Beloved Amputee Lands Coaching Job at Alma Mater

CENTRAL FALLS, R.I.—A missing limb didn’t prevent Cory Garabedian from taking a quantum leap forward with his life.

Cory Garabedian coaches his basketball team at Central Falls High School in Rhode Island.
Cory Garabedian coaches his basketball team at Central Falls High School in Rhode Island.

The 24-year-old not only landed a coaching job at his alma mater but is working on a business degree at the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI).

The word “quit” was never in his dictionary.

“Be true to yourself and you’ll never be disappointed,” he maintains. “The truth will always set you free.”

A horrific auto accident on Christmas Eve 2011 resulted in an amputated leg. The results could have been worse. For weeks, various members of the clergy made regular visits and prayed by his bedside.

People like Steve Elmasian, his coach, never missed a visit and gave Garabedian constant encouragement. So did the hundreds who sent out cards and the thousands who read of his determination in the Armenian press.

All of a sudden, he went from a typical young man to a role model for others facing a disability. Garabedian never looked at it that way. Inspiration was at his beckoning call, and he “ran” with it.

“I thought it was all a bad dream at first,” he said. “When you’re in a hospital for 50 days with a missing leg, the world around you tends to cave. You begin to feel useless. I was bound to make the best of it because that’s what sports taught me. That’s what my parents and friends drilled into me.”

At the time, he was headed to Dean College in Franklin, looking at football after distinguishing himself in high school. He was also a track stalwart, helping his Providence AYF team to two relay championships. Gritty competition appeared to be the young athlete’s destiny.

According to Garabedian’s physicians, he may never have survived such an ordeal had it not been for his strong physical condition and uncompromising faith.

His liver, elbow, leg, and lungs all underwent treatment. He was on a respirator and feeding tube for weeks. Much of his recovery had to do with his military training and how to deal with adversity.

Words from his Facebook page as he left the hospital were bound to uplift even the most sympathetic being: “Today is the day when my hospital nightmare ends. I am going home and never looking back. To everyone, just take life day by day because you never know when it’s going to be your last.”

He’s completed 15 hours of college credits at CCRI closer to home after being hired as an assistant varsity coach at his high school, where he also played basketball. The fact that the athletic director was his football coach may have opened a door.

The junior varsity team is entirely his responsibility. Garabedian coaches with zest, then joins the head coach on the bench for the varsity game. He’s made such an impact with the JV’s that two freshman were quickly promoted to the varsity level, which is rare in high school sports.

“I’m teaching them the knowledge and wisdom I learned as a young athlete,” he said. “It all begins with the fundamentals. I try to make it a fun experience for the kids.”

You wouldn’t even know he has a missing leg, thanks to a prosthetic. So he can’t run up and down the court with his players, but he can work out plays, and teach them to shoot and the benefits of team play.

“I promised myself I’d be a master at prosthetics,” he brought out. “Running’s the next stage. It’s become a personal challenge. I see progress every day.”

He’s come to accept his fate, however gradually. The two-time football All-Stater realizes how easy it is to grow depressed, but doesn’t want to experience the lows. Coaching was always in his playbook. Only it came sooner than expected.

He wants to start his own business after college and graduate in the coaching ranks. Last April, he was the main speaker at Cranston City Hall for the annual ANCA flag-raising commemoration.

“It’s been a blessing in disguise for me,” he confirms. “I always thought people were going to look at me funny with a metal leg. But you have to turn your disabilities into abilities.”

At this year’s Providence AYF Varantian Ball, Elmasian praised his younger colleague for getting his life back together and fulfilling his dreams.

“Cory’s gone from an induced coma to coaching at his high school,” Elmasian said. “I remember coaching him as a 13-year-old. He’s nearly twice that age now. There is nothing more rewarding than to see an athlete follow in your footsteps. Watching him go from where he was to where he is now should be an inspiration to all of us. He certainly is to me.”

Tom Vartabedian

Tom Vartabedian

Tom Vartabedian is a retired journalist with the Haverhill Gazette, where he spent 40 years as an award-winning writer and photographer. He has volunteered his services for the past 46 years as a columnist and correspondent with the Armenian Weekly, where his pet project was the publication of a special issue of the AYF Olympics each September.
Tom Vartabedian

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