Page 34 - Amy Wright News Today

>> ladies and gentlemen, please join me in honoring cnn hero, amy wright. [ cheers and applause ] >> my children are not broken. my employees are not broken. 200 million people across the world living with an intellectual or developmental disability are not broken. what is broken is the lens through which we view people with disabilities.

Live with intellectual or developmental disabilities, like down syndrome or autism or cerebral palsy. our first -- >> our first hero -- im so sorry. >> that was your line. im sorry. im new to television. >> our first hero is working to make sure they have better opportunities in this world when they become capable adults. to tell her story is academy award-nominated actress, diane lane. >> what makes us so afraid of people who are different? why do we become uncomfortable when we encounter someo...

>> ladies and gentlemen, please join me in honoring cnn hero, amy wright. [ cheers and applause ] >> my children are not broken. my employees are not broken. 200 million people across the world living with an intellectual or developmental disability are not broken.

And most of all, to my two youngest children, bitty and beau, who are my inspiration. i want you to know, because i know youre watching at home tonight, bitty and beau, that i would not change you for the world. but i will change the world for you. >> oh, my gosh, it was a tear jerker last night. and this morning, that was amy wright, the owner of bitty & beaus coffee. she was accepting the cnn hero of the year award. amys coffee shop in wilmington, north carolina, employees 40 people with intel...

>> are you going to see it? >> of course. not yet. >> just not on opening weekend. a special night for us here at cnn as we honored our cnn heroes, people making a difference around the world. and amy wright was named the 2017 hero of the year. the mother of two down syndrome kids runs the non-profit able to work usa. it employs 40 people with intellectual and disabilities at a coffee shop named for her two kids. >> my two youngest children, who are my inspiration, i want you to know, because ...

Out of town that it should be just rain in all of those i-95 cities. so not so bad so far. well see. if it changes, well let you know, but for now, everybody should get to where they want to go. >> that sounds very good, chad. thank you so much for that forecast. so up next, a woman you have to meet. amy wright. shes the newly minted cnn hero of the year. how she is changing the world from her north carolina coffee shop. thats next. run, jthe power of in to tempur-pedic sleep with our 90-day t...

Of kids in the united states live with intellectual or developmental disabilities, like down syndrome or autism or cerebral palsy. our first -- >> our first hero -- >> im so sorry. that was your line. >> im sorry. im new to television. >> our first hero is helping to make sure they have better opportunities in this world when they become capable adults. to tell her story is academy award-nominated actress, diane lane. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> what makes us so afraid of people who are diffe...

Viewpoints that i can them targets of harassment. >> were going live to philadelphia where army is trying to bin for the second year in a row after snapping a 14-game losing streak last year. and voting is now underway for the cnn hero of the year. >> yes, one of the top ten heroes, amy wright. >> people with disabilities, sometimes the world just passes them by. having a work place that makes you feel proud of yourself and gives you a sense of community is what we all want. >> we really felt ...

>> sometimes the world just passes them by. having a workplace that makes you feel proud of yourself and gives you a sense of community is something we all want. most of them are unemployed and we really felt like we wanted to do something about it. it was like, coffee shop. >> come on in. >> other than our two managers, everybody that works there has an intellectual or multiple disability. we figured out what their skill set was and we plugged them in. now we have 40 employees. for most of them...

Voting is now underway for the cnn hero of the year here is one of this years top ten heroes. meet amy wright. >> people with disabilities sometimes the world passes them by. having a workplace that makes you feel proud of yourself and gives you a sense of community is something we all want. most of them are unemployed. we felt like we wanted to do something about it. and it was like, coffee shop. >> hey, guys, good morning. welcome its open. >> other than the two managers everybody that works a...