Recovery

As long as I can remember my 4 and half year younger brother, Andy, has been one of my best friends. I remember being a little annoyed back in the day that he wanted to do everything that my friends and I did, not to mention that all the girls thought he was so “cute”.

While I’m not a scented candle and warm bath guy, it struck me that my lower mood and climatically depressed mood seemed to call for a day of self-care: Maybe laying in bed, some spiritual reading, warm beverages, and napping with Clooney would do the trick. Just then my phone buzzed to remind me that my roommate Ben, a great volunteer named Jenny, and I were headed out that morning for 4 hours of shoveling with I Got Bridged (IGB).

Northeast Passage’s (NEP) involvement in the King Challenge really makes it possible for the Doc King Adaptive Ride to happen. I can’t remember if it was at Krempels Center, where NEP frequently offers physical activity groups for members, that I was introduced to this wonderful non-profit; or when my brother played sled hockey while at UNH. Begun in 1990 as a private non-profit, after years of successful collaboration, NEP officially merged with UNH’s College of Health and Human Services.

Perhaps best known as a historical town of the Revolutionary era and home to Bunker Hill monument, marking the site of one of the first major battles between the Americans and British, Charlestown is also home of Spaulding’s flagship facility since it opened in 2013. The foundation for recovery Spaulding gave me for a new life after sustaining a TBI in 2006 has been truly amazing. Maybe it was the leftover joy from the Sox victory, the night at Fenway with people who mean a lot to me, the beauty of the morning, or more likely, the combination that had me filled with joy! I’m not the most sentimental person, so being overwhelmed with gratitude without the pull of guilt that often strikes was a beautiful feeling.

After learning of Jim’s accident, Kathy and Jim reconnected. In 2013, Jim started speaking to some of Kathy’s classes where she now taught in Westborough High School in Westborough, MA. Now in 2021, Jim and Kathy decided to share their reflections on their journey from starting out as student and teacher to becoming colleagues and friends.

One such thing that I heard people say a lot was that, “the older I get, the smarter my Dad gets.”