OASIS Adaptive Sports, Inc. (Outdoor Adventures for Sacrifice in Service) is a relatively new organization with a mission to assist disabled military veterans in the Central and Western NY region in their return to the mainstream of everyday life. OASIS believes, and research supports, that outdoor sports and activities are one of the best tools to aid the recovery process of a disabled veteran. Through our adaptive sports instruction and long-term support, we are providing programs to enrich and enhance the veteran's quality of life.

Central and Western New York is home to a large population of veterans. In the Rochester Metropolitan (six-county) Statistical Area alone, there are approximately 3000 Guard, Reservist and Active duty soldiers who are presently serving, or have served, in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. It is expected that 50%, or 1500, of those soldiers will have either physical disabilities, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or polytrauma that meet the criteria for our program. For many of those veterans, our program will provide their first exposure to recreational sports after injury, and for some, their only means of participating in such activities. By working with the therapeutic team at Canandaigua VA Hospital, OASIS will have a significant impact on the disabled veteran's recovery.

While there are other organizations providing adaptive sports instruction both regionally and nationally, we believe OASIS is unique in several ways:

• All our Staff, Board of Directors, and Instructors are volunteers providing services on a strictly unpaid basis.
• OASIS works with PTSD and TBI cases, as well as physically disabled veterans.
• The Instruction phase of our program seeks to get the veteran to a level of independence, where he/she can then enjoy their sport of choice on their own, or with a support person, who we've included in the multiple instructional sessions.
• During our Advocacy phase, OASIS works with, and on behalf of, the veteran to establish support which he/she will need to sustain their independence and growth in their chosen sport. An advocate is assigned to each veteran.
• To ensure that we continue to meet the changing needs of the veteran, OASIS has created a data-driven evaluation model that will allow us to modify/improve our programs and the veteran's quality of life over an extended period of time.

Our first sports program, adaptive skiing, was held during the 2009-10 winter season at Bristol Mountain. Four veterans, plus some of their family members and/or support persons, completed up to six weeks of on-snow instruction. This program was rated a tremendous success due in large part to our PSIA-trained instructors, the helpful Bristol Mountain staff, and the snow conditions at the mountain. OASIS completed two additional veterans' programs this past summer. Adaptive archery was held at Heritage Outdoor Sports in Phelps, NY, and adaptive sailing took place at the Canandaigua Yacht Club. We thank these, and all our sponsors for providing the venues and support to make our programs successful.

Future OASIS programs will include adaptive skiing for the blind/visually impaired (winter 2011-12), horsemanship, kayaking, snowboarding, cycling, and firearms.

OASIS Adaptive Sports, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. All our funds come from charitable donations; over 90% of the money goes for adaptive equipment, training, and programs which directly affect the veterans and their families/friends. Additional funding covers cost of insurance and accounting fees.

For more information about OASIS, visit www.oasisadaptivesports.org, or call 585-367-9239.