Meet the inSpirit Accessibility Advisory Committee
Andrea Cassutt (she/her)
Santa Fe, NM Some of my richest, most valued friendships, and experiences of community are with people who look and identify differently than I do. It is the inclusion and dignity of a wildly diverse group of people that gives me the greatest sense of belonging, ease, and community. Being part of the inSpirit Accessibility Committee is an opportunity for me to join with others in support of the reflection, evaluation, and learning we all need to do to unveil assumptions, unconscious bias, systems, and language that can exclude and demean, when what we want most to do is dance, heal, express and be together in community.
Cassandra Horii (she/her)
South Pasadena, CA Movement has been important in my life for a long time. In recent years, I’ve been seeking more discernment about movement spaces where I feel safe and open in and with my body just as it is. I'm excited that the InSpirit community is creating ways to make movement more accessible and foster an authentic sense of belonging, with care and attention to people's intersecting identities and how those affect access to safety, belonging, and discovery in movement.
Elder Sherrell Savage (she/her)
Baltimore, MD Accessibility is important to me because there have been times that I did not feel welcome in spaces to exercise because I didn't look like everyone else. Living life in a bigger body has always had it stigmas. To find an accessible space means I can find a place that I can let my hair down and be comfortable. I can feel free to be. I can move my body in all the ways that feel good to me without judgement or criticism.
Sarah Tucker (she/her)
Santa Rosa, CA As a mother of a toddler, working split between in-office and remote from home, managing our household and attending to family and social relationships, on top of having Multiple Sclerosis, my plans can be derailed by any of the moving parts. I can't always rely on my body and my mind to perform at the level that I want it to; regardless of my abilities and limitations, I rely on the fitness and wellness community of inSpirit. I have invested in a membership, committed to attending the Sacred Sunday class regardless of my mobility, and have been welcomed and loved as I participate with the Zoom screen off and I lay in my bed just listening. The community invites my toddler to dance with me and supports me when I shift my attention from the class to my toddler. I feel inspired to advocate for and promote this form of accessibility, and I know that there is much more to be done. I believe that accessibility must be informed by the community of teachers, students, and prospective participants and in doing so we are breaking the construct of fitness. At inSpirit, we share our spirit, strength, and solidarity in movement and in purpose.