The Surprised Announcement

“Retirement at sixty-five is ridiculous. When I was sixty-five I still had pimples.”~George Burns

Well this wasn’t expected but here it is.

I’ve literally been surprised by with the news that Team USA Sledge Hockey’s Taylor Lipsett and team captain Andy Yohe have announced their retirement from the sport.

Over the last four Paralympic Games, Team USA has captured the gold medal three times. Andy Yohe being team captain in 2014 and in 2010. Back to back gold medal victories for Team USA.

It appeared as if Team USA had constructed a dynasty in sledge hockey with so many gold medals won whether at the World Championships or at the Winter Paralympic Games.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would hear about them leaving the sport NOW. Yeah sure, maybe ten or fifteen years, but I never thought it would be now. I am actually stunned right now as I write this.

Via Facebook, both Lipsett and Yohe made their statements on the situation as well as shared with them the online web article announcing their departure from the sport.

Andy Yohe said “Time to pass the torch on to the younger generation of sled hockey players in the US. I know the team is in good hands.”

Taylor Lipsett left a statement saying “Well I suppose it’s time to make it official… I have decided to officially hang up the sled and call it a career. It’s be an amazing 10 year ride, with ups and downs, but fortunately for me I was blessed with more ups than downs, and blessed with amazing teammates, many of which I know will be life long friends. I never dreamed of being able to represent my country when I was growing up until that divine intervention on a Sunday afternoon at the grocery store with Cheryl Lipsett! The last 10 years have been the most amazing years of my life both on and off the ice, but it is time to start a new chapter and focus on my family and my professional career. It will always be an honor to have been so fortunate to wear the red, white, and blue and the USA across my chest for so many years! And to have won a couple world championship gold medals and 2 Paralympic Gold Medals to top it all off! Thank you to USA Hockey, US Paralympics, all of my teammates over the years, my friends and family, and most important my Wife, Antonina Lipsett, who has sacrificed so much over the last 10 years to allow me to pursue my dreams! Thanks so much, and know I will always be cheering on Team USA!”

I never really did get much of a chance to sit down with Taylor Lipsett, since he is only a few hours away. But I have met him a couple of times before. I’ve shook his hand multiple times and spoke briefly but not as much as I would have liked. I had always wanted to sit down with him and talk about what it was like to be on the national team as well as what it took to get there.

I’ve had the opportunity to meet Andy Yohe both on and off the ice in Houston, Texas. I played along side of him as sides were chosen and he was the best influential player there for both Austin and Houston teams. After the one time playing on the ice with him, everyone else who was in a sled was totally inspired. I remember some players attempting to copy his style of play, wanting to be a better player.

Man to man, player to player, I can say to both of them….. Thank you for all that you have done. Thank you for representing this great country. Thank you for inspiring countless people both disabled and AB’s. Thank you for wonderful talents that you have given to the sport.

The sport will not be the same without either of you two on the ice. But we will cherish the memories of those times that you were. The both of you are ice warriors and will be immortalized by the sport that you played in the hearts and minds of colleagues, friends, family, and supporters. We wish both of you the best in your new journey.

Thank you Andy and Taylor.

http://www.usahockey.com/news_article/show/401531?referrer_id=752796

 

Team USA Knocks Off Russia In Sledge Hockey At 2014 Paralympics For Gold

“With every set back there’s a chance to come back.” 

The 2014 Paralympics in Sochi, Russia are now over.

Most importantly the gold medal match between USA and Russia was televised on NBC. 

I am given to understand that NBC used during the Olympic Games the duet “Incredible” by Céline Dion and Ne-Yo. Hell, if you want inspirational and incredible… they SHOULD have used it for the Paralympics.

However there was a lot involved and a lot on the line today as both gold and bronze medal matches went down. 

The semi-finals found USA against No. 1 seed Canada. And host nation Russia took on Norway. 

Team USA had previously lost to host team Russia and they had to take on their arch rivals Canada for the semi-finals. 

After the unusual and humiliating loss to Russia in the preliminaries, USA woke up and took their frustrations out on Canada winning  the match 3-0.

And so it was that Canada would play Norway for the bronze medal match. USA would again face Russia for gold. 

Let me explain why I said that a lot was on the line. 

