One Revolution

Today was an awe inspiring day. It will be hard to top this one. I set up an assembly for Hunter Junior High and invited para Olympian Chris Waddell to come and talk to the students. This is the most remarkable man I have had the privilege to meet. Let me just give you some of his bio and you will see what I mean. Also, watch the video on my Blog.
Chris broke his back ski racing in college. Others would have given up, but Chris learned to monoski and was named to the US Disabled Ski Team. In 1994 he swept all four skiing events at the Paralympics in Lillehammer, Norway and if that wasn't enough, he won silver at the track World Championships in Berlin. He also won a gold and two silver medals in Nagano AND a gold and bronze at the track World Championships in England. he has more medals in skiing than any male in history. He was the first Paralympic finalist for the Sullivan Award, which is given by the Amateur Athletic Union, to the top amateur athlete in the country, and Chris was inducted into the Disabled Hall of Fame. Skiing Magazine named him one of "The 25 Greatest Skiers in North America." The Dalai Lama honored him as an "Unsung Hero of Compassion" in 2006.
His latest project is called "One Revolution." Its intention is to shine the light back on the disabled community — to show that if you take the time to look, you might be surprised. To do this, Chris intends to make the first unassisted summit, by a paraplegic, of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. He and his team will land in Africa in February of 2009.
His talk to the students today was about "labeling." He showed them a video of his skiing and then came out on stage after. He asked them if seeing the video changed their view of him? Everyone agreed, had they not seen the video he would just be a man in a wheelchair. He encouraged the students to be who they really are and not be labeled. He told them to also really see people for who they are and get past the exterior. He also told them they could do anything they wanted to do, that there was hidden talent and hidden genius in all of them. They should strive to make it known. Chris wants this notoriety, not for himself, but for disabled people everywhere. He is working to provide wheelchairs for the people of Tanzania and other places that have no means. Some of these people wear flip flops on their hands and drag themselves around all day because they have NO WAY to get around. He considers this accident a gift and said he has been able to do far more because of his disability. Ironic, huh?
This man moved me to tears and the students were enraptured by his talk. He was open and funny and very profound. I feel so very honored to have been able to meet him and it was such a once in a lifetime experience for these kids. I hope they took a little of what he said away with them. If it touched and inspired even one student it was worth it. Today was a very good day!