Finding Your Path with Joe Delagrave

Joe Delagrave is one of the best wheelchair rugby players in the world. Now in his 12th year playing for the US Wheelchair Rugby National Team, Joe truly knows the meaning of overcoming obstacles after sustaining a life altering spinal cord injury on July 10, 2004. He loves to spread his story about his journey from college football player to life in a wheelchair to elite athlete. Along with his many medals and accolades, he can proudly proclaim that he is the only athlete to ever earn the USQRA Athlete of the Year Award twice.  Joe has a passion for leadership, and has served as a co-captain of the the United States of America Wheelchair Rugby Team (USAWR) for 7 years. Competing in wheelchair rugby has taken Joe all over the United States and the world — he most notably has been apart of 3 World Championship teams (2010 gold, 2014 bronze, and 2018 bronze), and won Bronze at the 2012 London Paralympics. In addition to his outstanding athletic accomplishments, Joe earned his Masters degree in professional counseling and married his college sweetheart April, with whom he has three wonderful children— Braxton, Brayden, and Brynley. “We get a choice to get up. A choice to move on.  A choice to be a better person than we were the day before. A choice to live by faith. Even when days seem hard, or I make mistakes, or I can’t comprehend the path, I choose to live this life with passion for His purpose. Since that life changing day back in 2004, I never could have imagined the path God has put me on. It is crazy to think of how one day, heck, one second can change so much. Through my faith, family, education, athletic career, and experiences, I have found my passion and purpose in helping others find theirs.” — Joe Delagrave