• Team USA took the gold in 2010 in Vancouver with a win over Japan. The team actually went 5-0 and shut out everyone they played outscoring them 19-0. USA was playing both to defend their gold medal and to become the first team ever in the Paralympics to win back to back gold medals in sledge hockey. 
• Canada in 2010 on their home ice walked away with nothing, winning 4th place.
• Norway had earned a medal in every Paralympics sledge hockey tournament since the sport was introduced and inducted into the Paralympics back in 1994. It didn’t matter what color the medal was. They had won a medal in every tournament. 
• Canada had something to prove. They wanted their pride back after getting spanked by USA and being shutout. Norway’s medal streak was on the line. 
• Norway however (and unfortunately in my opinion) lost their streak as Canada won the match and earned the bronze medal for 2014. History was changed. 
• Not only was USA playing for back to back medals, but also taking into consideration that if they would win in Sochi, they would have the record of winning gold in the Paralympics three out of the last four times. 

Team USA’s Josh Sweeney (Texas) in the second period of the Gold Medal match was the one and only player that scored during the entire game. And that was enough for USA to become victorious. 

Josh Sweeney (#13) scores on Russia, making the game 1-0. The only goal scored.

 

Watching the … what was called.. the Victory Ceremonies where they handed out the gold, silver, and bronze medals to USA, RUSSIA, and CANADA.. it was an amazing sight to behold. 

Although I could not help but notice the depressing frowns on the faces of the Canadian team members. I didn’t get that at all. 

Russia was right there with their silver medals and in front of their home crowd. It was like THEY won the gold… considering that the one fact that Russia did not have a national team 3-4 years ago, then they end up hosting the Games, and then make it to the Gold Medal match their first time playing in the Paralympics? Holy crap on a cracker!! 

Yeah… “incredible” indeed. Again, THIS is where that song needs to be played. 

I’m actually proud of Team USA. I am also really proud that I know a lot of these players on the team, and I have met in person many more. These are your people who are incredible. 

These are the ones that should make you think twice if you think your life sucks from time to time and that things aren’t going the way you want them. Inspiration overload. 

2014 Paralympics Gold Medal Match- Sledge Hockey

 PBS Sled Hockey Documentary “ICE WARRIORS

Is This The End Of The Road?

“A bend in the road is not the end of the road… unless you fail to make the turn.”~ Unknown

Tonight has just been gruesome. Filled with tears and the wonderment of what’s going to happen in the future.

I’ve reached a point in my life where I am going to have to sit down without distraction and decide what is going to be the best decision for my life.

Trust me, I don’t wish this battle on any one.

My sledge hockey career has come to a stop. Based on the fact that I have gotten sick many times or have been broke with no money to go travel to Houston at certain times  since the beginning of the 2013-14 season.

To be honest, I have not been on the ice at any capacity since our trip to Houston in May of last year. It has almost been a full year!!

And there has been a lot of personal factors along with that. Outside of failing health.

El Jefe, my wonderful friend and neighbor, passed away suddenly April of last year. He was my solid source of transportation for many seasons. After he died, I was nearly caught in a mess where I would no longer have transportation to/from practices. A few times I was lucky and fortunate enough to be able to catch rides from other teammates or another neighbor with a vehicle. But it got out of hand quickly and got real old fast for those who were driving here to come pick me up. And I had to let that go, so that I wouldn’t ruin the personal relationships I had with them.

Family would seem to be the logical step. But not in an unstable environment. Especially since my brother-in-law died one week later after El Jefe. My sister would not be able all of the time to handle her two children and come and pick me up for practices. Even though she did try last season.

THIS season… practices have been on Sunday mornings at 8:00 AM. And as much as I tried and pleaded and begged to get them to change it to a later time in the day, the team took what was given to them. And that very much was a factor as not too many people were wanting to drive all the way to get me and then drop me off at practice that early in the morning on a Sunday.

Not a lot was in my favor this season. Including the last trip to Houston a few weeks ago where (as I understood) they were going to be watching certain players as they played because so many people wanted to go to Boston in April for the tournament. Someone… is going to be cut. Too many interested players and only a few select spots on the team, according to tournament rules. There’s not ENOUGH players to make a SECOND team to go either.

The fundraising efforts that I attempted to carry out on my own with the help of another and split it… failed. We weren’t even close. So financially, I wouldn’t be going to Boston even if I was in excellent physical condition.

But I am not. It was explained to me that even if I got back on the ice tomorrow, I would have to be in peak condition for tournament play in less than two months. And it doesn’t seem all that possible as I am still unable to get on the ice.

