JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas -- As a first-time practical student in college, I had the opportunity to volunteer with the 2017 Department of Defense (DoD) Warrior Games held in Chicago, Illinois. Fast forward four and a half years, I am now working alongside the warriors who have trained--despite a global pandemic--for the opportunity to represent Team U.S. Air Force at the 2021 DoD Warrior Games! As a result, I get to experience first-hand the connections between warriors, caregivers, and staff which are strengthened over the course of being enrolled in the Air Force Wounded Warrior (AFW2) Program. As an adaptive sports coordinator, I find comfort in knowing that we are all family - the caregivers, warriors, and staff who all serve one another.
Studies have found in recreation programs--such as the Adaptive Sports Program that AFW2 provides--wounded warriors develop transferable life skills, e.g. communicating their needs, problem solving, compromising, and teamwork. These ultimately contribute to a more positive dynamic in friend and family relations, improving family cohesion.
As a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist, I find a lot of value in continuing the conversation surrounding the value of incorporating family into rehabilitation. The presence of family creates a greater understanding of how a recreation-based rehabilitation approach is effective. Not only this, but families who are present for rehabilitation are able to further understand how their loved ones’ illness, injury or wound can affect the mental, emotional, social, and physical domains of wellness. In therapeutic recreation, it is pertinent to implement interventions that follow a strength-based approach, honing in on the strengths a warrior brings to the table, and minimizing the limitations, or perceived constraints.
Amidst Covid-19, AFW2 adopted remote communication technologies due to the gap created by reduced face-to-face contact, however, the last week of July, the 2021 Air Force Team will be traveling to Joint Base San Antonio, Randolph to train intimately alongside their peers and our world-class coaches. For many, it will be the first in-person event in over a year! There are no words that adequately serve justice towards the excitement that AFW2 warriors, caregivers, and staff are experiencing upon our family being reunited. Here at AFW2, we firmly believe that whether it’s the family you are born into, or the Air Force family, we all come together to take care of our own.