Even in Wheelchair, Aubry Boyd's Spirit Still Runs Strong

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Tuesday's weather in Florida's state capital was Sunshine State-perfect for early November. Aubry Boyd opened his eyes and welcomed the bright, 75-degree day with a wish he has repeated for the past 14 years."Every day I wake up hoping it's a better day than it was yesterday," Boyd told FanHouse. "I am not complaining because I am still here. I still want to be part of life."Paralysis and a motorized wheelchair have not stolen Boyd's genuine love for vitality and people. He still talks hoops, politics, religion and women over cold suds and wings with the fellas. He still wants to make a difference. Boyd's smile and personality -- continued sources of pleasure and inspiration -- were on display Tuesday night when the Florida State basketball program honored one of its own.Boyd, 40, one of the most endearing basketball players ever to suit up for the Seminoles, was left a paraplegic after breaking the fourth vertebrate in his neck during a pickup tackle football game in his hometown of Macon, Ga., on

Oct. 29, 1995.Boyd was 26 years old. It was a game among friends. There was a fumble on the fourth play. Boyd and another player dived simultaneously for the football. They collided and bumped heads. For a moment, Boyd thought he was fine despite a tingling sensation throughout his body. The other player got up, but Boyd remained on the ground.Unable to move."I still don't ask why," Boyd said.Boyd said it just happened. One day he could walk and run, the next day a steel halo used to immobilize a neck fracture was screwed into his skull. He was alive and forever changed. Yet, it still beats the alternative.
Aubry Boyd Charitable Foundation

Donations can be made to help Boyd pay for his expenses by contacting:Aubry Boyd Charitable FoundationP.O. Box 1353, Tallahassee, Fla., 32302"When you come to grips with it and realize you have to deal with it the rest of your life, you can't be afraid," Boyd said. At 6-foot-6, Boyd was never afraid on the court, playing three positions during his career -- point guard, shooting guard and small forward. Boyd was one of the first recruits in head coach Pat Kennedy's signing class at FSU in 1987. He appeared in 116 games during his four-year career and helped lead the Seminoles to the NCAA Tournament three of his four seasons. Boyd loved to shoot the trey (55-of-178 his senior season in 1991) and hunker down on defense (he held USC guard Harold Miner to 16 points on 7-of-27 from the field in the NCAA tourney)."We played against some good cats, too," Boyd smiled.