So with all of this being a disappointing season. I do not know if I will ever see the ice this season. And with the way things are set up with the team as they are right now, transportation to/from practices and events … it just isn’t there. Its not in the cards.

Therefore I have been in tears, battling with the thought of whether or not to end my sledge hockey career with the Austin Blades.

This is a heavy burden as I sift through everything and attempt to make these life decisions with a clear mind.

 

Last Minute Opportunity

“Fundraising is very, very time-consuming.”~Arlen Specter  

Dear readers: 

For most of you who have been around long enough, you know that I have been doing my best this season to raise enough funds so that I and the other assistant captain of the team can go to the USA HOCKEY DISABLED FESTIVAL  in Boston this  coming April.

Our original cut date was supposed to be the 31st of January. However with just a week and a half remaining and the lack of donations in the past few months (sadly), the two of us honestly did not see that we would reach our goal in that short amount of time.

We had even trimmed our goal by $1,000 and we’re still under 25% of reaching the full amount. We just did not know the right people to ask for donations and the nation’s economy is still pretty bad.

But all reasons and politics aside, we still want to thank those who read about our campaign through the blogs and thank those who tried to help spread the word. 

We also want to thank Author Jodi Ambrose and those good people up at Cape Cod Cookie Company for offering their personal incentives for this fundraising campaign. It was a fun deal for those to give to a good cause. 

Now we know that the website link will always and forever be available to receive further donations. We haven’t figured out how to “delete” the campaigns.

I will have it in the Blogroll for a little while longer, but I after this post …. I will not be advertising the link. Eventually though, it will be removed from the Blogroll. Unless its found a different purpose later on in the future.

If you still wish to donate or are the kind of person that likes to wait until the last minute, NOW IS THAT TIME!!!

We will be letting the ship sail at MIDNIGHT PST…. tonight!! For those of you who do donate and I receive the e-mail that you had done so before the cut off date, then your donation amount will be considered towards those incentives. 

And for those of you who find it too late and still wish to donate, I think that the idea that we had was to hold the money for the next season in case there are plans to go to the next tournament in 2015. So your donation money will still go towards the Austin Blades sledge hockey team, specifically for me and for my partner in crime in this adventure. We thank you in advance!!! 

No matter what, we will always be thankful to everyone who supports us, whether it be financially or moral support or whatever. We love you all. Thank you most sincerely!! 

 

Our donation page:

http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs

 

DFW Sled Hockey Has Equipment Stolen

“Rape, mutilation, abuse, and theft are the natural outcome of a world in which force rules, in which human beings are objects.”~ Chris Hedges

Recently, it has been in the news about how the sled hockey team located in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area had equipment stolen from them.

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/video/9359854-equipment-stolen-from-dfw-sled-hockey-team/

It becomes more and more surprising for me that there are more people in this world who are so low that they have to engage in criminal activities such as these.

And now all the extra equipment for the Dallas team is gone and they have to rebuild.

I decided personally as a member of a sledge hockey team, as well as being part of the Texas Sled Hockey League, that I would put this out there to everyone in the world to read about. Hopefully with your kindness that is within your heart, you will be able to help DFW Sled Hockey get back to where they used to be.

Send your donations to the address below:

SWAA
Attn: Sled Hockey Equipment
PO Box 1389
Hurst, TX76053

WTF, Women?

“I’m not great at dating, but I need to do it to relax.”~ Lena Dunham

Why women do you torture me so???

In the moments after the Chicago Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup, I came across a fan who was cheering for them the whole way.

A few actually. I proceeded to tell them that NHL is nothing, and that these NHL players should attempt something more courageous and bold like sledge hockey. There’s no flexible glass in sledge hockey if you hit the wall.

They were impressed. I offered autographed photographs of me playing the sport. Some accepted, others rejected the offer.

So as I am sitting there checking to see if there was any other sledge hockey program in their individual areas, I noticed that one of them who had accepted the offer and sent me an address had actually sent me the address of a Super Cuts.

Umm, really?? REALLY?????

The only benefit of this doubt that I can think is that the information was old. There was a typo in the address that was sent. The Super Cuts is now a residential area. OR that is where this person works.

If the truth is none of the above, then I have to say that this is a brand new low in behavior in this situation.

This crap is just confusing. And again, if its none of the above… its just WRONG!!!!!!!

