Judy Gooch: WAS Programming Through the Eyes of a Physician and Board Member

“…many of my patients, both children and adults, have skied, biked, bowled and hiked with Wasatch Adaptive Sports.  Doing activities they never thought possible has built their confidence and resilience.  The love and respect from the instructors has built their self-respect.”

For over 30 years, I have practiced as a physician specializing in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in Salt Lake City.  My job is to help people with neurological conditions be healthier and more functional.  My patients include children and adults with cerebral palsy, brain injury, and stroke.  Twenty years ago I found Peter Mandler at Wasatch Adaptive Sports.  I asked him about helping children with cerebral palsy be more active during the summer.  Helping kids do adaptive sports was Peter’s life mission.  We talked with Bob Bonar, the President of Snowbird.  Fortunately he was also excited about this goal.

That summer we started Camp Kudos.  This was a two day camp at Snowbird for children with disabilities.  The kids fished, swam, did crafts, hiked and rode the tram.  We also camped over-night.  After getting the children and all their gear up a steep hill, singing and roasting marshmallows was awesome.  Being drenched in water at 5 am was not so awesome.  Oops, we camped under the sprinklers.  Kids learned that they were not alone and that they too can participate.  They loved it.

Since that time many of my patients, both children and adults, have skied, biked, bowled and hiked with Wasatch Adaptive Sports.  Doing activities they never thought possible has built their confidence and resilience. The love and respect from the instructors has built their self-respect.

After a brain injury, one of my adult patients was unable to work.  Before his injury, he was an active guy.  After the injury, he was doing nothing active.  Convincing him to bike with Wasatch Adaptive Sports was my mission.  He finally decided to go.  He loved it and progressed to biking many miles.  Eventually, he regained the confidence and ability to return to work.

Some of my pediatric patients had never done any recreational activities before participating with Wasatch Adaptive Sports.  When they realized that they can do things just like their brother and sister, their lives changed.  They saw that they can be active, they can participate, they can do what they thought was impossible.

For the past few years, I have also been fortunate to be on the Board of Wasatch Adaptive Sports.  The program has grown immensely.   Many more kids and adults are now able to participate.  Many more instructors and volunteers help.  In my mind, bigger is not always better.  Bigger can mean less personable service, less attention to each individual.  I was a little nervous watching this growth.  Would we still have caring staff and individualized service?  Most impressive is that through this growth, Wasatch Adaptive Sports has kept its heart and soul.  The leaders, instructors and volunteers remain passionate, caring and committed.

For many of the patients I have treated, participation with Wasatch Adaptive Sports has been one of the most positive and influential experiences of their lives.  It has been an honor to be associated with this organization.