Oliver's Story

As a single parent, Oliver West spends a lot of time with his three children...

As a single parent, Oliver West spends a lot of time with his three children.“We go hunting, we ride four wheelers on our farm, we hang out a lot.”

Growing up in rural Batesburg, Oliver has always enjoyed outdoor pursuits. He still lives on his family’s 378-acre plot, his father’s house on one side of him and his sister’s house on the other. In fact, the same place he’d gone swimming since he was a kid, the same tree he’d jumped from countless times was the scene of the accident that caused his incomplete C6/C7 spinal cord injury six years ago. “I fell backwards out of the tree over the river,” he said.

Since that time, Oliver and his children (Emily, 15; Tyler, 12; and Bradyn, eight) have learned to adapt to his disability. Although they were only two, six, and nine years old when their dad was injured, he said, “They had to grow up quickly and become a lot more responsible.”

Coming back home from the rehab hospital was initially a challenge for Oliver, who “felt like a fish out of water." He added,  "At the hospital everything was right there, but when I got home nothing was easy to do.” Through trial and error he figured out different ways to do things. While he has someone come three times a week to help with housework and laundry, he handles all of his own care. And his pickup truck stays busy around Batesburg as he transports the kids back and forth to school, friends’ houses, and activities.

Oliver is still an avid deer and turkey hunter, thanks to a piece of equipment called a bog pod that he uses to mount his gun. He’s also appreciative of a friend he met in rehab who has the same injury level. “I saw the stuff that he was able to do, and knew that I could get back to as much of a normal life as possible.”