As a young man born and raised in Albuquerque New Mexico, with 2 older brothers, I developed a love for adventure at a young age. My brothers and I were often in the mountains backpacking, camping, hiking, rock climbing, fishing, skiing, and snowboarding. During the fall my dad and I hiked many miles over mountains and through forests with our bows and arrows in pursuit of deer and elk. I had a great dog named Birks who accompanied me on many of my solo ventures and he holds a special place in some of my fondest memories.

The year of 2003, I was a student at the University of New Mexico studying to be a Civil Engineer and working as a Land Surveyor. I was usually busy studying or working. When I had spare time I’d clear my mind and ease the stress by taking my dog Birks for a hike through the mountains or a run along the river.

On June 23, 2003, while riding my motorcycle down one of my favorite roads to the river, I was in a freak accident that changed my whole life in a couple of seconds. I woke up a week later in the hospital apparently stabilized after several days of “touch and go”. I was informed that my shoulder, collar bone, wrist, T-7 vertebra and 8 ribs were broken and that the tubes coming out of my sides were to help with my 2 punctured lungs. A week or two later I found out that I may not ever walk again. The news was devastating and weighed heavily on my family.

I was released from the hospital about a month later and went into a rehabilitation facility as an “in patient”. In patient meant that I would be living there for 3 more months. I had an intense daytime therapy regimen and a nightly routine of blood testing, which involved needles, which I hate.

What hurt me the worst was the look in the eye of my family members. My mother and father were heartbroken and my brothers were at a loss for words, only tears. Our love for each other was always strong and it broke my heart to see them grieving over me so deeply.

In that rehab hospital, I made up my mind that this would not be the end of my story. I had been wearing a helmet which saved my life and my brain from any damage. I worked very hard both physically and mentally to regain my independence. I was determined to not let myself be a burden to my family or society. I had faith that with hard work, perseverance, respect, determination, and appreciation for the many blessings in life, that my circumstance although daunting could be overcome. After my 3 months of intense therapy I was released to go home.

It took me about another year or so to get semi-back into “the swing of things”. I was once again in school, driving myself around, drafting surveying plans on the computer, and independently caring for myself.

For 2 years, I had practically not done anything outdoors, surrounded by nature, like I did pre-injury and it was starting to weigh on me. One fine summer day I was invited by a friend to come along on a fishing trip. Although unsure of how all the logistics would work out I decided to go. I had an absolutely great time and was revitalized by an old hobby that excited me as much now as it did when I was young. The catching of fish was nothing spectacular but the sights, sounds, and smells were amazing and beautiful, like I had never seen before. After what I had been through, this experience was just what I needed.

On that fishing trip there were a couple tricky instances, like when I had to get through the narrow doors into the cabin’s bathroom or get up the set of stairs onto the porch. These were minor predicaments compared to some of the things I gone through over the past two years. I regained an essential piece of my self-confidence that day and I left that beautiful mountain lake knowing “this can be done”.

I continued exploring my old adventures in new ways by adapting and found there were still many awesome things I could do. I met with other people with disabilities regularly at support groups and by association I guess. We would talk of the trials and tribulations attributed to being disabled. I spoke of my dreams and goals and found that they were not only my dreams but those of many people living with disabilities.

I reached out to non-profit organizations and foundations that spoke of helping the disabled population via outdoor activities. I offered my ideas, my support, and felt like I was getting “the cold shoulder” and or not being taken seriously. It was obvious that something should be done to make more outdoor adaptive opportunities available and I decided that I would do just that. In 2005, I founded Global Opportunities Unlimited to pursue the dream of providing outdoor adaptive services for people with disabilities and to explore the healing healthy lifestyle qualities of the great outdoors.

Since 2005 we have helped hundreds of kids with various disabilities go fishing. We have taken over twenty veterans of past and present conflicts hunting and fishing. We have taken almost every member of the spinal cord injury support group rafting, water skiing, fishing, or horseback riding. In 2009 we formed a wheelchair basketball program that has about 10-15 weekly practicing participants. With the basketball program we started the first ever annual National Wheelchair Basketball Tournament in New Mexico. Our 2011 tournament had well over 100 spectators in attendance as well as 6 teams from around the nation accounting for approximately 60 wheelchair users.

Each and every year we adapt to new developments in technology, improve current programs, expand services offered, and empower more people by giving them access to opportunity. Simply put, we GO Unlimited.

Dustin Berg Founder/Executive Director