Joe Brown, 28, inspired his Carolina classmates, loved the Tar Heels and never gave up

Posted Oct 28, 2018
Joe Brown pressed a button, and slowly, his remote-control wheelchair began to raise his six-foot-four-inch frame to a standing position. Brown loved his chair, and he especially enjoyed that feature. Living with Friedreich’s Ataxia, a rare and debilitating disease that progressively damages the nervous system, he wasn’t able to extend all of his lanky frame. (Durham Herald-Sun)

Related: Campus Connections

UNC's Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies celebrates 230 years of dialogue and debate
When you think of something that ties all Tar Heels together and has existed during every student’s time at the University of North Carolina, Old...
Sun Feb 1, 2026

An Award-Winning UNC English Professor Combines Basketball With Poetry
At the basketball courts near Cobb Residence Hall, Gabrielle Calvocoressi leads a group of students in a friendly shootaround. She’s wearing a Big Bird t-shirt...
Sat Jan 31, 2026

10 ways staff kept Carolina safe during the storm
While many of us make plans to hunker down the second we see that snowflake hit our weather apps, hundreds of employees at the University...
Fri Jan 30, 2026

The multigenerational experiences of being a Tar Heel
Some parents encourage their children to attend their alma mater, while others watch them find their own path to Chapel Hill. Either way, UNC draws...
Wed Jan 28, 2026