Wheelchair-bound accident survivor warns students about taking chances
In 2001 Courtney Keenan was an active, athletic, mobile 21-year old. While swimming at Skiff Lake, Keenan saw two friends in the water up to their necks. He dove in.
He didn’t realize they were sitting down. The water level was lower than he thought.
He dove into two feet of water and his life changed forever. He is confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life, unable to move his legs and with only limited movement above his waist.
“I knew instantly exactly what happened. I used to be a power-line man. I can’t climb poles anymore.”
Keenan has a daily routine, but unlike people with the use of their legs, just getting up in the morning is an arduous task.
“I have to get up and get in my chair. I have to get into a commode chair, take a shower, come back out and get back into my other chair and get my clothes and go over to my bed. I get onto the bed and in order to get dressed I am continuously rolling to get everything put on.”
A morning exercise that takes most people a couple of minutes can take Keenan much longer–and can also be exhausting. In order to put on his socks, he has them rigged with loops to hook his fingers into so he can roll them on. He doesn’t have full muscle control in his hands so he can’t grab hold of the socks without the loops.
Getting into his car is another story.
“I get back into my chair, leave and hop into my car and take my chair apart, put it in the car and drive to work. Put my chair back together again just to get into it. I need a nap just by the time I get to work.”
His car is set up with hand controls for the gas and brakes.
He works an office job now, but it’s a far cry from being outdoors. The accident survivor regularly tells his story to youths to give them a glimpse of what can happen in a reckless moment. He does this public-service work with the P.A.R.T.Y. (Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth) program.
“I ask the kids to think about ‘who you want to be in the future and what you want to do in the future.”
The demonstrations last Wednesday and Thursday were directed at Grade 9 students from Woodstock, Hartland and Canterbury. Keenan says they target Grade 9 students they are just getting introduced to the world of drugs and alcohol and may not understand the possible consequences of using.
“I say to them, ‘Whatever you have come up with that you want to do, can you do it from a chair?’”
Originally appeared in May 20 issue of Carleton FreePress
