The fight for independence has always been the central focus and drive of my entire life. It's what led me to escape Cuba in 1997 in search of freedom and it's what also led me to become a renowned biomedical engineer from Georgia Tech when I woke up from a three-month-long coma with a spinal cord injury that paralyzed me from the neck down and was told I had a 1% chance of ever getting up. My quest for freedom and independence is now from a wheelchair but I've approached it with the same drive and passion for excellence as I did to become a pilot-select of the United States Air Force. I personally know the doors of hell and know what insurmountable levels of adversities and problems look like but I also know how to get out and fight with everything you have for a better tomorrow. Nothing is impossible! The mind is the most powerful and strongest thing we have.  I want all veterans whether paralyzed or not and anyone in this world with a disability to never feel hopeless when facing adversities no matter how difficult they are.  WE have to get up, get out, and do something! Work on your dreams and goals like you're checking off a to-do list and never waste time waiting on good things to spontaneously happen. You have to go chase it - imagine it, speak it, write it, and work it into existence over and over again. Just watch and you'll see.

Nothing is impossible or better yet everything is possible - is my motto and I am just getting started! - Ignacio Montoya