Path diverted — Spinal cord injury changes more than physical

To be honest, before my injury I was not a compassionate, sensitive person. I did not feel sympathy for the hungry kids in Africa, the oppressed citizens of China, or countless other dire, unfortunate situations around the world and at home. I read a lot of Ayn Rand books and didn’t even take my clothes to Goodwill as I felt that it would only encourage low income individuals to stay on charity.

Back then I had a full functioning body, no allergies, and no sickness of any kind. I was young, agile, tough and independent. I didn’t need nor want anybody’s help and so thought nobody else should either. My entire social mentality was uncaring and unforgiving. Continue Reading »

Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to be featured on TLC’s American Chopper

Episode to unveil Orange County Choppers’ first-ever wheelchair-accessible motorcycle

SHORT HILLS, N.J., Dec. 29 /PRNewswire/ — The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation announced today that Paul Teutul Sr. and the crew from Orange County Choppers (OCC) have built a custom wheelchair-accessible motorcycle specifically to raise funds for the Reeve Foundation. A first of its kind, this trike bike allows someone living with paraplegia the opportunity to ride a motorcycle without having to transfer from their wheelchair.

The American Chopper episode featuring the Reeve Foundation/Life Rolls On bike is scheduled to air on TLC on Thursday, January 7 at 9PM ET/PT. Continue Reading »

Buckle-up drive enlists the wheelchair-bound

“Buckle up, or you could end up like me!” This is a warning from wheelchair-bound Ernest Sithole, who, together with 44 other members of the QuadPara Association of South Africa (Qasa), are stationed at eight garages on national roads to encourage motorists to fasten their seatbelts and avoid spinal injuries if they are involved in an accident. Continue Reading »

Bolivian aerial wheelchair protest

A group of disabled people in Bolivia are taking extreme measures to demand financial assistance from the government.

A Bolivian television network showed at least half a dozen protesters, wheelchairs included, suspended from the Urubo bridge, near the city of Santa Cruz.

A second group buried themselves in sand by the Pirai river that runs under the bridge. Continue Reading »

Two Powerful Foundations Join Forces To Create the Nation’s Premier Spinal Cord Injury Organization

Life Rolls On Foundation and Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation Merge

SHORT HILLS, N.J., Sept. 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — On what would have been Christopher Reeve’s 57th birthday, Life Rolls On Foundation (LRO) and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation have announced a merger. Effective immediately, Life Rolls On Foundation, based in Los Angeles, will serve as the West Coast headquarters and division of the Reeve Foundation. Continue Reading »

Redefining ‘Cured’

A spinal-cord-injury activist puts a new priority on living with—not fighting—paralysis.

Ever since 1988, wheelchairs have figured into Alan T. Brown’s dreams. That was the year his neck was crushed by an ocean wave at a Club Med in Martinique. He was 20 years old, young and single and free, and in one second went from a vibrant college student to a quadriplegic, with no movement below his chest. The dreams began almost instantly, usually with the wheelchair off to one side, Brown standing nearby. “In the beginning, I was convinced I would walk again—1,000 percent,” says Brown, now 42, who runs his own public-relations company in Hollywood, Fla. “My old mottos were ‘There’s light at the end of the tunnel’ and ‘Never say never.’ I did think there was going to be a cure.” Continue Reading »

City to host Ms. Wheelchair America pageant this weekend

A diverse group of women from 27 states — college students, volunteers, office workers, grandmothers — will gather in Rapid City this week to compete for the national Ms. Wheelchair America title.

The 37th annual pageant will be at Rushmore Plaza Holiday Inn. In 2000, the national winner was Tracy Charlton-O’Conner, whose parents, Terry and Karen Charlton, live in Rapid City.

This year’s winner will succeed the reigning Ms. Wheelchair America Michelle Colvard, who is the executive director of the City of Houston’s Office for People with Disabilities. Continue Reading »

How you can help our most severely wounded warriors

Today’s Care. Tomorrow’s Cure.

Half of what we do here is about the care! And as many of you know, care costs a lot.

Our friends at the Wounded Warrior Project are asking Congress to pass legislation to establish a national program to train and provide ongoing supports and compensation to family caregivers of our most severely wounded warriors. Continue Reading »

United Spinal Association Action Alert

How important is health care reform to you? As necessary as having access to adequate and affordable health care coverage when and where you need it? As important as receiving the health care support and services that will allow you or a loved one to remain at home and in your community?

United Spinal Association believes that national health care reform is important to all Americans with disabilities and chronic conditions.

We believe that the present system of rationed health care has failed Americans. Continue Reading »

Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act Signed by President Obama as Part of Omnibus Public Land Bill

Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation expresses appreciation to Congressional co-sponsors for passing first legislation specific to the paralysis community

SHORT HILLS, N.J., March 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, the national, non-profit organization dedicated to finding cures and treatments for spinal cord injuries and improving the lives of people living with paralysis, applauds President Obama for signing the Omnibus Public Lands Bill. Passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on March 25 and the U.S. Senate on January 15, Title XIV of the Bill contains the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act. The Act was named for the late Christopher Reeve and his wife Dana, whose courage and grace in the face of adversity, coupled with their extraordinary activism, were an inspiration to millions around the world. Continue Reading »