Sundquist — a D.C. resident, cancer survivor, one-legged Paralympic skier, comedian and motivational speaker — recently published his memoir, “Just Don’t Fall.”
How do you actually inspire a kid?
My goal is to provide them with a meaningful and entertaining experience while I’m speaking. Most high school kids look at me and they relate the difficult circumstances that I’ve been through to difficult circumstances that they are in, and they find hope for their circumstances though a life story.
Are you involved in community service?
I’m always doing fundraising and stuff for children’s hospitals. … I also run a Web site for amputees, LessThanFour.org, and we raise lots of money, but it’s also a social networking Web site where they can meet each other and learn how to do life with one leg and one arm.
How did you come up with the idea of writing “Just Don’t Fall”?
Once I was telling my story as a speaker, I think it was a very natural step in my mind to think ‘What is another medium which can help me tell my story?’ The limitations of speaking is that I can only be at one place at one time. The book can be everywhere at once.
Is it an inspirational book?
I try to shy away from it being an inspirational book in terms of its classification. I wanted it to be a memoir that has a literary merit … and is a well told story.
And why did you decide to take up skiing?
Before I lost my leg, I liked to play soccer. And even though I can sort of play soccer with crutches now, I am obviously not anywhere near as good as somebody with two legs. But when I learned how to ski, which was right after I lost my leg, while I was still on chemotherapy, I saw that this was something that I can do just as well as somebody with two legs.
Hristina Ninova
