Disabled. Determined. Community-rooted. Unapologetically fighting for a better West Virginia.
My name is Axyl Pisino.
I’m a blind and disabled advocate, a survivor, a systems-builder, and someone who has lived through most of the things I now help others navigate.
I was born at 24 weeks, weighing just 15 ounces, died once, was revived by my mother, and spent my life learning how to survive in a world that was not built for someone like me.
Growing up in rural West Virginia meant experiencing poverty, instability, family trauma, disability discrimination, and systems that were supposed to help — but rarely did.
That’s where my political fire came from.
That’s where my compassion came from.
And that’s where my clarity came from:
No one should have to go through what I did.
My Path Into Advocacy
My first experience in civic engagement came from helping my mother organize community dinners and fight for clean water access in our hometown. I learned early:
how broken rural infrastructure really is how much working-class families carry on their backs and how one person’s courage can change a whole town
Later, I joined the RYPAS Disability Council, where I advocate for disabled people statewide, push for accessibility reforms, and bring lived experience into policy decisions.
I started consulting because nonprofits and small towns need help — not red tape, gatekeeping, or elitist barriers. They need someone who sees the community as it is and fights for what it could be.
What Drives Me
Growing up disabled in one of the poorest states in America Watching neighbors lose homes, jobs, and hope Seeing disability systems trap people in poverty Losing access to basic needs like food, water, and healthcare Witnessing communities forgotten by coal companies and politicians alike
I don’t want to run nonprofits the “traditional” way.
I don’t want to design programs that look good on paper but fail the people they’re supposed to serve.
I want transformation — accessible, just, rural-centered, people-first transformation.
And I want West Virginians to know:
We are still worth fighting for.
Axyl for WV 