I have spent my life and my career building inclusion from the outside in.

As a pansexual quadriplegic graphic designer, civic leader, and disability rights advocate, I have spent over 25 years helping mission-driven organizations tell their stories and fight for the people they serve. I chair Bolingbrook Pride, serve as VP of DEIA for Illinois NOW, sit on the board of CHANGE Illinois, and hold a gubernatorial appointment to the Illinois Housing Task Force, among many other roles. Almost all of that work is unpaid. I do it because it matters, and because someone has to.

Now, something remarkable has happened.

Only two hours after submitting my application, I was accepted to the 2026 LGBTQ+ Victory Institute Candidate & Campaign Training in Denver, Colorado, one of the most selective and prestigious LGBTQ+ electoral training programs in the country. I was also invited to join their inaugural LGBTQ+ Women's Extension, a brand-new program for a small cohort of women leaders with the highest potential for elected office.

I am seriously considering a run for office in the next two years, and this training will help me prepare and build the network of resilient leaders I need to do it right.

Here is the reality: there are almost no wheelchair users serving in elected office in this country. That is not an accident. It is the result of systems that were never designed with us in mind, financially, logistically, or politically. Disabled people are among those most directly affected by decisions about housing, transportation, healthcare, and public space, and we are almost entirely absent from the rooms where those decisions get made.

I intend to change that. But I cannot get to Denver alone.

Because I am a quadriplegic, I travel with my husband and a personal care attendant. That means three plane tickets, an accessible rental van, and an ADA-accessible hotel room. The Victory Institute has generously subsidized the training itself, but the travel costs fall to me, and I spend the majority of my time in unpaid public service.

Here is what I am raising:

Hotel registration: $775

Flights for myself, my husband, and my caregiver: $2,000

Accessible van rental: $930

Goal: $4,000

Every dollar goes directly toward getting me to Denver and back. If I raise more than needed, any excess will go toward future civic leadership and advocacy work.

This is not just about one training. This is about what comes after. A disabled, LGBTQ+ woman running for office. Showing up in rooms that were not built for her. Proving that the table is bigger than anyone thought.

If you believe that the people most impacted by policy should have a voice in making it, please consider contributing. And if you cannot give right now, sharing this page costs nothing and means everything.

Thank you for seeing me, and for helping me show up fully.

With gratitude and determination,

Allaina Humphreys

Bolingbrook, Illinois