Near-death experience: How a Rochester native’s swift recovery is rebuilding a life on wheels

ROCHESTER, N.Y. –  Three hours every week, you can find wheels spinning and the startling sound of chairs crashing in a small gymnasium in Rochester, N.Y.

This gym is where you can find Jamie Guglielmo, a new member of the WCNY Wreckers wheelchair rugby team.

A team of twenty players, all paralyzed from the shoulders down, with all different stories of how they had ended up in this stage of their lives. For Jamie, he’s the new member of the team. Becoming paralyzed seemed like yesterday to him,

“I couldn’t move my legs at all. I felt like they were floating up in the air above me… I couldn’t move my fingers,” said Jamie.

Doing what he loved, Jamie was an avid skier. It was Jamie’s last run of the day as the sun was quickly fading, and the ski patrol was doing their last runs for the night. If Jamie stayed out any longer,

“I might have gotten hypothermic—or maybe even died out there,” said Jamie.

Thankfully, his friends with Jamie called for help, and that’s when he was rushed to the hospital. His parents received a call no parent ever wants to get; their son was in the ICU.

Jamie spent nine hours in surgery, his parents right there by his side, just thankful he was alive,

“We still have him. It didn’t matter. You know, what makes Jamie Jamie is still there,” said Jamie’s Mother, crying as her husband rubbed her back to comfort her.

After six weeks in a recovery facility, Jamie’s family welcomed him with open arms. Jamie and his parents, who were living in separate homes, said it has not been easy transitioning to this new stage of his life,

“I really liked being independent, having the ability to do what I wanted, whenever I wanted,” said Jamie in a discouraged manner.

For Jamie’s Mother, she said it is even harder to watch her son go through this,

“It’s not hard on me—I’m his mom. I think it’s hard for him to be dependent,” said Jamie’s Mother, shedding a few tears.

However, Jamie did not let this situation drag him down; he found a new purpose: rebuilding a life on wheels through wheelchair rugby. Jamies said practicing with this team has been everything to him since he rolled onto this court,

“It’s definitely good to get together with a group of people who are, more or less, in the same situation,” said Jamie.

Wheelchair rugby is the only paralympic sport that involves full contact. Nicknamed “Murderball,” it is a fast-paced sport involving catching the ball in your lap, passing it, and wheeling it into the goal while trying to dodge other wheelchairs.

At first, Jamie’s parents were not thrilled about their son joining a contact-type sport within a month of making a full recovery, but now they couldn’t be more proud of their son,

“There have been so many times over the past few months where I look at how Jamie is, and it’s… inspiring,” said Jamie’s Father.

As Jamie’s parents continue to support their son through daily care and helping him with daily activities, they also remain hopeful about what the future of his injury holds,

“I’m still holding out that he will walk again,” said Jamie’s Mother, on the brink of tears.

But what remains true is no matter if Jamie is on wheels or gets back on his feet one day again, his parents said his caring personality will never go away,

“From the moment we saw him in the hospital, he was worried about work, worried about other people,” said Jamie’s Father.

And if there’s one message you should take from reading this,

“Slow down when you’re skiing,” said Jamie while cracking a smile.