“When I became disabled, I felt like I was shattered,” says Emily Nappi, who lives in Northern New Jersey but spends her free time in Vermont. For 10 years, she was a first responder on the front lines and now is an occupational therapy graduate student. “When I first came to Vermont Adaptive, it was my ‘want’ to just be here. Now it’s like the pieces of my identity are coming back; the pieces that are getting rebuilt.”
Your donation this #GivingTuesday will help Vermont Adaptive capture an additional $110,000 and pave the way for athletes and people like Emily to get back to doing what they love.
Getting over the hump of being involved wasn’t easy, Emily says. Whether it was mono-skiing, Nordic, mountain biking, or any other sport, she says she had to be comfortable with letting others help her along the way. She needed a community that would meet her where she was with her fears, and then provide the support to challenge those fears.
“Vermont Adaptive isn’t here to push you past where you don’t feel comfortable, but they will help you meet any goal you set,” she says. “So even just stepping your foot in the door, it’s worth it. And sometimes just those little, small steps of even just getting to program in the room is what matters…. without Vermont Adaptive, I think I’d still be in my bedroom.”
Thanks to the generosity of the Turtle Ridge Foundation and donors Robert Ocko, Michael Krupka, the Kimpton Family Fund, and Dave & Melissa Baker, who collectively pledged a matching gift of $110,000 for #GivingTuesday2025, your donation now through Tuesday, Dec. 2, will be matched dollar for dollar up to $110,000.
Watch and listen to Emily’s video on our YouTube channel.
Learn more about how you can help Vermont Adaptive capture an additional $110,000 on #GivingTuesday, Dec. 2. Click Here