Helping people with disabilities find the home of their dreams - Harborstone Heroes

WOODINVILLE, Wash. — There's no challenge Barry Long won't take on. He's bungee-jumped, he's skydived, he's background around the world. Life has always been an adventure for him - even when, one day, life took a turn.

On Feb. 10, 1991, Long crashed his motorcycle. The accident paralyzed him, sent him to the hospital, and required him to use a wheelchair. But as he recovered in the hospital, he found an opportunity.

"When I got out of the hospital, I started talking to kids about making choices," Long says. "And next thing I know, I'm doing keynotes for corporations around the country. And it turned into a lifetime public speaking career."

His public speaking company Talk and Roll has taken him all around the world, where he gives motivational speeches for major corporations. And while he was traveling around the world, he just so happened to have an audience at Sotheby's International Realty.

"And while we were all discussing real estate, I just brought up the fact that real estate is not very friendly [for people with disabilities]," says Long. "It's really hard to find homes that are accessible. It's hard to sell homes that are accessible. So I just kind of made fun of them and made a little joke - it was like, 'hey, why don't you guys fix it'. Well, be careful what you ask for. Because about three weeks later, I was having lunch with the owner of Marketplace Sotheby's."