You should've just announced that you had not realized it until now and say it further proves your point that places need wheelchair access.

Failure to plan. This is a poster child example. However, if used correctly, it WOULD reinforce your argument of the necessity of handicap access.

It's generally considered rude to say someone is "confided to a wheelchair"; say "is a wheelchair user" instead. :)

That's one hell of a way to make your point there.

i mean, talk about lack of oversight.

Major failure here. If the whole point of your fundraiser was to raise money for wheelchair accessibility, you should have been paying a great deal of attention to...wheelchair accessibility, of course. Once you made the mistake, though, you could have used a little elbow grease to solve your problem. Two able-bodied people in halfway decent shape can lift a small person in a wheelchair up a few steps to the stage -- I know because my mother is in a wheelchair with MS, and we've had to do this -- and three or four ought to be able to manage even the heaviest speaker. If you got a few friends together to do this, no one else in your audience would even have to know it wasn't supposed to be that way. And the extra attention drawn to it through your physical effort would force people to acknowledge the problem, likely earning some additional donations. Please tell me you still managed to let them speak... And to 29: Yes, you're right, it's an easy thing to overlook...in any case except the one where it's THE ENTIRE FOCUS OF YOUR EVENT. You're letting the OP off easy. It's like holding a wine-tasting event and forgetting to bring any wine.

"Confined" to wheelchairs? That's an interesting, ablist word to choose. It's good that you were trying to raise money, but it would be better if you tried to adjust your attitude toward people who use mobility aides. I use a cane and I don't consider myself restricted by it. It's my environment around me which restricts, not my mobility aide. Isn't that the point of the fundraiser?

Three words; Location, Location, Location

How could you make that mistake? I'd make sure everything was perfect.

Oh, the irony...