Gerry Williamson is proud of his new title.
So proud, in fact, that the Coquitlam resident has listed it on his new blue business card, which reads: "Author, public speaker, medal bearer."
Last October, Coun. Selina Robinson, who chairs the city's universal access-ability committee of which Williamson is a member, put forward his name to carry the Rick Hansen relay medal to Spirit Square for the end-of-day celebrations on May 17.
The next month, he learned city council had officially endorsed her recommendation.
The honour of being a medal bearer "means a great deal to me," Williamson said. "I hope I can do a good job."
Williamson said he'll be walking about two blocks to Spirit Square, where the city is planning a party for the public from 4 to 5:30 p.m.
The 59-year-old man will have his cane to help him along, a result of not one but two devastating motor vehicle accidents over the past 40 years.
The first was on June 16, 1972, when he was 19, a few months after he graduated from PoCo high school, which later became Terry Fox secondary. Williamson had taken a construction job for a day while work at CP Rail, where he was employed in North Vancouver, had slowed. It was a Friday and, after his shift, some older crew members invited him out for a drink.
Williamson drove his new 1972 Celica to the bar and pounded back a couple of beer. "I was so happy because I was with these older guys. It was a great feeling to be with them," he recalled.
But what happened next changed his life forever. He got into his vehicle and struck a bus head-on at an intersection, leading to 52 days at the Lions Gate Hospital with a brain injury; he was in a coma for a month.
The accident was especially cruel for his family as, a year earlier, Williamson's parents had lost their 17-year-old son, Terry, who died from muscular dystrophy.
After the collision, Williamson said he was alone most of the time. "I spent years in denial," Williamson said. "Here I was, this rugby player - I even had a school athletic letter - and I couldn't do anything. There was so much therapy in hospital after hospital after hospital."
"For years, I gave up on myself."
The second crash happened in 2006 while Williamson was walking in a crosswalk to catch a bus near Coquitlam Centre mall. A truck struck him and he flew; when he hit the ground, his pelvis cracked and he landed in hospital for three months.
Every day is a struggle but Williamson said he's getting physically and mentally better. To keep busy, he's writing a book about living with brain injury (expected to be published later this year), he takes part on the universal access-ability committee and volunteers at Glen Pine Pavilion, a seniors' facility in City Centre. As well, he speaks to community groups and soon-to-be high school graduates about his experience and the dangers of driving while impaired.
"Gerry Williamson demonstrates what it takes to overcome adversity, persevere and come out stronger as a result," Coun. Selina Robinson said. "Gerry gives back to the community in his numerous volunteer capacities and Gerry's 'hidden' disability, his cognitive impairment, reminds us that challenges come in many forms."
Williamson said having an inclusive community that allows the disabled to participate - even in national events such as the Rick Hansen relay to celebrate his 25th anniversary of the Man in Motion global tour - "means there's hope for people who give up on themselves. We can make a difference, too."
See next Wednesday's paper for a profile on a Port Coquitlam medal bearer in the Rick Hansen Relay, which rolls through the Tri-Cities on May 17 and 18.