The Beginning of Great Change

“From the end spring new beginnings.”~ Pliny the Elder

Ladies & Gentleman, boys and girls.

Welcome to your NEW Austin Blades sledge hockey team.

Sort of.

The team that I play for now has a branch of the STARSkaters program and will be now protected by its 501(c)3, and receive all of its non-profit status.

A press release that was sent out today by STARSkaters stated:

At a recent board meeting, the Austin Blades Sled Hockey team voted unanimously to become a chapter of STARskaters.org

 

Chapter status will allow them to expand their fundraising efforts to support Sled Hockey in Austin as well as send some of their players to the 2014 Sled Hockey National Championships which will be held near Boston, Mass next April.

 

At the meeting, Frank Dorval was elected chapter President.  Frank got to work immediately enlisting STARskaters founder Jim O’Neill to assist planning a 3 on 3 Tournament in Austin which will serve as the clubs first major fundraising effort with a target of $5,000 in proceeds.

 

For more information about the Austin Blades Sled Hockey Club, contact Frank@STARskaters.org

 

And this is all true. We did have a meeting and we ALL voted to go for the STARSkaters program. We’ve connected with the program in friendship and have bonded with them personally that it all just made sense to go with them. Simply because Jim O’Neill had heard about our troubles with the secretive information about the non-profit status.

The team now will have the knowledge on how to go about fundraising and everything else in between.

Some of the team members (including myself) have already hit the pavement to go after corporate sponsorships locally.

But we are only at the beginning. The sigh of relief was collectively felt and heard this afternoon when the news finally came that the necessary papers were signed, and now we are dealing with our own chapter.

We still will remain the Austin Blades. But are ARE with/under STARSkaters.

And a few of us are still hopeful to go to Boston in 2014 in order to play in the national tournament. The Austin Blades at this point have no idea just how much or what kind of help we will be receiving (if any) from STARSkaters on this matter. And a few of us still believe that its not the right thing to do to just suck on the backs of the program. So we are still attempting to get things rolling here locally on our own.

I have my own fundraising campaign specifically to get to this tournament in Boston. Along with another teammate, the two of us are going strong to raise funds by donations. With YOUR HELP, we can achieve this dream and go for the gold!!!

Even though the tournament isn’t until next year, we only have until the end of January 2014 to “Get-R-Done” so to speak.

We’ve reached 8.9% of our total goal for the both of us to be able to go in a month. And we’re super excited about that. But we’ve got a long ways to go.

PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING WHAT YOU CAN TODAY!!!
http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs

Every little drop will help, believe me!! And for those of you who are reading and have already donated, we honestly thank you from the bottom of our asses, because they are both larger than our hearts. If by chance that you are able to, please consider donating again.

And don’t forget about the wonderful FREE incentives that go along with this fundraising effort.

Together with the donations, and now being a chapter of STARSkaters, we can make our goals.

My personal goals in the sport can actually have a light at the end of the tunnel without it being a freight train. Gold at the end of the rainbow.

I can’t wait for the beginning of the 2013-14 season. Its  going to be so wonderful.

Getting Into The Post-Season

Well there’s something that we don’t do each and every season! The Austin Blades gets something of post-season activity on the ice.

We returned to Houston for the first time in a very long time. It was so exciting that the number of people who attended were ready to go about a week before.

Houston set us up very nicely at the Hilton Garden Inn in northwest Houston which was conveniently located to the rink that we played at on Friday evening.

We would have  three days of hockey at three separate locations. We were just a bunch of traveling idiots, doing what we really love to do.

Our first night was at Willowbrook Aerodome. A place that the Austin Blades had never played before, and its our understanding that Houston now is practicing there every Friday evening for an hour. Getting a FULL sheet of ice.

As shocked as we were, it was very apparent that Houston has been getting better and better. They definitely are a lot faster now!

Some say that the score at the end of the evening was tied at zero. Others say it was 1-0 with Austin winning. Depending on how much of a hardnosed person you are about the rules. The puck crossed the line, but it didn’t completely pass over. So if you say that it counts, it was 1-0. And if you say that it must completely pass over, it was tied at zero.

I was glad to see WELL OF SOULS guitarist, O.J. Morris, had been there later in the evening to come check things out. I’m not quite sure what he thought about it, but at least he was there.

