23: Pilot & Veteran, to Paraplegic, to a Second Chance with Life // The Story of Jim Ryan

On March 30th, 2016, Jim Ryan had a terrible accident while on vacation in Maui, Hawaii. He suffered a spinal cord injury that left him a C-4 complete quadriplegic. His life changed forever in the blink of an eye. Jim’s story of survival and recovery has inspired hundreds of men and women to shift perspective, choose gratitude, and to keep moving forward through challenges.

He now works as an Ambassador to the Rick Hansen Foundation by sharing stories of his new life and educating the public on accessibility issues. He is also a certified accessibility specialist and works to ensure buildings are accessible to all.

Time-Stamped Show Notes:

• 4:47 Jim has been paragliding since his accident, which everyone can watch on his YouTube channel.  
• 8:34 Doing 3 or 4 lectures per month can be tiring, but it’s also very rewarding for Jim.  
• 9:26 Eric shares a funny story about his paragliding experience.  
• 11:12 Four years ago, Jim was on a beach in Hawaii when a wave hit him and he was instantly paralyzed in the water.  
• 14:17 The lifeguards revived Jim by giving him CPR.  
• 18:56 Jim talks about moving forward and prevailing.  
• 20:48 When Jim gave a lecture to the grade 5 students, he had a lot of fun with the kids.  
• 22:10 Jim likes talking to people and sharing his story. He talks more about his life being a quadriplegic in a wheelchair.  
• 28:13 His mother is one of his inspirations.  
• 2:57 One particular incident changed Jim’s life when he was already in a wheelchair.  
• 34:37 Flying has always been a huge part of Jim’s passion. He talked about his life in the air force.  
• 38:16 Jim recalls some of his fondest memories when he was flying airplanes.  
• 43:34 If Jim could go back in time to offer a piece of advice to himself after the accident, what would it be?  
• 47:25 Jim also plays video games. He talks about a customized game controller and the games he like playing.  
• 49:41 Family and friends are very important for Jim. He talks about the importance of family and friends in your life.

This Episode Brought to You By:

• 27:02 OurPlaceSociety.com is a community service provider for the poor, disadvantaged, and homeless in the Greater Victoria area. They run a variety of programs that are transformative in helping people, specifically in doing meal deliveries, housing, health & wellness education, and practical care. They actually serve 1,200 nutritious meals and 1,000 snacks every single day. We encourage you to check out their website at OurPlaceSociety.com and offer a donation if you can.
• 40:37 Help us to support the charitable organizations that are connected to our guest speaker, Jim Ryan. In the interview, Jim mentions a charitable organization founded by Rick Hansen, who is also another incredible person doing amazing things for others. The Rick Hansen Foundation helps quadriplegics with coping and having a normal life as can be. We encourage you to please make a simple donation by visiting The Rick Hansen Foundation at RickHansen.com

Key Points from the Interview:

• “People see me and once they start talking to me they realize I’m just a guy in a chair and everybody else are just people in wheelchairs. You know, say hello, don’t be afraid, don’t think you’re staring at us. Think you’re treating us like everybody else because we are like everybody else. We just have a visible disability as opposed to invisible disabilities.”
• “Don’t give up, keep trying. You will make this work to the best of your ability. You have to keep moving forward. I know it hurts, it’s overwhelming if you think about it too much but move forward, don’t try to understand what happened or why, or why me, or what am I going to do? Move forward, you can’t go back, you can only go forward. There’s always another problem and you have to keep working to the next problem. Don’t give up, keep trying. I don’t know if that’s the right answer but life sucks and then you die, well I died and life doesn’t really suck after you die.”

Resources Mentioned:

• Email: info@myquadriplegic.life
• Facebook: @jimryanrollingthroughlife
• YouTube: Jim Ryan’s YT Channel
• MyQuadriplegic.life 
• Rick Hansen Foundation
• Jim’s Podcast – Rolling Through Life
• After Accident that left Jim Ryan paralyzed, He Finds Way to Move Forward
• Quadriplegic Man, Jim Ryan, Uses His Face to Move Wheelchair