Hundreds of injured and ill military veterans will take to the mountains to prove the impossible is possible at the 2019 National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, taking place in Snowmass, Colorado, March 31 – April 5.
Each year, the clinic helps veterans reach their own personal victories. It may be a blind Veteran snowshoeing through the Colorado mountains, the sun shining on his face. Maybe it’s a female Veteran amputee beaming with pride after crushing her record on the slalom course. Or it could be a Vietnam Veteran with a spinal cord injury gliding down the mountain in a sit ski for the very first time. There is no shortage of success stories here on the mountain.
“Adaptive sports therapy gives freedom to those who have fought for our freedom and that is why we are here,” said Robert Wilkie, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. “This clinic empowers Veterans to move past those perceived limitations and begin the journey back to life again.”
For many Veterans, the adaptive sports journey is just beginning. For others, it becomes a way of life in Snowmass and is a passion they take back home. The hope is Veterans will build upon this experience and continue to lead active, healthy lives.
The event is hosted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and DAV (Disabled American Veterans) and serves as a world-leader in adaptive winter sports instruction for injured Veterans.The clinic promotes sports therapy and rehabilitation through adaptive alpine and nordic skiing, rock climbing,sledhockey,scubadivingandotheradaptivesportsandactivities.
“For those of us who were seriously injured in military service and have spent years being told our abilities are now limited, there is nothing more empowering than coming to this clinic and being able to prove how much we really can do,” said DAV National Commander Dennis Nixon, a Vietnam veteran and amputee. “It’s a dose of confidence and self-reliance that can—and does—truly change lives.”
The clinic is made possible by hundreds of volunteers, strategic corporate partnerships, nonprofit organizations and individual donors.
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