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Louis Frick

As Executive Director of Access to Independence Louis Frick manages this organization of 43 employees and a $2.8 million annual budget. He serves as chief spokesperson for the organization.

Louis has more than 12 years experience in leadership and management in Finance, Strategic Planning, Business Operations, Consulting, Education, and Health Care.

Perhaps more significantly, Louis now leads the organization to which he first came as a person with a disability seeking services.

Back in 1977 Louis became a quadriplegic as the result of an automobile accident. As a young man of 19, his life was turned upside down. Then in 1980, CSCD, as it was then, came to his rescue. Louis learned first-hand what this Independent Living Center is all about. CSCD provided Louis with attendant services and training that enabled and encouraged him to return to work. In fact, Louis learned so well that CSCD hired him.

Another crucial service helped, too, Louis says: Peer counseling. Nothing means as much as to receive encouragement and motivation from someone who has been on the same path. That’s a core service of Access to Independence.

Today, Louis is a college graduate, working full time, married and raising a family in his own home. He is a prime example of how organizations such as Access to Independence help persons with disabilities in the San Diego region get the assistance they need to become full participants in their communities.

Louis is a Board Member of the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), and on the Advisory Board for both the Interwork Institute (San Diego State University) and the Disabled Businesspersons Association.

He is a consultant on access issues to the San Diego Padres for the Ballpark District. He was also a member of Super Bowl XXXVII Host committee in San Diego.

Louis is frequently featured in print, radio & television media for his expertise related to the Americans with Disabilities Act and Universal Design. He has also presented Disability Awareness Education to such groups as the United Way, San Diego State University, Catholic Community Services and to healthcare professionals in several states as well as in Australia.