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| Mountainside Miracles May 2010
Growing up in the southern New Jersey beach town of Margate, Beth Halley and her family never took summer vacations. "We had the shore in the summer, so we went on winter ski trips instead," says Halley, a principal healthcare information systems consultant in MITRE's Center for Transforming Health. Those childhood trips honed her skills to the point where she spent a decade as a member of the ski patrol at Whitetail Mountain in Pennsylvania. Three years ago, Halley was trained as one of Whitetail's first adaptive ski instructors. And this past March, she used her skills to help wounded veterans experience the thrill of skiing at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' 24th National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic (WSC) in Snowmass Village, Colo. The weeklong WSC, which is co-sponsored by Disabled American Veterans, promotes rehabilitation by instructing veterans with disabilities in adaptive Alpine and Nordic skiing and introducing them to a number of other adaptive recreational activities and sports. Thanks to the clinic's 60 plus sponsors, participants and volunteers receive free lodging and food coupons for various eateries. Veterans also have their airfare covered, and uniformed soldiers greet each participant at their plane to help them make their way to the mountain and back onto the plane at the end of the week. Halley heard about the WSC from a colleague while working on a project with the Veterans Health Administration two years ago. "I learned there's a long waiting list for volunteers; people come back year after year," says Halley, who is a registered nurse by training. Despite this, she applied to be an instructor at the 2010 WSC. "The requirements are tough," says Halley."The organizers need to make sure instructors can meet the physical demands as well as have the adaptive instructing skills." To her delight, she was accepted and made plans to attend the clinic, held March 28 through April 2. As part of her preparation, Halley requested—and MITRE approved—civic time for her week of service."I think it's great that MITRE supports employees' volunteer efforts," she says. Navigating the Slopes At 7:00 every morning, Halley and her fellow volunteers unloaded adaptive ski equipment from trucks. "There's a lot of different adaptive equipment available," Halley explains. "It all depends on body strength and the type of disability. Some disabled skiers can use the equipment independently; others need the help of an instructor." A commonly used adaptive model is the sit ski, which is a molded seat or "bucket" with an adjustable back on a metal frame fitted with a shock absorber and mounted with a racing binding to either one or two skis. If skiers lack the balance to hold themselves up, a sit ski can be fitted to allow for an instructor to maintain control of the ski. A mono-ski is a modified sit ski with one ski and two hand-held outriggers designed to be skied independently by those with good upper body strength and balance. The bi-ski can be used when someone has less body strength. An instructor operates a tether as needed. The VA had several of the country's top physical therapists on site to help position participants and pressure pack the equipment to prevent rubbing.
Halley, who was paired with a co-instructor, gave two three-hour ski lessons on each of the five days (with one lesson cut short due to severe weather). "I skied with five veterans, and they all had no fear," she says. She instructed one of the 33 female veterans at the clinic, a young woman in her 20s who was paralyzed from the waist down. "She used a sit ski and did great," says Halley. Two wounded warriors were in their early 30s, a snowboarder and a skier. Both had suffered traumatic brain injuries from IED explosions. Another skier was a blind veteran wounded in Vietnam. "He was a first-time skier and did amazingly well," says Halley. "He skied between us and used a bamboo pole for stability and directional control. He actually came in second in the ski race at the end of the week!" The other skier was a disabled naval veteran who had ALS. He used a bi-ski with tethers. The general public skied alongside the 353 veterans (including six from WWII) from 44 states who participated in this year's WSC. "On the chair lift, I introduced one of my students as a wounded warrior," says Halley. "The person sitting across from us turned to him and said, 'Thank you so much for your service.'" Boosting Morale The clinic featured an event each night. VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, who spoke during the opening ceremonies, told the story of how Olympic snowboarder Andy Finch got his dad, a disabled veteran, back on the snow at the WSC. On the "Night of Champions," Olympic gold medalist skiers Bode Miller and Casey Puckett, along with Finch and fellow snowboarders Chris Klug and Gretchen Bleiler, signed autographs and took photos with participants. Earlier that day, the Olympians skied and snowboarded with the veterans. Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs L. Tammy Duckworth, a former U.S. Army helicopter pilot who lost both legs and damaged her arm in Iraq, participated in the ski clinic and spoke at the closing ceremonies. Following her remarks, the youngest and oldest participants were recognized. They were 21 and 87. "Secretary Duckworth spoke at one of our instructor debrief meetings," Halley says. "She talked about what the clinic means to service members—how it impacts not only those who participate, but also soldiers currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan; just knowing about the clinic helps boost morale." When Duckworth was in the hospital after her accident, her doctors and nurses said, "If you work hard, you can ski at the sports clinic this winter." She told the group that hearing that was a true motivator. Reading through emails after the clinic, Halley saw a message from the blind veteran with whom she'd skied. "He wrote to thank me and tell me that I'd made his week," she says. "I immediately wrote back and said he'd made mine." —by Karina H. Wright Page last updated: June 1, 2010 | Top of page |
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