When patrons exercise at the Seward County Community College Wellness Center, they often tell the staff “thanks,” as they exit the facility. Liberal retiree Chris McNeil went further: he donated an additional piece of equipment to the Wellness Center. The home exercise machine (flex-rod rather than stacked weight plates) offers patrons of all ages another option for their workouts.
The donation is McNeil’s way of paying it forward in appreciation for the welcome he received at the Wellness Center.
“Tate Cain was the person who stepped up to help me,” said McNeil, who showed up at the college facility despite reservations. After all, he reasoned, wasn’t the SCCC Wellness Center mostly for young folks? He was pleased to discover patrons of all ages are regulars at the fitness center.
A U.S. Navy veteran and subsequent contract worker, McNeil suffered a spinal collapse while working in the Middle East. Medical treatment kept him going, but over time, he felt the effects of the damage accrue. After nearly eight years of treatment and physical therapy, he recognized the need to develop his own approach to recovery.
“For the most part, I was just trying to improve my mobility. Certain issues, strength, endurance, making good progress,” said McNeil. “Tate really helped me find my way.”
The gratitude McNeil expresses is just one step on life’s journey, he said.
“As you go along, at certain points in time, you see people in certain conditions, may or may not make judgements … and then when you are in the same condition, you realize the issues and problems they face,” he reflected. “Long ago, when I would see someone with a walker I’d be considerate but until you experience something like this, you don’t feel the full impact. You realize the amount of effort it takes to go about life on a normal basis.”
Workouts at the Wellness Center have benefited McNeil, and donating the personal workout machine was his way of passing those positive feelings forward.
“For those who are trying to work on helping themselves, outside of the medical profession, sometimes they need a little help. I want to give them an opportunity,” McNeil said.
After his childhood in Washington state, high school in Omaha, Neb., college in Lincoln, Neb., and a long military and professional career that took him around the world, McNeil didn’t expect to retire in Liberal, Kansas. A job offer at Southwest Medical Center brought him to the community, and now he says he’s found a place to call home.
SCCC is glad to be part of McNeil’s story.
“We often talk about how the college belongs to the people who live in our community, and Mr. McNeil is a great example of that principle,” said SCCC President Brad Bennett. “We appreciate him, and his generosity.”