Collaborate with this delightful unicorn.
Hire Kelly J. Mendenhall to speak at your event or create content for your website. You may also contact her about commissioning handmade, heirloom quality Christmas stockings, an custom embroidery hoop, or another project.
Right now, these messages might be playing on repeat in your head:
My medical diagnosis is the end of my story.
Now that I can’t lead a “normal” life, I’m not valuable or worthy.
I should just accept my life as-is and give up hope of offering my unique contributions to the world.
If so, welcome. You’re in the right place.
I understand what it’s like to think all those things because I struggled with the same thoughts. When I first became disabled, it felt like the world had fallen out from under my feet. I’ve been reinventing and recreating my life according to my physical and psychological limitations now since 2017. Please don’t give up.
Here are just a few of the ways that we can work together:
Writing & Content Creation
I’ve been writing since I learned to read. I begged my mother for a typewriter for my eighth birthday, and she delivered. I started writing professionally at age 15 when I had a weekly op-ed column in my local newspaper. I’ve published and presented academic papers and case studies at regional conferences on human rights and health, US foreign policy, and nonprofit administration.
Most recently, I’ve published articles as a freelance journalist and op-ed columnist with Blasting News US. I also spent two years writing medical content for SpineNation.com, a digital support community for those living with chronic back, neck, and spine conditions. If you want me to write for your magazine, website, blog, or other publication, please get in touch with me.
Public Speaking & Podcast/Press Inquiries
My mission is to turn my mess into a message and show the world that a diagnosis or set of diagnoses does not have to mark the end of a person’s story. If you think my story might inspire your group, clientele, or Podcast audience, I’d love to hear from you and discuss a possible engagement. I’m available to speak about the following topics: overcoming trauma, living with chronic pain and invisible illness, and creating a lifestyle and career that honors an individual’s physical limitations, restricted mobility, and mental health challenges.
Join the #AffordableArtRevolution
As a disabled adult with minimal income, art, and one-of-a-kind handmade items often feel out of my financial reach. I want to change that.
I want to make these types of things very approachable to those with disabilities or limited resources. If we could make art and handcrafted goods more accessible, perhaps more people would also pick up hobbies and utilize those hobbies to cope with life. Check out my shop and pay what you can.
Affordable Art Revolution, Est. 2022
Podcast Appearances
