PHOTO: THE BRAND The challenges Heather Gardner faces as a recreational therapist only make her want to work harder, she said. A recreational therapist who helps wounded soldiers learn to live a normal life again is featured in a recent edition of The Brand, a quarterly publication for employees of the Texas Farm Bureau and affiliated companies.

Heather Gardner, granddaughter of Delo Kirby and the late Everett O. Kirby of Lometa, works for The Center for the Intrepid in San Antonio. The 65,000-square-foot center opened in February 2007 and has helped to change the lives of more than 63,000 wounded soldiers, according to The Brand.

Miss Gardner, 27, is the daughter of Texas Farm Bureau pilot Jim Gardner and his wife, Jennifer Kirby Gardner. Mrs. Gardner is a former Lometa resident.

The CFI is located next door to Brooke Army Medical Center.

“In 2005, with the help of Arnold Fisher and the board of directors for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, a comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facility that would assist thousands of injured soldiers was born,” according to The Brand.

With the help of some 600,000 American contributors, the center is the only facility of its kind fully funded by private donations, the publication said.

“I work here because I believe the patients are much more motivated than other populations I have worked with,” said Miss Gardner. “Their hard work and dedication is truly inspirational.”

The mission of CFI is to provide rehabilitation for former soldiers who have sustained amputations, burns or functional limb loss, said Dr. Rebecca Hooper, the center’s program manager.

The center features a Computer Assisted Rehabilitation Environment, a simulator that allows patients to encounter different terrains by placing various sensors on their body. “Top-of-the-line prosthetics are created onsite, and recreational therapy activities help patients learn to enjoy everyday activities despite their injuries,” states The Brand.

“Patients also have access to a virtual driving center, where they learn to drive with physical disabilities. To get reacquainted with their weapons, a virtual firearms center is available for those who will return to active duty. A pool, indoor running track and two-story rock wall are also highlights of CFI.”

Once patients have excelled in a wide range of activities to prepare them for life after the center, they are candidates for trips where they will skydive, water ski, do whitewater rafting, fish, camp and take part in other sports.

“Heather defines recreational therapy as a way of distracting one’s mind from the toll the body may be taking on and diverting it to something ‘therapeutic’ to the mind, body and soul,” The Brand said.

“I love seeing someone improve and helping show them there’s more to life and that they can still do the things they love,” she said. She recently returned from a snow skiing trip with her group.

Her specialty is adaptive sports, which ties to the U.S. Paralympics.

While not all patients are interested in sports, others choose from such activities as dodge ball, sitvolleyball, kayaking, water polo with inner tubes and horseback riding. Patients can find new hobbies or pick up activities they enjoyed before wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“The job has pulled every emotion out of me,” said Miss Gardner. “From having a guy dealing with burns covering the majority of his body, to others dealing with the loss of limbs, it is very hard to deal with. But then, you see a guy who lost both legs water skiing on his prostheses for the first time, or a burn victim participate in a triathlon with his shirt off. This is where my job becomes rewarding.”

Not all injuries are physical. Many patients also have sustained traumatic brain injuries and/or suffer post-traumatic stress disorder, states The Brand.

“You never truly know what your patients are dealing with on the inside,” Miss Gardner said.

While her job is difficult at times, “Each challenge makes her want to work harder,” reports The Brand.