WHO IS BEHIND DISABILITYGUIDE.ORG?
Russ Holt, a 1994 graduate of American University with a B.A. in Sociology, has a long history of being active in the Maryland / Washington D.C. / Virginia community. Born in Washington, D.C. in 1968 he grew up in Potomac, Maryland and now lives in the small Montgomery County town of Boyds. Partially paralyzed in a 1986 auto accident, he has become a well known advocate for people with disabilities. After college he began volunteer work as a Montgomery County Crisis Hotline counselor, which led to a job at the Endependence Center of Northern Virginia, where he was employed as a Peer Counselor for many years before incorporating Access Information, Inc.
In 1997 Russ was featured in a Dateline NBC episode entitled, "No Way In".
He showed, by wearing a hidden camera, how employers discriminate against
applicants with disabilities. The show was viewed by over sixteen million
people and finished in the top ten for the week.
Montgomery County Executive Douglas Duncan presented him with a 1997 Pyramid Award, given annually to individuals who make a difference in the disability field.
He helped design his house, a completely accessible rambler, and it was nominated for a 1999 Finest
for Family Living award. In July, 2000 Russ created DisabilityGuide.org , a website devoted to
providing information to individuals with disabilities and reviewing the accessibility of restaurants
and bars in the DC metro area. He helped design his house, a completely accessible rambler, and it was nominated for a 1999 Finest
for Family Living award. In July, 2000 Russ created DisabilityGuide.org, a website devoted to
providing information to individuals with disabilities and reviewing the accessibility of restaurants
and bars in the DC metro area. Six years later over 600 establishments have been reviewed by Russ personally, with
roughly ten per week being added.
In 2001, Russ and Greg created The Washington, DC Access Guide for
people with disabilities , now in its sixth year of publication. It is distributed
in the Washington DC Visitors Center, many DC Hotels and hospitals and dozens of
venues. Over 30,000 have been distributed.
Russ has appeared on CNN Headline News , Fox Morning News, Dateline NBC, The Today
Show,
WJFK –FM and WTOP. The Washington Post and Gazette have each done two half page
articles on Access Information, Inc.
E-mail Russ russ@disabilityguide.com.