Jill Gravink, director and founder of Northeast Passage, met Tyler Walker when he was six years old.
Walker had already gone through more than most people three times his age. He was born with a birth defect that forced the amputation of both legs at the knee, preventing him from participating in sports with the rest of his peers.
Gravink and Northeast Passage helped Walker purchase a hockey sled meant for disabled athletes, giving him the opportunity to join in sporting events. Now, almost 18 years later, Northeast Passage is hoping to create a permanent scholarship so that disabled athletes like Walker can receive the financial aid needed to attend UNH.
“It’s important because people with disabilities will have the opportunity to succeed at the same level of their peers,” Gravink said. “For them, they either choose sports or college, and few have the opportunity to do both because of either time or money.”
The scholarship fund, known as the Northeast Passage Athletic Excellence Scholarship Fund, began with a donation from the Walker Family. The fund is set to award roughly $2,000 dollars annually to qualified applicants, although Gravink requested that the exact amount of the Walker donation not be mentioned due to UNH Foundation policies.
Application for the scholarship is open to any disabled athlete who participates in alpine or Nordic skiing, sled hockey, or quad rugby and who has significant need for financial aid. According to Carol Walker, Tyler’s mother, the scholarship currently needs more funds to be instated, in order to provide the allotted money annually to students.
“A close relative passed away and left a significant amount of money to no one in particular,” Carol Walker said. “I thought we should do something with this money in honor of Tyler.”
Carol talked with Gravink and Northeast Passage, and they helped create the fund for the potential scholarship. Once the fund reaches a certain amount, the UNH Foundation will make the scholarship an annual sum, available to the qualified student.
Northeast Passage began in 1990 to provide therapeutic and recreational services to disabled individuals. The organization runs three major program areas: adaptive sports, a clinical area that works one-on-one with individuals in a specialized setting, and UNH teaching and research.
According to Gravink, UNH is the only university in the country where students can train year-round for winter sports. With the help of Northeast Passage, Walker came to UNH in 2004 and graduated in 2008 with a dual major in International Studies and geography, while training for the Paralympics in 2006.
Today, Walker is a member of the U.S. Adaptive Sports Ski Team, as well as the number one adaptive downhill skier in the world. His mother hopes that through this scholarship, other students will be inspired by Walker’s story and have the opportunity to achieve their own success at UNH.
“Tyler went to UNH and received a great education and that would be nice for other disabled athletes to have that opportunity,” Carol Walker said.
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