Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PARK CITY — Park City resort was covered with plenty of fresh powder today for U.S. Military Veterans eager to learn big mountain skills on skis and snowboards. It was the kind of day on the mountain that added to the emotional and physical healing that comes with this kind of activity for the veterans.
"Everyone pushes you, and it's just a good feeling," said Navy veteran Stephanie Purpish, who was learning to snowboard this week.
"Day one was really challenging, and I was like, 'I don't know if I can do this,' but nobody let you get off. They were just like no, no," Purpish said.
So, she fought to stay on her feet, took some spills on the snowboard and kept getting back up. "It presents challenges," she said. "You know, you have the opportunity to overcome and gain strength from it."
The veteran has post-traumatic stress disorder and physical injuries after she was attacked and sexually assaulted while working her Navy job in Washington, D.C.
The physical activity and learning a new winter sport was something she yearned as part of her long-term healing process.
"It gives you something positive to focus on," she said. "It gives you the ability to say, 'You know, I didn't lose my career. I didn't lose everything. Now, I have all of these great things to look forward to.'"
Dozens of veterans and their families got that same feeling this week as they hit the mountain for three days as part of the Big Mountain Ski and Snowboard clinic. Team Semper Fi and Team America's Fund athletes learned from world-class coaches and volunteers from the National Abilities Center in Park City. Each of the veterans was either wounded or critically ill. Some are amputees. Others have PTSD or traumatic brain injuries.
"They push themselves," said Taylor Matkins, a National Abilities Center snowboard instructor working with Purpish. "You don't have to push them. They want to learn cool tricks, and they want to learn how to get down the mountain."
The fresh mountain air, the physical activity and a great stormy day on the mountain were all part of the healing for the veterans. But the camaraderie and friendships that they made are something that just may last a lifetime.
"This kind of experience recreates what they had in the military," said BJ Ganem, a Marine veteran.
As veterans transition out of the military, Ganem said, they need another community, or "a squad, if you will."
"Consider this squad therapy. You bring them back in," Ganem. "You have people that have served, that understand that the group is more important than the self. They can come here and work towards a common goal of attacking this mountain."
Some veterans choose skis or snowboards. Others strap into adaptive sit skis.
"We all work with the same purpose to get down the mountain, having a blast the whole way," said Ganem.
The Marine veteran lost his left leg when a roadside bomb exploded in Iraq in 2004. He started snowboarding with the Semper Fi fund a few years ago. Now, he helps the organization with outreach to the veterans.
"When you hear people say that lives are changed, or that they want to get better, now. It makes all the difference in the world," he said.
Purpish said she certainly felt healing and growth in the mountains of Utah, this week. "Now it's easier for me to venture out and explore. Like, how far can I take this?"
Further than she may have imagined, before this retreat.
