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> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> January 25, 2005

# Disabled Veterans Take to the Slopes at Winter Sports Clinic

> WASHINGTON -- More than 350 disabled veterans will ski the Rocky
> Mountains at the 19^th^ National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports
> Clinic in Snowmass Village at Aspen, Colo., April 3-8, 2005.
>
> The clinic is an annual rehabilitation program open to all U.S.
> military veterans with spinal cord injuries or disease, visual
> impairments, certain neurological conditions, orthopedic amputations
> or other disabilities, who receive care at any Department of Veterans
> Affairs (VA) health care facility.
>
> A number of newly injured veterans from Operation Enduring Freedom and
> Operation Iraqi Freedom have signed up to join their fellow veterans
> at the clinic this year to challenge themselves at this special event.
>
> During the six-day program, the veterans will learn adaptive Alpine
> and Nordic skiing and be introduced to a variety of other adaptive
> activities and sports, such as rock climbing, scuba diving,
> snowmobiling and sled hockey. The U.S. Secret Service will also teach
> a course on self-defense for people with disabilities.
>
> Jointly sponsored by VA and the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), the
> clinic is hosted each year by the Grand Junction (Colo.) VA Medical
> Center and VA's Rocky Mountain Network.
>
> \"VA continues to be a recognized leader in providing disabled
> veterans with comprehensive rehabilitation programs, allowing them to
> challenge themselves both physically and mentally," said Secretary of
> Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi. \"These veterans demonstrate to
> all of us that it is ability, not disability, that counts. Their
> strength of spirit and determination to overcome adversity encourage
> all Americans who face challenges in their lives.\"
>
> **- More -**
>
> **Winter Sports Clinic 2/2/2/2**
>
> Known for inspiring \"Miracles on the Mountainside,\" the National
> Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic shows that the lives of
> disabled veterans can be changed forever when they discover the
> challenges they can overcome.
>
> "The National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic is a fantastic
> example of partnership between DAV and VA, with both organizations
> committed to serving the rehabilitative needs of our nation's disabled
> veterans," said DAV National Commander James E. Sursely. "I have been
> a participant in this event and eagerly anticipate returning to
> Snowmass to represent DAV as its national commander. I know this
> year's Winter Sports Clinic will be a life-changing experience for
> everyone involved."
>
> VA is a recognized leader in rehabilitation, with recreational therapy
> programs at each of its 158 hospitals. DAV, which has co-sponsored the
> event since 1991, is a nonprofit, congressionally chartered veterans
> service organization, with a membership of more than one million
> wartime disabled veterans.
>
> \# \# \#

For further information, contact Jenny Shafer Tankersley, VA public
affairs coordinator, Winter Sports Clinic, at (757) 728-3450; or Rob
Lewis, DAV communications, at (859) 442-2049. Or, log on to the event's
web site at:
[www.wintersportsclinic.org](http://www.wintersportsclinic.org/)

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>
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