In the autumn of 1944, the Royal Winnipeg Rifles were fighting their way through Belgium and Holland in a gruelling battle that saw 6,000 Canadian casualties. One of them was a 25-year-old soldier named Cliff Chadderton, who lost his right leg to a Nazi grenade. When Chadderton returned home, he received help from the War Amps. Two decades later, he became CEO of that organization, and soon transformed it into the first one in the world devoted to child amputees, whose challenges include schoolyard taunts, overwhelmed parents and the prospect of lifelong dependence. "I wanted to see if we could make the lives of these kids a little easier." In 1975, Chadderton launched the CHAMP program, which brings together young amputees, as well as their parents. The focus is on amputees helping others by showing them what's possible. "It's a miracle when parents come in with their four-year-old, who's in a stroller and has never walked, and they see this two-year-old go whizzing by them, and they think, 'Well, he's got it licked.'" Chadderton himself has always led by example, learning to ski at age 66 and remaining an avid golfer into his eighties. One of the countless kids Chadderton inspired was Annae Jones, who was born without arms. "I still remember going to one of my first CHAMP seminars and feeling all alone," she says. "When I got there, I saw lots of other amputees who were happy with who they were and were leading normal lives. I wanted to be like them." Jones pursued an education and a career, and learned to ride a bike, drive a car and live independently. Today, she and her husband have a 2½-year-old daughter and are expecting their second child. Jones remembers the personal notes she got from Chadderton whenever she reached a milestone. "I have never heard Cliff say to amputees or their parents that something wasn't possible. He's the type of person you just can't help but want to be around." Even after 42 years at the helm of the War Amps, Chadderton continues to bring new ideas. In 2006, he started a new program designed to teach multiple amputees to become webmasters. Chadderton will be 88 years old in May, and no longer golfs or skis. So is he ready to pass the torch? "No way," he says. "I enjoy what I do." Chosen charity: War Amps of Canada |
