— Beverly Kohl is mostly paralyzed, but that doesn’t stop her from finding ways to cope.

She would like to share the wisdom of her life experience with others.

Kohl, 66, of Tahlequah, attended a presentation Thursday at the Jack C. Montgomery VA Medical Center by motivational speaker Scott Chesney.

“The best thing was his overall positive attitude,” Kohl said. “I can really sympathize with a lot of the things he talked about.”

Her sister, Pauletta Sidari, said Kohl was mostly paralyzed by a freak accident while trying to help others.

“She was traveling with a group of people doing disaster relief during a hurricane in 2008,” she said. “She was in the kitchen area and went outside to get a breath of fresh air. She apparently passed out and fell down and broke her neck. She has use of her arms but not of her fingers.”

Sidari was visiting from Chicago and took her sister to hear the presentation.

Kohl has kept busy since being hurt. She teaches vacation bible school to youngsters at the First Baptist Church in Tahlequah.

It hasn’t been easy.

“There were so many things I looked forward to doing with my life after retiring,” she said. “I was a nurse for 44 years.”

Kohl said she’s thankful that others were there to sustain her after she broke her neck.

“In my case, I don’t know where I would be without the support of my family and friends,” she said.

Sometimes, living life in a wheelchair presents her with great difficulties.

“I’m still afraid,” she said. “I try to recognize that fear when I get into a situation. I try not to let that stop me. You can’t let fear get the best of you. You have to move on.”

Kohl has taken the first steps along that path. She has written a speech about what it is like to view life from the patient’s point of view. Sidari said she has given it more than once.

“What I would really like to do is become a motivational speaker,” Kohl said.

Chesney told the audience that dealing with a disability involves five steps.

“The first one is to exhaust all your fears,” he said. “The second one is to do a ‘head-heart’ shift. The third is to manage your emotions. The fourth is to turn failure into feedback. And the fifth is to cultivate an attitude of gratitude.”

Eight years ago, Chesney sat next to former boxer Muhammad Ali at a benefit dinner. He said Ali was a living example of how to deal with a disability.

“He suffers from Parkinson’s Disease,” Chesney said. “But he didn’t let that stop him. Whenever a fan would walk up to him and ask for an autograph, he always said ‘Sure.’ That process usually took about two minutes.”

Chesney said the staff at the medical center could benefit from the same positive ideas he teaches to disabled people.

“I’m talking with my friends here today; people who are in health care,” he said. “Without what you’re doing, this wonderful place wouldn’t be functioning. I want you to take care of yourself before you take care of us.”

Chesney is an ambassador for The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation Paralysis Resource Center. He travels the world speaking about living with paralysis since he experienced a spinal stroke at the age of 15.

Reach Keith Purtell at 684-2925 or kpurtell@muskogeephoenix.com.