John Robinson gets up each morning looking forward to improving the lives of those with disabilities.

Born a quadruple congenital amputee, he knows the challenges. But Robinson is still grateful for a lot of things.

“I’m lucky I can maneuver. I can use a keyboard. I can use my cellphone. I can drive a truck,” Robinson said.

Throughout his life, Robinson has been a disabilities advocate.

For the last decade, he’s been the CEO of Our Ability, which he started after leaving a lengthy career in media sales. But it wasn’t easy to get there.

“A generation ago, I needed a career path. I needed to know how I would get to my job with the skills that I have,” Robinson said. “Yet people were afraid to hire someone that was 3 feet, 9 inches."

It took him about four years after graduating from Syracuse University to get his first job. Robinson knows other people with disabilities are in the same boat, which is why he created this mentoring network.

Through an online portal, it helps connect those with disabilities with potential employers based on their skills.

“We’re filling a niche that is needed in the disabilities community, whether you’re a high school student, college student,” Robinson said.

During the pandemic, he says it has shown people with disabilities can work. With more jobs being done remotely and an increase reliance on technology, that benefits individuals with disabilities.

Robinson recently discussed it on his podcast.

“It’s great that we all continue to have an open mind that people with disabilities can work virtually and can work in general, and so we need to keep telling people that,” Robinson said.

Embarking on its second decade, Our Ability is growing. It just launched a new online portal, and it’s expanding into Canada.

This summer, Robinson is hoping to resume his 360-mile bike ride along the Erie Canal to continue raising awareness for people with disabilities. The pandemic halted the event in 2020.

“If we can work with multiple organizations around the country using our services, we can help that many more people, and that’s where I really hope we are in three to five years,” Robinson said.

But there’s still more work ahead, like getting more people with disabilities on the workforces of state contracts.

For Robinson, each time someone gets a job, it gives him goosebumps. And that is what drives him to continue doing what he does, no matter the obstacles.