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A MEMORIAL
MARKING THE NINTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DAY CODY UNSER WAS
STRICKEN WITH TRANSVERSE MYELITIS AND DECLARING FEBRUARY 5,
2008 "CODY UNSER DAY" AT THE SENATE.
WHEREAS, Cody Unser was stricken suddenly with
transverse myelitis, commonly called TM, on February 5, 1999;
and
WHEREAS, Cody, a basketball-playing sixth-grade girl,
became paralyzed from the chest down and has remained so ever
since; and
WHEREAS, the past nine years have transformed Cody's
life, and she has transformed the level of support, research
for and understanding of transverse myelitis and other spinal
cord diseases and injuries; and
WHEREAS, Cody's reaction to learning to live in a
wheelchair was to learn to scuba dive and to create a
charitable foundation to seek a cure for TM; and
WHEREAS, that foundation is called the Cody Unser First
Step Foundation, and it continues to build awareness of TM,
promote medical cooperation and stimulate research; and
WHEREAS, Cody accepted Governor Richardson's request to
serve as his national disabilities spokeswoman for his recent
presidential bid; and
WHEREAS, as part of her promotion of funding for
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research, Cody has successfully helped the University of New
Mexico become a center of excellence, attracting new funding
for New Mexico research on spinal cord injuries and diseases;
and
WHEREAS, the Cody Unser First Step Foundation has formed
charitable relationships with the Johns Hopkins Transverse
Myelitis Center and its medical consortium affiliates, the
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, the Kennedy-Krieger
Spine Institute, the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, the
Barrow Neurological Institute and the Transverse Myelitis
Association and, most recently, New Mexico's Governor's
Commission on Disability; and
WHEREAS, the foundation has awarded over one hundred
thousand dollars ($100,000) to related research and education
endeavors; and
WHEREAS, Cody is an ambassador for the Quickie
Wheelchair events at Sunrise Medical, for Johns Hopkins'
"PROJECT RESTORE" and for many symposia and consortia, and
she hosts the "Winners on Wheels" web site; and
WHEREAS, Cody was named "One of the 21 coolest girls in
America" by YM Magazine; and
WHEREAS, Cody has won New Mexico Business Weekly's
"Power Kid" award, the national Prudential "Spirit of the
Community" award and the National Philanthropy Day's
President's Award, and she was the youngest-ever recipient of
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the YWCA "Women on the Move" award; and
WHEREAS, Cody also won the Grand Prix Americas
Foundation's "Special Achievement Award" and now sits on the
board of the Paralysis Health Action Plan Task Force in
Washington, D.C.; and
WHEREAS, in recent years, Cody has worked tirelessly for
all quality-of-life programs for people with disabilities,
including her own, sponsoring several "Cody's Great Scuba
Adventure" programs; and
WHEREAS, the scuba program has now expanded, and Cody
has enlisted other trainers to train people with other
disabilities in scuba diving; and
WHEREAS, President Gerald and Betty Ford selected Cody
as the recipient of the "People Helping People" award for the
"Swim with Mike" program; and
WHEREAS, Cody was the first-ever recipient of the
"Spinal Cord Injury Project Emerging Leader" award; and
WHEREAS, Cody has met with national and international
leaders, including President Bush; Prince Andrew; Senators
Pete Domenici, Jeff Bingaman, Hillary Clinton and Bill Frist;
United States Representatives Heather Wilson and Diane
DeGette; federal Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy
Thompson; and the late Christopher Reeve and his late wife,
Dana, to aid in their promotion of stem cell research; and
WHEREAS, Cody has been featured in numerous magazines,
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bringing to light the realities of living with a disability
in the United States today, not only for those with TM but
for those with other disabilities as well, and advocating for
stem cell research; and
WHEREAS, Cody has been featured on Good Morning America,
48 Hours and CNN to focus interest on persons with
disabilities, and she is now the subject of a documentary
entitled "Cody", which is narrated by actor Paul Newman and
produced by the city of Santa Fe and Christopher Productions,
that reveals Cody in her day-to-day life as a full-time
student at Redlands University; and
WHEREAS, having found her voice as a political activist
early in life, Cody created her own degree program in
biopolitics, with the intention of changing health policy
from both the medical perspective and the legal perspective;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE
STATE OF NEW MEXICO that February 5, 2008 be declared "Cody
Unser Day" at the senate in recognition of the good work of
this young woman and her sincere and tireless dedication to
the cause of stem cell research; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Cody's indomitable spirit be
celebrated as the senate marks the day that this outstanding
young woman was stricken with transverse myelitis; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
transmitted to the Cody Unser First Step Foundation, the
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Johns Hopkins Transverse Myelitis Center and its medical
consortium and University of New Mexico Carrie Tingley
Children's Hospital.