Humboldt Bronco Ryan Straschnitzki returns home to Calgary after weeks of rehab stateside
Posted July 4, 2018 7:26 pm.
Last Updated July 4, 2018 7:45 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
CALGARY (NEWS 1130) – After weeks of rehab stateside, an injured Humboldt Bronco player has returned home to Alberta.
Ryan Straschnitzki, 19, was paralyzed from the chest down from in the April 6th bus crash that killed 16 people and injured another 12. He’s spent the last two months in Philadelphia for physiotherapy treatment.
Straschnitzki touched down at the Calgary International Airport shortly before 5 p.m. local time, and told reporters he’s excited to see family and friends now that he’s back on home soil.
He says he’s feeling a lot better after his treatment in Philly, which he finished three weeks ahead of schedule.
According to him, his success came from his attitude.
“I wanted to get better every day. I focused on that day, not what was going to happen in the future.”
There’s still a lot of work to do, but for now he’s pushing forward toward his goal of joining the Canadian Sledge Hockey Team. He will continue his recovery and rehab in Calgary.
He won’t be heading home immediately–he’ll be spend a bit of time in a hotel as his family fixes up their Airdrie home to make is more accessible for the wheelchair-bound Straschnitzki.
Meantime, his mom, Michelle, says the progress he has made has been absolutely amazing.
“From that first week when he was just learning how to kind of pull himself up without using the core muscles he cant control to now–he’ll just one-arm himself up and up on his shoulders and elbows. He transfers almost entirely by himself now. He doesn’t really need any help we’re just there to make sure everything stays stationary,” she says.
“I couldn’t be prouder of him,” adds Ryan’s dad, Tom. “I’m actually proud of all the kids, the way they stepped up to help this week in Philly. It’s just the way we are–there to help and not give up.”
