A T.O.D.D. Field Day participant maneuvers along the ropes course. Photograph courtesy of OPAF.
Ottobock, Minneapolis, Minnesota, hosted the third T.O.D.D. Field Days for more than 275 attendees who participated in a full day of adaptive recreation sports and activities at the Fort Snelling, Minnesota, Boy Scout Base Camp.T.O.D.D. stands for Taking Opportunities, Defying Disabilities, and the field day serves to honor the memory of Todd Anderson, CP. Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, based in Minneapolis, and OPAF & The First Clinics partnered with Ottobock to bring together both wheelchair and ambulatory participants as well as members of the rehabilitation team to try rock climbing, ropes course, golf, biking, and much more.
During the lunch hour, Leslie Pitt Schneider, JD, RN, offered a welcome address on Anderson and what he stood for. She spoke from experience as both a friend and coworker with Anderson at Ottobock, and also as his patient when he worked with Shriners Hospitals for Children®-Twin Cities, Minnesota. Anderson passed away suddenly in 2010 at the age of 50. He had been a renowned athlete in track and field, wheelchair sports, archery, and hunting.
“I was in a meeting with Todd, the day before he died, when he reminded the group of why we were there,” Pitt Schneider told the audience. “That being: to improve the lives of others. In fact, he called me out and asked me why we do what we do, to which I replied ‘to help people like us, Todd.’ He often said that he was employed by Ottobock but that he worked for amputees. That was his message. That was his mantra. That was Todd.”
