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Row New York’s Adaptive Program holds special importance for Carolina Quijada. Both she and her sister Tania participated in Row New York’s Youth Program throughout their high school years. In 2010, when the organization launched an Adaptive Program for people with cognitive and physical disabilities, Carolina and Tania’s youngest sister, Ivonne, who has Down Syndrome, had the opportunity to step off of the sidelines and join the team.

As an alumna who volunteered with the organization’s novice teams, Carolina was the perfect candidate for coaching the newly formed Adaptive Program. When Ivonne joined the inaugural Row New York Adaptive Program, the whole family—including Coach Carolina—piled into the car and came out to support her on her first day of practice. “I brought everything I learned from Row New York’s Youth Program to our athletes in the Adaptive Program. We are all athletes here,” explains Carolina, summing up her strong belief that when her athletes step into a boat, they deserve the same respect as any rower without disabilities.

Certainly, there are safety issues to take into consideration when teaching kids with disabilities, but her bottom line? She is a coach, they are her athletes, and she expects from them what every coach wants from their team: discipline, dedication, and teamwork. As Carolina underscores, she has taught teens and adults from different backgrounds with different challenges, but when they step into a boat, they are rowers first and foremost.

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