Meet Lindsay Crain

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lindsay Crain. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Lindsay, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

My daughter drives my purpose. Everything I do is rooted in her and in removing barriers within systems and practices that demand systemic change. I’ve always been passionate about equity and justice. But it wasn’t until she was born that my passion took a deeply personal turn, reshaping everything I thought I knew about purpose.

I studied broadcast journalism in college, where I learned to deliver the most important information that busy people didn’t realize they needed to know. I then moved to film acquisitions, where I worked to amplify as many diverse voices as possible, utilizing storytelling as a powerful catalyst for change. Education, truth, connection, and inclusive perspectives were consistent themes throughout my career. But then my daughter was born, and my carefully laid plans took a different turn.

Lena had a brain hemorrhage shortly after birth, which led to cerebral palsy, deafblindness, and multiple disabilities. She worked through hours of therapies every day, as we struggled to figure out how to best support her. Many tried to limit her, blame her, or put her in a box based on their own biases and perceived limitations.

I paused my career to dedicate myself to her care—a privilege for which I am now immensely grateful, even though it was completely unexpected at the time. I not only had to fight through my fears and insecurities as a parent to learn the basics, but I was left to explore an entirely new universe called ‘disability supports’ without any clue where to start.

I did learn several realities quickly, and it’s because Lena led the way. She made relevant the “myth of average”. She made me hate the word “normal”, because what in the world does that even mean?! I was now keenly aware that everyone wanted to define it. I needed to create an environment where she could learn the necessary skills to access the world on her terms. I also needed to address the endless barriers that seemed to exist only to hold her back while allowing discriminatory practices to perpetuate. Many barriers, I’m embarrassed to say, I had never before recognized or acknowledged.

I quickly realized I needed to advocate beyond Lena’s individual needs. Transforming the systems was essential to breaking the cycle of exclusion. When Lena entered the public school system, the institutional “othering” became apparent. Frustrated by the programmatic segregation of disabled students, I co-founded a network of special education advisory committees within our school district to help transform the culture towards more inclusive practices. I was appointed to special education community advisory committees that promote family engagement and lobby for statewide special education finance reform. I completed a two-year family support fellowship with the CA-LEND program to promote interdisciplinary training in development disabilities within the medical community and was appointed to a national advocacy council for the Association of University Centers on Disabilities. I also currently serve as a Community Representative on the California State Interagency Coordinating Council on Early Intervention.

Our parenting journey started with what felt like fighting for survival and discovery. It quickly transformed into one of purpose: Inclusion. Access. Belonging. Equity. Rightful presence.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Undivided brought together everything I had been working towards personally and professionally. It’s the company I wish we had when we began this journey, and it’s the company our family still needs every day. We provide an innovative software platform for parents raising kids with disabilities—one that breaks down complex systems, addresses key questions, and creates actionable roadmaps for navigating the supports our kids need to survive and thrive.

There are countless resources out there about disability, yet parents are often left piecing together information on their own. Undivided connects parents with the resources they need, developed by experts and informed by the collective knowledge gained from working with thousands of families. I head our content and community teams, with the mission of providing a single space for parents to access what they need to know about public benefits, education, insurance, and more. We simplify complex information into clear, actionable steps that parents can incorporate into their own digital workspace within the Undivided app —uploading documents, making notes, adding goals, and tracking their progress. My personal mission aligns with Undivided’s: we want to empower parents so their children can thrive – and we want parents to thrive, too.

For parents needing more personalized guidance, they can work 1:1 with their own dedicated Navigator, an experienced parent who is also raising a child with disabilities. Navigators collaborate with subject matter experts and specialists to build a tailored plan for families. Our goal is for your child to get the supports they need, when they need them. The more families we help, the more knowledge we gain—and the more pressure we can collectively put on the systems to evolve. Currently, we support families raising kids aged 0-18 in California, but we are committed to expanding our reach nationwide, so we can empower as many families as possible.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1. Educating myself about disability: I’m an over-preparer. I attended countless trainings and studied everything I could—disability rights, educational law, diagnoses, alternate therapies, medical trials, you name it. I realized immediately that if I didn’t understand the systems we needed for Lena to thrive, it would directly affect her care. If I didn’t learn how to advocate, Lena’s progress could stall, and that fear honestly tortured me. A child’s access to support should not depend on a parent’s ability to advocate for something that is already a legal right, yet that’s how our systems operate. That’s why Undivided exists. Our digital platform lays out a child’s roadmap, step-by-step directions, and provides 1:1 support for those who need it. I don’t want parents lying awake at night like I was, punishing themselves for not knowing something they had no way of knowing. We can’t take away all of those fears, but we can empower and educate parents in every way possible. We can give them the tools, the plan, the partner, and a community to support them. Parents should not have to continue reinventing a wheel that millions have navigated before them.

2. Commitment to inclusion: Immersing myself around best practices in inclusion fundamentally changed my approach to everything. The early realization that my daughter would automatically be othered, segregated, and discriminated against by even well-meaning people was a gut punch. I realized very quickly how normalized archaic, harmful, and illegal practices had become for individuals with disabilities, especially developmental and intellectual disabilities. Educating myself about inclusion started the primal push towards my purpose. I no longer felt so helpless. I knew exactly what we were aiming for. My daughter belongs in every room, and more importantly, she needs to know she has the power to choose which room she wants to be in.

3. Find your people: This journey can feel isolating, but connecting with other parents is transformative. Some of the most life-changing advice I’ve received came from meeting another parent in a waiting room. Undivided aims to bring that collective knowledge together, taking the luck out of access and ensuring parents don’t have to rely on chance encounters to get the support they need. Beyond support, there is power in numbers! Activate, organize, and the hills feel less monumental.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

I don’t have the luxury of not being successful. My purpose is to secure the rights that allow my daughter and all people with disabilities to lead a person-centered life. Lena has to fight through way too much daily because the world keeps trying to insist it doesn’t have to adapt. That’s unacceptable to me.

Beyond Lena, my fellow families in the disability community have been my greatest allies, teachers, and collaborators. When I’m nervous about a test result, an encounter, a new diagnosis, or something as ominous and hopeful as the future – I turn to families like ours. We share the good, the bad, the dark, and the wonderful. We are all trying to create a more inclusive, kinder, accessible, and just world.

Success is highly subjective, and we redefined that term soon after Lena was born. For us, success means getting up and trying again each day. Some days are quieter than others, and that’s ok. We do not take small wins for granted. We value successes where others might not. What’s important is that Lena doesn’t quit, and neither will I.

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Resilience
Portraits of Resilience

Sometimes just seeing resilience can change out mindset and unlock our own resilience. That’s our

Productivity
Perspectives on Staying Creative

We’re beyond fortunate to have built a community of some of the most creative artists,

Confidence
Kicking Imposter Syndrome to the Curb

This is the year to kick the pesky imposter syndrome to the curb and move