The CSCCa Board of Directors would like to make you aware of a terrible accident that one of our members experienced last May. The CSCCa National Office was recently made aware that Tom Morris, Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at Indiana University, was seriously injured in May 2012 in a mountain biking accent. He suffered a broken neck and paralysis from the chest down. The good news is that after spending several months at the Frazier Rehab Institute in Louisville, Kentucky, and continuing his therapy at the Outpatient Spinal Core Medicine Program at Frazier, Tom has made significant improvements and has regained much of his upper body strength. He even has plans to return soon to his strength and conditioning coaching position at the University, fulfilling all his duties and responsibilities from his wheelchair. This is an unbelievably inspiring story and a witness to the indomitable human spirit exhibited by Coach Morris! We applaud him and his unbelievable accomplishments. We also pray for him and his family and for his continuing return to full health.
His good friend and fellow strength and conditioning coaching colleague, Jason Dierking, Assistant Director of Sports Performance at the University of Louisville, has competed in several athletic competitions with him, most recently in a 2010 half-Ironman competition. The two plan to race together again in the future. Coach Dierking will be competing in the full Ironman which will be held in Louisville this August. He will be dedicating half of the race to Tom, allowing them to race together in spirit, the same way they did two years ago. The only difference is that Coach Dierking will be doing Tom's half Ironman for him.
Coach Dierking would like to bring attention to the mission of the Frazier Rehab Institute. Outpatients, like Tom, come to Frazier from all over the country for spinal cord injury rehabilitation. These patients are responsible for finding and paying for local housing. There are no programs or funding in place to help offset these housing costs. Consequently, Jason will be using his training to raise money to create a fund to cover these costs. He has created a Facebook page (Frazier Rehab Ironman Housing Fund) on which he shares his experiences and knowledge in all aspects of his training. It includes his workouts, how he plans his training, as well as tips on nutrition, recovery, exercise equipment, and other things that inspire him to keep pushing to continue to improve himself. It is his intention to make this an interactive page where others can learn about health and wellness, find inspiration, help people in need, and perhaps be inspired to participate themselves in Ironman or other competitions! Please support the mission and "Like" the Facebook page "Frazier Rehab Ironman Housing Fund".
Please feel free to contact Jason with any questions or to obtain additional information. Jason is to be commended for his selfless efforts to help those in need, and we wish the very best for Coach Morris and his family!
