Elizabeth’s Story

Many individuals live with disabilities throughout the world. Each one has learned to adapt, overcome, and live with their limitations. Living with disabilities is not a curse or something to be frowned upon, but instead it allows someone to look at each moment as a challenge and to overcome.

Elizabeth Reeve is not any different than anyone else. In fact, she has learned to become one who doesn’t allow anything to get in the way of her dreams. When one speaks of her medical list of what the doctors have diagnosed her with, one would wonder how she can remain so positive. She has multiple challenges daily. She has some accommodations making her life easier, a positive attitude, and the willingness to continue to press on.

Mrs. Reeve has met many challenges some only dream of achieving. She is highly educated with a BA in History, Bachelors of Business Administration (graduated cum laude), MS in Special Education, ABD (All but dissertation) in Ed D with Organizational Leadership, and currently working on her Masters of Business Administration at Western Governors University. She is certified both in Texas and Oklahoma in English as a Second Language (PreK-12), Special Education (PreK-12), and Elementary 1-8. Mrs. Reeve is an instructor at Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) in English as a Second Language. She has founded an organization entitled Ms. Abilities America, Inc., which is a 501 c 3 organization empowering, educating, mentoring, leading, and recognizing individuals who have disabilities for their outstanding community service.

Mrs. Reeve is an individual who loves to write and research on different topics. Her favorite topic is considering how one might place their abilities over their disabilities. She believes everyone has abilities they can utilize. Sometimes one might have to do the items differently than others, but everyone can accomplish whatever they set their minds to doing. It is much like baking an apple pie.

Not everyone will utilize the same ingredients or even the same number of ingredients in their apple pie as everyone has different taste, but in the end the apple pie is still an apple pie and has an excellent taste for those who love apple pies. This is the same way individuals place their abilities over their disabilities. The job or challenge is achieved, no matter how one might have to achieve it. As long as what is to be accomplished is finished, what difference does it matter in how it was completed (as long as it is not illegal or immoral).

Mrs. Reeve is married to a wonderful husband and has several animals. She has a service dog and another dog who happens to be in training. Her service dog, Sassy, came from a Walmart parking lot and started out as an owner trained service dog. After Mrs. Reeve started to realize she was not going to be able to train Sassy on her own, she looked for some assistance and found Marj Shutterfield to help train Sassy. Sassy started being trained as a service dog privately. Glad wags was already formed when Ms Reeve met Marj Satterfield but has become a non profit afterwards.

Mrs. Reeve has been involved in pageants since 2008, when she first entered the Ms. Wheelchair America pageant as Ms. Wheelchair Oklahoma as an independent delegate. After the pageant, she was the Ms. Wheelchair Oklahoma (America) state coordinator until 2011, when she wanted to branch out and look at other pageants and see what was similar or different between the pageants at the time. She went to Ms. Wheelchair USA as Ms. Wheelchair Oklahoma (USA) 2011-2012.

After the Wheelchair pageants, Ms. Reeve decided to give everyone the opportunity who happened to have visible or invisible disabilities by forming Ms. Abilities America, Inc. As Mrs. Reeve is not one who stops learning, she decided to branch out into the mainstream pageants. She has held titles in Integrity Beauty, Angels for a Cause, Pageant Gal, Todays International Woman (formally Todays American Woman), and American Majestics.

Mrs. Reeve does not allow many things to get into her way. She invites one to come along the journey as she starts to write monthly about her daily living and how to approach different things through the lens of abilities rather than disabilities. Elizabeth Reeve Ms. Abilities America National Coordinator and Founder American Majestics Ms. Diversity Oklahoma 2015-2016 First picture- Picture of Ms. Abilities America,Inc. 2016-2017 National Titleholders Second Picture- Ms. Abilities Logo Third picture- Elizabeth Reeve at American Majestics Pageant