Breaking Down Barriers

With so many assistive technologies and techniques available, the challenge is to assemble them into one place.

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On a beautiful November day in 2007, 58-year-old Angie Davis left the stables for her weekly horseback ride through the central Florida woods. Little did she know something was about to go terribly wrong.

Davis still isn't sure what spooked her horse, but something made him jump and take off back to the stables. She managed to stay on, dodging low-hanging limbs while holding on as tightly as she could to her saddle. Finally, the barn came into sight. Thinking her jockey-racing days were about over, she sighed a breath of relief. Just then her horse turned "on a dime," throwing Davis into a fence.

The next thing Davis remembers is a paramedic saying, "Don't move." She was airlifted to the nearest hospital, where she remained for 12 days. Despite surgery, the spinal damage was too severe, resulting in Davis's paralysis from the waist down. The doctors told her she would never walk again.

Starting Over

Living life in moderation was never Davis's style. Before her injury she was full of work, family, friends, and fun, but horseback riding was her passion. She and her husband Gary ran a successful business in which she handled the finances and sales. Now Angie was living a life she never conceived, with her husband her full-time caregiver. The impact on their family and business was tremendous. Her pain was constant, and the frustration of starting over with body parts that wouldn't move was taking its toll.

It was a rough time for Davis and her family—the spinal injury was the most difficult challenge she had ever faced. But she knew she had to be persistent with her rehabilitation, so she wasn't about to give up.

"After all, there is still a lot of life after an accident," notes Davis.

After insurance began cutting back on the amount of Angie's approved therapy, Gary began raising funds and researching alternative options in order to continue a strong rehab program. While searching online, he discovered the No Barriers Festival in Miami and decided to surprise his wife with a weekend of adaptive recreational fun, learning, and inspiration.

"It changed my life!" says Davis. "I was so inspired by all the people who were there. It came at the perfect time and exceeded all my expectations."

Chanda Hinton gets a good look at her deep-sea fishing catch. Despite initial problems getting on the boat, she was the first one to catch a fish.

Her doctor wasn't thrilled about approving the therapeutic riding clinic, but Davis insisted she had to do it.

"My dreams came true when I got back on a horse at the festival," she says. "I was also interested in the speakers and the technology. I left there knowing I could do anything."

During the No Barriers Festival, Davis also enjoyed sailing, swimming with the dolphins, and handcycling.

Life Reinvigorated

Davis found inspiration at the No Barriers Festival in June 2009. Since then she has realized how many opportunities are available despite—or because of—her wheelchair. Although she hasn't been able to return to riding yet—the nearest therapeutic riding center is two hours away and has a long wait list—her activity level has increased significantly. Until Davis can get into a riding program, she has returned to another favorite activity: In two months she competes in her first wheelchair-tennis tournament.

"I played tennis before the accident, but now I play in a wheelchair," says Davis. "You don't even care that you are doing it differently than you did before."

Regaining her independence has been the biggest challenge. The people Davis met at the festival gave her the confidence to know she can do nearly everything she used to do.

Davis is the perfect example of shattering barriers and living life more fully despite challenges. Listening to her tell the story of her accident, you might wonder which it was: the best ride or worst experience of her life.

Davis now stands erect and walks up to 45 minutes at a time with the help of a walker, even negotiating sidewalk curbs.

"I hardly see any difference in the pre- and post-injury Angie," says Gary. "She appears to view her physical disability much like her golf handicap—just another sporting challenge that can and will be overcome. The wheelchair and walker give away her paralysis, but you won't find a healthier or more recovery-driven person."

What Is No Barriers USA?

Founded in 2003, No Barriers USA strives to spark the human spirit. The organization's goal is to ignite in people an attitude that leads them to confront formidable obstacles head-on, to believe they can solve their own challenges, to become their own advocates, and ultimately to determine their own futures. No Barriers promotes a universal message for anyone who, despite backgrounds, circumstances, or abilities, wishes to shatter barriers and pursue dreams.

So many revolutionary technologies and techniques exist, but the challenge is to assemble them into one place. The group's international festivals give people the chance to experience them in an active hands-on way. The result is that the developers and end users benefit from each other, and this interaction fuels the next wave of innovation. Additionally, participants go away with more knowledge and empowerment to create the personal breakthroughs that will enable them to achieve their own dreams.

Festivals offer a combination of a technology symposium where the latest breakthroughs in adaptive equipment and prosthetics are presented, an equipment fair where state-of-the-art adaptive products are displayed and demonstrated, and interactive outdoor clinics on rock climbing, off-road biking, kayaking, sailing, and scuba where participants can put these technologies and ideas to use.

The group's online educational resource center brings the information from the festivals to everyone year-round. Professionals and individuals have the opportunity to discover new adaptive technologies and devices and directly link them to an agency or company to help them explore how they can assist them in living a more fulfilling, active life.

The festivals are venues for exploring new avenues for social change. Dynamic, diverse, and inspiring discussions take place among foundations, social entrepreneurs, disability organizations, athletes, corporations, scientists, and filmmakers.

No Barriers USA is not just a name or another nonprofit, but a state of mind. It is an attitude of reaching out and finding ways to accomplish dreams, no matter what it takes. No Barriers seeks to improve the quality of lives of all people, regardless of age, state of mind, or physical condition, through the use of technology.

The Chanda Plan

When I first met Chanda Hinton at No Barriers Festival 2009, she was full of smiles and excitement. Although she had heard about previous festivals, this was her first time attending, and she was looking forward to new experiences.

At age 9, Hinton was accidentally shot, which resulted in a severed spinal cord and  paralysis from the neck down. Living in a small rural town in Nebraska, she did not have access to adaptive activities. Despite the lack of services, her family tried to provide her as normal a life as possible. Although her parents were reluctant to let her leave for college, Hinton attended the University of Denver. Today, she still lives in Denver and runs the Chanda Plan Foundation, which educates people with disabilities about integrative therapies and provides funds for access to alternative therapies.

While alternative therapies strengthened Hinton's body and allowed her to start enjoying recreational activities, that wasn't enough. Her fiancé is an avid mountain biker, and it frustrated Hinton that she couldn't enjoy outdoor sports with him. It was this desire that brought her to Miami to attend the No Barriers Festival.

Prior to attending the festival, adaptive yoga was Hinton's main activity. "Until I started doing integrative therapies, I never had the strength to do anything. I was always fighting being sick. Now that I am stronger, I wanted to do more but didn't know what I would be able to do."

Hinton told me she never thought she would ride a bike, yet during the festival I saw her zipping around the trails and parking lot on a handcycle with the biggest smile on her face. She and her fiancé kayaked around the small islands in Biscayne Bay. On the last day of the festival, Hinton signed up to go deep-sea fishing. At the docks, one of the ship's mates said he didn't think he could get her on the boat with her wheelchair. Someone in the group yelled out, "Hey, this is No Barriers! That means we figure it out and get her on the boat." Davis ended up being the first one to reel in a fish that day.

"The festival was amazing," says Hinton. "I never realized I could enjoy so many leisure activities. I did things beyond most people's expectations."

Within months of returning home from the festival, she bought a tandem kayak with an adaptive seat like the one she used in Miami. She and her fiancé have a new goal: "We want to kayak in a lake in every state in the country by the year 2016."

Davis is also in the process of obtaining a handcycle. Her goal is to participate in the Denver Breast Cancer Walk and eventually join other cycling events.

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