Face of America

Riding to Rehabilitate Injured Soldiers

EMS Sky Connect's Joel Goron is an avid bicyclist who has combined his love of biking with a patriotic spirit and desire to make a difference in helping rehabilitate injured war veterans.

Earlier this year, he embarked on a 110-mile, two-day “Face of America” bike tour from Bethesda, Md., to Gettysburg, Pa. The event was created by World T.E.A.M Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters), an organization whose mission is to use the universal power of sports to create soul-stirring experiences by teaming disabled athletes with able-bodied athletes.

The event featured 40 injured servicemen and women, who rode specially modified three-wheel recumbent hand-crank bicycles. Riding alongside them were about 120 able-bodied military personnel and another 180 civilians. At the finish line both sides of the road were lined with people – members of all facets of the military, Boy Scouts at attention, many civilians waving flags, a man playing a bagpipe, families and friends, recalls Goron.

“This was one of the most unforgettable, and personally gratifying experiences I’ve ever had,” says Goron, who oversees all indirect sales distribution channels for EMS Sky Connect’s solutions. Goron invited family, friends, co-workers and even dealers who resell EMS Sky Connect products to join the EMS Sky Connect Team. The event overall raised more than $110,000.

“The most memorable moment for me was at the very end of the ride, when I was doing a solo hand-cycle push for a dual-amputee soldier, pushing him through Gettysburg Battlefield, and I was overwhelmed by feelings of emotion,” Goron says, noting that the symbolism of pushing an injured soldier through a battlefield was "absolutely beyond words."

Goron is looking forward to the 2010 “Face of America” event, dubbed From Sea To Shining Sea. Riders will criss-cross the United States over 4,000 miles beginning in San Francisco, and will feature injured and able-bodied soldiers from the four services.

Goron is gratified that EMS technology will play a role in keeping the riders connected in remote areas as the 2010 official satellite communications provider for all World Team Sports events.