Sun Valley has a long history of helping American war veterans. During World War II, for example, the Resort closed its doors to tourists and reopened as a Naval convalescent hospital. For two years, the Resort treated more than 7,000 military personnel. In addition to treating physical wounds, the Lodge offered trained therapists as well as an assortment of recreational activities; patients could ski, swim, bike, golf, hunt deer, and fly-fish.
With the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the time for Sun Valley to help has come again. As of January 8, 2007, 28,770 service members have been wounded in Iraq. More than 100 of the wounded are legally blind and another 247 are blind in one eye. In addition, an estimated 4,000 soldiers suffer some type of visual dysfunction due to traumatic brain injury. To help, Sun Valley Adaptive Sports (SVAS) has teamed up with Sun Valley Resort to continue the Wood River Valley’s tradition of providing healing holistic service to wounded vets.
Since 2005, SVAS has worked with more than 100 service members and significant others through its program Higher Ground. Higher Ground uses sports as a means of rehabilitation for injured veterans. Service members learn to ski, snowboard, Nordic ski, sled and play hockey. The program also runs in the summer with sports like fly-fishing, cycling, and rock climbing. There are discussions about the possibility of serving as many as 200 service members per year. Tom Iselin, executive director of SVAS, notes “this would be a four-fold increase in the numbers we’re currently servicing.”
On average it costs SVAS $5,000 per service member and significant other per week. This includes airfare, lodging, transportation, food, instruction, equipment and entertainment. In addition to serving injured vets, SVAS offers psychological and recreation support to 150 children and adults in the Wood River Valley with disabilities. And, again they are growing, increasing about 10-15 percent a year.
This Saturday, Sun Valley Adaptive Sports will host the nation's first snowsports clinic for visually impaired service members. The guests will have a chance to ski, snowboard, Nordic ski, ice skate, and snowshoe. And they will work with world-class mountaineer, Erik Weihenmayer.
To find out more or to help out, email Sun Valley Adaptive Sports at info@svasp.org or call 208-726-9298. They can always use your financial and physical help.
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