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Learning to Ski Helps Some Amputees

Apr-15-2005 » Filed Under: General Military

I think we might know at least one soldier who attended this event.

Link to Full Article
By Brian Padden, VOA

Neither a severely injured leg, nor the fear of falling, will prevent Rosetta Floyd from learning to ski. She says it was scary at first, but it didn’t hurt her.

In August of 2004, Specialist Rosetta Floyd was injured in a mortar attack in Baghdad while serving as a U.S. Army medic. She recounts the experience, "So I heard somebody say, 'Grab her foot. It looks like its about to fall off' and I'm freaking out. I blacked out while I'm hearing this." [...]

Luis Rodriguez and Rosetta Floyd are two of more than 300 disabled veterans participating in a yearly ski trip to Aspen Colorado in the Western region of the United States.

Recreation therapist Sandy Trombetta is founder of the Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic. Mr. Trombetta describes what they offer: "We use a thing that's called Guided Discovery. And what that means is that we take people to a place and we expose them to different challenges you might say, and then they begin to discover different things about themselves. They get to see what they can do not what they can't do."

The clinic offers a variety of physically challenging activities from scuba diving to rock climbing. The purpose is directed as much at building a positive attitude as it is at overcoming physical barriers. Participating in these clinics can help disabled vets fight depression and lead productive lives, but currently only a relatively small number attend.

Many, such as Henry Diaz, a Vietnam War Veteran who was injured 13 years ago and is here for the first time, can struggle alone for years. Emotional, Henry recounts, "Before, I never had that much patience and they brought me out here and I started coming out of my shell so to speak but after 30 years. If it weren’t one person, one of my therapists, if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be here. I was chickening out at the last minute. That's about it. I'm so glad to be here, that's all."

What is special about these clinics says Sandy Trombetta, is the bond developed between disabled vets as well as the real-life coping skills learned on the ski slopes.


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