Clinton veteran hopes to add more medals to his collection

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By Steven Martens | Monday, June 18, 2007 1:06 AM CDT | () comments

Steven Martens/QUAD-CITY TIMES Gary McDermott of Clinton, Iowa, holds up the medals he has won as a participant in the National Veterans Wheelchair Games. He will participate in his ninth games Tuesday through Saturday in Milwaukee.

CLINTON, Iowa — Gary McDermott of Clinton has a pile of gold medals that would be the envy of any athlete, and he hopes to add to his collection this week.

McDermott, 58, will participate in his ninth consecutive National Veterans Wheelchair Games, sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Paralyzed Veterans of America. This year’s games, which will be held Tuesday through Saturday in Milwaukee, are expected to draw nearly 600 veterans. It will be the 27th year for the event.

McDermott, who serves as president of the Vaughan Chapter of the PVA based in Westchester, Ill., and is on the organization’s national board of directors, began participating in the games in 1999 at the urging of his wife, Cindy Mootz, who also serves as a volunteer and coach for the games.

“My wife said, ‘The games are in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and we’re going,’ ” McDermott said.

McDermott has participated in games held as nearby as St. Louis and Minneapolis and as far away as Long Beach, Calif., and Anchorage, Alaska. He has won a total of 30 gold medals, eight silver medals and two bronze medals, including eight consecutive gold medals in his group for the air rifle event.

Other events at the games include bowling, swimming, softball, quad-rugby, basketball and hand cycling. This year’s event also will feature demonstration track events for veterans who are able to stand using prosthetic devices.

McDermott served in the Army from 1968 to 1970, including a tour in Vietnam, where he was a helicopter crew chief and door gunner.

Shortly after leaving the military, he was paralyzed in a diving accident.

McDermott went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in social work, and part of his work with the PVA includes working with disabled veterans in Illinois.

The games are beginning to see more participants who served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, McDermott said. He said events like the wheelchair games can be helpful for young veterans still learning to deal with the changes in their lives created by their injury.

“It’s a period they have to adjust to,” he said.

The games are one of many services the PVA provides for paralyzed veterans.

“Our association with the National Veterans Wheelchair Games helps fulfill our promise of improving the quality of life for veterans with disabilities,” Randy L. Pleva Sr., national president of the PVA, said in a news release.

For more information about the games, visit pva.org or wheelchairgames.org.

Steven Martens can be contacted at (563) 659-2595 or smartens@qctimes.com.