From Deficit to Advantage: Angela Lean, Senior Accessibility Program Lead at Microsoft
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher sit down with Angela Lean, Senior Accessibility Program Lead at Microsoft, for a powerful conversation about turning disability into a true competitive advantage. Angela shares her lived experience of having a stroke at age 12, how her perspective shifted from “succeeding despite disability” to “succeeding because of it,” and why she now sees disability as a core asset in her life and work.Angela walks us through her unconventional career path—from answering phones in Senator Tom Harkin’s office just after the ADA passed, to shaping accessibility and AI initiatives inside one of the world’s largest tech companies. She explains how Microsoft is using AI to support employees with disabilities, improve tools like screen readers and captioning, and build services such as the Enterprise Disability Answer Desk. The conversation digs into why accessibility is not a cost center but a massive market opportunity touching 1.5 billion people, how entrepreneurs can plug into Microsoft’s ecosystem, and how AI can personalize work so that disabled and non-disabled people can use the same tools on an equal footing. If you care about inclusive innovation, the future of work, or investing in accessibility as good business—not just good intentions—this episode is for you.Links & Resources:Angela Lean: LinkedInMicrosoft Accessibility Support for Customers: WebsiteMicrosoft Marketplace: Website (trusted source for cloud solutions, AI app, and agents)The Huddle for Families: WebsiteCOMING SOON! American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher kick off the holiday season with something special: a recorded panel from the RALLY Innovation Conference in Indianapolis.Moderated by Jennison Asuncion (Head of Accessibility Engineering Evangelism at LinkedIn and co-founder of Global Accessibility Awareness Day), this conversation brings together four leaders shaping the future of disability tech and digital accessibility:Chris Maher – Founder & General Partner at Samaritan PartnersMolly Lazarus – Director of the Remarkable US AcceleratorKate Kalcevich – Head of Accessibility Innovation at FableMichael Bervell – Co-founder & CEO of TestPartyTogether, they explore why disability is not a niche market but a massive, underserved opportunity; how accelerators and impact VCs are backing founders building assistive and disability-focused tech; and why accessibility is both a moral imperative and a powerful business strategy. You’ll hear how human insight and lived experience combine with AI and automation to scale accessibility, what founders in this space commonly struggle with, and why “nothing about us without us” needs to be a non-negotiable design principle.The panel also digs into:The growing legal and regulatory landscape, including lawsuits and global accessibility lawsHow accessibility features like captions and curb cuts become mainstream advantagesThe travel industry and other sectors waking up to the economic power of disabled consumers and their familiesThe promise and risks of AI in accessibility, and why inclusive leadership at the top mattersIf you’re an investor, founder, product leader, or just curious about how innovation and inclusion intersect, this episode will challenge how you think about accessibility and show why now is the time to invest in change, not wait for it.Links & Resources:RALLY Innovation: WebsiteJennison Asuncion: LinkedIn / GAAD: WebsiteMolly Lazarus: LinkedIn / Remarkable Accelerator: WebsiteKate Kalcevich: LinkedIn / Fable: WebsiteMichael Bervell: LinkedIn / TestParty: WebsiteCOMING SOON! American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.
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Raising Resilience: A Father–Daughter Journey Through Disability
In this episode, co-hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher welcome a very special guest: Chris’s oldest daughter, Charlotte Maher—an EMT-turned-emergency management professional whose life with spastic hemiplegia has forged extraordinary resilience. Charlotte shares early memories (and family stories) of therapies, leg and back braces, and the infamous “constraint camp,” then traces how those experiences shaped her confidence, leadership, and service mindset. Charlotte takes us inside life on an EMS crew, the power of teamwork-based accommodations, and why inclusive planning isn’t a nice-to-have in crises—it’s table stakes. Fresh from FEMA’s Emergency Management Basic Academy, Charlotte demystifies tactical project management, whole-community planning, and accessible communications—closed captions, ASL, multilingual alerts, and more. This warm, funny father–daughter conversation delivers practical insights on designing for everyone, building resilient systems, and picking yourself up and dusting yourself off to keep moving forward. Links & Resources:Charlotte Maher: LinkedInGWU Campus Safety: WebsiteFEMA: WebsiteCOMING SOON! American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.
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The Power of Storytelling: A Conversation with Cara Yar Khan, CEO of The Purple Practice
Join hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher for an inspiring conversation with Cara Yar Khan, founder & CEO of The Purple Practice, former UNICEF humanitarian, filmmaker, and fierce disability advocate. Cara traces her multicultural roots and early activism, the winding journey to a rare diagnosis of hereditary inclusion body myopathy, and how she learned to lead, pitch, and live with radical authenticity.This episode dives into Cara’s multicultural upbringing and early passion for service, her transition from denial to embracing disability with pride, and her practical framework for storytelling and fundraising through the “Issue, Action, Impact” model. She discusses navigating ableism with grace, managing entrepreneurial burnout through confidence and community, distinguishing between healthy struggle and harmful suffering, and finding joy in small “Everest moments” of progress. Along the way, Kelvin, Chris, and Cara unpack lessons on authenticity, preparation, confidence, and the sustaining power of community in entrepreneurship and advocacy.Links & Resources:Cara Yar Khan: LinkedInCara's Film: Facing the FallsCara's Website: HereCara's TED Talk: HereCOMING SOON! American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.
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Inside The Accessibility Lab: Shaping the Future of Accessible Hospitality
In this episode of Investing in Accessibility, hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher explore how The Accessibility Lab at The Schoolhouse Hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia is transforming the travel and hospitality industry for people with disabilities.Chris shares how this innovative partnership between Samaritan Partners, The Schoolhouse Hotel, and TravelAbility is turning a boutique hotel into a living lab for testing cutting-edge accessibility solutions. From smart wayfinding tools like RightHear to cost-effective door openers by We Hear You, and comprehensive accessibility assessments from Wheel the World, The Accessibility Lab is creating a model for universal design that could shape the future of hotels everywhere.The conversation dives deep into the challenges travelers with disabilities face, the exciting technologies being piloted, and how this project fosters not only accessible travel but also entrepreneurship, inclusive employment, and adaptive outdoor experiences.Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, hospitality leader, or accessibility advocate, this episode will open your eyes to the opportunities in building a truly inclusive travel experience.Links & Resources:The Accessibility Lab: Web PageThe Schoolhouse Hotel: WebsiteCOMING SOON! American Sign Language (ASL) and Captioning for each episode will be provided on our YouTube channel. Go to handle @SamaritanPartners.
We aren't waiting for change, we are investing in it. Investing in Accessibility is dedicated to exploring the intersection of accessibility, entrepreneurship, and impact investing. Join hosts Kelvin Crosby and Chris Maher as they speak with entrepreneurs and thought leaders who are focused on empowering people with disabilities and creating a more accessible world.Kelvin Crosby is CEO of Smart Guider Inc., which develops navigation technology enabling deafblind individuals to travel independently. Known as The DeafBlind Potter, he funded his first invention, the See Me Cane, through pottery sales. Kelvin lives with Usher Syndrome type 2 and is a staunch advocate for accessibility.Chris Maher is the Founder & General Partner at Samaritan Partners, a public benefit venture fund that invests in the disability sector. Chris founded Samaritan after spending 25 years as an operator and multi-time CEO at a variety of venture capital-backed companies, and 20 years raising two daughters with disabilities.
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