Jared Peppers
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Jared is the Goalie for
the Sacramento Lightning Sled Hockey team. He is 27
years old. He has been involved in sports since he was 3
years old. His first experience was the A.C.T Games for
children with disabilities at American River College in
Sacramento, California. He got his start in Track &
Field events at the very first games in 1984 and would
continue until he was 18 in 1999. Growing up in
Sacramento provided Jared with many sports outlets.
He played recreational basketball in school and his
grandmother taught him how to play tennis in and out of
his wheelchair. He tried snow skiing at age 5 and moved
to baseball at age 8. (He played Challenger little
league baseball until his sophomore year in High
School.) Then it was off to try waterskiing at age 12
with Disabled Sports USA. He medaled in slalom and wake
crossing events in two regional water-ski championships
competing against his own personal best times. He
water-skied until he was 16.
Jared started playing Sled Hockey in early 2005 and was
in his first tournament that year. He started out as a
Forward. However, he got an offer to try the position of
Goalie, and he found his calling in sports! This is a
position that he has strived to perfect ever since. His
dream is to play for Team USA in the Paralympics in
Vancouver in 2010, which he is actively pursuing with
excitement and passion. The Sacramento Lightning has
become his passion and he is proud to call the Lightning
his "HOME TEAM". They are his "Band of Brothers" whom he
considers like his second family.
Jared was born with Spina Bifida, but that has never
stopped him from doing the things he's wanted to do in
life. He has been gainfully employed as an Information
Receptionist with the USDA Forest Service on the
Eldorado National Forest in Placerville, CA for 7 1/2
years. He is also a trained part-time emergency
dispatcher for his agency during the summer fire season.
His duties as a dispatcher include sending fire
apparatus to wild land fires, and dispatching and
flight-following with air tankers and helicopters.