My name is Josh Salama-Caro and I live in New York with my parents, my two younger brothers, and my younger sister. I am studying for my upcoming bar mitzvah in February 2022.
I have a passion for sports and of course I enjoy winning but I also love the thrill of competing. I play football (soccer) and tennis competitively and I play golf regularly with my dad and brothers. Sport is such a huge part of my life so when it came to my bar mitzvah project I wanted to try to incorporate sport into it. In doing research, my synagogue suggested I contact the American Friends of Israel Sport Center for the Disabled (ISCD).
The first time I saw disabled athletes competing was at the 2012 Paralympics in London, where I am from. Even though I was only 3 years old I can remember being impressed by the athletes playing basketball in their wheelchairs. In the more recent 2020 Paralympics I was enthralled by the wheelchair rugby I watched on TV and last week at the US Open Tennis I was able to watch some wheelchair tennis. I am so excited to be able to help more disabled athletes be able to participate in sports and I hope they will be able to feel the way I do when I am playing sports, both with friends and competitively. I have gained a lot of confidence from sport and I really hope to be able to help some athletes at the Centre feel the same.
I am looking forward to going to Israel to visit the Centre in Ramat Gan and I hope to be able to go next year. I am planning a 5km sponsored walk in Central Park in October for my family and friends. I have a fundraising goal of $8,000 to be able to buy at least one specialized wheelchair; this will change the lives of many athletes as the ISCD’s competitive tennis team has an immediate need for specialized wheelchairs. The tennis team at the Centre this year qualified for the World Team Cup which is the equivalent of the Davis Cup, an international flagship event.
Thank you so much for all of your support,
Josh