JONI EARECKSON TADA

Joni Eareckson Tada, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Joni and Friends, is an international advocate for people with disabilities.

A diving accident in 1967 left Joni Eareckson, then 17, a quadriplegic in a wheelchair, unable to use her hands. After two years of rehabilitation, she emerged with new skills and a fresh determination to help others in similar situations.

During her rehabilitation, Joni spent long months learning how to paint with a brush between her teeth. Her high-detail fine art paintings and prints are sought-after and collected.

'Joni and Friends' Celebrates Three Decades of Radio Ministry

Photo: Joni and Friends/A. Larry Ross Communications)

Joni Eareckson Tada is a radio host and the founder of the Joni and Friends International Disability Center.

By Jeff Schapiro , Christian Post Reporter

The month of May marked the 30th anniversary of Joni Eareckson Tada's award-winning radio program, "Joni and Friends Radio," which has inspired listeners around the world and educated them about people with disabilities.

The five-minute long radio program has aired over 7,800 times during the last three decades, but at one time it didn't even seem like a possibility. Tada laughed when she was first approached by the Ambassador Advertising Agency about hosting the program in 1982, because at the time she was bedridden.