Local Athletes Host Upcoming 2005 Wheelchair Games
Minnesota disabled athletes, Charlie Wittwer and Ric Jost are excited
to have the upcoming 2005 National Veterans Wheelchair Games (NVWG)
in their home state. As President (Wittwer) and Executive Director
(Jost) of the Minnesota Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America
(PVA), these two men eagerly look forward to participating in the
games along with the 500+ athletes that will also attend.
Co-hosting the event with the Minneapolis VA Center, the MN Chapter-PVA
offers such members as Harlen Ebert a chance to compete with local
MN acquaintances Nicholas Suckow and Jerry Price in sporting events
that are fun, friendly and sometimes fierce. The accomplishments
of these five local athletes are highlighted in the stories that
follow.
Charlie Wittwer:
Multi-Talented Wheelchair Athlete Does it All!
He has attended nine
National Veterans Wheelchair Games in a row. He skis each year
at the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic and has
been selected to perform at the National Veterans Creative Arts
Festival for the past three years, impressing the audience with
his own special brand of “sit-down” comedy. His
name is Charlie Wittwer.
Wittwer, 55, of Cloquet,
MN, is a Marine Corps veteran of Vietnam. While serving his country
from 1967-1970, Wittwer was awarded numerous military honors and
citations, including two purple hearts, the Vietnam cross of gallantry,
a Navy unit citation, the Presidential unit citation, and the Vietnam
campaign medal with five stars. Now, a quarter of a century later,
Wittwer continues to collect medals—but now
they come from his participation in VA’s national event programs.
In addition to the medals he won at the Creative Arts Festival
and the Winter Sports Clinic, Wittwer has amassed an impressive
collection from the National Veterans Wheelchair Games. In 2004,
he won four—a gold in the slalom, two silvers in swimming
and a bronze in softball. He adds last year’s medals to the
two bronze, five silver and one gold he won the previous three
years. At the annual Games, Wittwer’s favorite event is softball,
but he also competes in basketball, swimming and slalom, a challenging,
timed obstacle course for wheelchair users.
“It is always a great experience to come to the National Veterans
Wheelchair Games and see the great competition as well as the camaraderie
among the competitors,” Wittwer said. “It is good to
see the familiar faces and terrific to meet new people who are here
for the first time, enjoying the experience of this competition.”
Wittwer worked as a schoolteacher for three years and later as a
social worker at a Duluth hospital. Always athletic, he continued
to compete in sports after a serious car accident left him requiring
a wheelchair, in order to stay active and still be a part of a team.
At the Wheelchair Games, he competes in the paraplegic class but
he is also an amputee.
“I love coming back to the National Veterans Wheel-chair Games
year after year,” Wittwer said. “Participating in this
event inspires me to do my best.” Wittwer’s best is worth
observing. Come to the games and see for yourself!
Ric Jost:
From the Depth of Despair to the Height of Success
Ric Jost, 54, of Apple
Valley, MN, is a Vietnam veteran who served in the Army from 1970-71. “I picked up some really bad habits
(while there),” Jost says. In 1973, he was involved in a motor
vehicle accident which resulted in paralysis.
After years of drug and alcohol abuse as well as skirmishes with
the law, Jost made an important decision. “On March 10, 1980,
I dumped all the alcohol, flushed all the drugs, and began a life
of sobriety, which I am fortunate to still have to this day. Being
sober was just the beginning, though. I started getting more active
in my community and in sports, patched up old relationships with
family and friends, and learned how to live all over again.”
In 1981, Jost was one
of the original 74 veterans who competed in the very first National
Veterans Wheelchair Games, held that year in Richmond, VA. “Things were different then,” he says. “I
had sobered up the year before but there was still no direction in
my life. I approached the local coach and told him I wanted to be
a part of this. I went on to compete in the second and third annual
Games, but the lessons I learned that first time remain with me to
this day—finish what you start and believe in yourself.”
After moving to Minnesota
in 1986, Jost started working and teaching Healthsports (health
through Sports) to disabled persons within the community. Although
he contends that he doesn’t have many athletic
skills, he has continued to compete in the Games over the years as
well as more than 15 long distance marathons on his handcycle. “It
has been great watching this sport develop and getting my friends
out riding. I am usually happiest when I am out on a 40-mile ride
or just cruising on my handcycle by myself,” he says. He now
rides more than 1,000 miles a year on his handcycle and plans to
compete in both handcycling and bowling at the Games this year.
The years from 1981
to 2005 have been quite a transition, both for the Games and for
Jost. The event has gone from a little over 70 competitors to more
than 500, and the level of competition has also increased. Now
the Executive Director of the Minnesota Chapter of the Paralyzed
Veterans of America, Jost is excited to have the 2005 National
Veterans Wheelchair Games in his home state. He has taken on a
busy role with the local organizing committee, helping prepare
for the upcoming event. “Our Chapter is honored to be co-hosting
the 2005 event, along with the Minneapolis VA Medical Center,” he
said. “I have seen a glimpse of the commitment it takes to
make these Games a success,” he says. “The Games are
a real team effort that take many hours of preparation and a willingness
to compromise.”
Jost now believes in
himself, has finished what he started, and has come a very long
way from his days in Vietnam. “These days,
I find myself sober, employed, and I have the honor of working for
veterans. What an incredible time to be involved in the National
Veterans Wheelchair Games!”
