Brelynn Bille of Waupun started using a wheelchair as a support for her disability during her sophomore year at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. That’s when she really began to notice the accessibility obstacles on campus.
One of her classes was held in a building with a heavy door and no push-button access. And the trouble didn’t end after entering the building, Bille told WPR’s “Wisconsin Today.”
“I had to go down a really steep slope into my classroom, to then sit at a designated table for my wheelchair away from all of my classmates with my head cranked back to look at the screen,” Bille said. “I just felt like I was a spectacle for everyone.”
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And Bille wasn’t alone in her experience. As she began meeting with other disabled students that year, she learned that they were navigating similar struggles.
“Many of us had already considered leaving campus altogether because we felt so excluded,” Bille said. “We didn’t feel welcome here.”
Students with disabilities at UW-Madison are often sent to the McBurney Disability Resource Center. But the center is there to help with classroom accommodations and legal compliance, and Bille and her peers were looking for something more.
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“We didn’t have a space to gather and socialize, to build community, to just find support within one another,” she said.
Together with a coalition of fellow disabled students, Bille successfully advocated for the creation of the Disability Cultural Center on campus. The center officially opened a community space in February 2023 where students can come to socialize and participate in group activities like “crafternoons.”
Bille’s efforts didn’t stop there. She was also instrumental in petitioning Gov. Tony Evers in 2022 to officially recognize July as Disability Pride Month in the state of Wisconsin for the first time. Now, Bille resubmits the paperwork for approval every spring.
Brelynn Bille is a disability rights advocate and a master’s student in the La Follette School of Public Affairs. She graduated from UW-Madison in May 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in community and nonprofit leadership. Photo courtesy of Brelynn Bille
Disability Pride Month commemorates the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act on July 26, 1990. One of Bille’s favorite ways to celebrate the month is to attend the Disability Pride Festival in Madison, which held its 11th annual event last weekend.
“The organizers of that do such a great job of trying to every year make it bigger and better and more inclusive, more accommodating,” Bille said.
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At this festival, everything is accessible
This year, Madison’s Disability Pride Festival was held at Warner Park and drew in hundreds of visitors from around the state. The festival featured a stage for speakers and performers, a resource fair with information booths, exhibitor stands to buy artwork, a craft corner, adaptive sports and food carts.
Nicki Vander Meulen is a member of the Madison Metropolitan School District’s Board of Education. She has cerebral palsy and identifies as autistic.
“It’s nice to be at a festival where I don’t have to worry about if something is accessible, if I’m able to get around. Everything is here,” Vander Meulen said while waiting in line at the Bit of Briana food truck.
For Vander Meulen, one of the top issues facing the disability community is wage discrimination. There is a loophole in federal law that allows some employers to pay disabled workers less than the minimum wage, in some cases as little as 4 cents an hour.
“We want the basic rights and freedoms that everyone else has,” Vander Meulen said.
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Not all disabilities are visible
Walking around the festival in colorful costume makeup and elaborate headdresses were members of the Mad City Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. They’re a group of “21st century nuns” with a mission to spread joy through “wit, health education, fundraising and glitter,” according to their website.
Members of the Mad City Sisters of Perpetual Indulgnece attended Disability Pride Festival in Madison’s Warner Park, July 27, 2024. Sister Chronica Lewinsky (left) said things have improved since the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed 34 years ago, but she believes there’s still a long way to go. Richelle Wilson/WPR
The Mad City Sisters volunteer at the Disability Pride Festival every year to help with setup and to bring their characteristic sass and cheer to the event. One of the members who goes by the stage name “Sister Chronica Lewinsky” attends the festival as both a volunteer and a member of the disability community.
“Having been alive long enough to have seen the world before the Americans with Disabilities Act, it’s a lot better now,” she said. “But there’s a lot of room for improvement.”
For example, Lewinsky would like to see the disability community have greater access to robust disability benefits and better health care.
As a person with multiple intersecting disabilities, Lewinsky wants people to understand the many forms that disability can take, whether it’s a physical disability, a cognitive disability, or another chronic health issue that may not be obvious when looking at a person.
“Just because I look like I don’t have a disability doesn’t mean I don’t,” she said. “Not all disabilities are visible.”
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A teen fights for disability justice
Near the stage, 14-year-old Kitty Trevedi was tabling a booth for their social media account Disabled Teens Matter. Trevedi started the account after UW-Madison unenrolled them from a summer program for high schoolers due to concerns about accommodating Trevedi’s disabilities.
The incident sparked a wave of disability activism on campus. Trevedi and their mom drove an hour from Beaver Dam to Madison every day for most of July to protest.
“(I was) terminated because I didn’t fit into a box like they wanted,” Trevedi said.
