Angel on the run

Crossing a finish line is a good feeling for anyone — whether an avid or a novice runner. But for Trussville resident and special needs high school student Tim Tankersley, 18, it means even more. 

Diagnosed at six months old with cerebral palsy, Tim is legally blind and is in a wheelchair, but his days are spent much like other teens — choosing a sport to play or a club to participate in, and the highlights of the school day are seeing friends and lunch.

“He loves school, and he’s extremely social,” said his mom, Dorinda Tankersley. “He loves to go and do and see people.”

Dorinda and her husband, Jeff, Trussville residents for 12 years, have known for a long time that Tim also loves to move fast. Now, Tim’s passions include competing in 5K races, or 3.1 miles.

“He’s always loved amusement parks and roller coasters,” Dorinda says.

He, along with five other special needs athletes from the Birmingham area, recently competed in October’s Maple Leaf Run and November’s Blow Away 5K with the help of Ainsley’s Angels of America. The nonprofit group provides race wheelchairs and entry fees to special needs athletes and motivation to the runners who will be pushing them or running alongside them.

Ainsley’s Central Alabama Ambassador Vera Spinks knows firsthand what this organization can do for their Angel rider athletes. Her 13-year-old daughter, Kylie, also has cerebral palsy. After much prodding from Kylie to start running together, Spinks started the nonprofit in Alabama, making her home base Tuscaloosa two years ago.

“Many ‘runners’ think of it as pushing someone,” Spinks said. “I always promise them that the athlete will be pulling them by the end of the race.” 

The organization also forms “teams” for the participant — comprised of a special needs athlete or rider, a runner and a guardian — someone who assists in helping the rider and runner accomplish their goal that day.

But the team aspect goes far beyond just placing a special needs person with someone to push the wheelchair.

The rider athletes get the chance to accomplish something on their own. It also gives parents or caretakers a secure spot on the sidelines, cheering on their loved one.

“We didn’t just want it to be a parent-child team,” Spinks says. “That’s why it was organized this way.”

And truly, the word “team” has many connotations. For local coach James “Jamey” Curlee, 46, teamwork is nothing new. An 18-year veteran teacher at Hewitt-Trussville High School, Curlee teaches biomedical science and coaches lacrosse and cross-country.

As a previous children’s pastor at CrossPoint Church in Argo, he’s known Tim a long time, and he still attends church with the Tankersleys. He also sees Tim at school often — in his classroom and even for just a short friendly hello in the hallways during the school day. Curlee says that coaching cross-country keeps him in shape throughout the year, and he has finished plenty of 5Ks and half marathons.

He said he stood proudly at Tim’s side during the recent races, but getting to be Tim’s “runner” hasn’t been an easy path. With Tim weighing almost 100 pounds, plus the weight of a much older wheelchair, it proved more difficult than expected when he pushed him in the 2014 Maple Leaf Run.

“It was ridiculously hard,” Curlee said.

After that race, he worked out a new plan. Curlee’s wife, Janet, discovered Ainsley’s Angels online and got involved. He was then able to push Tim in this year’s CrossPoint 5K and the Maple Leaf Run using the provided much lighter wheelchair.

“I know him well enough to know when he’s happy and excited, and I just love hearing him laugh and cut up when we do the races together,” Curlee says.

He has a bucket list for their team’s future, too.

“My goal is to run the Mercedes half marathon with Tim,” he says. 

The rest of the Tankersley family doesn’t share a love of running, Dorinda says, and all this wouldn’t be possible without Curlee’s help.

“We are not runners,” she chuckles. “He is a brave man. They have always had such a great relationship. Tim loves doing this with Coach Curlee, and he’s an absolute blessing to Tim.”

Spinks is hoping to grow Ainsley’s Angels in the area so that more people can race and accomplish their goal.

The current race schedule and more information about Ainsley’s Angels is available at ainsleyangels.org.