BALTIMORE — Two Baltimore County residents are heading to Colorado to compete in the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic.
Harvey Guary is an Air Force veteran who is legally blind.
But, he's not letting that slow him down.
"We ski, we fly fish, the local Elks club treats us to lunch. Besides skiing, there's a lot of other activities to do," said Guary.
Known as Miracles on a Mountainside, the five-day event hosts more than 400 disabled veterans from across the country.
Fellow veteran Devora Exline has attended for 13 years.
"You get to see people that you may have met for the first time last year or met the very first year you went, and you have that only opportunity to see them again," said Exline, who served in the Navy.
Exline suffered from a traumatic brain injury, leaving her unable to ski standing-up. This year will be different.
"I had to sit ski, which was a challenge in itself and this year I get to go back to stand up skiing, so I'm really excited to see if that muscle memories comes back," said Exline.
Exline and Guary are heading to the Rockies thanks to the VA Maryland Healthcare System.
Both disabled veterans told us about the importance of keeping active.
"A lot of veterans, you know, go through depression once they are injured or disabled. The suicide rate is high, and it's like one activity where you feel like you can belong," said Guary.
"There's pretty much an opportunity for you to expand on any kind of adaptive sport you may want to try, which is not only imperative for new veterans coming to the clinic, as well as seasoned veterans like myself," said Exline.
The National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic goes from March 31st to April 5th.