Come hell or high water

           I am so excited to share with you my current summer adventure or misadventure with you. Having a Multiple Sclerosis (MS) diagnoses and a Spinal Cord injury (SCI) has left  me confined to a wheelchair and during the summer confined to my home and air conditioning. MS is a disease of the central nervous system (CNS). MS is managed with disease modifying drugs that reduce the frequency of exacerbation's or flare-ups. As a member of the MS community, we commonly refer to these drugs as C.R.A.B. drugs. Copaxone, Rebif, Avonex and Betoseron. All of which, I have tried with no effectiveness. I switched to a new drug called Tysabri that has brought the desired results. My biggest challenge during the summer is staying cool. The heat causes MS to exacerbate so I have kept my adventures to adaptive snow skiing, till this year now it is time to head for the beach. I have taken an inventory of what abilities remain and have come to a conclusion that my next step was kayak surfing

            Having spent a quarter of a century in the water for recreation, and as a rescue professional with the US Coast Guard. It would only make sense to turn to the water and continue it as to develop my expertise as a kayak surfer. Rosanna and I went to the San Clemente Inn near Dana Point to celebrate my 5 year anniversary of the accident that left me partially paralyzed from the waist down. We met up with Steve from Infinity Surfboards at a San Onofre surf spot to give it a try. The surf was 2-3 feet and very inconsistent. In preparation, I signed up for www.Surfline.com to get a feeling of what the surf was doing. It was nice to get that feeling of a connection that I once had.

            Our adventure began once we got to the spot and got unloaded. I was filled with aspirations of ripping it up as I once did when I was younger and watched videos online about kayak surfing.
Steve recommended we do our first time with a dual kayak to get a sense of what we will need to safely surf.
We embarked the kayak and I felt uneasy adjusting to being aboard. Balance would get restored as I acclimated to being on the kayak. We paddled into the surf zone and wouldn't you know it. The tide came up and shut down the surf at the peak we were at. Steve shared with me that the surf spot we were at was divided with surfers at a spot 100 yards away and kayak surfers at the spot we were at. We paddled for a potential wave and as we surged forward a rush that I didn't expect came over me and the wave subsided to the tide. I realized that despite all of my water experience that kayaking is a completely different animal. We paddled over to the group of surfers and were met with smiles. We decided to paddle back in and put an end to our session. I realized that I would have to do some flat water kayaking and build up my strength before we take on some waves. I felt a little humbled but at least I am aware of what I need to do to kayak surf and rip up some waves.

          Although we had some medical issues that prevented us with meeting a dear friend and missed the surf. We learned that we needed to start from square one. This is just the beginning to another great story not a dismal end.
 

What is the Threus Foundation?

I would like to introduce myself. My name is Joseph DeVere. I was diagnosed with MS in 2002 and suffered a spinal cord injury in 2005, which has left me confined to a wheelchair. I am the Founder and President of the Threus Foundation


The Threus Foundation was inspired when my wife,and I received an uncertain prognosis from an expert doctor for Multiple Sclerosis (MS). My doctor, when asked what my prognosis was, said something you never hear a doctor say. Doctor Baumheffner, a Doctor with over 25 years experience with treating and researching MS and head of the Veterans MS Treatment Program,, said  "I don:'t know. It is MS". Isn't that impressive? When do you ever hear something like that from a doctor? 

MS is a progressive disease so I took the news 2 different ways: 1. That the MS would only get worse and 2. I took it as a ticket to ride and experience life with a sense of urgency. We, My wife Rosanna and I, went on a quest to do the three S's: Adaptive snow skiing, adaptive surfing and adaptive SCUBA diving. We didn't know when or how severe the MS would flare up, so we decided go for life with reckless abandon.

After I did adaptive skiing,  I had a revelation and vision that anyone in a wheelchair should be able to try it at no charge for the first time. When I shared the idea with people, I got a really positive response. People actually started giving donations before I would even ask. Rosanna and I set out to acquire a board of directors. They needed to be the creme of the crop type people that share the vision. Let me introduce them to you:  Alvin Malave a wheelchair basketball athlete sponsored by the LA Lakers. Jeremy NC Newman, International motivational speaker, professional wheelchair athlete and fitness coach. Micheal Geenwood, a wheelchair adventure enthusiast, Jody DeVere, an entrepreneur and woman"s business expert.
         
We set up Threus as a corporation with the state of California with the following mission:
The Threus Foundation is a 501(c)3 (pending) committed to improving the lives of wheelchair users by ensuring outdoor recreational opportunities are accessible to everyone.Our first program was during the 2009 winter skiing season called "Get Stoked On Skiing" which included 3 participants. It grew to include 8 participants in 2010 and plan to reach another 15 people with disabilities and begin our
2nd program called "Rolling On the River" which will introduce whitewater rafting during 2011
           
We need your help, Join us with featured speaker, Jeremy NC Newman, November 3rd at the Plug Nickel at 7:00 pm for an "Evening Of  Inspiration" for 95 dollars in advance, 125 at the door. Donate securely Donate here if the website does not load hit reload on your browser. Thank you for spending a few minutes with us and look forward to seeing you there!!



 

Honoring my mother

I stand in awe as I shared the 5 year anniversary of my auto accident t. I look back to the time I spent at Northridge Hospital Rehabilitation Unit and remember my mother Jody DeVere and my wife Rosanna DeVere teaming up to ensure the best care possible. The accident caused my mother to pioneer a unique market with her website www.askpatty.com . it is focused to change they way auto related businesses work to ensure women have a delightful experience while tending to auto related business. She has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Blogher and is a Spokes person for Mobil Oil.I am very proud and privileged to call her Mom. I have always admired her spirit.