• News & Culture
    • Arts & Events
    • Great Reads
    • Atlanta 500
    • Block by Block: Stories from the streets that connect us
    • Women Making a Mark
    • Pride Guide 2022
  • Food & Drink
    • Restaurant Reviews
    • 75 Best Restaurants in Atlanta
    • 50 Best Tacos
    • 123 Things to Eat on Buford Highway
    • 50 Best Bars
    • Best Barbecue
    • Best Breakfast
    • The TOUR Championship Cocktail Contest
  • Home
    • Artists & Galleries
    • Design Advice
    • Design News
    • Gardens
    • Real Estate
    • Neighborhoods
    • Real Estate All-Stars
    • Sponsored: Preferred HOME Partner
  • Life & Style
    • Style
    • School Guide
    • Health & Wellness
    • Top Doctors
    • Top Dentists
    • Sponsored: Physician & Dentist Profiles
    • Buckhead Guidebook
  • Travel
    • Southbound
    • 50 Best Things to Do in Georgia
    • Hidden Georgia
    • North Georgia Mountains
    • Great Georgia Hikes
    • Jekyll Island
    • Georgia Travel Guide
    • Gilmer: Ellijay Visitors Guide 2022
    • Alabama Vacation Guide 2023
  • Best of ATL
    • Eat
    • Drink
    • Do
    • Buy
    • Readers’ Choice
  • Magazine
    • Subscription Center
    • Newsletters
    • Digital Editions
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Pitch Us
    • Advertise
    • Custom Media
    • Give Atlanta
    • Employment
      • Careers
      • Internships
    • Archives
    • Where to Find
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events
      • Atlanta Magazine Whiskey Festival 2022
      • 2020 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Designer Showhouse
      • Atlanta Baby and Beyond
      • Atlanta Magazine Whiskey Festival 2019
      • DINES: A Taste of the City’s Best Restaurants
      • 2019 Modern Style Showhome
      • Best Burger Battle
      • Pinewood Forest Idea Home
      • 2018 Modern Style Showhouses
    • Event Photos
Sign in
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Create an account
Privacy and Cookies Policy
Sign up
Welcome!Register for an account
A password will be e-mailed to you.
Privacy and Cookies Policy
Password recovery
Recover your password
Search
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Issue Archive
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Atlanta 500
  • Give Atlanta
  • GaBiz Magazine
Sign in
Welcome! Log into your account
Forgot your password? Get help
Create an account
Privacy and Cookies Policy
Create an account
Welcome! Register for an account
A password will be e-mailed to you.
Privacy and Cookies Policy
Password recovery
Recover your password
A password will be e-mailed to you.
Atlanta Magazine Atlanta Magazine
Atlanta Magazine Atlanta Magazine
  • News & Culture
    • Arts & Events
    • Great Reads
    • Atlanta 500
    • Block by Block: Stories from the streets that connect us
    • Women Making a Mark
    • Pride Guide 2022
  • Food & Drink
    • Restaurant Reviews
    • 75 Best Restaurants in Atlanta
    • 50 Best Tacos
    • 123 Things to Eat on Buford Highway
    • 50 Best Bars
    • Best Barbecue
    • Best Breakfast
    • The TOUR Championship Cocktail Contest
  • Home
    • Artists & Galleries
    • Design Advice
    • Design News
    • Gardens
    • Real Estate
    • Neighborhoods
    • Real Estate All-Stars
    • Sponsored: Preferred HOME Partner
  • Life & Style
    • Style
    • School Guide
    • Health & Wellness
    • Top Doctors
    • Top Dentists
    • Sponsored: Physician & Dentist Profiles
    • Buckhead Guidebook
  • Travel
    • Southbound
    • 50 Best Things to Do in Georgia
    • Hidden Georgia
    • North Georgia Mountains
    • Great Georgia Hikes
    • Jekyll Island
    • Georgia Travel Guide
    • Gilmer: Ellijay Visitors Guide 2022
    • Alabama Vacation Guide 2023
  • Best of ATL
    • Eat
    • Drink
    • Do
    • Buy
    • Readers’ Choice
  • Magazine
    • Subscription Center
    • Newsletters
    • Digital Editions
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Pitch Us
    • Advertise
    • Custom Media
    • Give Atlanta
    • Employment
      • Careers
      • Internships
    • Archives
    • Where to Find
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events
      • Atlanta Magazine Whiskey Festival 2022
      • 2020 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Designer Showhouse
      • Atlanta Baby and Beyond
      • Atlanta Magazine Whiskey Festival 2019
      • DINES: A Taste of the City’s Best Restaurants
      • 2019 Modern Style Showhome
      • Best Burger Battle
      • Pinewood Forest Idea Home
      • 2018 Modern Style Showhouses
    • Event Photos
Home Women Making A Mark Cara Elizabeth Yar Khan
Custom Publication

