Monthly Archives: July 2013
Trap shooting offers ‘great therapy’ for veterans with spinal cord injuries
U.S. Navy veteran Jim Trombley, of Ballwin, clutched a firearm to his cheek, his eye riveted along the barrel. There was a long moment of anticipation, after which the command came. “Pull!”
A bright orange clay bird wheeled into the air, ahead of Trombley’s discerning gaze. A quick assessment of the clay’s trajectory signaled Trombley the precise moment to pull the trigger.
The shotgun’s report was immediately followed by the dramatic split of the clay bird, scattering orange splinters asunder.
Salk scientist discovers novel mechanism in spinal cord injury
See-saw’ molecule may offer clues to potential therapies in the long-term
LA JOLLA, CA—-More than 11,000 Americans suffer spinal cord injuries each year, and since over a quarter of those injuries are due to falls, the number is likely to rise as the population ages. The reason so many of those injuries are permanently disabling is that the human body lacks the capacity to regenerate nerve fibers. The best our bodies can do is route the surviving tissue around the injury site.
New research on paralyzed dogs aimed at helping humans
Ongoing research on paralyzed dogs may one day help military veterans and others who have severe spinal cord injuries.
Researchers at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences have developed a therapy that might help paralyzed dogs regain some of their lost function.
“One of the big obstacles in the past has been a lot of the research has used rodents and experimental animals,” lead researcher Dr. Jonathan Levine, an associate professor of neurology and neurosurgery at Texas A&M told CBS Dallas/Fort Worth’s Karen Borta. “Despite an abundance of clinical trials a lot of money spent in humans, the results have been disappointing.”
Hope Eternal
The last thing Christa Sexton remembers is the fire truck careening toward her.
When she woke up, face down on the warm highway asphalt, life as she knew it had radically changed.
“I remember it perfectly – everything except for the impact, which is blanked out,” Christa says. “I could see two guys with firemen helmets on, telling me ‘don’t move, don’t move,’ but strangely, I didn’t hurt at all. I was just floating, in and out of consciousness.”
It wasn’t until later at the hospital that she was told that she had a critical spinal cord injury.
Showing the world that ‘different’ is beautiful
Life has thrown a lot at Coquitlam’s Jessica Kruger.
At 15 years old she suffered a work-place accident resulting in a broken neck and spinal cord injury leaving her wheelchair bound.
She once believed her injury took away all hopes of her being considered “beautiful,” let alone any chance of living a normal life, and forget about being an athlete or – crazier yet – a model.
But she has. Against all odds, Kruger, 21, is the new face of Lise Watier’s “Something Sweet” perfume, beating out nearly 400 other contestants all scratching and crawling for the same contract.
Gridiron Heroes to roll out ‘Road Trip for Heroes’ Texas football fundraiser
Gridiron Heroes Spinal Cord Injury Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in nearby Schertz, is launching Road Trip for Heroes. Participants in the 2,500-mile trek across Texas will help raise funds for Gridiron Heroes.
Eddie and Chris Canales, who co-founded the organization, will lead the road trip to five Texas high school football games in five cities — San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Houston and El Paso. The father-and-son team hope to raise a minimum of $100,000 and purchase at least one new wheelchair-accessible van for a Texas high school athlete who has been paralyzed playing football.
VA’s Adaptive Housing Grants for Disabled Veterans
VA provides grants to Servicemembers and Veterans with certain permanent and total service-connected disabilities to help purchase or construct an adapted home, or modify an existing home to accommodate a disability.
Karman Healthcare

Manufacturer of Manual and Standing Wheelchairs
Karman Healthcare has been a leading innovator in the manufacture and distribution of home medical products since 1994. Karman provides a full line of wheelchairs, walkers, rollators, power wheelchairs & scooters, stand-up wheelchairs, oxygen regulators, bathroom safety and other home care products.
“Karman Healthcare is the nation’s leading manufacturer of wheelchair innovation”
Craig Hospital Ranked In Top Ten In Rehabilitation For 24th Consecutive Year By USNWR
Ranked again #7 in U.S. , #2 in Colorado, #2 in Denver
Englewood, CO. July 15, 2013 – For the 24th consecutive year, and every year since the rankings began in 1990, Craig Hospital has been ranked in the Top Ten of America’s Rehabilitation Hospitals by U.S. News and World Report. Rehabilitation physicians from around the U.S. ranked Craig 7th again this year in the U.S, #2 in Colorado, and #2 in Denver.
Jason Dierking Ironman Challenge – Frazier Rehab Housing Fund
University of Louisville Strength coach pushes himself to reach his goal for him, his best friend and Frazier Rehab Housing Fund.