ADAPTIVE TRAINING FOUNDATION

Mission: The mission of Adaptive Training Foundation (ATF) is to empower those with physical disabilities to transform their lives through exercise and community.

Vision: The vision of ATF is to be the catalyst of change by expanding the community of support, providing access to specialized adaptive training, and rewriting the narrative of people with physical disabilities.

David Vobora, ATF’s Founder and President, met Travis Mills in January of 2014. Travis Mills is a retired United States Army Staff Sergeant and quadruple amputee. David was the owner and head trainer of Performance Vault, a for-profit gym that offers individual and customized performance training to elite athletes. The two began working out together and the unique challenges that Travis’ injuries posed in the gym ignited a passion for David to offer adaptive performance training to individuals who have suffered life-altering injuries.
Through David’s exposure to Travis and many other critically injured veterans, he recognized a void in the recovery process for these veterans. An individual is injured, is treated at the hospital, go through rehabilitation and physical therapy, and are released from care. There was a need to establish a program and regime where these individuals would be able to continue their physical recovery while re-calibrating to their new reality. In September 2014, ATF became a 501 (c)3 to fill this void. ATF was established to restore hope through movement to those with physical impairment by creating opportunities for adaptive athletes to train and compete. ATF redefines limits for wounded veterans and individuals with life-altering physical challenges. The program provides intense, customized physical training and targeted support services that help each athlete create a sustainable lifestyle change, builds new levels of confidence, mobility, and above all, hope.

ATF has a quantifiable program that works and we passionately believe that our one-on-one customized training model will create sustainable lifestyle changes which will have positive exponential ripple effects to our projected demographic. We have seen strength gains in the gym as well as confidence, hope and purpose restored in the lives of our participants. We are actively fighting against the statistic that 22 veterans commit suicide every day by providing a place and an opportunity where a veteran feels connected and held accountable for their actions. It is easy to offer sympathy to veterans who have come home from deployment and struggle with physical injuries, TBI and PTSD but the only people who can truly empathize with these struggles are their fellow veterans. Veterans who graduate from the ATF program offer a priceless message of hope and an example of overcoming adversity to other veterans who are struggling. Lastly, with our primary purpose to restore hope to our participants, we plan to continue to add additional gyms and to grow our current operations in the coming years to exponentially increase the number of lives that we can change.

To comprehensively support our athletes, ATF has built an extensive network of over 25 partnerships which enrich and amplify the impact of the program. These include, but are not limited to: Guardians for Heroes, 22Kill, Carry the Load, Cerebrum, Center for Brain Health, Honor Courage Commitment, the Cooper Institute, High Fives Foundation, Military Benefits Association, Equest, Aquafit, among others.

Major Components in the next 12 months:
-Deliver ReEngage program to 40 clients, over 60% of which are veterans or military family members
-Deliver ReDefine program to 50 clients, over 60% of which are veterans or military family members
-Host several hundred civilians alongside adaptive athletes in the Sweatiest Hour workouts
-Affiliate sites at Arizona State University and Denver Sterling Ranch
-Deliver the ReDefine program at ASU to 20 clients, with a goal of 30% of which are veterans or military family members
-Deliver the ReDefine program at Denver Sterling Ranch to 22 clients, with a goal of 50% of which are veterans or military family members