"The choices you make will follow you for the rest of your life. I won't get a second chance — I'll live and die being paralyzed."—James Lilly
Growing up poor and Latino in Chicago, James Lilly dreamed of becoming a professional athlete, but he got sidetracked into the world of drugs and gangs. At the age of fifteen, he was shot in the back and paralyzed, but even that didn't put an immediate end to his involvement in drug dealing and fights. Four years later he decided to get away from the gang scene, but on a final visit to the old neighborhood he was attacked and nearly killed. This time, when he recovered, he began to turn his life around. Now, he helps others to do the same thing.
James works to help inner city school kids stay on the right track by sharing his story, and by talking about one thing that helped him move on — wheelchair racing. James started racing in 1990. In 1993, he won three gold medals for the U.S. at an international championship in England. But the victory he coveted most was the Sadler's Ultra Challenge in Alaska — the world's longest wheelchair race: 267 miles of dramatic terrain from Fairbanks to Anchorage in six days! Pushin' Forward follows him as he takes on this grueling challenge once again.
Today James lives in a Chicago suburb with his wife and two young sons, and tries to be the kind of father he wishes his own father had been. He supports his family through speaking engagements for schools, hospitals, and youth organizations. His story has been featured on ESPN and in the Chicago Tribune, Anchorage News, Sports n' Spokes, and New Mobility magazines. He is an inspiration for at-risk youth, people with disabilities, and anyone struggling to push forward through what seem to be overwhelming difficulties in their lives.
"James survived, but he did more than that. He never gave up on life, and on impacting his community with his talks and with his amazing performances in world-class wheelchair races."—Luis J. Rodriguez
"Gives us a brief glimpse of life for, and with, a disabled athlete. A perfect example of channeling the energy of a competitive loving spirit from the negative side of life to the positive. Recommended for academic health sciences libraries and other collections focusing on disabilities."—Educational Media Reviews Online
Select Accolades
A world champion kite flyer shares his passion for flight with a man blind from birth in this tale of friendship that challenges our notions of disability.
Tom Collinson | 2010 | 24 minutes | Color
A highly engrossing family drama about a successful artist who must cope with his sudden paralysis following an accident.
Laura Longsworth | 2010 | 84 minutes | Color
Dancer Homer Avila lost his right leg and most of his hip to cancer and thought he'd never dance again until choreographer Alonzo King challenged expectations of what it means to be "disabled."
Karina Epperlein | 2007 | 22 minutes | Color | English
