Adaptive Outdoor Education Center (AOEC), based in Carrabassett Valley, Maine, has become United Spinal Association’s latest chapter.
In a Nov. 14 announcement, United Spinal said, “There are few things as empowering as learning how to navigate the outdoors as a wheelchair user. After you’ve figured out how to slide down a snowy mountain, traverse a rocky trail or navigate wind-chopped waters, everything in your daily life just seems a little more manageable.
“Those kinds of confidence-building experiences are on full display when Adaptive Outdoor Education Center in Maine hosts its annual Wheel Together Retreat, which brings people with spinal cord injuries together for three days of outdoor recreation and whole-body wellness activities in a fun and inclusive environment.”
AOEC Director Kayla Lee said in the announcement that an attendee last year who was just four months post injury returned to the 2025 event “a whole new person. To see how the power of community can really help someone gain confidence and purpose has been amazing.”
AOEC hosts outdoor and community programs at its two campuses in Carrabassett Valley and Brunswick, Maine. The Carrabassett Valley campus features year-round accessible lodging for up to 25 people.
The organization hosts programs — including music, crafts, water sports, climbing, skiing and cross-country skiing, and whole-body health for people with disabilities and their caregivers.
United Spinal accepts applications from groups who want to form chapters in cities where chapters don’t currently exist.
