We recently connected with Justin Ruger and have shared our conversation below.

Justin, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

I started out as a Nuclear Physics student at Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Never in my wildest dreams did i think my path would take me to accessibility and art. My 1st year of my PhD program, I was in a car accident in 2015 that lead to a TBI which led to a stroke a few years later. The stroke came with right sided weakness. My late aunt was into honey bees and she wanted me to make a book for her grandchildren that would teach them about honey bees. This was the birth of HENRY MEETS A HONEY BEE.

Using dictation, I was able to write the book out, but struggled figuring out how to illustrate the vision in my head. I was given an iPad Pro 12.9 inch device and an Apple Pencil to aid in the training and strengthening of my right arm. Since i could not draw on paper, due to it ripping when my arm dragged, i started experimenting with procreate and digital art. It took me a couple years, but i finally added a fully illustrated book self-published through Amazon.

Henry Meets a Honey Bee led me to become a vendor at Hive Life in Tennessee, a beekeeping conference. I met amazing people and companies who embraced me as a wheel-chaired beekeeper and author. Talking with these other entrepreneurs and passionate beekeepers led to the formation of Accessible Beekeeping.

Accessible Beekeeping was founded in March 2022 as a way to bridge the gap between disabilities and beekeeping. We work on research, design, and implementation of beekeeping practices that aid the disabled beekeeper. Since its foundation, Accessible Beekeeping has given disability centered beekeeping talks at multiple conferences, written a peer reviewed journal published paper on exploring disabilities in US Beekeepers and worked on teaching persons of all limitations about beekeeping and bridging the accessibility gap.

Justin, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Justin, I am a disabled person who plays many roles. I am a creator, non-profit founder, app developer and accessibility advocate in beekeeping. Writing books allows me to share my knowledge to all ages of beekeeping and the importance of accessibility. Bridging the gap between vision impairment/blindness has led to the formation of Bee My Hive Inspector. This mobile application aids new and visually impaired beekeepers follow their dreams by using artificial intelligence to help during hive inspections. This app is currently in beta testing and we hope that it will become a staple in a beekeepers arsenal of tools for success. Accessible Beekeeping works to educate disabled beekeepers on accessibility options and design tools that can lead them to success and overcoming personal limitations.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

A recurring theme in my lectures and talks is accessibility. I believe that beekeeping is for everyone and a passion that benefits many. I also realize that individual limitations and industry standards for beekeeping makes it inaccessible to many. My goal is to bridge the gap between beekeeping and disabilities to offer future and current beekeepers the ability and resources to be successful no matter what life throws at them.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Before Accessible Beekeeping and Henry Meets A Honey Bee, Social media was only a way for me to update my inner circle about my life and the things that i was going through. I decided to reach out to a well known YouTube beekeeper who was kind enough to narrate my book on his YouTube channel and it was a major blessing. Since he took the time to help an inspiring author branch out and share beekeeping with kids, it opened many avenues and led to the eventual formation of Accessible Beekeeping.

That being said, I truly believe that social media has a positive impact on your reputation and growth as long as you have strong core values and use it to build and educate people rather than tear anything down.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.accessiblebeekeeping.org/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/accessiblebeekeeping
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AccessibleBeekeepingAndMore
• Other: https://dot.cards/jrbuzzz