It was a cold December morning and students
were preparing to graduate from the photojournalism course. For one
student, the influence of graduation day would alter his life only hours later.
For 43-year-old Staff Sgt. Charles D. Moore,
a journalism instructor here at DINFOS, that early December morning in 1980 got
off on the wrong foot.
He left the barracks eager to graduate so he
could be home for Christmas, five days later. Unfortunately, he slipped on the
stairs on the way to school.
Moore didn't realize he was injured at the
time, but jumped up and looked around to see if anybody saw him fall.
After graduating and flying home, his fate was revealed when he found he
couldn't walk.
Doctors at an Air Force base in Mississippi
put a cast on his left wrist and right ankle. After the cast was taken off
and he still felt pain. X-rays were taken. Doctors then told him he
had rheumatoid arthritis and wouldn't be able to run again.
The doctors gave him a cane but Moore said,
"A cane didn't fit my style."
Instead, Moore, who describes himself as
stubborn, tried to run. He said he wanted to see if the doctors were
right. They were wrong, he said. Although it hurt a little, Moore
ran a half-mile. he slowly increased the distance of each run until he was
able to run three miles, he said.
More now runs about three times a week,
covering at least three miles in each workout. He feels that running
relieves the anxieties built up after a hard day of teaching, he said.
Moore reached his goal when he ran
six-and-two-tenths miles in 55 minutes and 25 seconds. he wanted to run it
under an hour he said. He did--and that's a far cry after being told he
would never be able to run again.
The Quill (Student final newspaper project), July 10, 1984, page
3