I had actually invited about twenty different people from the Houston and surrounding areas to ice rinks that were conveniently close to their area. The idea of using the reciprocation card however would just end up burning me to the point of being butthurt. Wanna see the bruise??

Three days, three rinks around the city of Houston, many invited. ONE showed up.

Saturday morning, we joined Houston at their usual time at Memorial City Mall for a half sheet of ice. We actually did a bit of scrimmaging and just took it to another level with Houston.

And if you recall or have recently read the blog post about the “mystery woman” from the mall, yes– I did think about her. I did think about seeking her out afterwards. But I didn’t in the end. I don’t even think that the kids train was even running by the time we got off the ice.

Next time!!!

Saturday evening we ALL got into one vehicle and sent our butts into downtown Houston for a baseball game that was offered to us from the Houston team.

My first time at Minute Maid Park. My second MLB game ever in my life. Can you say $12 for a shot glass? Ridiculous.

Minute Maid Park from the right field section

I’m not much of a baseball fan at all. But it was something that I got to experience.

The Houston Astros took on the Texas Rangers. And what seemed so funky and out of place was the fact that there were more people in Houston cheering on the Rangers than the Astros.

The Astros tied it at 1-1. Then hit a home run, gaining the lead at 3-1. But then the Rangers just kept at it until the point where the score was 8-3 in favor of the Rangers.

I noticed that by the middle of the fifth inning which is basically the half way point, all of that had been played in just 75 minutes. Half of the game had blown by. It was weird. But you know what? From the bottom of the fifth until the end of the game took more than two hours to complete. Total game time was 3 hours, 22 minutes.  Crazy how that works. Total attendance was 27,188. Probably the largest crowd that I had been in ever in my entire life.

The Astros would make one hell of an effort for a come back at the end of the game but fell short  and lost 8-7.

After another short night of almost no sleep. Friday night we had someone in the hotel room with us and couldn’t get them to shut up or take it upon themselves to note the time was late and take off. Saturday night was another late night because the guy that I shared the room with and I got caught up watching an old episode of Cold Case on cable.

Oops..

Sunday morning we went all the way over to Sugar Land to play. Probably THE COLDEST ice rink that I have ever played on. And we were going to be there on the ice for almost two hours.

After getting up super early Sunday morning to get gasoline, travel, show up, get ready, blah blah blah …. it was so draining on energy.

When everyone showed up, we paired off, Austin vs. Houston. But one of our guys decided for whatever excuse to wear an all black jersey. So in order to keep it white jerseys (Austin) versus colored jerseys (Houston), there was a trade off.

The Austin Blades would regret this switching around of players later on.

That would end up being a 3-0 victory for Houston. And something that they are able to hang on to for a while, knowing that they beat us fair and square. Or was it?

We traded players. The Austin player who was playing for Houston scored twice. The Houston player who played for Austin has tremendous speed.

Even if you take away the fact that OUR guy scored twice, there was still that one goal scored by the mother of the Houston goalie. It was really neat to see the entire family out on the  ice. Mother, father, brother. The goalie for Houston is actually pretty damned good! He’s on the USA Developmental team. In training and conditioning to be able to play for Team USA, and he’s not even out of high school yet. He graduates this month.

But his mother scored a goal. When that happened a full chorus of voices started chanting “Happy Mother’s Day!” to her over and over again. She had previously warned everyone NOT to beat her up on the ice because of the fact that it was Mother’s Day. But once she scored? Yeah… all bets were off. But nobody could get to her.

It was a lot of fun needless to say. Still working on the butthurt, but I will get over it. Plus the obvious aches and pains of playing that much in that many days.

We are all excited to get back together again and play some more. Even the Houston team said that they wanted to do it again.

But it might be August or early September before we are able to.

I’m thinking about maybe talking with Houston and seeing if they would like to put together an annual meeting between the two teams, and the winner will take back home a trophy or something.  And quite possibly, Houston could for once travel here to play once in a while.

 

 

 

Boston Dreams: Updates #01 Through #03

 

There’s good news, ladies and gentlemen. Sports fans!!

This afternoon, I was in contact with The Cape Cod Cookie Company.

They were willing to share the fundraising site for my dreams to play sledge hockey in Boston in 2014.

The Cape Cod Cookie Company has graciously offered an incentive. Whomever donates the biggest amount, shall receive a dozen assorted cookies for FREE!!!

