Executive Profile

Arthur L. Aston, Jr. of Voorhees, New Jersey is a son, brother, uncle, and friend. He was diagnosed at birth with Spina Bifida in 1981. 

Although there is no known cause of Spina Bifida, it occurs when the neural tube that eventually develops into the brain, skull, back bones, and spinal cord does not close properly during the early stages of pregnancy. 

This birth defect has impacted Arthur’s mobility, and requires him to use leg braces and crutches to walk, and he is also a part-time wheelchair user for long distances. 

He has been a disability advocate for as long as he can remember. He recalls being a self-advocating for his accessibility and medical needs from an early age, long before he began advocating for the rights of others in the disability community. After taking notice of the lack of opportunities to educate society about disabilities,  Arthur created Our View in 2010 as a way to educate students of all ages about disabilities. Through conversation and interactive style assemblies for schools, and educational trainings for places of business. 

Arthur joined the Board of Directors of Build Jake’s Place in 2011 after the organization had built their first inclusive playground in Cherry Hill New Jersey, and he has served as Executive Director of Build Jake’s Place since October 2013. That same year, Build Jake’s Place founded the Camden County New Jersey Miracle League, a baseball league for children and adults that Arthur has managed since their first game in the spring of 2014. 

Under Arthur’s leadership, Build Jake’s Place fundraised $650,000 to build their second inclusive playground. The playground opened in Delran, New Jersey in the summer of 2019.

In 2018, the organization helped get Jake’s Law passed in New Jersey. The law allows for counties and municipalities in New Jersey to apply for Green Acres Grants to build new inclusive 

playgrounds. 

Arthur looks forward to continuing the work of Build Jake’s Place in the newly formed Our View as a nonprofit.