IMG_20140622_093006_735After a life-threatening accident in 2013 followed by a difficult rehabilitation, I am just beginning to answer the question that has kept me awake so many nights: Why am I here?

I could easily have let go and not returned to this life.  I saw the other side. There is a reason I came back. There is something I am supposed to be doing. And now I understand one part of that calling. I am here to inspire others.

As I was walking my bike across a four-lane highway, I was hit by a car traveling more than 50 miles-an-hour. I was thrown 29 feet and suffered a traumatic brain injury, torn ligaments and tendons, and multiple broken bones requiring several surgeries. What I didn’t realize until I was into the first stages of healing is that I was fortunate not to have lost my right leg.

I was fortunate.  I am fortunate. I’m alive! I can now think and talk. I can walk. I can use both arms. Though I have two permanent disabilities and know pain management will continue to be a constant challenge, I’m alive and I have a lot to give.

I have many finish lines I’m crossing and will continue to cross. The HobbleJog Foundation is just beginning its journey. The finish line is way ahead—but I have a goal and, with the                                                                        help of many others, we will get there.

The HobbleJog Poem

She lies on the road, like a discarded doll,
The car that hit her has taken its toll,

Broken limbs and a head injury as well,
Her future in doubt, no one can tell,

A long painful recovery, months go by,
And then she said “I will give it a try”

Back on the path hobbling along,
As time goes on she grows strong,

The spirit that moves her becomes a refrain,
The hobbling and jogging eases the pain,

She finds in herself a call to help others,
As long as one hobblejogs there is hope,

The goal is to move forward whatever the pain,
Whatever the challenge there is always the gain.

The HobbleJog Foundation evolved from strife,
And for teens and young adults there is new life.

-Tony Kominoth