A letter from an Athlete |Quinn Brett

A letter from an Athlete |Quinn Brett

LETTERS FROM AN ATHLETE IS A SERIES THAT FOCUSES ON SHOWCASING SOME OF OUR ATHLETES, WHO ARE PROUD TO REPRESENT AND BE SUPPORTED BY HIGH FIVES. IT’S ALSO A CHANCE FOR US TO SHOW OFF HOW APPRECIATIVE THE FOUNDATION IS TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THESE INDIVIDUALS AS THEY CHASE DREAMS, COMPLETE GOALS, AND INSPIRE OTHERS.

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High Fives is honored to be associated with Quinn Brett, seeing Quinn set goals and put her mind to completing them is nothing less than incredible.

After completing her undergraduate degree in Minnesota, Brett moved to Colorado to throw herself into the outdoors and the pleasures of a simple backcountry lifestyle. It was in this pursuit that, Brett’s life was changed forever. The world class climber took a fall. Tumbling over a hundred feet, becoming paralyzed. 

Faced with many brutal challenges and new realties Brett chose to persevere, her resilience, determination, and dedication got her through the toughest times imaginable.

 

Brett’s infectious positive attitude and dedication has taken her so far since her injury. We look forward to see how she will continue to represent the Foundation by being the best version of himself.

A Letter From Quinn

was a professional rock climber and technical search and rescuer for Rocky Mountain National Park. I
moved to Colorado in 2002 after completing my undergraduate program at the University of Minnesota.
I grew up in the mosquito filled woods, wandering and playing and moved to Colorado to continue
chasing my passion for the outdoors and a simple backcountry lifestyle. Just over a year ago, I fell rock
climbing a rock that I had been on a dozen or so times before. I fell over 100 feet on the vertical granite
face of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. I hit another rock along the way and fell behind a flake still
over 1000 feet up the mountain. Yosemite search and rescue team assembled and a helicopter and
flew me off the mountain. Many of the rescuers were my friends and colleagues. I immediately could
not feel my legs, I was paralyzed. I was flown to the nearest hospital capable of stabilizing my shattered
spine, spending one week in ICU after my surgery and five weeks waiting for other complications to
mend before finally being transferred back to my home state and Craig Hospital. My life, work,
relationships and passions were flipped in the matter of 2 seconds.
Adjusting emotionally and physically to this new Quinn has been a struggle. I was the girl who
couldn’t sit still! I feel stuck to a wheelchair, no longer able to hike around the mountains that satiated
my soul but also no longer to work search and rescue in the field, providing medical assistance to those
who have a bad day in the mountains….like I did. I long for the freedom of movement, the far-flung quite
rocky knoll watching the sunset, the heavy breathing of an uphill hike, or the camaraderie of skiing
down a hill with friends. I was introduced to The High Fives Foundation and am incredibly thankful for
the existence of a foundation like this, providing community, supporting our dreams of returning to the
outdoor activities via tools, travel, physical therapy or other financial help that we might need. This life
altering injury is life long, expensive, demoralizing and exhausting.
Organizations like High Fives can only continue to fund grants and programs for athletes who
suffered a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), or other life changing injuries with the
help of generous donors such as yourself. Partnering with the High Fives foundation supports a
community that often is overlooked, underfunded and left behind. With your help, the High Fives
foundation can continue to bridge the gap between access and resources and the inclusivity of all.
Thank you for becoming a part of this amazing community!
Sincerely,

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