Tribute to Kevin Pearce, snowboarder with brain injury
February 24th, 2010
From Tom Brokaw, NBC News, a feature about American athlete Kevin Pearce, who was considered one of the best snowboarders bound for the Olympics until he was gravely injured in a training run. He sustained a traumatic brain injury, and is now working to regain his speech, vision and physical coordination.
Brokaw says Pearce has a “special relationship” with his brother, David, who has Down syndrome, a “kindness and patience” that the family has drawn upon during its recent crisis. Pearce’s mother says the wisdom she gained from David helped prepare her to cope with Kevin’s accident and recovery.
” I had never realized before this happened that the great gift of David in our life has been to prepare me for this experience,” she said. “And I feel way better equipped to deal with this thanks to having had David in our life for 24 years.”
UPDATE: A Facebook page honoring Kevin Pearce has garnered almost 44,000 fans as of Wednesday morning. Notes Sports Illustrated:
The site has received notes of support from fans and fellow snowboarders, but also from many survivors of traumatic brain injuries who have described the productive lives they now lead.
There’s also a Facebook page created by fans of David Pearce.
(Photo from NBC News)
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February 24th, 2010 at 1:38 pm
With all our talk about the “R” word, it was refreshing and humbling to read such a beautiful account about life. May we all be reminded of the frailty and value of life through this account. My prayers are with this family.