GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Eighty wheelchair tennis athletes are convening in Grand Rapids for the 2018 Midwest Wheelchair Tennis Championships, presented by Mary Free Bed Wheelchair & Adaptive Sports. This highly competitive, hometown tournament features a mix of amateur and elite athletes such as Paralympian Nick Taylor and Mary Free Bed athlete Mayleah Koop (seated…
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The Grand Rapids Thunder rumbled into Phoenix for the United States Quad Rugby Association national tournament and emerged with the 2018 Division II championship. It’s the first national title for Mary Free Bed’s quad rugby wheelchair team. The No. 2-seeded Thunder defeated the top-seeded Northridge Knights of California, 58-52, in the wheelchair rugby tournament April…
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The Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers once again captured a national championship at the 2018 National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, and coach Lee Montgomery couldn’t be more proud. “We had some ups and downs throughout the tournament, but these kids never gave up,” Montgomery said. “They never gave up.” The Junior Pacers –…
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Grant adds bike to fleet, creates state’s only off-road adaptive handcycle program GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital has received a $10,000 Quality of Life grant from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to help people with disabilities go places that, until now, have been inaccessible. The grant was used to purchase an…
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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Top-ranked wheelchair tennis players from around the world will compete July 7-9 in the 2017 Midwest Wheelchair Tennis Championships in Grand Rapids. The outdoor tournament, an International Tennis Federation 3/United States Tennis Association Category II event, is presented by Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital’s Wheelchair & Adaptive Sports Program. More than…
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Grand Rapids, Mich. — Three-time Paralympian and World Champion Oksana Masters (top image) and three-time Paralympian Aaron Pike (bottom image) will return to Grand Rapids this week to defend their titles in the Fifth Third River Bank Run. Masters will race in the women’s handcycle division and Pike in the wheelchair racing division. The elite…
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More than 75 children and adults with physical disabilities were introduced to adaptive bicycling during Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital’s annual Bikes for the Rest of Us event on Saturday. Each participant was paired with a therapist to determine the necessary adaptations that will enable them to pedal alongside their able-bodied friends. “This event helps…
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Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Sled Wings clinched its first sled hockey national championship during the 2017 USA Hockey Disabled Festival April 6-9 in San Jose, Calif. The Sled Wings defeated the Colorado Warrior Avalanche, 5-2, in the title game. The Sled Wings, a team of Michigan athletes with physical disabilities, are sponsored…
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The Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers captured the National Wheelchair Basketball Association’s Junior Division Varsity Championship during the March 30-April 2 tournament at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, Ky. The Junior Pacers – ranked the No. 4 seed – defeated the Georgia-based BlazeSports Junior Hawks, 54-36, to clinch the title. The Junior Pacers, a…
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Grand Rapids, Mich. – The John F. Butzer Center for Research & Innovation at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital has received a $400,000 grant from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation to compare the effectiveness of two exercise and social engagement programs intended to enhance quality of life for people with spinal cord injuries. “This award…
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