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BY ASHLEY SZATALA
David Holzer, OHIO STATE 1982, has been a volunteer adaptive ski and kayak instructor for over two decades with Adaptive Sports Connection in Ohio
In 2003 David Holzer, OHIO STATE 1982, accompanied his son to an informational meeting with a nonprofit organization recently highlighted in the local newspaper so that his son could learn the organization’s needs for an Eagle Scout project he was doing. The organization, Adaptive Sports Connection just outside of Columbus, Ohio, was founded in 1992 and serves children, veterans and adults with disabilities through outdoor and therapeutic recreation and education.
While there, Holzer met with the board of directors and several participants and learned that they were developing programs for adaptive snow skiing and kayaking, two sports that Holzer loves and frequently does in his free time. He also was impressed with the mission of empowering individuals though adaptive sports, which carries a ripple effect of confidence into other aspects of their lives. The difference such an act can make is one Holzer was already familiar with. His father was an active volunteer with Easterseals — a national nonprofit whose mission is to increase independence, maximize opportunities, minimize barriers and enhance the quality of life for people with disabilities — and the young Holzer often accompanied him to events and activities for individuals with disabilities.
Soon after that informational Eagle Scout project meeting, Holzer trained to be an adaptive ski instructor and began volunteering with Adaptive Sports Connection in December 2003.
“The whole idea behind Adaptive Sports is getting people back out and doing things. There's a lot of people with disabilities who end up just not engaging in society, and what I learned through Adaptive Sports is they just need opportunities,” Holzer says. “I've never come back from a day of volunteering feeling bad. You always get charged up.”
In the 21 years since first volunteering as an adaptive ski instructor, Holzer also has become a certified adaptive kayak instructor, has been a past president and member of the organization’s board of directors and looks forward to his retirement as a partner with Commercial One Realtors so that he can dedicate more volunteer hours with Adaptive Sports Connection. For his volunteerism with the organization, Holzer has been named this quarter’s Mark V. Anderson Character-in-ActionTM Leadership Award recipient.
ORGANIZATION HAS A STATEWIDE IMPACT
Holzer joined Adaptive Sports Connection during an early growth state of the organization. Within 18 months of becoming a volunteer, he joined the organization’s board of directors and lent his business acumen to help build the organization and expand its volunteer base. Other people who joined in helping Adaptive Sports Connection grow included two additional Ohio State Sigs: Greer Rouda, 1977, who served on the board as well, and John Winters, 1978, who assisted with building the organization’s soccer program. Eventually, the board evolved from an active board to a governing board, and Holzer ended his board service to spend more time volunteering with participants.
Today, Adaptive Sports Connection currently offers adaptive cycling, kayaking, mountain biking, skiing and snowboarding and water skiing, as well as an amputee soccer program of which the MLS team Columbus Crew is a sponsor, and the program has two athletes on the national amputee soccer team. In addition, the organization has a veterans program. Adaptive Sports Connection serves thousands of individuals with disabilities and their families every year in 44 out of 88 Ohio counties, uses ski slopes throughout the state, and Departments of Veterans Affairs for Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton participate in its veterans programming.
“Empowering individuals through adaptive sports is life changing for all involved, regardless of being a participant, volunteer/instructor or a donor to help create positive change,” says Adaptive Sports Connection founder and volunteer Steve Ricker. It’s an assessment Holzer agrees with after witnessing countless individuals blossom through their participation.
“Everybody’s always a little bit nervous to start with. It’s something new. But we have a really good team of volunteers who are trained in every aspect of the sport they're participating in. And part of our job is to make them feel comfortable through our professionalism,” he says. “Once they get out on the snow and get their first couple of runs in, as they progress, it's just so much of a boost for their confidence, which is our goal. By getting out and doing the sports, they build that confidence and they start to get back into enjoying life, knowing that if they can ski down a hill, they can probably do a lot more things than they never thought they could.”
"Once they get out on the snow and get their first couple of runs in, as they progress, it's just so much of a boost for their confidence, which is our goal. By getting out and doing the sports, they build that confidence and they start to get back into enjoying life, knowing that if they can ski down a hill, they can probably do a lot more things than they never thought they could."
VOLUNTEERISM SOON TO BE A FULL-TIME DEDICATION
Ricker credits Holzer’s volunteerism for making a difference in the lives of so many individuals and families.
“David's commitment over two decades and his leadership is allowing for generational growth of an incredible movement. His involvement with [Adaptive Sports Connection] as a long term, dedicated volunteer really sums up the culture and commitment so many volunteers and community members have to fulfilling our cause,” he says. “We believe that as volunteers we get just as much, if not more, from being involved with the empowerment of individuals. It is [our volunteers’] incredible impact on lives and attitudes that allow so many individuals with disabilities and their families to say, ‘If I can do this, I can do anything.’”
Working with participants on the slopes, waterways and elsewhere is truly a joy for Holzer. He’ll be retiring in a couple years, and he knows how he’ll be spending his newfound free time: “Once that happens, it will be a full-time dedication for me.”
Today, Adaptive Sports Connection currently offers adaptive cycling, kayaking, mountain biking, skiing and snowboarding and water skiing, as well as an amputee soccer program of which the MLS team Columbus Crew is a sponsor, and the program has two athletes on the national amputee soccer team. In addition, the organization has a veterans program. Adaptive Sports Connection serves thousands of individuals with disabilities and their families every year in 44 out of 88 Ohio counties, uses ski slopes throughout the state, and Departments of Veterans Affairs for Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton participate in its veterans programming.
“Empowering individuals through adaptive sports is life changing for all involved, regardless of being a participant, volunteer/instructor or a donor to help create positive change,” says Adaptive Sports Connection founder and volunteer Steve Ricker. It’s an assessment Holzer agrees with after witnessing countless individuals blossom through their participation.
“Everybody’s always a little bit nervous to start with. It’s something new. But we have a really good team of volunteers who are trained in every aspect of the sport they're participating in. And part of our job is to make them feel comfortable through our professionalism,” he says. “Once they get out on the snow and get their first couple of runs in, as they progress, it's just so much of a boost for their confidence, which is our goal. By getting out and doing the sports, they build that confidence and they start to get back into enjoying life, knowing that if they can ski down a hill, they can probably do a lot more things than they never thought they could.”
A person with good character shows trustworthiness, respect and fairness to others, as well as responsibility and citizenship. Those members who go out of their way to help others and those who overcome obstacles and lead with integrity are good candidates for the Mark V. Anderson Character-in-ActionTM Leadership Award.
Sigma Chi introduced the award to recognize the selfless acts of brothers. A formal recognition by the Fraternity allows non-members to appreciate the scope of the organization. For information about the award, see sigmachi.org/character.
