Recipient Information
State of Residence: Kentucky
Injury: Paralysis from waist down
Year of Injury: 2003
THEIR STORY
Gary Birzer practically grew up at the racetrack. His father was a jockey (and, later, a trainer) and his brother, Alex, is still in the saddle. But Gary didn’t start race riding until 1997, at age 21. He rode mainly on the Midwest circuit as well as at Suffolk Downs and Mountaineer Park, enjoying a successful career that included several stakes wins. At age 27, his riding days suddenly ended in a horrific accident. Gary was thrown to the ground and another horse and rider fell over him. He only remembers bits and pieces of the spill that severed his spine in two places and left him paralyzed from the waist down.
Gary spent many months in rehabilitation, amassing over a million dollars in medical bills. As if the accident wasn’t nightmare enough, Gary learned that his insurance coverage for catastrophic injury – a policy he had faithfully paid into – had lapsed years earlier. Lawsuits ensued; the jockey now had to deal with both lawyers and doctors while coping with his life-altering injuries. Five years after his accident Birzer’s legal woes ended, but the settlement hardly covered his mountain of medical bills. The PDJF stepped in to help.
Gary attends PDJF events and drives a specially-equipped van