Celebrating Disability History, Leadership, and Community
On October 21, 2026, the Western Pennsylvania Disability History and Action Consortium welcomed guests to the Heinz History Center’s Mueller Center for our second annual Beyond History event – an evening of connection, remembrance, celebration, and storytelling centered on disability history and the people continuing to shape it today.
A Night of Connection and Celebration
The evening began with a lively networking reception featuring heavy hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, and an art sale showcasing work created by students from the DePaul School for Hearing and Speech, the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children, and the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. Guests also took part in a 50/50 raffle benefiting the Consortium.
Emcee Chaz Kellem welcomed guests and guided the evening’s program. Executive Director Cindy Leonard opened with remarks acknowledging both the challenges facing the disability community today and the importance of the people who continue to advocate, organize, preserve history, and carry the work forward.
Her message reflected one of the central ideas behind Beyond History: disability history is not simply something that happened in the past. It is made by people, generation after generation, and everyone in the room has a role in what comes next.
Remembering Two Disability Rights Leaders
The program included a special remembrance of John L. Tague, Jr. and Paul O’Hanlon, two longtime disability rights advocates and valued members of the Consortium community who passed away during the past year.
Consortium Outreach and Preservation Manager Tina Calabro reflected on their lives and contributions to disability rights in Western Pennsylvania.
John Tague spent decades advocating for independent living, accessible transportation, and the rights of people with disabilities to participate fully in community life. He was also one of the Consortium’s founders, its first Project Director, and a longtime member of its Executive Committee.
Paul O’Hanlon was a disability and civil rights attorney whose work touched accessible housing, transportation, health care, voting rights, and many other issues affecting people with disabilities. He was also a member of the Consortium’s Advisory Committee and a generous mentor to generations of advocates.
Their work continues through the people, organizations, and movements they helped strengthen.
Honoring Dr. Rory A. Cooper
The Consortium was proud to recognize Rory A. Cooper, PhD, PLY, as our 2026 honoree.
Kristy Trautmann, Executive Director of FISA Foundation, offered a tribute highlighting Dr. Cooper’s extraordinary career in rehabilitation engineering, human-centered design, disability innovation, and advocacy.
A Distinguished Professor and Director of the Human Engineering Research Laboratories at the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Cooper is a National Medal laureate, Paralympic medalist, member of the National Academy of Engineering, and internationally recognized leader whose work has expanded mobility, independence, and opportunity for people with disabilities.
Following the tribute, Dr. Cooper shared a few words of his own, recognizing the colleagues and team members who have contributed to the work of HERL throughout his career.
Mary Hartley, Senior Vice President of Achieva and President of The Arc of Greater Pittsburgh, then offered a toast on behalf of Achieva, the Presenting Sponsor of Beyond History 2026.
An Evening with Curtis Pride
The featured speaker for Beyond History 2026 was Curtis Pride, former Major League Baseball outfielder, disability advocate, and the first full-season Deaf player in modern Major League Baseball history.
Following a short video introducing his life and career, Curtis shared stories from his journey through sports – from excelling as a multi-sport athlete to building an 11-season Major League Baseball career and later spending 15 seasons as head baseball coach at Gallaudet University.
His presentation offered a candid and engaging look at perseverance, opportunity, expectations, and what it meant to build a professional athletic career while continually confronting assumptions about Deaf athletes.
Curtis then joined Chaz Kellem for a live audience Q&A, answering questions about baseball, coaching, communication, inclusion, and his experiences both on and off the field.
The conversation continued well beyond the formal program. After the event concluded, guests lined up to meet Curtis, speak with him, take photographs, and have their program books signed – a fitting end to an evening built around connection and shared stories.
History Is Made by People
Beyond History exists not only to remember the people and movements that shaped disability history, but also to recognize that history is still being made.
The stories shared throughout this year’s event reflected very different lives and forms of leadership – advocates who spent decades changing systems, an engineer whose work continues to expand possibilities, an athlete who challenged assumptions at the highest levels of professional sports, and community members throughout Western Pennsylvania who continue working toward greater access, participation, and equal opportunity.
Together, they remind us that progress does not sustain itself. It takes people who care enough to preserve what came before, address the challenges of the present, and make something stronger possible for those who come next.
Gratitude and Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful to everyone who made Beyond History 2026 possible – our generous sponsors, event planning committee, staff, volunteers, speakers, partners, artists, photographer, interpreters, and the many people who helped behind the scenes.
Most of all, thank you to everyone who joined us at the Heinz History Center. Your presence, participation, and continued support make it possible for the Consortium to preserve disability history, share these stories, and connect the lessons of the past to the work still happening today.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
This event was made possible through the generous support of our sponsors:
Presenting Sponsor
Champion Sponsors
Pathfinder Sponsors
