The Mission Bay rowing community’s mission to get more special-needs neighbors into boats has gained traction, thanks to a $25,000 grant from the U.S. Olympic Committee. San Diego Rowing Club (SDRC) was granted the money as part of the Olympic Opportunity Fund, created in 2007 to encourage the growth of Olympic and paralympic sports involvement through community-based athletic programs. SDRC’s efforts were noted in October when the club helped nearly 60 injured servicemembers get in the water during the Paralympic Military Sports Camp. The local club provided the equipment, boats and volunteers. “Since then, they’ve purchased adaptive equipment to enable spinal-cord injured, traumatic brain-injured and amputees the ability to row on their own,” said Tricia Betts, coordinator for military programs with the Paralympic Division of the U.S. Olympic Committee. “We enjoy working with them and look forward to more opportunities to introduce the sport of rowing to many more servicemembers.” The initial equipment purchased with grant money is destined only for servicemembers and veterans. A group from Naval Medical Center San Diego is already on a monthly training and learn-to-row schedule at SDRC. However, some of the adaptation equipment can be put on other boats that SDRC has, which would create opportunities for civilian adaptive rowers with spinal injuries or amputations. SDRC’s efforts are two-fold. Along with supporting wounded servicemembers and veterans, an exploratory project is under way for brain injured and depressed personnel. Congressman Bob Filner has joined in the effort. “Congressman Filner is having members of the rowing community meet with the VA [Veterans Administration] hospital head and with the head of UCSD Medical School Psychology Department with the idea that exercising the brain might be innovative therapy to hopefully help veterans with brain injuries feel good about themselves,” said SDRC president and retired U.S. Navy Reserve Capt. Dave Frost. According to Frost, a tremendous number of servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have depression — at the very least. “We aren’t living up to the responsibility to our heroes, and maybe the nature of [rowing] and the nature of the camaraderie can help that,” Frost said. SDRC’s pilot project is to observe these military personnel, in a living laboratory sense. The idea is that SDRC can collect a test population of young and not-so-young wounded warriors who are either depressed, have a traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder. The program would involve a “before and after” to measure them against a control group and see if there are tangible and intangible benefits from exercising the brain in the particular type of sport rowing is — aerobic and repetitious exercise. “We have the equipment to get them out there with the seals, the sea lions, the dolphins, the beautiful sunrises and nice people,” Frost said. [We want to] see if that helps them feel good about themselves.” Frost and Betts have witnessed a growing number of efforts to re-integrate veterans in both a physical and social aspect, but they want to see more. Now, they have help. “It’s not just SDRC,” Frost said. “San Diego has realized that we can and should get to a point where we support folks that aren’t 100 percent whole in either mind or body.” For more information on SDRC, to volunteer or get involved, visit www.sandiegorowing.org. For more information on the U.S. paralympics military division, visit usparalympics.org and go to the military tab.