A non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable education organization

Our Causes

Therapeutic Adventures (TA) (adaptive outdoor adventures) and IndependencePlus Adaptive Sports (I~AS) (recreational and competitive adaptive sports) provides valuable programs and services to support individuals and their families as they learn new ways to address and overcome the challenges associated with physical and developmental disabilities, chronic health impairments and other special health needs.

Celebrating 40 years of service, TA & I~AS has partnered with and consulted for many Children’s and Adult Rehabilitation Centers, Military Programs and Veterans Hospitals, Community Hospitals, Cancer Treatment Centers, Therapeutic Recreation Programs, School Systems – Special Education Programs, and Special Therapeutic Camps.

Physical & Developmental Disabilities

Reports suggest that over 54 million Americans currently have a disability and that most others will become disabled at some point in their lives. For the U.S. Population, current findings indicate: 7% Hard of hearing, 2% Deaf, 4.5% Visually impaired, 2.6% Use mobility devices, 1% Epilepsy and seizures. A partial list of the types of physical and developmental disabilities TA and I~AS has designed and provided programs for: Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), Traumatic Brain injury (TBI), Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Muscular Dystrophy (MD), Amputations and Congenital Limb Deficiency, Stroke/Cerebral Vascular Accident (CVA), Myelomeningocele (spina bifida), Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Guillain-Barré Syndrome, Poliomyelitis & Post Polio Syndrome, Mitochondrial Disorder, Friedreich’s Ataxia and other neurological disorders. Incidence and causes of developmental disabilities are attributed, in part, to delays in growth and development. TA and I~AS also serves individuals with: Cerebral Palsy (CP), Epilepsy or Seizures, Blind or Visual Impairments, Deaf or Hearing Impairments, Down’s Syndrome, and the Autism Spectrum.

Disabled Heroes – Military, Warfighters, Veterans, 1st Responders and their Families

Today, there are over 2.3 million Disabled Veterans in the U.S. The number of disabled men and women veterans is growing with each day that the war on terror continues and each day we have soldiers deployed in military and peacekeeping missions around the globe. Our wounded military service members (men & women), and disabled veterans (men & women) have given so much for the freedoms we all enjoy. Unfortunately, many have sustained life changing trauma (both visible and invisible) including: amputations, spinal cord injury, burns, blindness, traumatic brain injury, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other significant trauma that requires long term medical and rehabilitation services. Continued advances in emergency medical and trauma care, bio-medical engineering, prosthetics and orthotics, physical & occupational therapy, as well as counseling and mental health services all provide hope for a better future.

For the past 4 decades, it has been an honor for TA and I~AS to provide specialty adaptive sports and outdoor rehabilitation services for the men and women of our military who have represented our great nation defending the freedoms we all enjoy. Our program, OPERATION FREEDOM OUTDOORS — Serving our Disabled Military Heroes, provides adaptive instruction and guide services, unique mentoring experiences, and personal development to aid in the healing, rehabilitation and re-integration of disabled active duty service members, veterans and their families. We have worked with military after they have returned home from serving in the Korean War, Vietnam, Bosnia, the Gulf War, Afghanistan, and Iraq. We have also worked with those who are victims of war and oppressed societies such as Somalia, and some Eastern European countries.

Cancer Survivors

The National Cancer Institute estimates that approximately 11.4 million Americans with a history of cancer were alive in January 2006. Some of these individuals were cancer-free, while others still had evidence of cancer and may have been undergoing treatment. About 1,529,560 new cancer cases were expected to be diagnosed in 2010. This estimate does not include carcinoma in situ (noninvasive cancer) of any site except urinary bladder, and does not include basal and squamous cell skin cancers, which are not required to be reported to cancer registries. To date, TA and I~AS has designed and provided programs as well as specialty therapeutic services for cancer survivors including those who have undergone treatment for breast cancer, lung cancer, bladder cancer, colon cancer, osteosarcoma, leukemia, and Ewings sarcoma.

Chronic, Terminal Health Conditions and Other Complex Medical Needs

Other health impairment exists as an umbrella term encompassing hundreds of types of impairments that may result in a chronic condition limiting the individual’s ability to effectively access and perform in educational and work environments. These include: physical functioning, intellectual functioning, and social/ emotional functioning. Generally, incurable and ongoing chronic disease affect approximately 133 million Americans, representing more than 40% of the total population of this country, projected to grow to an estimated 157 million with 81 million having multiple conditions. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act – IDEA: lists a number of different chronic health problems as possible reasons for the other health impairment label, including asthma, attention deficit disorder (ADD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), diabetes, epilepsy, cardiac conditions, hemophilia, leukemia, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and nephritis. This category may cause limitations in strength, vitality, and alertness, while these individuals may be cognitively intact. To date, TA and I~AS has collaborated with special educators, therapists, and other medical personnel to design and provide special adaptive sports and adaptive outdoor adventures for persons with a wide variety of chronic health conditions.