We honor the passing of Americans with Disabilities Act July 26. In doing so we pause to focus on Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Shane Gilley, a resilient disabled Sailor assigned to Navy Operational Support Center Minneapolis.

Many of us take for granted our physical ability to live what we presume to be a "normal life" -- walking upright, having full use of our hands and arms, traveling across the globe, excelling at work or school -- completely mobile and without pain.

However, that isn't the case for more than 60 million people across the nation. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 19 percent of the U.S. population had a disability in 2010, with more than half of them reporting a severe disability.

Before becoming disabled, the 18-year Navy veteran from Minnetonka, Minnesota categorized himself as having a normal life. A physically fit independent duty corpsman, he spent 14 out of 18 years with the Fleet Marine Force, ready to deploy and do what he was trained to do -- take care of Sailors and Marines on the battlefield and off.

That was before his new normal -- being incapacitated. On a fateful day in April 2015, the avid motorcycle enthusiast slammed into a car in front of him while riding his motorcycle after the driver unexpectedly slammed on brakes.

"If it wasn't for my helmet I wouldn't be here to tell my story," said Gilley.

Fast forward -- Gilley was severely injured. He required five plates and 22 screws to fix a tibial plateau fracture that affected his knee joint, stability and motion. From April to July 2015 he laid still in a hospital bed, which challenged his willpower.

For Gilley, becoming a patient was hard to swallow. While lying on the pavement after the accident occurred, he was fully aware of the damage long before the ambulance arrived. At the hospital he was all too familiar with the tests and scans being ordered.

"I knew what they were for," said Gilley. "Being told things like 'hopefully,' 'maybe,' or 'we don't know right now' made me want to scream because I have used those words of comfort myself."

Today Gilley lives in constant pain. Things he took for granted like walking and standing up now cause him a great deal of hurt and discomfort.

"Nothing is more annoying than just getting out of bed in the morning and falling down because I forgot my knee is weak. My kids are great because they are constantly harassing me by saying 'hurry up old man' and then slowing down so I can catch up to them," Gilley said. "I will never fully recover from this. There are going to be more surgeries down the road, and maybe even the possibility of an above-the-knee amputation."

For now Gilley receives physical therapy twice a week while continuing to regain his strength. His injuries don't stop him from doing what he wants to do most of the time -- however, maybe at a slower pace and with some modified rules and equipment in place.

"A lot of people would say I'm intense because I've seen and lost a lot through my career," Gilley said. "But just because my body and my mind might be a little broken, it doesn't mean that my spirit to live my new normal doesn't mean my life is ruined."

Gilley's is optimistic about his future and got a huge boost to his resilient spirit when he received a phone call from Navy Safe Harbor asking him to get involved in adaptive sports, which eventually led to him proudly representing Team Navy during the 2016 Department of Defense Warrior Games.

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