[Alex’s] resiliency and ability to get out there and do it, even when it’s real hard, is the spirit of this event .” —Dave Riley, DAV Past National Commander Left: 2019 DAV Freedom Award recipient Alex Hussey (left) and his wife, Kim (right), speak with clinic chairman and Past National Commander Dave Riley (center). Riley, a quadruple amputee, offered advice to the couple about navigating the VA and how his personal experiences at the clinic have helped him during the rehabilitation process. Right: Hussey prepares to go skiing for the first time at the clinic. He was injured by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan that took most of his left hand and left him with a traumatic brain injury. That forward-looking rehabilitative spirit is what led the Husseys, Nichols and over 380 other participants to attend the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic in Snowmass, Colo., in early April. Co-hosted by DAV and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the annual clinic has served as a world leader in adaptive sports for 33 years. It provides the opportunity for veterans with traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, neurological disabilities, blindness and amputations to participate in Nordic and Alpine skiing and snowboarding, rock climbing, scuba diving, sled hockey, snowmobiling and a wide range of other activities. “Since Alex’s injury, we haven’t really gone far from where we live [in Washington],” said Kim. “But Alex has been doing pretty well recently, and this was something he really wanted to do. We finally decided that we wanted to try it out, even though it’s far away.” DAV | @DAVHQ | DAVHQ | “Alex has got a pretty significant disability, and just getting him out of the house and traveling here, navigating TSA and showing up is a large thing,” said clinic chairperson and DAV Past National Commander Dave Riley, himself a quadruple amputee. “His resiliency and ability to get out there and do it, even when it’s real hard, is the spirit of this event.” For his outstanding courage, Hussey received the 2019 DAV Freedom Award. The award is given each year to the veteran who is an example to all disabled veteran athletes by embodying the spirit of the event and progressing in their rehabilitation. “Veterans like Alex and his spouse and caregiver Kim are what drive the VA and DAV in coming back every year in our partnership to deliver the winter sports clinic,” said Michael Kilmer, director of the VA’s Western Colorado Health Care System. DAVETERANS | DISABLEDVETERANS 17 COMPANY/DAVHQ |