ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A western North Carolina native is advocating for more adaptive sports for those in wheelchairs.
Wheel Serve Asheville is a program within the Asheville Tennis Association. The group, with help from community partners and grants, was able to purchase adaptive chairs to get those disabled out on the courts.
President of the association, Jeff Joyce, said it felt good being able to provide the program.
“We saw a need here in this area. There are a lot of folks confined to wheelchairs in Buncombe County, and we aim to get them active,” said Joyce. “And hopefully that will help them have physical activity and fun, which is what this is all about it.”
The program has made a major impact on people like Shannon Chisholm, who was paralyzed a decade ago when a car ran her over while she was road biking.
“I remember hearing a big truck give me the way because it passed on the left,” Chisholm said. “She was tailgating the truck and when the truck went over she gunned it and just completely ran me over, she didn’t see me.”
Chisholm said she actually died, then. “I remember being revived and seeing the clouds and the sun,” she explained. Her back was broken in two and she was put in a coma.
“When I woke up, I remember my 14-year-old was by my bedside and I grabbed his hand and I was like, ‘just thank God I’m alive’ because I knew I was paralyzed,” she said.
Chisholm said all that mattered then was more time with her family. She’s a wife and mother to two boys. She now also has a grandbaby as well. “I had them and just started to learn how to live this life,” she added.
It took her years after the accident, but she finally decided it was time to get active again. Before her accident, Chisholm was a bodybuilder and played many sports. She’s done hand cycling, adaptive mountain biking, and now, she’s trying out wheelchair tennis thanks to Wheel Serve Asheville.
“Don’t think that just because I have to sit here for the rest of my life, it’s over,” said Chisholm.
Seeing more adaptive sports coming to the western part of the state makes her feel like she’s actually part of the community. “We’re just regular people, we want to go do things too,” said Chisholm.
Chisholm is also a Ms. Wheelchair NC Coordinator. She won the pageant for the state in 2015.
For Mikki Lewis, who has cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis, having the tennis program offered to her was about opportunity and inclusion.
“It’s about inclusion and showing that no matter what differing ability you have, you still have worth and you can still reach your dreams,” said Lewis.
To learn more about the program, click here.