A leading and respected advocate of disability rights, Linda Dickerson passed away last Saturday in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, at the age of 59.
For the last several years, Ms. Dickerson used a breathing tube and communicated with a device that allowed her to speak using eye movements. Diagnosed at an early age with Werdnig-Hoffmann, a rare, genetic neuromuscular disease, Ms. Dickerson used a wheelchair for most of her life.
From the time she was growing up in Greensburg, her physical limitations drove her to become independent of her parents and help others with disabilities, said her father, Logan Dickerson.
“She supported a lot of initiatives and raised a lot of money for countless non-profits,” said Jamie Hudzik, who worked at Ms. Dickerson’s consulting firm for nearly a decade starting in 2009. “She was an amazing person. She deserves to be remembered for all the good she did.”
Among the accomplishments for which she received wide recognition was her lobbying effort for the ADA to become federal law in 1990.
