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HELPING OTHERS ROY'S BIG GOAL By Scott Pitoniak, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle |
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Travis Roy believes it's a
question of when, not if. The former Boston University
hockey player who was paralyzed just 11 seconds into the first shift of his
college career six years ago envisions the day when he will be able to ditch
his wheelchair and stand on his own two feet again. "It may not be for five
to 10 years, or perhaps a little longer, but it's going to happen in my
lifetime because medical researchers have made so many advancements in the
study of spinal cord injuries," said Roy, who will be honored before the
Buffalo Sabres game at the HSBC Arena Thursday night. "I'm not saying that
researchers are going to come up with something that enables me to run and jump
and play hockey again. But I do believe the cure will be to the point where
I'll be able to do the basic things on my own to get me through the day." In the meantime, hope will
continue to fill the role that unresponsive legs and arms cannot. "I don't know what I
would do without hope," said the upbeat 26-year-old. "You can endure
things a lot better if you have faith that there are better days on the
horizon." Until Oct. 20, 1995, Roy
envisioned a horizon filled with hockey games. A rink rat from the time he
laced on his first pair of skates as a 2-year-old in the coastal town of
Yarmouth, Maine, Roy fulfilled his dream of becoming a Division I hockey player
when he took the ice for BU that fateful autumn day. On the first shift of his
collegiate career he crashed head first into the boards and shattered his
fourth cervical vertebra, severely damaging his spinal cord. Although he has regained some
movement in his right arm, he has no feeling below his shoulders and no
movement in his legs or left arm. "It was such a
devastating thing," said Roy's older sister, Tobi Van Orden, who lives in
Pittsford. "But he has been so amazing throughout this ordeal. There was
only one time, not long after the injury, when I heard him say, 'Why me? Why
me?' But after that he made the decision to try to make something positive out
of this, and remarkably, he has." Like actor Christopher Reeve
and former college football player Marc Buonoconti, Roy has used the national
media attention his injury has attracted to raise awareness and money. In
addition to research, the foundation Roy established in his name provides
grants to individuals who have suffered spinal cord injuries so they can
purchase adaptive equipment such as wheelchairs and voice-activated computers. "I know such things have
made my life so much easier than it might have been, and I also know that these
things are very expensive, so we are doing our best to try to help spinal cord
injury victims deal with those costs," he said. And that's where the
generosity of Rochesterians have played a role. Steve Skrubis, a former goalie
with the Binghamton Whalers of the American Hockey League, remembers seeing a
story about Roy five years ago. "I thought to myself,
'Hey, I bet I can get about a hundred guys together for a golf tournament and
we can send the money to Travis," recalled Skrubis, who is the director of
SPG Direct, a Rochester-based sales and marketing firm. "I called his dad,
and he told me about the foundation, so we wound up sending the money
there." Since that time, Skrubis has
formed a Rochester chapter of the foundation. The golf tournament, which will
be played for a fifth consecutive summer on Aug. 19 at Ravenwood Golf Club, has
raised more than $40,000. Half the money raised at the tournament and functions
such as Thursday night's Sabres game is returned to the spinal cord
rehabilitation unit at Strong Memorial Hospital. "I can't say enough
about Rochester," Roy said. "The amazing thing is that I had no
connection with the city. I had never been there until that first golf
tournament. The only thing I knew about Rochester was that the Amerks played
there and they would come to town to play the Maine Mariners when I was a
stickboy for them way back when." The big heart of
Rochesterians was not lost on Roy's big sister. When her husband was given a
choice of three cities to relocate to by his employer, he picked Rochester on
the basis of the kindness it had shown his brother-in-law. "I think it's so amazing
the way they've responded to Travis," Tobi said. "It's almost like
they adopted him. I guess that also says something about Travis' ability to
inspire. Even people who don't know him are moved by him." Roy, who graduated with a
degree in communications and public relations a year ago, said he still is
trying to find a new passion in life; something to replace the rush he felt
playing hockey. He has dabbled in broadcasting and hopes to be a color
commentator for BU hockey when the team moves into a new arena with a
wheelchair accessible press box in two years. In the meantime, he will
continue to focus on his foundation and give motivational speeches. He longs for the day when
he'll be able to deliver those speeches standing up. Hope leads him to believe
that will happen, and, as he has proven, hope is a powerful thing. Appeared in the Rochester
(NY) Democrat and Chronicle March 20, 2002 |
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