Spire academy's adaptive sports program

Life Waters, a St. Louis-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, received a $502,864.86 Project Grant from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration under the VA Grants for Adaptive Sports Programs for Disabled Veterans and Disabled Members of the Armed Forces program (CFDA 64.034). The award, effective September 30, 2025, through September 30, 2026, funds the planning, development, management, and implementation of Spire Academy's Adaptive Sports Program, which provides comprehensive adaptive scuba diving instruction and certification to disabled veterans and service members with mobility impairments.

The grant supports the delivery of free Scuba Diving International (SDI) training and certification programs that enable participants to progress from snorkeling to open water diving certification. Through a partnership with the Christopher Reeve Foundation, Life Waters is expanding program reach across multiple states including New Mexico, Georgia, California, Kansas, and the Florida Panhandle, with an anticipated target of approximately 85 individuals living with paralysis. The program emphasizes increasing access to women and women veterans living with paralysis, positioning adaptive scuba diving as both a recreational and therapeutic rehabilitative tool for the disabled veteran and active-duty military population.