Kevin L Ames <[log in to unmask]> writes:
>>
>>I don't think anyone who got to see the press conference Travis held today
>>either in its entirety or in pieces could not have been moved by it.
>
>Everyday in this country someone is paralyzed.  It is sad to see that just
>because one of them happens do be an athlete, a college one at that, that he
>recieves national recognition and thus more donor money.  The story is
>sad... but it is now a human issue rather than a hockey issue.  There are
>many many handicapped people who need monitary assistance as much as Travis
>Roy, but do to his athlete nature and the national attention he is being
>exposed to his pockets will be jingling.
 
I would say that this reflects an incredible short-sightedness on your
part.  If you read further down in the message that I posted from and
which you quoted, you would have seen that TR intends to do what he
can to be a spokesman for spinal injuries, raise awareness, and "give
something back" for all of the support he has received.
 
It is true that partly because of his high profile as an athlete, TR
has benefited financially to help him get the treatment he needs.  But
consider how much as a result he may be able to do now to help those
other people who were not as fortunate as he was.  If you look just at
how much "his pockets will be jingling", you truly miss the whole
point.  TR could well help hundreds more besides himself and help
raise for them many times what he has received.
 
BTW, TR was asked yesterday why he felt so many people sent money and
notes as they did.  He said, bluntly, that he thought it was because
not many people had pictures of themselves breaking their necks - and
it is something that affects people when they see it.  I think that as
well, the stories about what kind of person he is affected people too.
People in the Boston area found out first and got the ball rolling to
help, and passed the story on to other people who did their part.
 
I wouldn't suggest that other people who suffer this injury are not
good people.  But I think it was a combination of things that resulted
in TR getting the support he got, and a big part of it was that here
was a person who had done so much for other people (read the SI
article) and the people closest to him wanted to help him back and
make people aware of what kind of person he is.  In other words, the
fact that he was an athlete played a role, but it alone does not
explain the entire phenomenon of what happened afterwards.  To be
honest, I didn't know a darn thing about Travis Roy before this
happened and neither did many people.  He hadn't had a chance to put
his mark upon the game we follow.  The SI piece was one of the most
amazing articles I have ever read.
 
Finally, the consciousness of the hockey community, at least, as a
whole has been raised as a result of this, and there is an attempt to
help others besides TR who are hurt in hockey.  We know there will be
a post-season senior all-star game at UNH for John Gilpatrick of
Suffolk, also injured at BU's Walter Brown Arena.  He did not play for
as high profile a program, but the Eastern hockey community is trying
to help him as it helped TR.  Hopefully UNH will sell out for this
game in early April.  Details are posted on several of the big college
hockey web sites, for those who have missed them.
 
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                 [log in to unmask]           [log in to unmask]
Cabletron Systems, Inc.                                    *HMM* 11/13/93
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