 Hello, I'm Emily Anderson from the bridging program at Champlain Community Services, and I'm delighted to be here. It's year 2020-23 in the bridging program. And once again, we are back at CCTV to make a trilogy of shows. I'm here with the excited three who are going to introduce themselves. Please say your name. Krithika. Krithika. Nieva. Akeyan. Excellent. And we are joined by David Fry, a longtime, very powerful self-advocate. I know him from Champlain Voices, but I also know he is very active in many levels within the state, within the country, as a self-advocate. Someone with a disability who is speaking up and making a difference for himself and others. So I'm very excited. This will be part of what we share this year. Advocates, young aspiring advocates interviewing adult advocates. So, to take it away, Krithika is going to start with the first question for you, David. Does self-advocacy. Wow, thank you for asking me that question, because self-advocacy starts, you know, as soon as you can speak your mouth. And that, you know, starts at an early age, right until you're old and you can't talk anymore. And what it means to me is speaking up for yourself and speaking up for others that cannot speak up for themselves. And whether that's on, you know, everyday living or on a state level or national level, it's important to speak up for yourself when you see there's a time for you to speak up for yourself. Thank you, David. Oh, yeah. Tell us a story. When you spoke up for yourself. Maybe when you were in high school, the age of these students. Yeah. When I was in high school, and I was putting put into a class that I truly did not understand. And that was, I know exactly what class that was that was drafting. While drafting, there was a lot of measuring. There was a lot of things that I just didn't understand, and I didn't want to. I couldn't do the class, I just could not do the class. I went back to special ed, because we were in special ed, and I told the teachers. I said, I cannot do this class. There's, there's, you know, using the, the ruler using the measurements. Doing the things that they they wanted you to do. I just couldn't do it. And I had to be in this class to get that credit for a semester or however long they want me to take it. So when there's something in high school that you don't understand. I hope that you're speaking up to yourself that, you know, you're expressing yourself saying, I can't do this. And it's all right to say that. Right. Hi, thank you. I have a question for you. What have you gotten out of being a self advocate and Champlain voices. Champlain voices I hope I brought in things to the table to show people that we're human. We all make mistakes. Listen to your voice means so much to your peers, your mentors, and you're showing them something you're trying to educate them in a way of being perfect for themselves and, you know, like I said, we're not perfect. We make mistakes. And we're all right to make mistakes. And I like, I like Champlain voices because it, it just gives you an advance in things that you know you want to do. And, you know, if Champlain voices wasn't a part of my life, or some kind of advocacy in my life, I'd have a pretty dull life. And, and from the get go, I hope that you guys can get involved in self advocacy because it, it will make a difference in your life. Thank you. And David, do you have a question for me Eva. So do you have anything you want to show me. Yes. This is my inner self, my bedroom yoga and my inner self nature, and I like pandas. My outside is my outer self I like fashion and jewelry and nature is also on my outside. Thank you. Do you want to share where you all made these pieces. What's the place that Berlin expressive arts Berlin expressive arts Berlin 10. And you remember the woman you worked with Po to pass. Awesome. Did you have any questions for me Eva as follow up from what she just shared. So, yeah, Eva, do you do you want to do something within your dreams and in making that platform. What is your dreams and making that happen, whether you when you get out of high school. I want to make my dreams. I want to work with kids and animals. Because I can. You can put that to, you know, you can do anything you want to do in life. And so you've got to speak up for yourself and saying, this is what I want to do. And, and you'll, you'll get there. Thanks. David you have a question for keegan. keegan do you have something to show me. Yes, I do. So, that's my piece. I like the first one is Sunday is the police and, and then the kangaroos. And I'll show you back. And so it's my shop and. That's Hawaiian. And so far, so, so, so, so, so good man. So did you like doing, putting that together to again when you, when you, when you put that work together. Yes, I do. And what did you get out. What did you get out of doing it. I'm not going to do it. I'm not going to, I'm going to step up myself. And you did. And this is my, I am how's going. Oh, yeah, I know. It's crazy. Okay, last but not least, do you have a question for Chris? Chris, what do you have to show me. Hold it up so you can see it. That you're inside or you're outside. That you're outside. I say, looks like people at a market, a flower market. There's a lot of women, a woman looking down at the flowers. There are people buying, it looks like produce. Someone's putting things in a bag. And then there's a close up. I love this close up of the hand on the shoulder of the other person. At first it because I was thinking of produce, I thought it was a pineapple, but it is a person's shoulder. It's a flower. Yeah. So that's the outside. You want to show him the inside. Yeah. Okay. It's the inside. And you have, you want to read what you wrote about the inside. Happy. Happy and beauty. Happy and beauty. He's a man behind a screen looking out. They've just sort of used nose and it's above his lips. And some grass. You're dry grass. So that like looks like to me that you like. Things of nature, things of beauty. Things that are actual that have happened. And I think that that, you know, when you, when you look at that and, you know, self advocacy could be part of that because like what you like in life. Um, I think that is so meaningful. When, when you talk about nature and talk about, you know, um, things that you like, the fall colors, the leaves. That's part of self advocacy. Thank you. Well, um, has anyone have any final things they want to share before we start to close the show? One of the reasons why I put yoga is because I like to do relaxation when I'm stress. And that's part of my self advocacy is using my coping strategies to express how I feel after a while. You're all, you're all well young, starting out to be young. Self advocacy. Members and I hope that you decide to be part of a Champlain voices because we need you on board. Thanks. Well, this is so exciting to be here with all of you. Long time self advocate and mover and shaker and the disability community David Fry and young new self advocates of bridging. We're already I know amazing self advocates I hear you speak up for yourselves every day. I'm so excited that we have gotten to make a show together today. So David, thank you so much. Yeah, it was fun. Shall we all wave our hands? Say goodbye. Goodbye. Goodbye. Thank you. See you. See you. Oh, look at you. Look at you. Show me. Show me. Show me. Show me. Show me. Show me. Get that man in front of a camera.