Harlen Ebert:
Athlete and Outdoors Man
There are no boundaries—and seemingly no limits—for
Ebert, an experienced wheelchair athlete from Brainerd, MN, who looks
forward to having this year’s National Veterans Wheelchair
Games in his home state. Ebert, 58, has attended the National Veterans
Wheelchair Games for the past five years, acquiring 18 medals during
that time, thirteen of which are gold.
A combat veteran of
Vietnam, Ebert served in the U.S. Navy with the search and rescue
unit from 1966-1970. One Labor Day weekend after his return home,
Ebert was involved in a motorcycle accident that left him a paraplegic.
An avid fan of the outdoors, the injury did not stop him from continuing
to enjoy activities like hunting and fishing, however. Ebert is
currently involved with “Camp
Courage,” a local program for people with disabilities, assisting
with an event called “Fishing has no Boundaries.” At
the 2004 program, 75 disabled individuals participated in a weekend
of events and a full day of fishing, using 40 boats in the process.
Like many local wheelchair
athletes, Ebert is excited that the 25th National Games will be
held so close to home. “I think it’s
great that more family members and friends can come and support the
local athletes, and see what we are always talking about,” he
said. His one regret is that he didn’t start participating
in the Games sooner. “I’m getting older and it’s
getting tougher to compete,” Ebert said. “But the enjoyment
is still there when seeing old friends and meeting new ones.”
At the National Veterans
Wheelchair Games, Ebert’s competitive
events include track, field (discus, shot-put and javelin), air guns
and archery, which are his favorite. “I shoot a lot of arrows,” Ebert
said, to prepare for that competition. “As soon as it gets
nice out I start, and I shoot anywhere from 100 to 300 arrows a day.” A
member of the Minnesota Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America,
Ebert receives his healthcare at the Department of Veterans Affairs
Medical Center in Minneapolis. Both organizations are hosting the
2005 Games.
Ebert invites all of
his fellow veterans, friends and family members to come to the
Games in Minneapolis this June, to watch the events and catch the
excitement that always comes along with them. His passion and enthusiasm
have no boundaries – and there are no limits
to the fun just waiting on the Minnesota horizon.
Nicholas Suckow:
I’ll Be Here Every Year!
Nicholas Suckow, 38,
may be a quadriplegic but a strong spirit of competition still
burns brightly within him. For the past decade, this U.S. Army
veteran has been a regular competitor in the National Veterans
Wheelchair Games. ”I kept seeing the Games advertised
in Paraplegia News magazine and decided to check it out,” he
said. Based on the medals he has won and the friends he has met over
the past ten years, it was a good decision.
“I keep coming back because we are a team—we root for
each other and yet in competition we all want to be the best,” Suckow
said. “It also gives me a chance to catch up on the friendships
I have made at the Games.”
At the annual event, he competes in the bowling events, the motorized
wheelchair slalom, the “powerchair 220” race and the
motorized wheelchair rally. In all of his events, Suckow uses mouth
controls to power his wheelchair and takes great efforts to attend,
being the only athlete who is completely ventilator dependant.
Because of an automobile accident that left him a quadriplegic,
Suckow typically requires care around the clock. But at the Wheelchair
Games, his disabilities don’t deter impressive results.
At the 2004 National
Veterans Wheelchair Games, Suckow came home with three medals,
two golds for bowling and the 220-meter race, and a bronze for
his efforts in the slalom competition, an event that calls for
agility, speed and strength around a challenging obstacle course.
He won three other medals in both 2003 and 2002, and his collection
keeps growing. The gleam of gold is not what motivates this athlete,
however. “I’m not competing with only the
hopes of wearing gold,” Suckow said. “I hope to make
friends that will last for years. We chat and share stories, tears,
and laughter.”
“Every year I look forward to this and every year I try to
make it. Some years it gets difficult—because of health reasons—but
other than that, I’ll be here every year.”
Jerry Price:
Keep on Dreaming!
U.S. Army veteran Jerry
Price, 45, of Minneapolis, MN, has required a wheelchair to compete
in sports since he contracted spinal meningitis from a mosquito
bite six years ago. The injury resulted in peripheral neuropathy,
severe weakness in both of his legs. The injury has not stopped
his drive, however. Price has competed in the last three National
Veterans Wheelchair Games in the handcycling, weightlifting and
track events, and three of the field competitions – shot-put,
discus and javelin.
According to Price,
being on the wrestling team in high school taught him that “it’s not the one who is the strongest or the
one who can lift the most—it’s the one with the best
technique and form.” His technique and form were clearly in
good shape at the 2004 National Veterans Wheelchair Games in St.
Louis, allowing Price to come home with two medals, a bronze in javelin
and a gold in weightlifting, his favorite event. They were added
to his growing collection from the Games which include two other
bronze medals and another gold from the previous two years.
For Price, competition
doesn’t end with sports. An artist
and a poet as well as an athlete, Price also competes in the National
Veterans Creative Arts Festival in the visual art division, winning
at the local level several times. Now, one of his goals is to complete
his art degree so that he can become an art instructor for children
with disabilities.
Price says, “Competing
in the National Veterans Wheelchair Games has given me my life
back. It has brought me accomplishments and hope for the future,
camaraderie and friendships that I might not have had otherwise.
The Games provide a sense of hope, and they have enriched my life
and enhanced my self-esteem. The athletes all share a common bond
of service to our country. It is fun to compete in the Games.”
Price’s philosophy in life is reflected in the advice he gives
others. “Be a seeker and a climber. Keep on dreaming and believing
in yourself—and never ever give up!”
Games
start June 27 with an expo at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
For
more information, visit the NVWG website located at http://www.wheelchairgames.org/.
Come and join the fun!
