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Groton News Travis Roy Speaks at All-School Lecture As the son of a man who managed an ice rink in Maine, it was difficult for Travis Roy to imagine life without hockey. “I didn’t have a choice as to whether or not I would skate. I was on the ice when I was 20 months old,” he told faculty and students at an All-School Lecture in September. In the fall of his seventh-grade year, Travis jotted down his three life goals. He hoped to play hockey at a Division I college, in the NHL, and ultimately on the U.S. Olympic Team. As an 11-year-old, these goals seemed quite realistic to Travis. “He was a responsible child who had a sheer dedication to and passion for the game of hockey,” said Rob Olsen, Travis’ summer-youth-hockey league coach and Director of Athletics at Groton. During his senior year at Tabor Academy, Harvard, along with nearly every Division I college, called Travis. He chose to attend Boston University. He would be playing for the defending national champions, and he was on his way to fulfilling his dreams. “October 20, 1995, would turn out to be the best and the worst day of my life,” he said. He arrived at the team locker room three hours prior to game-time and put his #24 jersey over his head. That evening, Travis would play for only 11 seconds before his life would change forever. He was checked into the board by a player on the opposing team, shattering his fourth cervical vertebra and severely damaging his spinal cord. “The biggest surprise since my accident is the realization that many people do not have a passion. Find a passion, discover something you enjoy doing, and believe that a positive attitude will take you further than any other skill,” he advised the students and faculty. Following his talk, students gathered around Travis’ wheelchair to share a smile and laughs. “Your speech was so inspiring. You have spoken to all of us,” a V Form girl told Travis. To express gratitude for his appearance, Rob Olsen presented a check from Groton School to Travis. “These funds will be given to the Travis Roy Foundation,” Travis said. The Travis Roy Foundation was established in 1997 to help spinal cord injury survivors and to fund research into a cure. Appeared in Groton School web site 10/15/04
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