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Birrong National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participant Neilo Ferreira is a bit on the shy side, but thanks to Gig Buddies volunteer Jan Ireland working with him one-on-one and taking him places he’s out spreading his wings socially.

Newcastle local Niki Williams lost the lower part of her right leg in a car accident 20 years ago. After being cut out of the car and rushed to hospital she became an amputee within hours. At 19, Niki’s near-death experience changed her outlook on life. Since then, the 39-year-old has dedicated herself to disability advocacy and breaking down barriers and stereotypes. Niki also mentors other amputees and families and offers her services to prosthetists when they attend state, national and worldwide conferences to demonstrate the latest in prosthetic limb technologies. 'Blinging out' one of her old prosthetic legs, Niki...

Drysdale’s Adam McCoughtry can’t wait to get back to school this year to start Year 6 and be Drysdale Primary School’s 2023 Dan Dan Nook House Captain

Marriage can be tough at the best of times. But when one partner has a disability and the other is their full-time carer, the pressure can sometimes be too much. Gill Godfrey partly credits the survival of her 42-year marriage to the support she receives from the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). ‘I think it helped us stay together because he had a lot of work to do with me, and he worried a lot,’ Gill says. NDIS-funded support workers help Gill 5 days a week, with 2 days reserved for family only. ‘The first time I went out with...

For Kez and Andrew, Valentine’s Day is special. It’s a day to reflect on their relationship and the love and admiration they have for each other. The 2 Ballarat NDIS participants, who both have an intellectual disability, say they always celebrate Valentine’s Day, and this year is no different. “We’re planning on a nice dinner and going to the movies,” Kez said. “It’s going to be fun,” Andrew added. Ironically, when mum Trish took 8-week-old Kez, now 32, to Playhouse in Ballarat (an early intervention support service), mum Cathy was there with 3-year-old Andrew, now 35. Trish said as time...

After 7 years North Geelong resident Pete Frith’s dream has come true – his wife Kelly has left aged care to live in her own Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) built unit with 24/7 care, all thanks to her NDIS funding. “The change in Kell has been remarkable,” Pete said. “She’s much happier, we can see she’s more alert with her facial expressions, more vocal and when we play music she taps away on my hand. "To be able to visit Kell when we like is a dream come true.” Kelly, 49, had a series of mini strokes and then a...

Greenvale’s Tobias Ward-Boas said he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face when he received a call to say he’d landed a job with the Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability (VALID).