hospital, his mother experienced a partial abruption causing him to partially lose oxygen to his brain for an estimated thirty minutes. This caused permanent, but non degenerative brain damage that impact his ability to freely walk independently, balance with his left hand and speak fluently. Adam attended public and private schools throughout his youth, he play adaptive sports and attended sleep away camps at the National Ability Center in Park City Utah and near Athen Georgia. He was accepted to college programs at Georgia Tech and University of Tennessee. Because of actions taken by a public school administrator and a family member that felt her opinion mattered more than Adam’s of where he wanted to go to college and where he wanted to live, he was denied the opportunity to attend the college of his choice and the classes of his choice, and for the two years following his graduation he was made to go to a gorup home facility where he received no academic education and was prevented from pursing many of the activities and living situations and internships of his choice. NYAFA is working diligently to help individuals and families like Adam that these types of alleged abuses can be avoided.

Read more about Adams story here.

Abbey Curran is a beauty pageant contestant with cerebral palsy. Curran won Miss Iowa and 2008 and participated in Miss USA that same year. She was the first Miss USA contestant with a disability. To encourage other girls and women with disabilities, Curran founded the “Miss You Can Do It” pageant while still in high school. Since the first pageant in 2004, the event has been held annually each year. In 2013, HBO made a documentary about the pageant and its positive impact on young girls with cerebral palsy and other disabilities.NYAFA was founded to research and assess the conditions and events that permitted a group of individuals to strip Adam of his freedom and prevents him from accessing the resources that are available to him and to have a path towards independence.

Justin Gallegos is the first runner with cerebral palsy to sign a Nike endorsement deal. Gallegos received the contract in 2018 while still in college. As a way to increase visibility for the condition, Gallegos signed the contract on World Cerebral Palsy Day (October 6).

Gallegos’ achievement shows that hard work and dedication can pay off. As a child, Gallegos had to use crutches in order to walk properly, saying he could “barely put one foot in front of the other” in a 2018 Instagram post.

He turned to running in high school to reduce the symptoms of cerebral palsy and improve his muscle strength. Despite facing challenges at first (like falling) due to his condition, he now participates in half-marathons and is interested in moving up to the marathon. Today, Gallegos inspires runners with disabilities around the world. He is currently working with Nike to develop clothing and shoes for handicapped athletes.