Courtesy Photo | Robert Jones (left) and Carl Morgan (right) — both highly active in Atlanta VA...... read more read more
DECATUR, Ga. – The Atlanta VA Medical Center’s (VAMC) Adaptive Sports Program is sending a team of veteran athletes to the upcoming National Veterans Wheelchair Games (NVWG) in Dallas. The 35th annual NVWG, which is held June 21-26, 2015, is a rehabilitation and wheelchair sports program empowering veterans with spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis, amputations and other neurological injuries to live more active and healthy lives through wheelchair sports and recreation.
The 16-person Atlanta VAMC team - aptly titled Team Atlanta - will compete alongside more than 500 other Veterans in 18 wheelchair sports events while providing encouragement and mentoring for new veterans.
“This year we hope to return from Dallas with a Paralympian athlete,” said Chauncy Rozier, recreational therapist and adaptive sports coordinator at the Atlanta VAMC. “Our athletes have become the ambassadors for adaptive sports in the Southern Region.”
Carl Morgan, a disabled Army veteran who will compete in the discus and handcycling at the games, said that adaptive sports and the ability to compete changed his life.
“If you could do it when you could stand - most likely there is an adaptive sport for you to do from the chair,” Morgan said.
Robert Jones, another member of Team Atlanta who has been competing in adaptive sports events for more than four years, said that many disabled veterans don’t have an outlet.
“Adaptive sports gave me back my life. I found something I will always share with other veterans,” Jones said.
The VA is now working cooperatively with local sports clubs to connect disabled veterans with community-based programs, including Paralympic Sports Clubs and Blaze Sports, to provide sports programming and physical activity opportunities.
“Our veteran athletes travel worldwide competing to become better athletes at their sport all while improving their quality of life. It’s the greatest and a win-win situation for the VA and all veterans who get involved,” Rozier said.
For more information about the Adaptive Sports Program, contact Chauncy Rozier at the Atlanta VAMC Recreational Therapy at 404.321.6111, ext. 2367, or visit http://www.va.gov/opa/speceven/wcg/docs/history.asp.
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Atlanta VA Medical Center (VAMC), a Joint Commission and Magnet®-designated medical facility sits on 26 acres in Decatur, Georgia—just minutes from downtown Atlanta. The main medical center is a level 1A tertiary care facility providing patient-centered healthcare via an array of comprehensive medical, surgical, geriatric specialty services, as well as state-of–the-art diagnostic testing throughout 14 sites of care. With 445 inpatient beds, including a 120-bed Community Living Center, a 40-bed domiciliary, and a 12-bed Residential Treatment Program, the Atlanta VAMC is uniquely positioned to serve the healthcare needs of more than 130,000 enrolled Veterans living in 50 counties across northeast Georgia. The Medical Center, also a teaching hospital, provides hands-on and state-of-the-art technology, education and research to residents in collaboration with Emory University School of Medicine and Morehouse School of Medicine.
| Date Taken: | 06.19.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 06.19.2015 14:03 |
| Story ID: | 167345 |
| Location: | DECATUR, GA, US |
| Web Views: | 127 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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