Loss of VA grant imperils skiers’ paralympic hopes

Loss of VA grant imperils skiers’ paralympic hopes
Stars and Stripes
By Matthew M. Burke
Published: November 27, 2013

Aspen’s snow-covered mountains are Joshua Elliott’s sanctuary, a place where the double amputee can be free and feel closer to God.

But Veterans Affairs’ decision to withhold an annual grant for adaptive sports that keeps veterans like him on the slopes threatens to derail Elliott’s dreams for Olympic gold and to leave the retired Marine sergeant without a mission.

The Aspen Valley Ski/Snowboard Club’s adaptive program — one of the country’s pre-eminent programs for wounded veterans and a feeder for almost half of the U.S. Paralympic Ski Team — faces a $300,000 shortfall and might have to shut its doors Friday if funding isn’t secured for this year’s competitive season.

A number of Olympic dreams are on hold as Elliott, 32, and his teammates scramble to find money to keep the program going, even if just for one more month.

“[After my injury] I was afraid this was lost,” Elliott said last week from Aspen, where he is training. “I was questioning a lot of things. I was a little scared with this crazy life change … Now, here I am, competitive, looking at the Paralympics.”

The AVSC adaptive program was founded with wounded veterans like Elliott in mind but since has expanded to include a number of nonveterans as well, according to the AVSC website. Each year, the VA provides the U.S. Olympic Committee with grant funding for adaptive sports programs, Elliott said. About $500,000 goes to AVSC’s adaptive program.
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