Article originally appeared in Able SC’s September 2026 Youth Team Newsletter, produced by Able SC’s Youth Team.
Theodore “Teddy” Crawford
[ID: An image of Teddy Crawford, a young Asian American man with medium length black hair. He is wearing a red T-shirt and blue jeans. He is sitting in a green manual wheelchair on a fenced-in, wooden deck. He is gazing outwards at a field of yellow grass.]
This month’s spotlight is Theodore “Teddy” Crawford. Teddy first learned about Able SC when he and his mom attended our “People, Not Patients” series. They were inspired by the fight for deinstitutionalization, and Teddy was inspired to learn more about disability rights and history.
Teddy and his mom looked into Able SC’s youth programs, and Teddy heard about YLF, an overnight program that teaches youth with disabilities how to become leaders and advocate for themselves. Teddy applied to YLF and was accepted. While there, he learned about disability history, self-advocacy, and how to affect change in his community. Teddy learned “not only how to take care of [himself], like with finances… but how to advocate for others”.
Teddy is passionate about helping people, and he is even getting a degree in communications from the University of South Carolina Aiken so that he can become a better advocate. At the time of this writing, Teddy moved into his dorm about two weeks ago. Teddy says that he faces challenges as a 19-year-old student with a physical disability, but he is enjoying meeting new people and making friends.
Teddy was chosen to throw the first pitch at Able SC’s Disability Pride Night baseball game at Segra Park. Teddy was especially honored to throw the first pitch because he works at Segra Park; although being at the Disability Pride Night gave him “a chance to explore”, which he usually does not get to do during working hours.
Teddy was also given the opportunity to participate in the “Big Read of the ADA during July’s anniversary of the ADA celebration at Boyd Plaza. Teddy got to read a section of the ADA, which was impactful for him because he knows that the ADA is what gave him rights. Teddy wants to complete his degree so he can advocate for disability rights nationally.
Please join us in congratulating Teddy on his advocacy achievements, and wish him luck as he continues his educational journey.