The Deep Roots Digest

Hello friends! Whether I see you at the gym every day or we just met at a Spartan Race, I am glad you’re here. I’d like to tell you what’s going on with Quinn and the Big Tree Fitness Deep Roots Initiative.
— Coach Michael

In This Newsletter

• A Note from Quinn

• Quinn’s progress and training

• Spartan Support - Free Spartan Race Codes

• What Deep Roots Initiative is Working On

• Michael’s Next Adventure,Thoughts & Ideas

A Note from Quinn

Hi Everyone,

It has been a long summer for myself and my family. We have had some big changes recently with my twin sister heading off to college. As for myself, I have been focusing on working with my beginner prosthesis. My schedule has been keeping me quite busy with PT, going to my dad’s gym, doing swim workouts with both my mom and my dad, and all the follow up doctor appointments. Getting my first prothesis has been quite a long process. Due to the damage done to my amputated leg, Gabe and the crew at Yanke Bionics, located here in Akron worked hard on creating a one - of - kind prothesis to get me back walking while my leg finishes healing. It has been a month since I got my beginner prothesis and I feel like I am getting stronger everyday. I am looking forward to this new adventure.

I will keep you posted! Thank again for supporting me and our mission to help others through our Deep Roots Initiative

Quinn

The Big Tree Fitness Deep Roots Initiative

Helping young people navigate amputation with dignity, ceremony, and community.

• ADVOCACY: We provide information and support for young people facing amputation.

• TRANSITION GRANTS: We offer micro-grants for cremation and memorialization of lost limbs.

• NEW GROWTH FUND: In the future, we hope to provide funds to help amputees return to an active lifestyle through adaptive gear and movement therapies

Spartan Support

Big Tree Fitness has had a great relationship with Spartan for years. Every year our gym members get together and do the Burpees for Vets Challenge, and each year we do a record-breaking number of burpees and collect thousands of dollars for veterans. Spartan generously sends us race passes as a thank you for our hard work.

When the team at Spartan, including Joe De Sena, heard about Quinn and the Deep Roots Initiative, they immediately wanted to help. They offered to team up with Big Tree and gave us a bunch of Spartan Race codes and a spot among their sponsors at the Cleveland and Cincinnati races.

Some of these race codes are still available. If you would like to make a donation of $100 or more, we’ll send you a code for any 2026 Spartan Race. The race is free (except for the processing fees). Thanks to Spartan, this is a great deal for you and for the Deep Roots Initiative!

Quinn’s Progress and Training

Quinn has been working very hard on all level’s to get to this point six months later after his accident. Quinn has been coming to our gym each week. Going to physical therapy at Akron Children’s Hospital a couple times each week.m A little over a month ago Quinn received the approval to start swimming again. Now three times a week we make our way up to our local LA Fitness to do lap swimming workouts.m Quinn is already up to 2000 meter workouts. Quinn loves the swim workouts because they give him a sense of real control over what he is trying to do. Water has a way of evening things out. It has such amazing physical, mental and emotional healing properties to it.

As Quinn continues to work on his rehab and physical therapy, and is making great progress! Follow Big Tree Fitness on Instagram to check it out.

Here is a recent video of Quinn sprinting his back stroke.

What Deep Roots Initiative is Working On

Now that the early summer Spartan races are done we have been concentrating our efforts on building connections with our local hospitals through our Deep Roots Initiative These connections have now passed the introductory phase and into the how to implement phase. We also welcomed in new board member Lauren Brimingham. With the addition of Lauren to our board we can continue to work on the nuts and bolts as we continue to grow our non-profit.

We recently completed one our gym and friends event called “The Summer Sunset Hike” that takes place in the National Park that is literally in our back yard. Our next fundraising event is our “2nd Annual Big Tree Fitness Fall Challenge” Our fall challenge is a two person team ruck event that will take place on Saturday, October 17th. You can find more details to come about the fall challenge at our website

Michael’s Next Adventure, Thoughts & Ideas

Most of the races I have been involved in whether it be a Spartan Race, a Tough Mudder or a charity running event have been local or very regional for the most part. I have decide to change that and head out west to San Jose, California for my first Spartan Trail Race. Tghe race takes place in the coastal mountains of San Jose amongst the coastal Redwood trees. The race has quite a few technical areas throughout the course. The race also has over 2400 feet of elevation changes and some amazing picturesque views. As soon as the race is done I will be heading east to Yosemite National Park to due a few days of backpacking before I head home.

Since the very first time I went backpacking out in Yosemite and the coastal mountains of California I developed a huge passion for the Redwoods and Sequoia tree’s. It wasn’t just about their enormous size. It was more about how they each grew from a seed smaller than your pinky finger nail into these giants of the forest. the ages of these giant trees are quite remarkable and when I find myself amongst them I imagine the life they have lived over the past several hundreds of years. I imagine the events whether nature or man made they have experienced. It allows me to grasp how short of a time that we have on this earth in comparison. They remind me of unbelievably unique it is that I was given this opportunity to actually be alive and get to experience my own life and everything that comes along with it.

Thanks for reading, and as always your thoughts and comments are always welcome.

— Coach Michael