Wilberto “Tony” Rivera knows what it’s like to have life turned upside down in a matter of seconds.

One minute, he said, he was dealing drugs at age 23 on Indianapolis’ Westside. The next minute, he was shot in the back. He ended up paralyzed below the chest.

Now 36, Rivera is determined to keep Indiana youths from taking the same risks he did. Continue Reading »

Therese Riedel is battling back from a spinal cord injury she suffered in September 2008.

SAN DIEGO – Growing up in La Mesa and playing basketball at Grossmont High, Therese Riedel spent as much time as she could on San Diego’s beaches.

She even saved up a handful of paychecks from her first job to buy a custom surfboard with a basketball court and her jersey number painted on it. Continue Reading »