RiverScene Magazine | New Horizons Special Abilities First Sporting Trip Set For Saturday
By Janet Cruz
Sponsored Content by Anderson Auto Group
Adaptive Golf and Other Sports is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating fun and exciting athletic activities for people of all skill levels around Lake Havasu City.
This month, founder Craig Adams, with the help of fellow sponsors and in partnership with New Horizons, is putting it on the road with a special Saturday snow sport and fun snow adventure field trip day in Flagstaff.
“Having sponsors making this possible will allow individuals to take part in this journey and have fun in the snow as many have never had the opportunity to see it,” said Brooke Russell, CEO of New Horizons.
“They will all be traveling with some of our staff on our New Horizons bus.”
New Horizons is an organization that has been providing services to people with disabilities in Lake Havasu City since 1974. Individuals participating in the program participate in field trips to local events and are exposed to many social activities while learning life skills such as meal preparation, study time, financial and social skills.
“I think it’s really great that some of them haven’t even seen snow and will have the experience of seeing it. “It’s going to be so great for them,” said Kyla Diaz, DTA director at New Horizons.
The idea came about when Craig Adams, founder of the non-profit organization Adaptive Golf and Other Sports, was on a recent ski trip with his daughter and saw some adaptive sports equipment being used in the snow. Adams thought it would be a fun activity for people of all abilities to have something similar.
“After speaking to Highland Adaptive Sports in Flagstaff, I saw that someone in a wheelchair could ski on adaptive gear. So while I was on the ski lift, I quickly called some local sponsors,” said Adams. “Rather than using Highland, Kyla Diaz, DTA director at New Horizons, made it a better idea so it could be accessible to more people. Instead, it’s a tubing excursion to Flagstaff Snow Park, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. We make it possible.”
Customers, employees, Craig Adams and Lori Swartz of New Horizons pose for a photo at New Horizons. Jillian Danielson/RiverScene
Adaptive Golf and Other Sports of Lake Havasu is a not-for-profit organization that enables athletes of all skill levels to participate in golf and other athletic activities for more than three years. The non-profit organization works in partnership with the community, which includes the Anderson Auto Group and Lake Havasu Golf Club. Funding for the first special trip to Flagstaff is also being made possible by Keller Williams realtor Lori Swartz of Lake Havasu City.
“I just love getting involved in the community and giving back as much as I can. “Anything we can do to help people have experiences they wouldn’t normally have is worthwhile. They know they can definitely reach out to me for anything, I’m grateful to be a part of it,” Swartz said.
Swartz was also involved in the junior golf program with the organization Adaptive Golf And Other Sports.
“I can come up with an idea, but it wouldn’t be possible to make it happen without the help of our sponsors, including Lori, and everyone who supports us,” Adams said.
The trip is scheduled for Saturday. Participants leave Lake Havasu at 7:00 am and Flagstaff at 7:00 pm
For more information on upcoming Adaptive Golf and other sporting events, call Craig Adams at 928-727-3324 or email Director of Marketing Jake Roy at [email protected] or visit the nonprofit’s Facebook page.