TAMPA, Fla. — Almost two decades in the Australian military left Darren Peters with quite a bit of wear and tear.
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"Hearing, back, knees, ankles, lungs," Peters says of his 22 years in the service.
But the biggest injury he came home with isn't one you can see by looking at him.
"With the experiences that you see and the sights you never forget, you need to try and figure out where you fit in with society again," Peters said.
Eventually he did, because even though he doesn’t need a wheelchair to support his legs, he needs it to support his mind.
Peters, who plays wheelchair tennis, is one of hundreds participating in the Department of Defense's Warrior Games 2019, taking place in various locations around the Tampa Bay area. Australia, The Netherlands, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Denmark are among the international teams competing this week.
"You come out of a military environment where you’re usually known as fit, healthy, active, and when you have any kind of disability that prevents that, you don’t feel like you're whole. What I like about adaptive (sports is) they all come in, they’re back with their teams, they’re back with (the) army, navy, air force. There’s that joint environment as well, and they’re contributing again," said Mark Leatham, director of adaptive sports in Australia.
Adaptive sports are giving people like Peters a chance to lean on others who have been there to pull themselves back up, physically or mentally.
"It feels like the comradery they had when they were first in the military and when they were serving, so it brings them all together again, gets them out of sometimes just being at home or being housebound,” Leatham said.
And it helps them believe they still have a purpose.
Now, two years later, adaptive sports have helped Peters come to that realization, putting him in a place where others can lean on him.
"I try to help other people who are where I was two years ago," Peters said. "(I) grab them (and say), 'Come and join me and join the other people. You never know where you could end up.' "