Ghent veteran brings home sled hockey silver from Empire State Games

GHENT — A local veteran and his sled hockey team brought home the silver medal from the Empire State Games in January.

Sgt. Steve Pachacek, 54, of Ghent served in the U.S. Army from 1981 to 1985 in Korea, Thailand and the Philippines, and said he was severely injured in a training accident. After the accident, which caused long-term problems with his spine, Pechacek underwent 44 surgeries over the years including a knee replacement, reconstruction of a damaged leg and three months of rehabilitation to get back on his feet, but over time the injuries rendered him disabled.

Pachacek was looking for something to take his mind off of the pain and never expected relief would come from a sport he played as a child: hockey.

“I never thought I would be able to do any kind of sport again,” Pachacek said. “But I heard of a Wounded Warrior camp [the Stride Center for Outdoor Recreation and Education at 2166 Route 203, Chatham] and they told me about sled hockey.”

Sled hockey is played by the same rules as regular hockey but players sit on a sled and wield two smaller hockey sticks.

“It requires a lot of core and upper body work,” Pachacek said. “I flipped over on the ice a lot when I started. It takes time to get used to.”

Pachacek is the only goaltender for a coed sled hockey team for the Capital Region, the Stride Capital District Sled Warriors. The team plays tournaments around the state including its biggest one of the year, the Empire State Games, which were held Jan. 29 to Feb. 2 at the Conference Center at Lake Placid.

“We’re an eclectic group of veterans who get together and practice every Sunday; we put a lot into this,” Pachacek said. “This is our big tournament of the year. We had a good showing.”

Pachacek and his Capital Region team of warriors, the only sled hockey team in the area this year, brought home the silver medal from the Empire State Games. “The game kind of keeps your mind off of the pain and the things you can’t do,” Pachacek said. “It keeps you motivated.”

Pachacek was able to go to the games and compete with the help of a newly formed program in Columbia County supported by the Pfc. Joseph P. Dwyer Veteran Foundation.

The Columbia County Veterans Services Agency received $100,000 in state funding in August 2018 through the Dwyer foundation, named after Pfc. Joseph Dwyer, who served in Iraq and was the subject of an iconic photograph from the war showing him cradling a wounded Iraqi boy while his unit was engaged in battle in Baghdad. After returning from Iraq, Dwyer suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. He died in 2008, leaving behind a wife and young daughter.

The program in Columbia County is headed by Command Sgt. Maj. Gary Flaherty, the director of Columbia County Veterans Services, who uses the money to help veterans through financial support, including about $1,100 to sponsor Pachacek at the Empire State Games.

“In knowing Steve I think this was a very positive experience for him,” Flaherty said. “I am very pleased we could help him out.”

Pachacek was unsure if he would make it to the Empire State Games this year, he said.

“I did not know if I was going to be able to afford it,” Pachacek said. “Flaherty was a godsend. It was really nice of him to use the funds to help me go to the games.”

The sled hockey team operates solely on donations.

Stride Adaptive Sports, which sponsors the sled hockey team, will be holding its 14th annual Wounded Warrior Snowfest from Feb. 28 to March 3 at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock, Massachusetts, where wounded veterans can get free skiing and riding lessons.