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Connections

'What sort of buildings do we build?' Self-advocacy on the Move to Include Podcast

Three people wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a woman at left has shoulder-length dark hair and is wearing a cream cardigan sweater over a navy blouse; a woman at center has long brown hair and is wearing an orange sleeveless top; a man at right has very short dark hair and is wearing a blue button-down shirt, blue jeans and brown shoes.
George Yeadon
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WXXI News
Sarah Murphy Abbamonte and Noelle E.C. Evans with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Wednesday, April 15, 2026
WXXI News

A local man says an experience he had as a young boy informed the rest of his life.

Conan Gillis uses a wheelchair. When he was eight years old, he wanted to use his local library, but the aisles weren't wide enough for his wheelchair.

As WXXI's Move to Include Podcast host Noelle Evans reports, that was the moment that sparked Gillis' self-advocacy.

In episode four of the podcast, she and Gillis talk about disability as a reflection of the environments and systems we build. We hear that conversation and we discuss the lessons we can learn.

In studio:

This story is reported from WXXI's Inclusion Desk.

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.