July 2017

The biggest thing that helped me regain some normalcy in my life was getting back into hunting, fishing, and the outdoors. Before my accident I was very active in high school sports and the outdoors. When I did have free time I was doing something outdoors. When I had my accident at the age of 15, all of that changed. I did not think I would be able to do what I could before.

When I was first injured in a car accident at 19 years old and became a T6/7 complete paraplegic, I knew immediately that I had a choice to make. I could either focus on the things that I had lost (chiefly, my ability to walk and play sports - I was a high jumper on the University of Oregon's track team when I got hurt) or I could view the injury as a challenge to overcome and an opportunity to view my place in the world in a different way.

My journey started while I was still in high school. I wasn't a model student. To be honest I didn't even like school, and I didn't even have a plan for life after graduation. One day during my junior year the school was doing testing for the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). I had no interest in going into the military, but it got me out of class for a few hours so I took it.

Growing up, Bob and his family spent as much time as possible together in the water – boating, swimming, water skiing, you name it. In fact, Bob has always considered himself a "lake guy." Returning to school after a trip to the lake in his second year of college, he was injured in a car accident that left him paralyzed, but no less a "lake guy" at heart. This meant Bob and his parents had to get creative when it came to their favorite pastime.