Special Tree Team Member Wins National Award for Injury Prevention Education

Around Special Tree, Todd Hammons is known as a strong advocate for persons with spinal cord injury (second from right in photo).

As Special Tree’s Accessibility Advisor, Todd Hammons orchestrates our annual Mobility Expo as well as a monthly Spinal Cord Injury support group. Not only is he passionate about showing people what they CAN do after spinal cord injury, he's also dedicated to preventing serious injury in the first place, especially among teens.

Todd was recently honored with a national award for his work with Think First, an injury prevention program for K-12 which strives to prevent brain and spinal cord injuries through education. For the past two decades, Todd has been a “Voice for Injury Prevention” (VIP) for Think First, sharing his own experience with spinal cord injury with thousands of local students to raise awareness about the serious consequences of risky behavior. Todd traveled to Chicago in May to accept the “VIP of the Year” award at Think First’s national convention.

Todd was nominated for the award by Joyce Kessler, co-President of Think First’s Washtenaw Chapter, because he exemplified the group’s message and passion for its mission. “Todd conveys his message in a way that really hits home with kids," she said, adding that students always want to talk to Todd after a presentation and that he has binders full of thank you letters.

“We’re so proud of all the great work that Todd has done for Think First and also for Special Tree.”