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Date: November 27- December 5, 2021
Location: The Island of Bonaire Hosted by: Denver Adaptive Divers, RDF Alliance Member Dive Trip with Denver Adaptive Divers In 2020, River Deep Foundation began working with the non-profit Denver Adaptive Divers (DAD) allowing our clients (veterans and other individuals with disabilities) to Try SCUBA diving in a safe, supportive environment. DAD has since become part of our alliance of like-minded non-profits who share, ideas and support and resources. Clients who participate in a Try SCUBA class are guided through the basics and work one-on-one with an instructor in the pool to help them get experience breathing underwater. For those who want to continue diving, they may qualify to join Denver Adaptive Divers on an open water dive trip. Samuel Hahn, a client of Operation TBI Freedom (another Alliance Member) and River Deep Foundation did just that. From November 27- December 5, 2021 a DAD group of 30 traveled to Bonaire, located in the Dutch islands off the coast of Venezuela. The group consisted of Denver Adaptive Diver participants, dive buddies and other support staff. While some on the trip suffer with MS or spinal cord injuries sustained in civilian accidents, Samuel is a military veteran and combat medic with the 82nd Airborne Division. He was injured while attached to the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), and was involved in a roll-over accident when an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) exploded next to their vehicle. In his daily life he struggles with chronic pain, from spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injury (TBI), Bipolar 1 disorder, PTSD and migraine headaches. He describes being weightless in the water as a wonderful way to distract him from the pain and redirect his negative energy. SCUBA diving requires mindful breathing and disciplined movements that are much like his practice of yoga and meditation in how they effectively calm and regulate his body. Through an interview process with Denver Adaptive Divers Hahn was thrilled to quality to go on the trip and obtain his Open Water Certificate through a scholarship from DAD. Hahn found his time in the ocean exhilarating! He was mesmerized by the marine life and enjoyed encountering the diverse and beautiful underwater ecosystems. While he finds the water very calming, social interaction can be stressful for him, so traveling with a group had its own challenges. He found, however, that the time with others was healing and the entire trip allowed him to recharge in a way that continues to benefit him upon his return. Hahn continues to utilize the pool at DAD when he needs to regulate. He looks forward to continuing with his journey, perhaps becoming a Certified Adaptive Buddy. He has participated in other River Deep Foundation outings like Fly Fishing, Fencing and attending a Wild Game Cooking Class and looks forward to further engagement with the activities and community they offer. We encourage other RDF clients to Try SCUBA and see if it has the same effect for them! A video of the participants diving, with a voice-over about their experience can be found at bit.ly/Bonaire2021.
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Date: November 20, 2021
Location: Denver Fencing Center Hosted by: River Deep Foundation Participating Groups: Craig Hospital Community Partners and Operation TBI Freedom Fencing Instruction With the weather changing, we have started up more of our indoor activities again, like Fencing instruction! This group of participants had not ever fenced before and were excited to learn. Our instructors started with the teaching the basics to the group. We then suited up and started the friendly competition. Of course, some people are naturally more competitive than others! Either way, fencing is exciting, and a really great workout! A big thanks to everyone at Denver Fencing Center. Date: November 13, 2021 Location: Valhalla Hunt Club - Bennett, CO Hosted by: River Deep Foundation Participating Groups: Craig Hospital Trap Shooting It was a warm day but it was windy! The strong winds made trap shooting the clays extra challenging. The participants did, however, have the opportunity to use some of the adaptive shooting equipment developed in partnership with QL+ and Colorado School of Mines engineering students. Despite the winds, everyone hit a few clays—even some of the veteran's family members who were new to trap shooting! After a few hours of shooting clays, everyone was ready for lunch so we went back to the clubhouse to enjoy a nice meal and talk about the day's activity. A big thank you to the Valhalla staff that always make us feel at home! Bob Adwar Executive Director, River Deep Foundation Chairman, SCI Humanitarian Outreach Program 
Date: November 12, 2021
Location: Cottonwood Center for the Arts – Colorado Springs, CO Hosted by: River Deep & Cottonwood Center for the Arts Participating Groups: Operation TBI Freedom We had an amazing evening with a group of vets and family members learning about the ancient art of making forms out of clay using your hands and other simple tools. Our instructor, Kris Saxton, made the evening very interesting by providing some basic history of clay art as well providing ideas for our clients to work on their piece of art. Everyone ended up making a piece that was later fired in a kiln, and available a few days later to take home. Date: November 10, 2021 Location: Art Students League of Denver Hosted by: River Deep Foundation Participating Groups: VA, Operation TBI Freedom & Ft. Carson SRU Art Class - Rattle Pinch Pots with Surface Design What a great night getting creative with clay! Our instructor, John, was a pro and took his time to demonstrate the process step by step. Following a wonderful demonstration, everyone jumped in and began creating their masterpieces. After molding their pots into the desired shape, the participants painted their creations. It was beautiful to see everyone's unique designs. All of the participants had a great time during this art class. A big thank you to the Art Students League of Denver and their awesome staff! Bob Adwar Executive Director, River Deep Foundation Chairman, SCI Humanitarian Outreach Program
Date: November 9, 2021 Location: USAFA Equestrian Center Hosted by: River Deep Foundation Participating Groups: Operation TBI Freedom Equine Assisted Learning This is the final Equine Assisted Learning session for the season. A group of six veterans and couple of family members joined us on this sunny and not very cold November day. The participants learned how to interact with the horses and how to perform exercises to cope with stress. We finished our time with a relaxing hour of horseback riding through three waters crossing. We are looking forward for the next season of sessions with the horses. Thank you so much to River Deep Foundation for making this event possible so that our Operation TBI Freedom clients and family members can learn more coping skill to manage their day-to-day stress. |
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