Cara Elizabeth Yar Khan

She’s shattering stereotypes about people with disabilities
By
Dana Ford
-
May 30, 2018
4464

Cara Elizabeth Yar Khan always knew she wanted to be a humanitarian. As a young girl, she studied foreign languages, got involved in countless volunteer activities, raised money, and spoke up for the rights of children. Her hard work paid off. Shortly after graduating college, Yar Khan went to Ecuador with the United Nations, launching a humanitarian career that has so far spanned more than 15 years and 10 countries.

Life doesn’t always go according to plan, however, and at the age of 30, Yar Khan was diagnosed with hereditary inclusion body myopathy, an extremely rare muscle-wasting disease. At first, Yar Khan didn’t want people to know about her diagnosis. She was afraid people would doubt her abilities, and she was determined not to let it hold her back. She continued to work in the field, living in countries such as China, Angola, and Haiti. But as the disease progressed, she began to open up about her experience.

“My body is dying, and I am the best that I will ever be—physically—today. There’s no approved treatment or cure for this disease,” says Yar Khan, 41, who lives in metro Atlanta and has become a leading voice for people with disabilities. “I very much look at my life as where can I make the greatest impact?”

She regularly shares her story in public, striving to live by example. She wants people to know that life doesn’t stop because of a diagnosis or disability. It continues, in beautiful and sometimes surprising ways. Through her work, Yar Khan met the man she recently married. They plan to honeymoon in Somalia. She also plans to continue her advocacy work, calling on leaders to break down barriers to inclusion. “Everybody has something to contribute and if you’re excluding people with disabilities, you’re missing out on a lot of fun—and a lot of potential,” she says.

Advertisement
  • TAGS
  • Women Making a Mark 2018
Emma Hunt

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

Custom Publication

Adria Perez

Custom Publication

Alicia Philipp

Custom Publication

Colleen Doyle

Follow Us

69,386FansLike
144,836FollowersFollow
493,480FollowersFollow
Atlanta Magazine
Since 1961, Atlanta magazine, the city’s premier general interest publication, has served as the authority on Atlanta, providing its readers with a mix of long-form nonfiction, lively lifestyle coverage, in-depth service journalism, and literary essays, columns, and profiles.

Most recent

Things we like: Grandma-style mac and cheese

Things we like: Grandma-style mac and cheese

January 27, 2023
2023 Atlanta 500: Arts, Sports, & Entertainment

2023 Atlanta 500: Arts, Sports, & Entertainment

January 27, 2023
Atlanta 500 2023 Business

2023 Atlanta 500: Business

January 27, 2023

GREAT READS

Stop Cop City protestors South River Forest Atlanta

“The birds stopped singing”: Inside the battle for Atlanta’s South River Forest

January 20, 2023
Death and granite in Elberton, Georgia

Death and granite in Elberton, Georgia

January 13, 2023
How climate will impact the 2022 elections

Climate change is on the ballot this November—and every elected official in Georgia has a role to play in fighting it

October 31, 2022
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Issue Archive
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Business Forum
  • Privacy and Cookies Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • General Contest Rules
© 2023. All rights reserved.