|
The Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation is a charitable organization founded in 2000 and headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey. The charity aims to find a cure for paralysis. ==History== The Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation (SSPF) was created by Sam Schmidt to help individuals overcome spinal cord injuries and other neurological disorders. Sam sustained a C-3/4/5 spinal cord injury during a race-testing accident on January 6, 2000, while practicing for the season-opening Indy Racing League event at Walt Disney World Speedway in Orlando, Florida. While in a rehabilitation hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, Sam realized he was one of the lucky ones. He had an incredible support system including his faith, family and the motorsports community. He also realized he had very good insurance. Sam quickly learned these are not generally the demographics of someone with a spinal cord injury. Sam vowed that when he was able to leave the rehabilitation hospital, he would not forget the less-privileged patients he met. He realized in order to solve some of their issues, he needed to raise awareness of spinal cord injury and the horrendous impact it has on the patient and family. Funds needed to be raised for medical research to develop cures and effective therapeutic treatments for paralysis. Thus, with the help of several of his closest friends, the Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation was formed in May 2000 and is still growing and moving ahead. Schmidt's desire to beat paralysis drives him daily. “Since my injury I have learned so much about the tremendous needs of people suffering from spinal cord injuries,” Schmidt says. “There are three areas on which I have asked the Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation to concentrate its fund-raising efforts. The first is medical research. The second, innovative equipment that can be used for rehabilitation. And, third, I want to help people with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities by addressing quality of life issues.” “I've come to understand why I'm here,” Schmidt says. “We're spreading the message that you need to stay in shape and keep working hard, because some type of treatment is going to come. Frankly, I've come to the realization that I'm helping a lot more people now that I ever could as a driver.” "Let's face it, my motivation in the Foundation is somewhat selfish,” he adds. “It was started out of my desire to walk again, but if I can help myself and thousands of others achieve this goal, that would be fantastic!" Sam wants everyone to clearly understand that absolutely no funds raised by the Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation are used in support of his racing team, Sam Schmidt Motorsports. Every dollar raised in the Foundation goes to support the organization's mission of helping individuals overcome spinal cord injuries and to facilitate research, treatment and rehabilitation. The Motorsports team's role is to raise awareness of the Foundation and paralysis issues. The Foundation funds research with the highest level of integrity and future promise at institutions such as: • 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|