On Tuesday, July 14th, at the Zanesville VFW Post 1058, the Post Commander Kirby Minnich, along with VFW Post 1058 members and officers, presented local Para athlete Paige Calendine with a specially adapted throwing chair for her to use in track events at Maysville High School.
Paige is a multi-sport athlete who competes in cheer, swimming, track, archery, and gymnastics, to name a few. She just finished her freshman year at Maysville High School and, in her track season, competed at state-level competition in Shot Put. Before receiving this donation from the VFW, Paige had been using a wheelchair that her father modified for throwing sports. When the team made it to state competition, Paige had the opportunity to use this type of chair from another attending team, and the resulting throw was already a foot further.
“It truly shows you what a community will do for a student-athlete; I mean, it goes to show you what kind of organization the VFW is. When she finally got on one of these (chairs), it was night and day with what she realized we could do. What we learned at the state meet was invaluable, and we knew that first off, getting our hands on a chair like this was going to be the most incredible thing we could do. And it was going to be the number one priority, and everything else could go after that, so we are really lucky. We’re really fortunate that we had this support from here. She’s fun to coach on a daily basis, and I look forward to it for three more years!” stated coach Dustin Young.
The chair from Eagle Sportschairs, LLC was fitted to have an adjustable back, a pull pole, casters, straps, tie downs, and stakes to facilitate throwing from a seated position. After using the chair, the coach realized that they would need to get one for Paige as soon as possible, and they made calls to get donations. One call was to the VFW Post 1058, where the Post commander and officers discussed the request and decided to order the chair for Paige. The donation was made possible by the VFW Post 1058 and VFW Ohio Charities.
VFW Post 1058 Commander Kirby Minnich spoke to the crowd. “They wanted to purchase her a special chair that she needs to do shot put. Shaila (Worden) called them, got all the information. Jack (Lambert – VFW Post 1058 Quartermaster), me, Tina (Wartenbee – VFW Post 1058 Canteen Manager), and Shaila sat in the office. We said, call the company. Called the company. We told them to send it to us; we’ll take care of it.”
Taken aback by the local support, Paige Calendine had this to say: “I just want to say thank you to all the people that supported me through my track journey and are going to support me through the rest of my high school career with track and hopefully college”
