‘It’s so freeing’: Day at the Lake gives those with disabilities opportunities for something new

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) -Kansas City is in the grip of a heat wave. What better way to beat it than to head for the water?

That’s just what some with spinal cord injuries and other disabilities had the chance to do.

It was the 27th annual Day at the Lake hosted by Midwest Adaptive Sports and Ability KC. Activities included pontoon boat rides, kayaking, and fishing — but the highlight was waterskiing.

“It’s so freeing,” said Tony Durham, one of the participants. “It’s that form of independence you feel in the water--you’re free out there. You can just enjoy the water.”

Today was the first time in about 20 years that Durham was able to ski. He was left with a spinal cord injury after a car accident and is now in a wheelchair.

“That’s the cool thing about here. You have no fear of injury. (There’s) a team of helpers on jet skis out there to help you. It’s just a cool place to come and have a lot of fun,” said Durham.

It takes a team of 8-10 people to get each skier on the water. A team to fit the equipment, two in the boat, and four on jet skis—two of them jump into the water to help the skier when they fall. In all about 50 people took part in the activities, with about as many volunteers.

“It’s a lot of hard work, but we’re also providing people with disabilities, including myself, just the opportunity that they don’t get a lot--so that’s pretty special,” said Tom Knaus, one of the organizers of the event. Knaus is a board member at Midwest Adaptive Sports and first attended the event as a volunteer eight years ago.

Midwest Adaptive Sports is a nonprofit providing year-round programs for athletes of all abilities—including wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair softball and snow skiing.

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