High Fives Foundation Enhances Training Facility for Disabled Mountain Sports Athletes With Help From Colorado’s Craig Hospital
Newly designated Craig Empowerment Center brings new equipment and therapy training to High Fives Foundation and CR Johnson Healing Center in Truckee, Calif.
(TRUCKEE, Calif., Dec. 20, 2016) – Craig Hospital, a world-renowned research and rehabilitation hospital for people who have sustained a spinal cord injury and/or brain injury, along with the High Fives Foundation unveiled the Craig Empowerment Center today – an 800 square-foot addition to the CR Johnson Healing Center in Truckee, Calif. The Center not only adds space and top-of-the-line training equipment, but also provides additional training resources from Craig’s specialized therapy staff.
The CR Johnson Healing Center is a training facility that provides resources for athletes in recovery from life-altering and sport-related injuries. The Healing Center attracts more than 3,700 visits a year from community members and athletes supported by the High Fives Foundation, a non-profit organization that raises injury prevention awareness
while providing resources and inspiration to those who have sustained life-altering injuries.
The addition of the Craig Empowerment Center gives athletes unique access to important strength-training technologies such as the FES Bike, Freemotion EXT Dual Cable and Parallel Bars, and gives them more space for important workouts.
In addition, Candy Tefertiller, director of physical therapy at Craig, spent the morning conducting an assessment of the Center to ensure it meets the rehabilitation standards of the hospital. As part of the ongoing partnership, physical therapists from Craig will provide regular consultation to the trainers at the Center to ensure a consistent, world-class therapy experience. “Often, access to these types of resources and equipment can be scarce for people with spinal cord and brain injuries once they leave a rehabilitation hospital, which is why this partnership is so important to us,” said Tefertiller.
“Our mission at Craig is to help people who have sustained a life-altering injury strive for independence and life quality,” said Mike Fordyce, CEO of Craig Hospital. “Several of our graduates participate in the High Fives Foundation, and through this partnership and the creation of the Craig Empowerment Center, we aim to help people successfully harness their bravery and determination in returning to the adventure sports they love.”
Several athletes that are sponsored by the High Fives Foundation attended the ribbon cutting ceremony and had the opportunity to test out the new equipment.
“The addition of the Craig Empowerment Center gives our athletes and the hundreds of others who utilize the resources of the CR Johnson Healing Center access to even more advanced equipment that will help build endurance and strength and get them out enjoying sports more fully,” said Roy Tuscany, co-founder and executive director of High Fives Foundation.
The Craig Empowerment Center is officially open and available to High Fives athletes and the local community.
