For the third year, Atlanta businesswoman Lisa Simmons will climb to new heights in support of an organization that helps young people and veterans with physical disabilities blaze their own athletic trails.
Ms. Simmons, co-founder and president of property management firm Beacon Management, in August will hike the iconic Andean ruins of Machu Picchu, a spiritual settlement of the Inca tribe, before summiting Peru’s nearby Rainbow Mountain (elevation: 17,000 feet). Covered in sedimental striations that lend it vibrant colors, the mountain was hidden by a blanket of snow until just four years ago.
The “Moving Mountains” trip seeks to raise $25,000 for BlazeSports America, the legacy organization of the Paralympic Games held on the heels of the Olympics in 1996.
BlazeSports just celebrated its 25th anniversary, and some of its program alumni are slated to compete in this year’s Paralympic Games in Tokyo. An experienced nonprofit in the world of adaptive sports, Blaze operates sports camps, practices and tournaments in wheelchair basketball, track and field, archery, swimming, and its newest program: wheelchair tennis.
Ms. Simmons, a Roswell resident, hadn’t heard of BlazeSports until she began planning for her first fundraising trip, a hike across the Grand Canyon’s rim-to-rim trail in 2018.
A breast cancer survivor herself, she sought to put her love of adventure and travel to use for a deserving organization. But it was challenging to find one that jelled well with an idea that was coming into focus: walking in support of those who may not be able to do the same.
“It turns out that nothing I really thought about was easy to raise money for,” Ms. Simmons told Global Atlanta.
She read an article about Blaze’s support of a youth wheelchair basketball group and saw that the organization was not only based in Norcross, but also held practices at Roswell’s Centennial High School.
“That’s like two minutes from my house,” she said. After going out to meet the program directors, coaches and especially athletes practicing on the track, she was sold on the mission. “The stories about these kids and where they came from and what happened and how their lives were changed because they were able to have fun and play and race — I thought, ‘What a great environment; it’s so healthy and positive.’ I felt inspired to help out as much as I could.”
That first year, she raised nearly $17,000, followed by a similar total during the first International trip to Mount Kilimanjaro in 2019. Last year she was slated to summit Mount Elbrus, which is located in Russia in the Caucasus range close to the border with Georgia. The pandemic curtailed those plans last year, and this year neither Elbrus nor the Argentine peak of Aconcagua — the highest in South America — were open to foreign climbers.
So she settled on Peru, delaying her nascent quest to join the exclusive ranks of women who have climbed all seven summits, the highest peak on each continent, but resuming her support of BlazeSports — a welcome gesture for an organization coming back to in-person events.
“What Lisa’s doing is monumental because she brings new people into the world of adaptive sports,” said Executive Director Dawn Chiru, who joined the organization last August in the midst of the pandemic. “When you see these athletes, or the paralympians, or our athletes competing, you kind of get it right away.”
While Blaze has been around for 25 years, many Atlantans may have forgotten about the organization or never knew it was here, Ms. Chiru said. That’s a missed opportunity given that it already has more capacity to serve more youth and veterans who were hit even harder during the pandemic with the curse of social isolation.
During the lull in programs, Blaze added support for veterans (and their families) suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder — its first mental health-oriented program — while strengthening its training and adaptive sports certifications for organizations and coaches, including some in other parts of the world.
The Paralympics in Tokyo will offer further visibility, given that it’s set to be featured on primetime television this year. Given its history, BlazeSports has always focused on putting athletes on a track toward the games.
“It’s not always fresh in people’s minds, so what’s happening now with the Paralympics coming back and our 25th anniversary, it’s really re-engaging people’s minds,” Ms. Churi said.
Blaze also hopes to lend its voice to ongoing conversations about diversity and inclusion that have grown even more vital after a year health crises and racial tension.
“I think one of our goals at Blaze is to make sure that the conversation about diversity, equity and inclusion includes those with disabilities,” Ms. Chiru said, noting that the organization is interested in working with international groups as soon as travel opens back up.
Ms. Simmons joins her all-female hiking group and guide in Peru Aug. 5.
Learn more and support her trip here.
Learn more about BlazeSports at www.blazesports.org.
As we celebrate the opening ceremonies of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics we are also celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Atlanta 1996 Olympics and Paralympics out of which BlazeSports was founded.
We are grateful to have served our community for 25 years! #tokyo2020 #25yearsofblaze pic.twitter.com/MruKwyiZpK— BlazeSports (@blazesports) July 23, 2021
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