This week on the Disabilities Beat, we share a remembrance for disability advocate Natalie Barnhard-Castrogiovanni, who died on January 9 surrounded by friends and family.
Castrogiovanni was a physical therapist when a workplace accident left her with a spinal cord injury in 2004. Her injury required her to move to Georgia to get the specialized treatment she needed. That experience ultimately sparked her desire to build comprehensive SCI treatment in her hometown of Buffalo, New York.
Castrogiovanni expanded options for people with spinal cord injuries in Western New York through her foundation, the Motion Project. She built the region's first specialized spinal cord injury rehabilitation center in Cheektowaga, launched the local chapter of the United Spinal Association, and created holistic, person-centered resources including support groups for wheelchair users.
Beyond her advocacy for people with SCI, Castrogiovanni brought people together across the disability community. Fellow advocates say her influence continues through the programs she built and the community she helped create.
Most of all, fellow advocates say Castrogiovanni was a deeply caring person who was full of laughter, joy and a willingness to help. She was a role model for younger disabled people, who say her openness with her life story, and her work with her husband Steve to educate the community, showed the possibilities for a life well lived with a disability.
The Motion Project remains open their normal hours in honor of Castrogiovanni this week, and a celebration of life will be announced at a later date. A representative for the family told BTPM NPR that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Motion Project in her memory by texting RECOVERY to 707070 or by visiting motionprojectny.org.
TRANSCRIPT
Emyle Watkins: Hi, I'm Emyle Watkins, and this is the Disabilities Beat.
The disability community is mourning the loss of a passionate advocate who transformed spinal cord injury rehabilitation in Western New York and brought the disability community together.
BJ Stasio: She cared about the health and wellbeing of other people. She was a beacon of light for everyone she met and everyone she hoped to meet.
Emyle Watkins: Activist BJ Stasio describing Natalie Barnhard-Castrogiovanni, who passed away January 9th, surrounded by friends and family.
Castrogiovanni devoted her life to helping others have the best quality of life possible. In 2004, when she was a 24-year-old physical therapist, a piece of equipment fell on her and left her with a spinal cord injury, or SCI. At the time, treatment required her moving to Georgia.
Relocating for specialized treatment isn't uncommon for SCI. Some research and literature have shown that people with spinal cord injuries tend to live closer to treatment centers, and that prompt specialized treatment improves outcomes.
This led Castrogiovanni to start the Motion Project Foundation and Western New York's first specialized SCI center in Cheektowaga. She also launched Western New York's chapter of the United Spinal Association.
Annie Streit: Natalie has never lost her faith with everything that's happened, and she is just a prime example of turning tragedy into triumph and really leaving your mark to help others in the community who don't have a voice.
Emyle Watkins: Annie Streit, United Spinal's grassroots advocacy manager, says Castrogiovanni was nationally active and energized by her work expanding rehabilitation access and building new support groups.
Annie Streit: She, unfortunately, is no longer here with us, but in some ways she still is. And I think the way she was an advocate is a really great model for other advocates to follow: the focus on community, bringing each other together.
Emyle Watkins: Motion Project offers treatment using the latest state-of-the-art equipment that insurance doesn't always cover at an affordable out-of-pocket cost or through scholarships.
In September 2025, Castrogiovanni said in her own words to BTPM NPR...
Natalie Barnhard-Castrogiovanni: Not only do people have access to cutting-edge rehab technology and equipment, but then they have a family of people who understand. We are a center through lived perspective, so we understand every angle of it.
Emyle Watkins: She believed in a center not just for people with spinal cord injuries, but run by people who understand their experience.
Natalie Barnhard-Castrogiovanni: So this center provides just hope for people, that they can have an amazing life despite what has happened to them.
Emyle Watkins: Executive director of the peer-led Center for Self-Advocacy, Sam Mattle, says her work across disability populations and organizations was highly influential.
Sam Mattle: She really supported other organizations, besides ours, as well and just to see the disability community as a whole turn out, you can just see what kind of impact she had on the disability community.
Emyle Watkins: Beyond her work, the way she lived her life unapologetically with joy, humor, and warmth touched many people around her.
Madison Czworka: She instantly became one of my favorite people that I've ever worked with.
Emyle Watkins: Madison Czworka, also from the Center for Self-Advocacy.
Madison Czworka: I shared a lot of laughs with her and a lot of really open and vulnerable conversations, and I really valued that. And it allowed us to develop a relationship outside of just being professional, which I think is really awesome.
Emyle Watkins: Many younger advocates in the community also looked up to her, not only as a leader, but as someone who showed the possibilities for their lives, too. In recent years, she married her husband, Steve, and their wedding was featured on TLC's Say Yes to the Dress.
Hannah Brecher: Meeting her husband, honestly, Steve was such a gem and hearing their love story really did touch me.
Emyle Watkins: Self-advocate and peer mentor Hannah Brecher worked with Steve and Natalie on a health conference where they shared their advice on relationships when you have a disability. The experience stuck with Brecher, and she shared a sentiment shared by many others in the community.
Hannah Brecher: To Motion Project, you guys are a great anchor for the disability community. You guys are always, always with us, and you guys are vital to the disability community and to the entire community of Western New York. And I think that... I know that God just gained another angel with her wings. So I think that Natalie is always going to be around us. There's going to be little sparks of her.
Emyle Watkins: You can listen to the Disabilities Beat segment on demand, view a transcript, and a plain language description for every episode on our website at btpm.org. I'm Emyle Watkins. Thanks for listening.
