By Kate Bartlett
Rae (Rachele) Dove is an Assistant Director of Snowboarding, adaptive ski and Pilates instructor with quite an inspirational story to tell. Born and raised in Fenwick, Ontario, she was very driven from a young age and determined to be an Olympic Snowboader; however, suffered a series of accidents that changed the course of her life.
At age 16, Rae was a fitness instructor at her local YMCA, teaching cyclefit, boxfit, athletic hour and aquafit. She was determined to become an Olympic skier, so she moved to Whistler, British Colombia, at age 19, where she became a full-time snowboard instructor. Her colleagues and friends supported and encouraged her Olympic dream, believing she had the skill and determination. However, in 2010 she suffered an accident that made her reconsider her goals.
While her friends and family still supported her, Rae began to doubt herself, when she then suffered a major stroke at the young age of 21. Her right side was completely paralyzed, and she was wheelchair bound with a serious facial droop, leaving her numb from her head to her toes. She also couldn’t spell, read or write, and was unable to eat by mouth, requiring a feeding tube in her stomach. Her rehabilitation journey that took over five years and included intensive physical, occupational and speech therapy. “I didn’t really understand what had happened to me,” recalls Rae. “I still wanted to be in the Olympics. I didn’t even realize how severe my speech difficulties were; I was so focused on walking and getting back on my feet.”
It took Rae 2 ½ years and intensive speech therapy to be able to form full sentences, and she still suffers from Aphasia (difficulty recalling words) and Apraxia (difficulty forming words) to this day.
During her rehabilitation, Rae began carpentry as a therapeutic outlet. “I wanted to go into the carpentry school after I went to the Olympics, so I was drawn to it after my injury. There was a carpentry shop in the building from my therapy that seemed to call out to me. I began learning the trade and spent a lot of time in the carpentry shop.”
Rae learned how to make benches, rocking horses, birdhouses, hockey sticks, benches and more. She found carpentry to be very healing, and still enjoys it to this day. She has rebuilt three houses, taking them down to studs and refinishing from the ground up. “I love building, and I love the process. It’s very rewarding and therapeutic,” remarks Rae.
At this time, Rae also began Pilates as part of her rehabilitation program. “My arm was paralyzed and stuck in a curl position; I could not open it. My hip hiker was very pronounced. I was in a bit of denial about by disabilities, Pilates helped me regain a lot of mobility.” Eventually, she regained most of her flexibility and strength, and became a Pilates instructor in 2013 in order to help others. She specializes in neurological Pilates, helping those recover from injury as well as athletics. She has taken numerous certification courses and owns a reformer machine, a spring-based Pilates machine. She currently teaches 1:1 classes at Core Performance 5 days/week, and hopes to teach a mat class again, in the fall.
Looking for a fresh start, Rae relocated to Ellicottville where she began working as an adaptive ski instructor for HoliMont. “I absolutely love this program; I’m very passionate about it. HoliMont has one of the most highly rated adaptive ski programs in the country and I’m so proud to be a part of it. It grants those with disabilities the ability to ski by providing modified equipment. It’s such a wonderful opportunity and has changed the lives of many, including mine.” Rae is also a certified instructor for other programs, including freestyle, snowboarding, telemarker and ski.
Additionally, Rae is involved in the community with the Rotary Club and other various community events. She has worked with the Rotary Club to gain support for the Ellicottville Community Playground, lacrosse tournaments, art exhibits and volunteers annually as Santa’s Elf at Christmas in the Village. She has been bartending/serving since she was 14, and hopes to soon reenter this service industry again.
Rae’s journey has been long and complicated in her 35 years of age, but it is through her grit and determination that she has persevered. She is not one to sit idle, and is proof that with a strong mindset, one can overcome many great obstacles. Rae remains sweet and soft spoken; her kind personality shining through her words that still don’t come easily, yet she persists.
For more information on the programs Rae is involved in, visit www.holimont.com, or www.coreperformance.com.