by Cathy Cuff-Coffman

This summer, we are sharing updates about three of the amazing people featured in prior Shalieve stories. Our final feature is Tommy Swarts. Read his original Shalieve Story here.

Tommy Swarts: Launching Version 3.0

Tommy Swarts is a good friend to all who cross his path. In online spinal cord injury forums, he often is the first (and only) person to answer difficult questions. He readily shares tips and tricks, and nutrition facts, especially those from Anthony William, the Medical Medium.

Swarts usually finishes every conversation with, “Much love…”

Yet it wasn’t until he opened up to our writer, sharing with The Fund his intimate story about the mental health struggles that often accompany a spinal cord injury (SCI) that gave Swarts the impetus to take the next steps in his life.

And those steps are impressive.

In 2008, Swarts was a 20-year-old software developer in California. It all came to a screeching halt when he was hit by a car while riding his motorcycle. Swarts was adept at rehabbing his body; but he wasn’t prepared for the mental toll living with an SCI would take.

The ChangeMaker

It took Swarts 15 years, but last year he decided to make some big changes.

“I decided I had to start working [at a career] again, at least to some degree, and I didn’t know how well that was going to go,” he recalls.

Swarts, is a methodical thinker. He started thinking about “laying down some steps to take me in a direction that might be beneficial.”

Scholarship Ticket

He found a general scholarship for people with a disability to go back to school to

get up-to-date training in their job field.

“The requirement was that you have a disability and that you needed up-to-date training for your career,” explains Swarts. “It made sense because I hadn’t done programming in 15 years.”

Once Swarts found, applied, and was accepted for the scholarship, he found a school that offered a programming degree that fit his future plans. He chose Austin Community College.

He factored in the jobs he already had in Lake Austin, TX: raking seaweed from a lake and driving the shuttle for high-end steakhouse restaurant clients.

Both jobs emanate from the same group of investors.

“I told myself I wanted to impress the owners and investors of the steakhouse because I had built a relationship with them,” says Swarts. “They’re graduate-degree-type people. I want to make these guys proud.”

Goal Setting

Swarts says he could have been happy just working. “That’s not the case anymore,” he states.

“Working is satisfying me. I’m accomplishing goals and finally getting over the injury,” says Swarts.

“But simultaneously, it’s time to start Phase Two.” He explains that’s education and good grades.

Swarts shared his latest grade transcript, pictured here. He got an A in Programming and Fundamentals, the programming class. “I took a two-part math class, which was kind of hard for me because I haven’t done math in so long,” he explains. “That one came out to a B in one part, and then I got a C in the second part.”

He explains how his programming industry has changed during the 15 years he’s been away from it.

The Tech Talk

“It’s a different environment,” he says. “I was a front-end developer. I was never a back-end developer; I was always a front-end guy.” Swarts took his time explaining the differences; suffice it to say there are vast departures between the two. Developers are now required to know both ends.

The front-end developers deal with what the user sees. “It’d be a super beautiful design, like those on visa.com or Golden State Warriors, whatever that might be,” explains Swarts.

“But a back-end developer handles the logic,” he says. Swarts launches into an explanation of the history of the dynamic programming language JavaScript and the intricacies of making the two ends work together seamlessly. Swarts’ conversation is colorful and animated, yet he’s patient, ensuring that his explanations are understandable.

“I was frozen in time,” he says, noting that his continuing education is so important to him.

By choosing Austin Community College, he knew he could keep both of his jobs, attend classes, and study. However, that would require him to move out of his parents’ house and live on his own.

So, he did.

Movin’ On Out

Swarts found an apartment within striking distance of college and work. The one disadvantage to college he didn’t anticipate but says he should have been was the toll sitting would take on his body.

This summer he is only going to take three credits. “I’m going to go to the gym, every other day, and I’m going to work out–work out–work out,” he emphasizes. “And I’m going to get my chest and my back really big so my neck stops hurting.

“And then I’m going to get my glutes really big so that while I’m sitting, they’re not putting pressure on my hamstring.”

He relates that going to college was taking a toll on his body.

“I had a 4.0 that first semester,” he says. “There’s no reason why I shouldn’t have a 4.0 with the amount of time I’m putting into this. But it got intensely painful at the end. And I was studying, but I wasn’t very present. I was just more physically there,” Swarts says.

The Grand Plan

Swarts will have one year of college done after completing the summer session. He estimates he will have two to three years more in which to finish his BS in Computer Science. “I don’t know if I can sustain a full load at 12 credits per semester just because it’s really difficult (due to my body and SCI),” he says.

Finally, a great motivator for Swarts to get more education and to take on more responsibility to do those things is family. His parents are getting older, and he has two brothers that need different kinds of care.

“Where I’m at now is version 3.0 of Tommy WalksAgain (his screen handle),” he says. “It’s something entirely different that I didn’t ever think that I would do, but here I am and I’m doing it.”

“And it’s all because of the support of everyone around me.”

Swarts wonders how, after 10 years of pain and suffering, sometimes everything good is happening. “How did everything come together so perfectly?” he asks. “But I’ve always said that, and I’ve kind of come to realize that pain and suffering amount to spiritual currency.”

Cat-i-gan

Part of that positive spiritual currency that came back to Swarts is the adoption of a kitten. “Her name is Lily,” he says.

Swarts says he wasn’t sure at first, but quickly realized the “health benefits” of having Lily. “I think mentally, psychologically, she is such a blessing,” he says. “You get distracted and take care of the cat, and she is all over the place, running around, scratching stuff, jumping on me, you know, doing all kinds of crazy stuff,” he laughs.

Adding Lily to his busy life was a good thing. “I can see that the busier I am, the more goals I have, and the more responsibilities I have, the less the injury is a problem in my life,” he says.

Clearly, Tommy WalksAgain 3.0 has successfully launched.