When Friday comes, Ross Aronson races home from Palisades High School – like most 16-year-olds, he can’t wait for the weekend. But unlike his peers, Aronson isn’t looking forward to a weekend with friends, kicking back in front of the TV or enjoying much needed time off from homework.
Every Friday after school – and swim practice – from November through April, Aronson puts his life in the Palisades on hold and makes the 300-mile trek from his home in the Alphabet Streets to Mammoth Mountain. On the mountain, he spends the weekend as a volunteer instructor teaching skiing to those who require special assistance.
One ten-year-old student of Aronson’s has a progressive and incurable neurological disorder that causes her muscles to deteriorate but thanks to the assistance of Aronson and other volunteer instructors, she glides down the mountain seated in a bi ski, a molded bucket seat attached to two skis that can be skied with the assistance of an instructor using stabilizing outriggers and tethers.
“She doesn’t let her disease get to her. When she’s on the mountain, she is always smiling and always happy – never is negative. It’s amazing to see how positive she is,” Aronson said. “That’s what keeps me coming back – the great people.”
Aronson is a volunteer for Disabled Sports of Eastern Sierra, a non-profit organization that provides individuals with cognitive and/or physical disabilities both the personal assistance and equipment necessary to learn to ski.
As a DSES volunteer, Aronson has instructed amputees as well as people with Down Syndrome, autism, traumatic brain injuries, hearing impairments, visual impairments, ataxia, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, ADHD, fixed knees and spina bifida. DSES also partners with Wounded Warriors, offering ski instruction to members of the armed forces who have suffered traumas while serving.
Heading into his third season with DSES, Aronson has already racked up nearly 500 hours as a volunteer instructor. In addition to regular weekend trips to the mountain, Aronson gives up three weeks of vacation at Thanksgiving, Christmas and spring break to teach skiing.
Out of more than 200 DSES volunteers, Aronson was recently awarded “Instructor of the Year.”
Mark Spieler, director of outside operations at DSES, has seen Aronson progress quickly through the ranks of volunteers, becoming what he called the organization’s “most valuable player.”
“Ross is an incredibly strong skier, which makes him very versatile on the mountain. He can handle a lot of bi ski lessons, and we rely on him,” Speiler said. “Considering he is still in high school, he was here an incredible number of days. His great personality, the time he’s put in, his dedication – it all led to selecting him for the award. Ross is a great kid.”
A Natural on Skis
Aronson’s romance with the mountains began when his dad took him skiing for the first time at age 4.
“My dad is a big skier. He’s really to blame for all of this,” he joked.
A natural on skis, he competed on the Mammoth Mountain racing team for six years until his obligations in high school began to take precedence. A junior this year, Aronson is on Pali High’s swim team and is the goalie for the water polo team.
“I knew if I quit the ski team, I had to stay involved with the mountains. I love being on the snow,” he said.
DSES had piqued his interested when he raised money for the program as his bar mitzvah project. Looking for a way to stay on the slopes, Aronson inquired about joining the team of instructors.
Initially, he was turned down because of his age.
Determined, he asked again.
His persistence was rewarded and Aronson traded his racing uniform for an orange instructor’s jacket. Initially given secondary instructor status, Aronson quickly moved up the ranks and earned primary status. At the end of his first season, he was named “Teen Volunteer of the Year.”
“They have their age policy for instructors and I understand that, but I think I showed them younger people are capable of doing this job too,” he said.
No Limits
Similarly, Aronson has learned that his students aren’t defined by their limitations either.
“A lot of people look at someone with a disability and feel bad for them and think about what they can’t do. I’ve learned to see them as a normal person who can do everything I can do. A lot of them of them are smarter than us,” Aronson said.
Whether working with children or adults, Aronson takes into account their strengths and limitations to customize each lesson. Before Aronson steps into his skis, he studies up on each student, familiarizing himself with their specific needs and prepares the equipment to ensure their safety on the mountain.
“Learning to ski gives people the freedom to do things that they never thought they would be able to,” he said. “They’re able to set goals, and we do our best to reach them. For a lot of the people we teach, this is their chance to ski with their families. In a lot of cases, they want to be able to ski with mom or ski with dad. We talk about their goals – whether it’s to ski a certain run, move to a new part of the mountain or learn a different technique – and step by step, we get them to their goal.”
Aronson has his own goals too and continues to improve his skills as an instructor. In May, he passed the Professional Ski Instructors of America exam and is now a Certified Level 1 Professional Ski Instructor for adaptive skiing.
“I could go get paid to be an instructor at ski school, but that wouldn’t be the same. It’s not worth it. This is so much better,” Aronson said. “Working with people is what keeps me coming back. I have a lot of fun doing it and it’s great to see the people I teach happy to be out there on the mountain doing something they never thought they could. Sure, I’m tired on Monday morning, but it’s worth it.”
For more information about how Disabled Sports Eastern Sierra creates opportunities to develop life skills through participation in adaptive winter and summer sports, visit www.disabledsportseasternsierra.org.
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