by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Stephany Glassing

A former sit-n-ski water skier with several adapted water ski titles under her belt, Stephany Glassing is one of the few licensed female paraplegic pilots in the country. And that’s not all. She’s also a mother, an artist, former Ms. Wheelchair Georgia 2003 and a lover of monkeys. Yes you heard us right – monkeys.

The recipient of a Capuchin monkey (she requested one to help with depression), she’s become a huge disability service monkey advocate since receiving Tracy, speaking on behalf of the organization that gave her her monkey whenever she can.

To learn more about Stephany, an amazing woman and dedicated single mother who refuses to let her chronic pain win, read on.

by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Charles Krauthammer

A conservative political analyst for the Washington Post and Fox News, Charles Krauthammer is a quadriplegic you’ll never forget. The thing about Charles however is that he doesn’t want you to focus on his quadriplegia, and he’s been amazingly successful in this goal.

Out of the thousands of Charles’ dedicated fans, most don’t even know he uses a wheelchair. It’s not that it’s a secret, it’s just that his opinions and views on American politics are so engaging that they make you forget his disability.

From working as a Harvard-trained psychiatrist to becoming a Pulitzer Prize winning columnist all post-injury, read on for the fascinating story of Charles Krauthammer. Read more

by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Dr. Susan Harkema

We have many heroes in the spinal cord injury community, notably the rockstar SCI researchers. One of the most promising researchers is Dr. Susan Harkema, Director of the Neurorecovery Network, Rehabilitation Research Director of the Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center at the University of Louisville and the Director of Research at Frazier Rehab Institute.

Dr. Harkema is the researcher who discovered that electrically stimulating the spinal cord can help us move our legs again. Yes, she has one amazing mind. From Katie to the Today Show, she has been featured all over the media and is the leading SCI researcher to know.

But research wasn’t always on her radar. From a career she thought was headed towards athletic training, Michigan-born Harkema was lured to the warmer weather of California where she discovered a passion for spinal cord injury research, and the rest as they say is history.

Read on to see how Dr. Harkema’s determination to find a workable cure may just land her in the history books

by Tiff -

SCI Superstar: Senator Tom Kennedy

After a spinal cord injury, we all find our own way of moving forward, and for Senator Tom Kennedy his way forward was through politics. His hometown mayor recruited him after his injury where he found politics and a sense of purpose; something he was aching for.

But he didn’t decide to run right way, he was just happy to help out, learning and observing, but soon this quad became a State Representative in the House for his home state of Massachusetts, making disability history. Read more