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Christopher Comrie

Date of Surgery: 4/27/2020
Shoulder
Update (4/2021): Christopher has returned to his career as a ski instructor.

About Christopher

My name is Chris and I grew up in the mid-west, skiing once or twice a year when we ventured to MI or MN to visit family. On occasion we would go to Colorado for a week to ski. It was these trips to the mountains in the winter and exploring them with a backpack during the summer that cultivated a love for the outdoors and drive to be a part of that lifestyle and environment.

Career Background

Having spent time out east working at a summer camp I met some great people, now my best friends, who helped me get a job 17 years ago teaching kids how to ski. I have spent 5 of those years working in the sports medicine side of this industry both with extreme sports and Team USA. Needless to say, I have made this a big part of my life and career. I am a supervisor at Beaver Creek’s ski school and last year passed my PSIA alpine level 2 and children’s specialist level 2 certifications. I plan on continuing to work towards my PSIA alpine level 3 certification and instruct for many years to come.

Treatment Procedure and Recovery Plan

I dislocated my shoulder helping fix a deck at my parent’s house. I didn’t think much of it after the initial pain and swelling went down. Over the next few months it felt weak all the time and eventually the pain came back and got almost unbearable during certain movements. I finally got an x-ray and an MRI. This reveled an avulsion fracture and significant rotator cuff tear. I had surgery to repair both and I was immobile for 4 weeks, then had rehab twice a week for about five months.

Testimonial

"I am so grateful for the Kees Brenninkmeyer Foundation. For those of us in this industry that have to be healthy and physically fit to perform our jobs because we love what we do and the lifestyle, this profession sometimes means that we don’t make a lot of money. Knowing that this family took the time and had the foresight to help those of us in this industry is beyond words. The gratitude I have is immeasurable and I cannot say thank you enough for the opportunity to have been a recipient of such generosity. I only hope to be able to pay it forward at some point in my career."

- Christopher Comrie