Rise up…

Welcome to the Rollercoaster: A Look Back at 2022 and 2023. Greetings from the rollercoaster ride that is life! 🎢 Let’s take a whirlwind tour through the highs, lows, and exhilarating loops that made up my 2022 and 2023 – a journey that has moulded me into a better partner, a better father, and an all-around more grateful human.

An Unforgettable Experience: Leading Team Canada in Beijing So, picture this: Leading Team Canada as the Chef de Mission at the Beijing Paralympic Games in 2022. Our team of 50+ incredible athletes, representing six sports, committed the past four years of their lives to this moment through a pandemic as they prepared to deliver on the biggest sporting stage in the world, then bam, the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It was like navigating a mogul field blindfolded! 🎿 But guess what? We made it through, and the resilience of Team Canada was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Team Canada finished an impressive third overall on the medal table.

Embracing Personal Challenges: Post-Paralympic Reflections Now, let’s fasten our seatbelts to descend into my personal journey. The aftermath of the Paralympics was like an intense rollercoaster drop – a deep crash and a period of self-reflection. It was a journey through childhood trauma, grieving my spinal cord injury, and bidding farewell to the child within me, all while grappling with the early departure of my parents and sister. Talk about a wild ride! Enter therapy – my trusty internal guide supported by professionals helped me to manage the twists and turns. Navigating and transcending these traumas, I emerged like a phoenix rising from the ashes. The end of 2022 marked a new version of myself – a better partner, father, and a human filled with a newfound gratitude, self-awareness and humility.

New Horizons in 2023: Leadership and Family Growth Now, 2023, comes into view, bringing new beginnings and fresh adventures. Picture me snagging a seat on the International Paralympic Committee Governing Board, donning the hat of Vice Chair of the IPC Athletic Council, and teaming up with the Paralympic Foundation of Canada to Ignite our Nation and raise 35M to ensure equitable opportunity and barrier-free sports for all Canadians. 🌟

Family Life and Adventures: The Heart of My World But that’s not all! The family is growing – Nova, the 10-year-old hockey and singing enthusiast, and Hudson, the seven-year-old mountain-born daredevil with a love for biking and snowboarding. Meanwhile, I’m still knee-deep in the freestyle skiing world, serving as the Executive Director for the province of BC.

Gratitude for Life’s Journey: Embracing Every Twist and Turn Life in my World? Never a dull moment. I am grateful for every twist, turn, and loop-de-loop that comes my way, as they shape me professionally and personally. Here’s to the wild ride of life – may it continue to be thrilling, enlightening, and full of growth! 🚀✨