Nick's Wrestling Schedule and What It Takes for Nick to Wrestle

Hi all,

What does it take for Nick to wrestle? A LOT on his part mostly and a little help too from Team Hyndman, including his PaPa Jagel. More about that in a minute.....

People have been asking so I am posting Nick's wrestling schedule (Perrysburg High School's Wrestling Schedule) on the blog, on Facebook (on Cerebral Palsy Family on Facebook), and I e-mailed it to my contacts as well.


Perrysburg High School Wrestling has a website at http://www.phswrestling.org/. It has a link on the website also to their Facebook Page. Dates and information are on both the website and Facebook.


I scanned a copy of the Jr. Varsity and the Varsity Schedules, which are of course different in some meets, etc. As of today, 11/12/10, we don't know whether Nick is wrestling JV or Varsity. Here are the schedules:

Nick is really looking forward to this wrestling season, only his second ever, but this is his senior year. It's hard work for anyone, and with Nick having CP, it is even harder for him. Last season, he was in a lot of pain but he worked through it and gained SO much strength and his walking improved a lot! Because we don't know yet if he'll be JV or Varsity, and because of the fact that Nick tends to get sick easily and more frequently, if you want to come to see Nick wrestle, contact Greg on his cell phone to see if and where, what time he'll be wrestling. We decided to do it that way because things can change day to day with Nick. So, for that reason, we're giving out Greg's cell phone which is 419-699-8515. If he can't answer (if he's at work or busy), leave a message and he'll get back to you. Otherwise, people may show up when Nick isn't wrestling, which happened last year.

Next week is wrestling pictures, ordering wrestling shirts, etc., and we are having a cookie dough fund-raiser for the team. We are PROUD parents/wrestling parents and are glad to do it all! These are the kinds of things you wish for when your child has a disability, just that he can participate, and then we can't complain when all of the expenses and time-consuming things come along with it!

It is a little different for Nick/us to make this work. As Nick needs physical assistance with his AFO (leg braces) which he wears to school and some things with getting dressed/undressed for wrestling, Greg or my Dad /PaPa Jagel (on the days Greg is working) has to go to school (as they go into the boys locker room, I can't exactly go and help Nick and he wouldn't want that either!) to pick up Charger, Nick's service dog and bring him home (it's a long day for Charger by then AND besides, Nick can't keep an eye on him, take him out, etc. during practice or meets), go back and help Nick undress (with his AFO's, FM system, hearing aids, and the normal stuff-he needs some help) and dress for practice (he can't get on the wrestling shoes or tie them either). Then, many times, when they go to other schools or places for meets, they don't have a bus that can accommodate a wheelchair so we have to transport Nick separately sometimes. (most of the time) So, for four months, we, along with Nick, have wrestling 6 days a week (some weeks 5) and over holiday breaks too. It's a lot, a big commitment for Nick, the whole team, the parents, and us with having to physically help and transport Nick. Having said that though, just to explain it really, we are glad to do it! We are glad to do it because for YEARS, since first grade, Nick said he wanted to "play sports, run" with the kids at his school, on his school teams. Until last year, he was not able to do that. It was totally Nick's idea last year to wrestle and the experience was great. HE made his dream come true. So how can we complain or say no to that? We, and others, take these kinds of things for granted. We have the choice and opportunity to do everything our bodies allow us to. So, if we can't do it, we still have the choice or opportunity. Nick never had the opportunity.

I've always said, I wanted Nick to have all of the opportunities in life that he would have if he did not have a disability. Now, I'm not crazy. I know that this may not always be possible, but THIS is the goal we shoot for and try to make happen in every way we can. It's about having the opportunity and/or different ways of doing things at times for Nick. Would we love a miracle, a cure for cerebral palsy? SURE! We are realistic, however, and just try to shoot for the highest possible outcome short of that miracle cure. We're painfully grounded in reality at times and aware of Nick's situation and disability, but we choose on most days and times to focus on his abilities instead, and on creating and giving him every opportunity to live his life the way he chooses to. Wrestling is just one example of Nick's choosing, one example of him making one of his dreams come true of playing a sport for his school with other kids he goes to school with.

Blessings:)

Amy