Teammates -
Here is the second half of the interview with Laurie Hollander:
Team RWB: You have a
lot on your plate already, how did you decide to get involved with Team RWB?
How has your time with the Team complimented your work with HOMH?
LH: Tiffany and Mark
Holbert are my introduction to Team RWB and Maj. Mike Erwin! Apparently
the Holberts felt Mike and I share a "HIGH ENERGY" vibe.
Seriously, I met the Holberts while Mark was still on the ward at Walter
Reed and Tiffany instructed me to #1 Get HOMH on Facebook and #2 Run a 200 mile
Relay from Gettysburg to DC with Team Red, White and Blue So, Mark's lying in a
hospital bed all beat up and I'm going to say no?
A few months later I get to meet THE MAN in
person! Mike, Genevive and a great big group of awesome TRWB athletes,
family and support crew met at the starting line and my team, including Mark's
awesome sister, Teresa spent 24+ hours riding in vans and running through the
night to the finish line with the Awesome ODA 3132 that had just reunited with
Mark for the first time since he was injured. AWESOME doesn't come close
to describing the feeling.
I then did Reach the Beach,
SuperFrog with 3 awesome West Point Cadets from this graduating class of
2012, Marine Corps Marathon and the 2011 Olympic triathlon National
Championships all in Team RWB colors and the awesome Eagle flying! 2011
was incredible... and kind of a blur.
Team RWB: Last year
you competed in Vermont at Age Group National Championships, just one of many
accomplishments for you last year alone. What does this year look like
for you, and how do you balance your training with everything else you have
going on?
LH: I spent about 13 years surviving a back
surgery gone bad experience from a drunk driver rear-ending me at the ripe old
age of 19... So, once I got my life back on track in my late 30s I swore I
wasn't ever going to stop moving again (I know, be careful what you ask for!).
I was released from a pain management program in 1999. I found this class
of indoor spin bikes. I rode like Miss Gulch from the Wiz of Oz, sitting
upright for the first year because of the old back. The crazy (in a good way) folks at this
Spinning Gym took me under their wing and I ended up completing a Sprint
Triathlon. Picture this - never a swimmer, rode my kids Hard-Rock bike
with nubby tires (who knew???) and dear lord don't even call what I was doing,
running. But my sons were there at the FINISH LINE and their mom wasn't
on 30 meds a day and crabby anymore!
Fast forward to 2003 when I
completed Ironman Lake Placid. Why? Because I wanted to be an
example to my sons; do things that scare the crap out of you and
FINISH what you START...
I made a promise to myself
to race Lake Placid again for my 50th, 60th, etc birthdays. July 2012 - Lake Placid here momma
comes! Happy Birthday to me! TRWB and HOMH on my back, front, sides
and most importantly across the FINISH LINE!
As a closing question, I asked Laurie what her goals
for HOMH are for 2012, and in what had already been a rather emotional
interview, her answer to that question may have been the most poignant of
all. She said that every year she prays
it is the year that HOMH goes out of business, that there is no further need
for modified vehicles, and that our wounded warriors and their families have
had all their needs met. Here’s to hoping
that she is right this year. Of course,
being the person she is, she quickly clarified that she would just re-write HOMH’s
mission statement and focus on a different aspect of assisting our wounded
warriors and their families.
The blog team cannot thank Laurie enough for her
time, her candor, but most especially, her efforts with HOMH. We wish her all the best in her personal
endeavors for 2012 – get after it at Lake Placid – and to HOMH.
Laurie was also kind enough to send these pictures and captions from the van presentation on 18 January:
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HOMH van recipient, US Army Cpl. Adam
Keys with his mom Julie and mobility consultant, Maureen Pepe in
background. Injured 14 July 2010, Adam spent 520 days in seated, supine or
prone position until he could be supported to go vertical. Here Adam ensures that the gift bow doesn't get too far away - we are so humbled by his
Warrior Spirit! Can we even imagine?
|
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| Adam and Laurie in Adam's awesome new conversion 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan RT |
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| Previous HOMH van recipients SSgt Tim Brown, USMC, and SSG Chaz Allen, US Army also attended the presentation and welcomed the new van recipients into the family. Here they pose with Team RWB member and HOMH President Laurie Hollander. |
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