Peter Pauwles

Board Vice President

Peter first started working within the disabled community during the 1970's while attending Colorado State University. Security didn't know what to make of random wheelchairs around the student center reflecting pool and the occupants bobbing around in kayaks. From the 1980s through to 2015 Peter developed the accessible fishing program at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge in collaboration with Craig Hospital Therapeutic Recreation and Children's Hospital Handicapped Sports Program. Shell Oil Company funded 6 miles of wheelchair accessible trails, 2 large fishing docks, a 500' long floating boardwalk, a large picnic gazebo and an instructional amphitheater. The accessible fishery spawned the development of several adaptive fishing systems that Peter built at Craig Hospital's Rehab Engineering department. This in turn led to the development of a wheelchair accessible raft and float fishing on the Colorado river. In 2017 the fishing program expanded to Montana with the donation of Camp Bullwheel. Camp Bullwheel continues to provide access to floating and fishing with the development of more accessible boats and fishing systems. Ability Montana has assumed the management of Camp Bullwheel and provides an optimistic future for its consumers in therapeutic recreation.