Using The Obstacle of Having A Spinal Cord Injury to live life to the fullest
I’m Jesi Stracham. I am 24 years old, and living life to the absolute fullest. On January 18th, 2015 I was in a motorcycle accident that left me paralyzed with a spinal cord injury. I am a T5 complete paraplegic. Measuring a whopping 4’3” when sitting straight up, I am often underestimated. As I sat in the hospital, I contemplated what my next move would be; I knew life would never be the same. My first move was to get back on the race track. The owner of UTV Scene, an off-road media source, reached out to me asking if I would like to race in a Polaris ACE. Being the adrenaline junkie I am, I of course said yes! This opened an incredible door of opportunities to network. After a year of off-road racing adventures, I opened the door to adaptive sports.
80,000 Miles Later: Spreading My Spinal Cord Injury Story
In a year and half I put 80,000 miles on my car, traveling the country on my own, spreading my story and inspiring others to live their life to the fullest. One of my greatest accomplishments was driving from North Carolina to California and back on my own. I have also competed in the wheelchair MX worlds, the US disabled water ski nationals, joined the adaptive climbing team, competed in a US curling competition, snow skied, and went on an adaptive hunt. In partnership with Justified Cultures, a lifestyle clothing brand out of Arizona, we co-founded the Wheel With Me Foundation, to help newly injured Spinal Cord injury patients. Dundee, the brand owner, also let me create my own line where 100% of the proceeds go to the foundation as well. In addition to my adaptive sports and promoting others, I work part time for Wheelers Medical Supply, a SCI owned and operated catheter supply company. The owner of the company and myself came to agreement that 100% of my commissions from each patient goes to the Wheel With Me foundation. I also spend a lot of my time peer mentoring, giving others support and tips on how to be successful after injury. I used my injury to recreate my life, dedicating it to help others. I simply want you to wheel with me: "use your obstacles to live life to the fullest."
