One moment, Raymond Wilkinson was leading a full active life—the next—he was facing the challenges of irreversible physical limitations. In an instant, a car accident left him with a severely bruised spinal cord, without movement and mobility. Engulfed in a myriad of feelings, Wilkinson thought he would never see the other side of this traumatic transverse.

Then, as suddenly as this horrific accident occurred, Wilkinson began to feel slight tingling in his toes. The trauma staff at St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie encouraged him to seek the intensive therapy he would require to recover. “My wife and I did our research,” says Wilkinson, “and based on recommendations and reputation, we decided to go to Helen Hayes Hospital.” After six months of inpatient rehabilitation, he left walking.

Today, Wilkinson is a busy man, back to running his car dealership, Poughkeepsie Chevrolet Cadillac. A native of Missouri, the “Show Me State, ” he is a man who shows no boundaries for physical improvement, which he credits to Helen Hayes Hospital.

For several years, Wilkinson made the hour-long drive from his home to continue his therapy in the HHH Day Hospital and Outpatient Rehabilitation Center. He participated in occupational, aquatic and physical therapies, continues to see progress, and is ambulatory.

“It’s the consistency of the therapists and the environment that makes me return to Helen Hayes Hospital for more therapy,” Wilkinson states emphatically. “What is important is that through this continued therapy, I am gaining more and more mobility.”

Recently, Wilkinson once again showed his therapists what he’s made of. As part of the hospital’s Adapted Sports and Recreation Program, he took to the ski slopes at Belleayre Mountain and had a great downhill run – another sign that Wilkinson is moving upward and onward.