A sign at the booth for Disabled Teens Matter, started by 14-year-old Kitty Trivedi from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. Richelle Wilson/WPR
The university maintains that Trevedi’s termination from the program was due to required accommodations paperwork being submitted late. The Trevedi family has disputed this claim, saying that they went through all the proper channels to secure necessary support.
To Kitty Trevedi, disability pride is “pride in the fact that you’re not in that box,” they said. “You’re not ‘normal.’ You’re you, and that’s wonderful.”
A joyful festival
Over at the tennis court, the group Wheels & Heels showcased the talents of para dancers (formerly called “wheelchair dancers”). Among the performers was Martha Siravo from Madison, who will be representing Wisconsin on Team USA at the Para Dance Sport competition in Detroit later this month.
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“I think dance empowers people, and that’s what I love about it,” Siravo said.
Martha Siravo is a para dancer with Wheels & Heels. She performed at the 2024 Disability Pride Festival in Madison. Photo courtesy of Wheels & Heels
Siravo is also a founding member of the group Madtown Mommas and Disability Advocates, which provides support to parents of special needs kids who are navigating the public school system.
Siravo said that she sees disability from two sides: as a member of the community and as an advocate for her child.
“My access needs and my daughter’s access needs are not always singular,” she said. “I’m always troubleshooting in my head: ‘How will this work for both of us?’”
The Disability Pride Festival is one place where Siravo doesn’t have to worry about all that. And for her, the festival is more than just an accessible space — it’s a unique opportunity for everyone to feel supported and celebrate their identity.
“I think it’s a place for people with disabilities to … experience self love,” she said. “It’s a place of joy.”
Manuel Franco claims his $768 million Powerball jackpot
Manuel Franco, 24, of West Allis was revealed Tuesday as the winner of the $768.4 million Powerball jackpot.
Mark Hoffman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Wisconsin Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
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Here’s a look at July 15, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from July 15 drawing
02-07-18-29-38, Powerball: 16, Power Play: 2
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 15 drawing
Midday: 0-6-9
Evening: 8-6-6
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Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from July 15 drawing
Midday: 9-3-8-0
Evening: 4-5-2-7
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning All or Nothing numbers from July 15 drawing
Midday: 01-04-05-07-09-11-12-17-18-21-22
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Evening: 05-06-10-11-12-13-14-16-17-19-21
Check All or Nothing payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Badger 5 numbers from July 15 drawing
05-06-23-28-31
Check Badger 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning SuperCash numbers from July 15 drawing
04-08-15-16-21-33, Doubler: N
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Check SuperCash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Megabucks numbers from July 15 drawing
10-19-25-31-37-40
Check Megabucks payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
Prizes up to $599: Can be claimed at any Wisconsin Lottery retailer.
Prizes from $600 to $199,999: Can be claimed in person at a Lottery Office. By mail, send the signed ticket and a completed claim form available on the Wisconsin Lottery claim page to: Prizes, PO Box 777 Madison, WI 53774.
Prizes of $200,000 or more: Must be claimed in person at the Madison Lottery office. Call the Lottery office prior to your visit: 608-261-4916.
Can Wisconsin lottery winners remain anonymous?
No, according to the Wisconsin Lottery. Due to the state’s open records laws, the lottery must, upon request, release the name and city of the winner. Other information about the winner is released only with the winner’s consent.
When are the Wisconsin Lottery drawings held?
Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Super Cash: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 3 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
Pick 4 (Evening): 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Day): 1:30 p.m. CT daily.
All or Nothing (Evening): 9 p.m. CT daily.
Megabucks: 9:00 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
Badger 5: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
That lucky feeling: Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
Feeling lucky? WI man wins $768 million Powerball jackpot **
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WI Lottery history: Top 10 Powerball and Mega Million jackpots
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Wisconsin editor. You can send feedback using this form.
(WLUK) — Northeast Wisconsin community groups that helped during historic spring flooding can now apply for relief.
Applications for the United Way Fox Cities and Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region Flood Relief fund are now open.
The grants are available to local nonprofits and churches serving residents in Outagamie, Calumet, Shawano, Waupaca, and the Neenah/Menasha area of Winnebago counties who are engaging in relief efforts both short-term and long-term.
Grants are available to:
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501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations
Groups fiscally sponsored by a qualified 501(c)(3)
Churches and other public entities able to receive tax-deductible contributions
These grants are not available to private foundations, individuals or businesses directly, labor unions, or 501(c)(4), 501(c)(5), or 501(c)(6) organizations.
The funding provided to these community organizations will help with housing and safe shelter, food, health and well-being, and financial assistance.
For individual homeowners and renters seeking relief, you can apply for FEMA assistance.
President Trump recently approved $22.6 million in federal aid for Northeast Wisconsin. The request made earlier this year asked for $27 million.
