CEDARBURG — Inside a gym in Cedarburg, a group of inspiring individuals is proving that the strongest people aren't just the ones who can lift the heaviest weight.
“It’s not traditional walking but anyway to do it makes me so happy," Hope Kittel said.
The 18-year-old from Cedarburg is talking about one of the exercises she does at the gym Adapt and Conquer CrossFit in Cedarburg. With the help of her trainer, a walker, and a custom brace, she is able to stand and take small steps.
Ever since a severe neurological event happened to her in March 2023, the 18-year-old has needed a wheelchair to move around. The event impaired her ability to talk, walk, and use her hands.
However, the teenager you see today looks much different from the one just seven months ago.
“I’ve gotten astronomically stronger," Kittel said.
She comes to this gym multiple times a week to participate in group CrossFit classes. There are abled-body people and those with disabilities in the class.
“Yes, but the grind never stops," Kittel said.
Watch Hope Kittel and Ben Iammartino's inspiring stories here...
She was referred to this gym by her high school athletic trainer. Her life hasn't been the same since then.
“This place changed my life," Kittel said.
The gym and workouts have made a monumental difference, but the people inside have been just as crucial to Kittle's growth. One of those people is her instructor, Jason Olejniczak. He is the president of the relatively new United Training Foundation (UTF). The three-year-old local nonprofit pays for disabled athletes’ gym memberships and trains the instructors. The organization hopes to expand beyond Wisconsin and into the rest of the Midwest.
“Here when you’re part of the community and it’s supportive and you see other people grinding and you’re grinding along with them it makes this bond and connection that’s like nothing else that we’ve ever seen," Olejniczak said.
UTF wants to make fitness accessible for everyone. Depending on the severity of the disability, they will also pay for one-on-one training versus a group class setting. While not all gyms have adaptive equipment, UTF will provide the proper machines to gyms that want to host people with disabilities. The goal is to make people with physical and cognitive disabilities strong in mind, body, and spirit.
“I know that once I step into this gym that, you know, my day is going to be better off for being here," Ben Iammartino said.
The 19-year-old fractured his neck during a bad diving accident.
“In a second you know everything changes," he said.
UTF helped raise his spirits and gave him a new lease on life.
“Now I’m off to college being independent, but I think the most important part is having a community," Iammartino said.
It's that community of people like himself but also people who support him and Kittel and the others in the CrossFit classes.
A community of people not just like him - but who also support him and Hope.
“I walked across the stage at graduation with Jason’s help," Kittel said.
This is just the beginning of what Ben and Hope and the UTF can accomplish.
"No stopping now," Kittel said.
Visit the UTF website to learn how to participate in the program either as a beneficiary, donor, instructor, or gym. UTF wants to expand across the region to help as many people as possible.
Adapt & Conquer gym is located at W57N14363 Doerr Way, Cedarburg, WI 53012.
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