Dick Goodwin 

BIO: Dick Goodwin is a Midwesterner, born in Alton, IL, in 1946. He's proud to be an original baby boomer. He is the son of a steelworker and a stay at home mom. He experienced the innocence of the 50's in a working class neighborhood, but is a product of the 60's. After a life altering disability from a drunken car wreck in 1967, he entered college in 1969 at the age of 23. He achieved a BA in American Studies and an MA in Sociology. After finishing college he lived and worked in St. Louis for ten years.

Subsequent to his disability in 1967, he became a disability rights and independent  living advocate. It was his avocation. In 1985, after working in St. Louis for almost a decade, he acquired funding to establish a Center for Independent Living (CIL), IMPACT, in his hometown of Alton, IL. Disability rights and independent  living advocacy became his vocation. He served as Executive Director from 1985-2004. He grew the agency from a $100,000 budget to approximately a $1,000,000 budget. In addition to his management and administrative duties within IMPACT, he was frequently called upon to travel the state presenting to various CILs and statewide conferences on independent living history and philosophy. He resigned the position of Executive Director after life threatening disability related medical problems occurring from October 2003 through June 2004. He returned to work part-time from July, 2004, through December, 2005. In January, 2006, he was unceremoniously fired by his hand picked successor and is no longer affiliated with Impact. He lives in Godfrey, IL, with his wife Jan, a professional ventriloquist.