the BRAIN - Shepherd Center

FoundationFeatures
A Desire to
SHARE
The generosity of individuals and
organizations enables Shepherd Center
to extend its specialty care to military
service personnel. By Sara Baxter
Photo by Anthony Orig
Matthew Sanchez and three friends biked 4,500 miles across the country this past summer –
not just for thrills, but to raise awareness and funds for a Shepherd Center program that serves
active and separated service members.
The program is SHARE – Shaping Hope and Recovery
Excellence – and it extends Shepherd’s continuum of care
to U.S. service men and women who have served in Iraq and
Afghanistan. Through their cross-country odyssey, Matthew
and his team raised $9,625, and donations are still coming in.
“We talked to as many people as we could along the way to
let them know about the program, what it does and why we
were raising the money for it,” Matthew says. “In many cases,
people approached us and asked us about it because we had
car magnets on our support vehicle.”
Matthew’s commitment to bicycle thousands of miles was
born out of a simple desire to give back to those who make
the ultimate sacrifice for country.
“I feel that the men and women serving our nation should
have access to the best treatment available,” he says, “and I
believe this to be at Shepherd Center.”
Matthew experienced Shepherd care first hand: He spent
time at the hospital after sustaining an incomplete C-5 spinal
cord injury in a high school football game in 2005.
The Tyrone, Ga., native walked out of Shepherd and has
been running, biking and swimming ever since.
Matthew is far from alone in his quest to support
the SHARE Initiative. Funded by an initial gift from
philanthropist Bernie Marcus, who also believes the
men and women fighting for our country should have
the best care possible, the program has received support
from other foundations, organizations and individuals.
While the bulk of medical payments for service
members is provided through the military’s healthcare
benefits provider, SHARE helps service members
cover a wide range of other expenses associated with
their injuries.“I see this as the vehicle through which
we can help eliminate barriers associated with coming
to Shepherd for care,” says Terran Cooper, SHARE
project manager. “The things we pay for are a little off
the beaten path.”
3 0 Spinal Column
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