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Lauderdale Lakes BREEZE Summer 2018 • Fourth Edition
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Riding the
waves
Boathouse on board
Local program helps people with disabilities experience watersports
Adding to the excitement of the program’s growth, Zbrzezny said a new partnership with The Boathouse of Chicago will be providing ski boats for future programming. Each program features participants from various groups, hospitals and organizations. “We work with individuals with physical disabilities and primarily disabled veterans, so there is always a VA attending this program with either a spinal cord injury unit, blind unit or outpatient unit with their recreational therapist,” Zbrzezny said. The VAs that have participated this summer include Jesse Brown VA, Chicago; Hines VA, Chicago; and Clement Zablocki VA, Milwaukee. Other groups taking part in Adaptive Adventures in Lauderdale Lakes include Shriner’s Children’s Hospital, Synergy Adaptive Athletics and Lincolnway Special Recreation Association. Independent, local residents have also participated, Zbrzezny said.
by Heather Ruenz STAFF WRITER
couple of summers ago, Julie Davis, of Lauderdale Lakes and a volunteer with Adaptive Adventures, offered her lake house to start an adaptive waterski program in the area. Adaptive Adventures aims to “provide progressive outdoor sports opportunities to improve quality of life for children, adults and veterans with disabilities and their families.” It offers programs, clinics and camps throughout the country in cycling, climbing, dragon boat racing, paddle boarding, skiing, scuba, waterskiing, kayaking and wakeboarding. The program Davis offered to start, dubbed Watersports Wednesdays, took off immediately and was held every other Wednesday during the summer. It offered not only adaptive waterskiing to its participants, people with disabilities and veterans primarily, but also wakeboarding and kayaking. Last winter, Davis and Greg Zbrzezny, the Chicago program director for Adaptive Adventures who had teamed up with Davis when the program began, spent time brainstorming about how they could expand the program. To do that meant moving it to a larger, or commercial area, but they wanted to keep the program at Lauderdale Lakes. “Naturally, we thought about reaching out to the Lutherdale Bible Camp since the venue has everything we would need. They were very supportive of what we were trying to do,” Zbrzezny said.
COURTESY ROBERT GONZALEZ Lauderdale Lakes Breeze
David Garner, a disabled Air Force veteran, takes a ride around the lake.
They were welcomed with open arms, and as a result, Watersports Wednesdays is now held along Lutherdale’s lakefront. The program relies on volunteers. “Our volunteers are a big part of what we do, and it takes roughly 20 individuals to make this happen,” Zbrzezny said. “Julie has done a great job involving lake residents who donate their time, boats, personal watercraft and even help prepare food for the groups.”
Helping hands
One of the local volunteers is Lauderdale Lakes resident Bonnie Speer. She drives a boat pulling participants – including veterans and people with disabilities, all riding in or on equipment adapted so they can safely waterski – around the lake. “This is an amazing program and it’s great to be part of it and to see the smiles,” Speer said. A jet ski with two people on board
follow the boat, and if a skier goes down, the jumper, or person riding on the back of the jet ski, jumps in the water to assist. Fay Corbett and Phyllis Belzer, both of Lauderdale Lakes, have been volunteering with Adaptive Adventures for three and two years, respectively. “Julie lives next door to me and told me they needed volunteers and to ask whoever, so I talked to Phyllis,” Corbett said. Belzer said she was a volunteer for years with Veterans Affairs. “I like to do anything with veterans. This is that and more because they work with a lot of people,” Belzer said. The two women are humble about their dedication. “We’re just the cooks,” Belzer said. “Yet I was cooking today and someone asked me for a water, which we also do,” Corbett added.
They also help participants get their life preservers on, if needed. “Basically, we just won’t go in the water,” Belzer said. “Whatever someone needs, they come to us and we help,” Corbett added. The food is supplied but Belzer said she and other volunteers “help fill in anything else that’s needed.” The women said volunteering allows them to witness firsthand the inspiring moments that happen regularly on the shore and lake. “It’s simply amazing to watch them,” Belzer said. “One thing that stands out is when a group of eight or nine veterans – all of whom were visually impaired – went out kayaking. It was really great,” Corbett said. Zbrzezny said in addition to Lauderdale Lakes area residents, the program boasts volunteers who travel up to two hours from Illinois to be part of the program.
How you can help
The adaptive waterski program is one of the few not funded through grants, according to Zbrzezny. “We have started a fundraising campaign in hopes of raising $30,000 for new equipment and resources to continue the program at Lauderdale Lakes,” he said. A fundraiser will be held Sept. 27 from 3 to 9 p.m. at Lauderdale Landing, W5625 Westshore Dr. in Elkhorn. “We’ll have a kayak race and a corn hole tournament along with raffles and great food,” he said. To further support Adaptive Adventures, details about donations, corporate sponsorships and volunteers can be found on the website. For more information, visit adaptiveadventures.org or contact Greg Zbrzezny at greg@ adaptiveadventures.org or (847) 5332060.
Lauderdale Lakes
BREEZE A publication of Southern Lakes Newspapers LLC
HEATHER RUENZ Lauderdale Lakes Breeze
COURTESY ROBERT GONZALEZ Lauderdale Lakes Breeze
Local residents Phyllis Belzer, Fay Corbett and Marianne Kroeplin are volunteers with Adaptive Adventures. Above right: Bonnie Speer, a Lauderdale Lakes resident, volunteers as a boat driver.
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