Meet Our Special Guest, Amy Purdy!

We are thrilled to announce our 2015 S.O.U.P! (Shots Offer Unrivaled Protection) event special guest -- meningitis survivor, vaccine advocate, world-class snowboarder, 2014 Paralympic Medalist, Dancing with the Stars finalist, TED speaker, model/actress, clothing designer, co-founder of Adaptive Action Sports, New York Times bestselling author of On My Own Two Feet: From Losing My Legs to Learning the Dance of Life and Colorado resident Amy Purdy!

Amy’s Story: Living Beyond Limits…
At 19, after experiencing flu-like symptoms, Amy was rushed to the hospital in a state of septic shock. En route, she experienced respiratory and multiple organ failure which caused her to lose circulation to her extremities. When she entered into the hospital she was given less than a 2% chance of survival, put on life support and placed into a coma. After multiple blood transfusions and the removal of her ruptured spleen, doctors diagnosed Amy with meningococcal meningitis, a vaccine-preventable bacterial infection. Due to the lack of circulation she had suffered doctors had to amputate her legs below the knee. She later received a donated kidney from her father a week before her 21st birthday.

After going through this life-altering experience, Amy challenged herself to move on with her life and attain goals that even those who have both legs struggle to achieve. Just three months after her kidney transplant, Amy entered the USASA National Snowboarding Championship where she won medals in three events. Today, she is one of the top ranked adaptive snowboarders in the world and was the 2014 Paralympic Bronze Medalist. She is the only double-leg amputee competing at the world class level.
Amy’s creativity, positive outlook and her never give up attitude have opened doors to many other opportunities. Her many accomplishments include becoming a 2014 finalist on Season 18 of ABC's Dancing with the Stars, co-founding the non-profit organization Adaptive Action Sports, starring on Oprah's Live the Life You Want Tour, appearing in advertising campaigns for major brands such as Toyota and Coca Cola, and in January 2015, Amy released her memoir, On My Own Two Feet, which quickly became a New York Times bestseller.

Additionally, Amy and her mom Sheri have teamed up with Pfizer to launch the "Take Action Against Meningitis" campaign to encourage parents to learn more about how they can help protect their teens and young adults from meningococcal meningitis.

Guests at the 8th annual S.O.U.P! event will have the exciting opportunity to hear Amy's inspirational story firsthand during the awards program. Book Bar Denver will have copies of Amy's book, On My Own Two Feet: From Losing My Legs to Learning the Dance of Life, for sale at the event.