“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

– Albert Einstein

This was the quote that Ross wanted to share on his bio page for the Oregon Self Advocacy Coalition (OSAC). Ross was the Policy Director for OSAC where he was paid to be an advocate for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in many state leadership committees. 

As an advocate for people with disabilities, Ross spoke on behalf of other people with disabilities that could not speak up for themselves. Ross was a proud Oregonian and wanted to make things better for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. His "Why" for doing this work was "I do what I do so that people with disabilities can have their voices heard." And when asked what he would do to change the world, he answered "Everyone would be treated as equal."

Ross passed away on April 3rd. Please join us in celebrating his fight to have everyone be treated as equal. We encourage you to share your stories, photos and videos about Ross and the impact he had on our community.

Additional information will be shared in the days and weeks ahead. 

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