I have personally ordered cookies from this company in the past and their cookies are absolutely delicious. And they aren’t the packaged-sized cookies. These baked goods are BIG!

The Cape Cod Cookie Company is from Massachusetts. The owner of the business and I have known each other for many years. I am thankful for their added incentive which came as a surprise.

And then earlier this evening, I received word from the ever beautiful and lovely Jodi Ambrose.

In previous blog posts, you have read about my whacky relationship with the author.

Jodi Ambrose also states that whomever donates the biggest amount, shall receive a set of her Sex & Intimacy books for FREE. Jodi’s offer will go to the TOP TWO donations. Not just the the top donation, but the two most donated amounts.

There’s a $5 donation already sitting there. Can you top that????

I thank Jodi for this wonderful and generous incentive.

The third update is to inform you that a Facebook Community page has been set up for this fundraising drive. It will probably have more exclusive news and updates as the fundraising continues.

I am really excited to share these updates with you and hope that you will give what you can to help my teammate and I to get to the tournament in Boston in 2014. Everything is appreciated.

Spread the news!! FREE cookies and FREE books. Join the Facebook page. How can you possibly go wrong? You can’t!!

Stay tuned for further updates. Thank you as always.

http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs

There Still Are Nice People In The World

Money definitely doesn’t grow on trees. At least not how we all would like to believe.

This morning, I had a visit with the RN.

She said that I was doing very well and improving at a spectacular rate. Something that they always like to report and that we like to hear.

Then she asked me if I had remembered the conversation that she and I had about my goals to get to sledge hockey tournament in Boston in 2014.

The Austin Blades program isn’t going to help if any of us players want to go to this tournament. So we have to do this on our own and raise enough money to go.

This RN apparently discussed it at some capacity with another patient of hers earlier in the week. And when she came by for a visit this morning, she reminded me that I was needing all the help I could get.

This patient, or whomever she told about my story…. proved to me that there are still nice people out there in this world.

This person (unknown to me because of laws) gave a cash donation of $10.

I was so excited and surprised that I couldn’t even think straight!!! 

A total stranger. I do not know exactly what was said. And I do not know who this person is. And I will never know, but they felt interested enough in helping me reach the goal.

A teammate of mine (the other assistant captain) vowed this season that when we heard where the next year’s tournament was going to be, that he and I would work together in trying to get the money together to go. We both would go, even if nobody else from the Austin Blades went.

So the fundraising is a little different, since everything is going to be split between the two of us. The goal is definitely not as high as my personal fundraising site that I put together on my own last year… which is still available to receive donations. That one is up to help me upgrade my equipment and be able to return what was loaned to me back to the team so we have that equipment for new players in the future.  IF you are interested in that one, please let me know.

This campaign though is for two people. Two players strongly passionate about the game of sledge hockey that its all we ever talk about when we get together. Eventually at some point in the conversation between he and I, the topic of sledge hockey or the team will dominate our conversation.

We’ve both gone as far as to say that sledge hockey is in our veins.

My partner in this adventure has already stated that he doesn’t want any presents given to him for any holiday, whether it be Father’s Day, a birthday, or even Christmas. Instead he wants people to donate to help him get to Boston.

I have jumped on that as well. I would request that anyone thinking about a Christmas gift or birthday to go ahead and just make a donation to help me out as well.  

Let’s face it though: fund raising is very difficult. Especially for things like this. I hate to sound like I am begging as well. But nobody can get anywhere if they do not ask.

And even though it is really early before the start of the tournament…. I believe an early start is a great head start!!!!

I already have received a donation from the kindness of a complete and total stranger. And I am very thankful for that person. So whoever you are– THANK YOU!!!

And if you are reading this and feel that you are interested in helping, or inspired by the story of the anonymous donation, the link to the site is in the Blogroll. Or you can click on the link provided below.

Even if you are not willing or ready to make a donation, by sharing the story of the stranger and the link would be very, very, very helpful.

We are not looking for or anticipating donations of large amounts. Anything obviously will help. And the more of those kinds of contributions that are put together then the goal can be met and our dream of once again going out, doing something that we love to do and are very passionate about, and having that personal independence to actually have the ability to play the sport, would make every cent and dollar that much more special.

So please help if you can. And spread the word. Think of the kind stranger who doesn’t even know me but still had enough in their heart to believe in me.

Thank you.

http://www.gofundme.com/2t2pvs