According to Joe Volfman there’s no such thing as a disability. Although Joe has Cerebral Palsy, which keeps him confined to a wheelchair, he achieves his big dreams and overcomes all obstacles. Joe is a professional handbiker, biking 180 miles last Summer with the Friendship Circle of Wisconsin. This past January, Joe came full circle when he gave a passion fueled talk to over 100 teen volunteers from Friendship Circles in Washington, Wisconsin, Florida and Massachusetts.
Joe’s commitment to the Friendship Circle comes from a place of gratitude. He received his first adaptive bike from the Friendship Circle of New Jersey where he was a participant for 7 years. Beyond sparking his passion for biking, Joe said that “without Friendship Circle I wouldn’t be where I’m at.” Now at 21 years old, Joe not only competes as a professional athlete but also spins records behind the DJ table, studies at Rutgers Universityand campaigns for local organizations.
Friendship Circle was the community where Joe felt accepted and seen for the first time. When asked by our FC teen volunteer Lara Nagy what was most memorable about his time with Friendship Circle, Joe said that The Friendship Circle was the first place people didn’t just see him as a kid in a wheelchair. He said that he was “finally treated as a 10-year-old kid rather than a medically necessary piece of equipment.”
At his public high school, he was the only kid in a wheelchair and because of this, accessibility was an issue. Joe asked himself many times “why am I in this situation?” But instead of seeing his disability as a barrier, he saw it as a gift because the resilience required to overcome his physical limitations propelled his growth as an individual. If given the opportunity to walk again, he explained to listeners that he wouldn’t take it because “this is who I am and walking and being “normal,” whatever normal is, is not as important as talking to you and opening people’s eyes to how much potential every person on this earth has...we all have that spark within us, [challenges] shape you.”
During his hour long training session, encouraging teens to realize the power they have, our teen volunteer Sasha Nelson expressed her gratitude and admiration for Joe’s resiliency and leadership. It was an uplifting and heartfelt event and we’re so thankful to Joe Volfman for being an inspiration and advocate for so many and reminding us of our infinite potential.