07/23/19 (West Sand Lake, NY) – STRIDE Adaptive Sports announced today that Kim Wilson of Slingerlands has been named the organization’s Volunteer of the Year for 2019. Kim, who is the parent of STRIDE athlete and sled hockey player Luke Wilson, was given the award for founding the STRIDE sled hockey team, bringing it to new heights of recognition and success, and tirelessly supporting other STRIDE programs such as whitewater rafting and skiing.

According to Megan Evans, STRIDE’s Program Director, “Kim is truly the definition of a team player. Ten years ago, the Bethlehem Eagles were a fledgling hockey team for kids with mobility challenges.  Kim reached out to STRIDE to help grow the program she began and today The Capital District Sled Warriors, STRIDE’s only team sport, is an unqualified success.  She has continuously been the absolute best hockey mom for the past 10 years. Her dedication is an inspiration to the entire organization.”

Evans adds that Wilson’s dedication is not limited to the adaptive sports program she founded, but rather to being an ambassador to local Capital Region residents with special needs. “Kim not only is the sled hockey’s team manager, but a volunteer that champions the organization’s mission. She has helped connect the team in our community for the greater good of the organization as a whole and not just for the team itself. She has made it a priority to make sure that anyone wanting to join the team or at least give it a try felt welcomed with her innate motherly instinct. Her tenacity has made the Sled Warriors the team it is today, placing 2nd at the Empire State Games and winning the New England Amelia Park Invitational Tournament.  That is a long way from where they started, and that success can all be traced back to Kim.” 

Additionally, Wilson crosses over from sled hockey to other programs such as whitewater rafting and skiing, where she involved all three of her children to become volunteer ski instructors at Jiminy Peak where she was the primary carpool mom.  An advocate for her son Luke, she helped secure him a paid internship at STRIDE last summer. Even her husband Tom has been a volunteer, assisting STRIDE in the construction of its SHARE Center by donating time and materials for years.

For all those reasons and more, Kim Wilson is STRIDE’s 2019 Volunteer of the Year. More information can be obtained by contacting Mary Ellen Whitney, STRIDE’s Executive Director, or by visiting STRIDE on the web at https://www.stride.org.  

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About STRIDE Adaptive Sports

STRIDE Adaptive Sports is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides over 11,000 adaptive sport and recreation lessons each year to individuals with disabilities, focusing on youth and combat-injured veterans. STRIDE utilizes over 500 skilled volunteer sport instructors; serves over 2,300 families; and offers programs in more than 18 different sports at 26+ regional locations in the Northeastern US. With a focus on individual lifetime sports, our programs use specialized equipment or teaching aids for successful participation to “level the playing field” for all. More information is available at www.stride.org