Jacob Giasomo travels with his godfather Larry and shares their adventures through Larry’s Dreams, part of Dream Collective. Their stories explore travel, accessibility, friendship, food and the unexpected moments along the way. Together, they encourage people to dream bigger, be kinder and never stop living. As recent additions to TravelAbility’s Creator Community, they’re bringing their experiences to a wider audience and opening the door to destination partnerships. Here’s a look at the relationship, the realities, and the work behind Larry’s Dreams.
What It Takes to Keep Living the Dream
By Jacob Giasomo
Larry is my godfather. I’m his caregiver and travel companion, but those titles only tell part of our story.
Larry wanted to move from Buffalo to St. Louis. The original plan was for me to arrange a place for him to live while a couple of aides helped him until his services were set up. But one of his workers scammed him, left his belongings in Buffalo, and sent him to St. Louis by plane. I stepped in as his caregiver, thinking we could get his services arranged within a few months. It ended up taking a couple of years. What began as helping him through that transition became the life we’ve built together.
We’ve lived together for about seven years, and through Larry’s Dreams, we share a life that includes travel, friendship, food, humor, and figuring things out along the way.
Larry uses a wheelchair full-time and an eye-tracking device to communicate. Those facts affect how we travel. They don’t tell you everything about the person coming on the trip. He has opinions, preferences, and dreams of his own. Our adventures should reflect those just as much as anyone else’s vacation would.
Larry’s Dreams started organically: we were simply showing friends and family what we were doing. As we shared more, we began seeing how our experiences encouraged other people to chase their dreams, see the world, and keep going. We realized that what we had learned along the way could help others, too.
Being his caregiver has made me look at travel differently. A beautiful destination can be exciting, but I also need to know whether we can get into the room, use the bathroom, and move through the experience together. Those details can determine whether a plan works at all.
A room problem becomes a transportation problem, a budget problem, and a care problem.
Jacob Giasomo
Sharing our travels through Larry’s Dreams gives us a way to show the whole experience: the places we reach, the people we meet, the good meals, and the plans that fall apart. We want people to see possibilities, while also understanding what it takes to make those possibilities real.
How a Trip Can Go Wrong
During our European travels, we reached a hostel in London and were turned away because its accessible rooms were full. That moment captures something tourism businesses need to understand. Knowing that a property has accessible rooms is only the beginning. Travelers need to know whether a suitable room is actually available and confirmed for their stay.
When it isn’t, we’re left finding another place while managing everything that came with getting there. A room problem becomes a transportation problem, a budget problem, and a care problem. It takes time away from the experience we traveled there to have.
For tourism professionals, my biggest request is specific, reliable information.
Jacob Giasomo
How a Destination Can Get it Right
That’s one part of our story. Another is getting to share a gondola experience in Venice or taking a harbor cruise past the naval base in Norfolk. In Venice, the difference was helpful people: the gondolier steadied the boat while I carried Larry aboard and seated him. For the Norfolk harbor cruise, inclusion had been a part of the design. There was a small lift, and I simply pushed Larry aboard. Both let us enjoy the experience together.
We want room for both of these things: honest accounts of barriers and the enjoyment that makes us keep going.
For tourism professionals, my biggest request is specific, reliable information. Show the entrance, bathroom, and route through the property. Explain steps, surfaces, lifts, and limitations. Confirm the actual room someone will receive. If something is broken or unavailable, tell us early enough to make another plan.
Please also speak directly to Larry. His communication device is his voice. I can help with logistics, but he should be part of the conversation about his own experience.
Clear information and thoughtful communication give us more time to enjoy being somewhere together. That’s what we’re working toward with Larry’s Dreams: more chances to travel, meet people, try things, laugh, and bring home stories worth sharing.
What You Don’t See
Much of the work happens outside the videos. There are belongings to pack, transfers to manage, meals and medication to organize, bathroom stops to plan, and a communication device to keep ready. I’m thinking about Larry’s comfort alongside parking, driving, and whatever we hope to do that day.
Then there’s the work of creating content. We’re having an experience while also trying to capture enough of it to share. Sometimes the most useful thing we can show is a small detail that helps another traveler decide whether a place could work for them.
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