Beth Manzanares (She/Her)

Hello, hi, how are ya! I'm Beth, and I'm the founder here at Inclusion on Purpose. Prior to the birth of IoP in 2021, I spent over a decade in the I/DD field as a speech-language pathologist and autism specialist.

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I am also the older sibling of Charlie, a young adult who has intellectual disability and autism. Being 11 years older than my brother, my role was always more akin to a caregiver or advocate. As Charlie grew up, I became incredibly disheartened by what I now know has a name - the CLIFF of adulthood. The cliff happens during a pivotal, and what should be exciting, time - when a teen becomes an adult. For Charlie, this meant a massive reduction in both the quality and quantity of support during a huge transition when he needed more, not less, support. Many of you will know this all too intimately, yea?

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As a young child, my nickname was Jiminy Cricket, something I was mortified to be called, but have now grown to appreciate as the driver of my passion for social justice. It was because of this passion that I entered the I/DD field so many years ago. The cliff is still a problem. Over time, I've found another. One of the biggest inequities in disability care was and remains to be the exclusion of those who aren't "disabled enough" to fit into more traditional models, those with invisible disability. Disproportionately, folx in that category happen to also be autistic.

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It was out of injustice that Inclusion on Purpose was born. But it is out of hope and vision that we act. What was once my dream is now our community, a small place in the world where all brains belong. With your help, I know that what we have built will continue to grow, creating safer and more connected space for people with neurodivergence across Boulder and beyond.

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Thank you for being here.