Joey Chiavaroli
Joey is n 12-year-old from Hudson, Florida born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. As a paraplegic, Joey regularly participates in wheelchair racing, swimming, basketball and track and field events (discus, javelin and shotput). He has also attended workshops and tried his hand at sled hockey, tennis and water-skiing. This is one active young man whose interest in sports has been the key to keeping up with his prescribed physical therapy and exercise.
He began competing back in 2003 as a 7-year-old, collecting trophies up and down the eastern seaboard and southeastern U.S. In 2006, he applied for and received a grant from Challenged Athletes Foundation for a racing wheelchair, and continues to have success in races ranging from 5K up to a half-marathon. His attitude is “Can-do!” all the way, and he intends to continue competing whenever time and finances allow.
Ronnie Dickson
Despite suffering from Trevor’s Disease since birth, Ronnie Dickson was more involved in sports than most kids. He competed in basketball, competitive swimming, competitive soccer, weightlifting, biking and a variety of water sports, having grown up on the lakes of Winter Haven, Florida.
Ronnie’s knee and ankle were uselessly fused straight by bone tumors, so he made a decision to amputate his left leg above the knee. At peace with his decision, it was a new start and a chance to live his life to the fullest by tackling a wide array of new challenges.
Not the least of which is his penchant for rock climbing, which he started in early 2006. A quick study and a natural athlete, Ronnie took second place in the advanced bouldering competition at the Extremity Games in Orlando during the summer. He also participated in the Tampa Bouldering Series, finishing 15th overall among 40 non-disabled competitors, tying for 9th in the Intermediate division. He has a busy year of climbing competitions schedule for 2008.
Currently a junior at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Ronnie plans to pursue a degree in Orthotics and Prosthetics. He hopes to open his own practice and “ . . . give back as much as the community has give to me.”
He has many goals - to rock climb to the best of his ability, complete a triathlon, learn how to wakeboard, ski, surf, and just about everything else he couldn’t do before the amputation.
“I want to try everything myself, so when it comes time to help a patient or just give advice to an amputee in need, I can help them out,” he said in his recent CAF grant application. I want to be able to help fellow amputees reach all their goals and push them to strive for the most out of their experience.”
Ronnie recently taught himself to run on his new C-leg prosthesis, and will enter his first event in February – the 5K race at the Gasparilla Distance Classic in Tampa, where he will be supporting CAF-Florida’s efforts to bring back the 15K Wheelchair Division race for the first time since 1997.
Elmer Dinglasan
Helping others was the main reason that Philippines native Elmer Dinglasan decided to join the Unites States military. He had received a degree in medical technology and was touched by the tragedy of September 11. It inspired him to enlist in the Navy. "I thought I could help out," he said. "So I joined." He was a company medic.
Dinglasan lost both of his legs in January 2006 when the vehicle he was riding in hit a land mine in Iraq. He spent months recovering at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. , during which time he participated in the Soldier Ride, an effort to raise money for the Wounded Warrior Project, a nonprofit organization that assists service members injured in Iraq, Afghanistan and other hot spots around the world, and serves as a sponsor of CAF’s Operation Rebound program. It was his first time on the ride, and he used a handcycle, which was challenging because his rehabilitation has focused mostly on his legs. The ride gave him a chance to help others, which was his goal when her first enlisted.
Elmer is now living in Tampa with his wife Margarita, and thanks to a grant received in the Spring of 2006, he is now once again able to challenge her on the tennis court.
Marc McLean
Marc is a 38-year-old resident of Cape Coral, Florida, who is ranked in the top 10 in the world in both singles and doubles tennis. Because of a broken neck he suffered in a car accident at age 18, he competed in the quadriplegic division. He received a tennis competition wheelchair after filing a grant request with CAF.
Although he has limited ability to grasp with either hand, he does have control over his left arm. Although originally right-handed, Marc has taught himself to play tennis – very competitively on the world stage – with his left hand by taping the racket to his hand and wrist a certain way. He has played in tournaments all over the country, and in many other countries. He dreams of one day winning a medal in the Paralympics, which is held two weeks after the Olympics in the same venue, and is the second largest sporting event in the world.
David Rozelle
Major David Rozelle, a below-knee amputee, is an icon, resource and inspirational figure for American military personnel injured in recent conflicts abroad. While in Iraq, commanding 140 troops of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Maj. Rozelle lost part of his right leg when a landmine exploded under his Humvee.
After completing his rehabilitation, Major Rozelle made the decision to return to active duty and to the same battlefield – the first American soldier to do so in modern times. Now having completed a second tour in Iraq on a prosthetic leg, Maj. Rozelle continues to lead by example and is helping his fellow injured soldiers to reclaim active lifestyles. He strongly believes in the healing power of sports to help accomplish his new mission.
After participating in the 2004 San Diego Triathlon Challenge, Maj. Rozelle became a proud supporter of the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF). He serves as a role model and mentor in CAF’s Operation Rebound program, finishing numerous major racing events like the Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene, and the big one – the Ironman Triathlon World Championship. Finishing in 12:46:26 in Kona proved he was “back in action,” which is also the title of his book about his injury and time served Iraq.
In 2006, Rozelle served as team captain for Team CAF Operation Rebound 2007, a fundraising team of triathletes already competing in the Ford Ironman 70.3 Florida event in Orlando, Florida. Rallying behind him, the group raised nearly $200,000 for Operation Rebound in support of our wounded heroes.
He continues to keep a high profile in 2007, completing several marathons and triathlons, including the Ford Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Clearwater. He has committed again to leading the “tri-troops” who chose to join Team CAF Operation Rebound 2008, with a goal of raising even more for our returning warriors.
Click here to see a 2006 video on Major Rozelle, or to join Team CAF Operation Rebound 2008, click here.
Every time she heaves a shot, discus or javelin, Robyn Stawski moves closer and closer to her dream. If she keeps it up, she’s going to make it to Beijing next September – you can count on it.
Stawski, 29, was born with Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy, which affects her mobility and the use of all four limbs. But you’d never know it to look at her athletic resume. Following a double-medal performance at the Parapan Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in July, Stawski is ranked in the top three in the world in all three events in her Womens’ F33 classification.
Robyn brought home a gold medal in the shot put, a bronze in the discus and just missed a medal in the javelin. She has qualified for the Elite US Paralympic team, and will spend much of her coming year training for the dream trip to Beijing. One last qualification meet is all that stands between her and an appearance in the 2008 Paralympic Games.
“It is time to take every thing to the next level. In everything I do, I have to do it that much harder, faster and stronger. It is a challenge - Beijing is not going to come easy.”
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