Stories of Getting Better at The Children's Hospital

The Hospital Sports Program helps kids find a new kind of courage on the slopes

"For Jackie, it can be hard to walk a block without pain," explains her dad. "So when she said she wanted to ski, I was worried. She has cerebral palsy. She can trip over uneven carpet fiber just crossing the room. But on the mountain, she's free. It's beautiful to watch her. And she just loves it."

Seventeen year-old Jackie smiles and adds, "The best part is the confidence I get looking back up what I just skied down. It's usually steep. And then I feel like I can do anything." And when her dad says, "I didn't think she could make it down. But now I see she's capable of a lot more than we thought. This is who she is, this is what she does," they both smile.

Kids find freedom from physical challenges

And that's huge. Because for the 60 or so kids who ski, snowboard or sit ski with The Children's Hospital Sports Program (TCH HSP) each season, the list of what they can't do can be long. TCH HSP gives kids with physical disabilities-cancer, amputations, spina bifida, cerebral palsy, head and spinal cord injuries-the chance to cross a few things off that list.

On Saturdays throughout the ski season, these kids and a team of volunteers hit the slopes at Winter Park under the tutelage of the National Sports Center for the Disabled. According to one mom, the first accomplishment of TCH HSP is giving kids the chance "to do something fun for a whole day, without mom and dad following them around, smothering them." So why do these often protective parents trust TCH HSP to take their kids skiing?

Our parents and families trust The Children's Hospital

Knowing their kids are skiing with The Children's Hospital is a big part of it. Our program, possibly the very first in the nation for kids with physical disabilities, began over 40 years ago. Today, there are programs all over the world based on our model.

What's more, our volunteer medical director is our own incredible Dr. Frank Chang. During the week, Dr. Chang serves as director of Orthopedic Surgery, medical director for the Center for Gait and Movement Analysis and professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Pediatrics and Rehabilitation Medicine.

But on the weekends for the past 23 years, he volunteers as medical director of TCH HSP, providing our kids with guidance related to orthopedic issues, treatment and tender, loving care in the event of injuries and encouragement on the slopes. His wonderful sense of humor, fun personality and established relationships with most of the families helps parents feel better about letting go.

"About 85% of our kids [who ski with us] are our patients, too," says Carol Page, program director and a physical therapist at The Children's Hospital. "We've known most of our kids for years. We know what meds they're on, we understand their illnesses, so they're safer with us." Carol, who's been involved with HSP for nearly 35 years, is the one who helps team up instructors with kids, usually based on temperament and learning style.

How we teach kids with physical disabilities to ski

"Some kids need two instructors, depending on how stable they are, and if they are able to get up if they fall over," says Carol. And there's the adaptive equipment, too. "You have upright skiers who ski two track; three track, which is one ski and two outriggers; four track, two skis and two outriggers.

There's also a variety of sit-ski styles that may or may not be paired with outriggers." Outriggers are basically forearm crutches with a ski tip mounted on a rocker base used to enhance a skier's balance and control. "We're also able to make minute adjustments to the equipment all season long, as we observe a need. That's pretty unique."

So for 10 Sundays each winter, kids ages 8-18 meet in a chilly Denver parking lot at 7 a.m. sharp, hop on a specially-equipped bus and take the winding road to Winter Park, sometimes leaving behind teary parents. "We socialize, we watch movies, we eat candy.

But when we get there, we get to work," says 14-year-old skier Kaley. For Kaley, who has cerebral palsy, this year was all about "better parallel turns so I can go faster when I'm racing. And bump strategies-I like moguls." For other kids, it was getting to the top of Mary Jane, learning their way around the mountain or simply not falling, all the while building incredible confidence.

Building self-confidence for life 

That confidence serves them well off the slopes, too. "There's a self-confidence that carries over in all kinds of aspects of her life," says Kaley's mom. "After a ski week, she walks a little taller, stands a little straighter. You can see it. It's obvious. You lose that sense of disability on the mountaintop. And this year, when we skied as a family, she passed her brother on the slopes."

On the mountain, "you can't tell the difference between someone who's disabled and everyone else," explains 14-year-old skier, Jessica, who has cerebral palsy. "Everyone falls. Here, I have the freedom of not being different. And it builds a ton of confidence and makes me realize I'm more able to do lots of things, like go to overnight camp." Last summer, Jessica was away from her family for a week of river rafting, horseback riding, biking and building more confidence. "Without skiing, I would have never had the confidence to go to camp," adds Jessica.

"For kids who go through the world feeling like they're exceptional, it's incredible to find a place where they can be one of many. And that's what Evan found here," says his dad. "This is the first place he found in his life where he felt completely accepted as himself." And though his first season as a skier was mostly about falling down and getting back up again, 10 seasons later, he graduated from the program, having skied his fair share of Winter Park. "With the help of this program, Evan sprouted wings."

Learn more about the The Children's Hospital Sports Program.

Get Involved

Last year it took 65 volunteers and 7,000 volunteer hours to run the program. Ongoing volunteer leadership and assistance are always needed, in a variety of roles and fund-raising efforts.

To find out more about volunteering with the on mountain aspects of the program, please contact the HSP office.

For information on how to get involved fundraising, please contact The Children's Hospital Association of Volunteers and ask about the "Friends" Chapter program.
Tel: (720) 777-6887

Program Contacts

Carol Page, PT, Program Manager
Wendy Larsen, MHS, Activity Coordinator
Jane Fellerman, Staff Assistant
Tel: (720) 777-1234, ext 6590