Each year, Callie and Katie host the John S. Fletcher Ping Pong Tournament in honor of their father. They donate proceeds from the fundraiser to Ignite Adaptive Sports. Keep reading to hear about their experience with Ignite.
Written by Callie Fletcher
My father, John, had curiosity about many things in his life. He wanted to be a weatherman when he was young, and had a lifelong interest in weather and climate change. He read research papers on many topics. He meditated daily. He moved his body often—bike riding, playing racquetball, hiking. He enjoyed donuts and movies. He ate chocolate every day. He was interested in every person he met, and asked them lots of questions about their lives. He wanted to learn as much as he could. He was full of compassion and gave everyone the benefit of the doubt. He loved music, and went to many live shows with his wife, my mom Karen. He played the piano, the guitar, and the accordion. He was unique and complex like us all. I don’t like him to be defined or remembered by the disease that ended his life early, but it is what brought us to Ignite.
My dad had Lewy-Body Dementia. He was diagnosed in April of 2019, and he died August 8th, 2022. We visited Ignite March 26th, 2022. Lewy-Body Dementia is particularly cruel because it robs the individual of both physical and mental abilities—fine motor control, memory, cognition, coordination. John was a lifelong athlete, and passed that passion and love of sport to myself and my younger sister Katie. He taught me how to ski when I was six at Snoqualmie Pass outside of Seattle. He enrolled me in basketball around the same time, and taught Katie and I how to play ping pong a few years later. We had yearly family reunions where we would play, and a ping pong table in our basement at home. He played in adult rec league ping pong tournaments and would use Katie and I as warmups to test out his spin serve. He loved almost every sport though, and was pretty competitive. Katie is the more competitive one now, which is a bummer for her because I beat her in most sports.
As his mental and physical capabilities declined, Katie and I had multiple discussions about trying to get him into the mountains again to ski. We were apprehensive about that task. Another cruel aspect of the disease was that he was sometimes difficult to reason with. My dad believed he would one day ‘get better’ and return to his full abilities on the ski slopes, so for him the idea of going to a place like Ignite where they ‘helped’ him ski was a hard pill to swallow. He also had become more introverted and less likely to leave the house for the many things he used to love to do. He was sometimes embarrassed to be around people because he didn’t want them to know his mind and body were in decline. We told John and Karen that we had set a date with Ignite and then we didn’t talk about it much again, because it made him anxious. Katie and I were also nervous about the impending date at Eldora.
Unbeknownst to us, March 26th, 2022 was the last day of Ignite’s operating season in 2022. It was a beautiful blue bird day, warm, no wind—perfect Colorado spring skiing conditions. John was feeling confident and happy to be there. The Ignite volunteers tasked with helping us that day (Scott, Matt, and Alex) were so kind and patient. Due to the gracious giving of their time and abilities, my father accepted their help without worry. He laughed, cracked jokes, and was excited about learning the techniques of the bi-ski. We could not have asked for a better day on the mountain. The three of us were giddy with excitement for the future—we planned to come back the following year for more fun! We did not know at the time my father would have a rapid decline and pass away five months later.
Winter sports give so much joy. The feelings of freedom, hard work, braving the elements, flying down the hill. Ignite gives those feelings to those who may not otherwise get to experience it on their own. Because of Ignite, we were able to give our father that gift, the feeling he had been missing that he loved so dearly. Katie and I will cherish that memory for the rest of our lives. This is why we plan on continuing to donate to this awesome organization.
Every fall, around the end of September (John’s birthday is September 30th) we have a ping pong tournament in his memory. All proceeds have gone, and will continue to go to Ignite.
“Ignite gave my Dad and us, his daughters and caregivers, a true bright spot in his last year of life. The annual Ping Pong tournament is a great reminder of the day spent skiing with my Dad, and we are so glad to donate the proceeds to Ignite—we want to help others get such an experience.” — Katie Dalton (Fletcher)
