After I was wounded I thought that there were a lot of things I would never be able to do again, skiing was one of them. I was sure I would never ski again that I gave all of my skiing equipment away to my teammates. The incredible people at Stride Adaptive Sports gave me the opportunity to ski again. I cried the first time I went down the mountain. After a long day on the slopes, my wife told me it was the happiest she had seen me in over four years. This video is a great documentary about adaptive sports in the US. The portion that shows me skiing is from 15:20 to 18:30.
After graduating from Union College (BA), Kevin R. Flike served as a Special Forces Engineer assigned to the 1st Special Forces Group and deployed to the Philippines, Thailand and twice to Afghanistan.
Way to go, Kevin! Glad to be your cousin!
Way to go, Kevin! Look up William Stieler. He was my mother’s brother and he got shot in the leg during WWII. He consequently lost it through amputation to save his life, but went on to be a skier in Mi. and to help found para adaptive skiing. So, much of what you do, you can thank Uncle Bill for that. He also, with his wife, had a booming business. I worked for he and Aunt Ginny summers and was able to go to college. Not only am I proud of his accomplishments , but I was very grateful to him as well. He was 95 when he died, and Aunt Gin followed about a year later. They enjoyed 70 years of marriage! I think you are cut from the same cloth cuz!