Article about local swim-a-thon.
Taking part in benefit swimming events is nothing new to David Gelfand. Now he’s actually organizing one.
The 11-year -old is putting together a swim-athon fund-raiser on April 9 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Weston Middle School Pool. Proceeds will benefit Weston Swimming as well as the Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF). The event is open to swimmers of all ages.
Participants will swim for 15 minutes, keeping track of their laps. Each will receive a raffle ticket for every four laps swum. Prizes include an iPod Touch and gift certificates at local restaurants and stores.
“CAF is important to me personally because I have received so much inspiration and peer support from the accomplished challenged athletes associated with this organization,” said David, a sixth-grade student at Weston Middle School and a challenged athlete himself. “CAF gives grants to help disabled athletes pay for the expensive equipment that insurance won’t cover and the training funds to participate in athletic competitions.”
Also a member of Weston swimming, David swims several times a week. A backstroke swimmer, he has qualified for the age group championships to be held March 12.
A sixth grade student at Weston Middle School, David was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency (PFFD), a rare non-hereditary condition in which the proximal femur (thighbone) is partially absent. According to his mother, Linda, he has worn a prosthetic limb ever since he was old enough to pull himself up.
David has competed in the National Junior Disability Championships, an Olympic-style sports competition for youth with physical disabilities that impede movement/the ability to participate in non-adapted sports. In 2008 he won several gold medals in his age group.
More information with this source.
No comments:
Post a Comment