Disabled founder turns to adaptive sports stories to help nonprofits raise money

Ryan Wilson, founder of Colorado Springs-based Team Trust Productions, says elite wheelchair racers and the Americans with Disabilities Act reshaped how he saw disability and inspired his work. His disability-led video company now helps nonprofits tell stronger stories and has driven fundraising gains for clients.

Why it matters: - Ryan Wilson’s story shows how disability rights, visibility and representation can shape career paths and public perception. - Team Trust Productions turns that perspective into fundraising and awareness work for nonprofits serving disabled communities. - The timing lands as advocates mark the Americans with Disabilities Act’s 36th anniversary and oppose proposed Medicaid cuts that could reduce services for millions of Americans with disabilities.

What happened: - Ryan Wilson, 30, founder of Team Trust Productions in Colorado Springs, says growing up with Osteogenesis Imperfecta made him feel like the only disabled kid in his central Illinois town. - Wilson said the only disability images he saw in media portrayed disabled people as sad or second-class. - A community of elite wheelchair racers changed that view by showing disability as capability, competition and possibility. - Wilson said the experience helped him stop apologizing for his disability and made clear that people like him could pursue more than he had imagined. - Wilson founded Team Trust Productions to help nonprofits tell disability stories that move beyond pity-based portrayals.

The details: - Wilson has broken more than 60 bones over his life because of Osteogenesis Imperfecta. - Team Trust Productions is a disability-led video production and marketing company based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. - The company works exclusively with U.S. nonprofits that have at least $1 million in annual revenue. - Team Trust says its video work is designed to drive fundraising results, brand awareness and mission visibility. - Clients have included Make-A-Wish, Special Olympics, Catalyst Sports and AccesSurf. - Catalyst Sports is an adaptive sports nonprofit in Atlanta. - AccesSurf provides surfing opportunities for disabled people. - Team Trust says one client raised $80,000 in 30 days after working with the company. - Another client earned $100,000 in three months. - The company also counts the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, Special Olympics Minnesota, the International Paralympic Committee and Move United among its clients. - Wilson is available for interviews, commentary and speaking engagements during Disability Pride Month and the week of the ADA’s anniversary. - Media assets, including photography, are available upon request. - Team Trust Productions can be reached at teamtrustproductions.com. - Wilson’s social profiles include LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Between the lines: - Wilson is tying his personal narrative to a broader argument that disability policy and representation have real-world consequences. - The company’s client list suggests a niche built around mission-driven organizations that already operate in the disability and adaptive sports space. - The fundraising results, while self-reported, are positioned as proof that disability-centered storytelling can have measurable business value.

What's next: - Wilson plans to keep offering interviews and speaking engagements around Disability Pride Month and the ADA anniversary. - Team Trust Productions is likely to keep leaning into disability-led storytelling as nonprofits look for clearer, more authentic ways to connect with donors. - The broader policy fight over Medicaid and disability services will keep the issue in focus beyond the anniversary date.

The bottom line: - Wilson’s path from isolation to advocacy shows how representation can change both identity and business outcomes.