You know that feeling when you enter a room and immediately feel welcome? Some extraordinary people make that possible, quietly including everyone even while navigating their own challenges. Susan Marshall was a C5 quadriplegic whose “fighting spirit” left a mark on everyone she met. After her passing in 1999, her friend Roger Jones established the Susan Marshall Fighting Spirit Award to carry her legacy forward.
You may remember last year’s recipient, Dan Duffy. This year, we’re thrilled to celebrate someone who embodies that same resilience: Marney Smithies.
Smithies discovered the power of peer support through wheelchair basketball. At the age of 16 and still in rehab, a peer invited her to practice. She worked out how to transfer into a car and get to the gym. It turned out to be an invitation that changed everything.
“If it wasn’t for sports, I don’t know if I’d be alive or not. It was that impactful when I look back,” she says.
That first experience sparked a lifelong love of sport and staying active. Smithies and her team won gold at the 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta, and she also competed at the 2025 Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championships.
“When you’re involved with sports, whether it’s local or the Paralympic level, you realize how many people it takes, like all the volunteers,” she says. “Once you start volunteering, you realize this couldn’t happen without volunteers.” She credits her mother as a big reason she volunteers today. Smithies scorekeeps at wheelchair rugby games and volunteered at the 2025 Vancouver/Whistler Invictus Games.
Many peers know Smithies and her friend Kim Egger as co-founders of South Fraser Active Living (SFAL). Launched in 2017, SFAL grew from their shared desire to stay active and build community for those with disabilities in the Fraser Valley.
“We have created a community of peers helping peers,” says Egger. “Not only do we host activities, but we work with peers to reduce barriers that prevent them from actively engaging in the community. Where others see barriers, Marney sees possibilities.”
From coffee chats to local advocacy, SFAL keeps peers moving and connected. Smithies notes that the group is always open to new people. “The peer-to-peer thing is really invaluable. If you have a question, there’s somebody in the group that can answer. You just have to get the question to the right person,” Smithies explains.
Smithies also makes the most of the opportunities around her: She’s a regular in the Tetra Society’s woodshop, participates in ICORD studies, and runs the virtual Get Wild Dance Class hosted by SCI BC. When Egger first met Smithies, she was struggling with PTSD and adjusting to life with SCI. Egger recalls, “I was absolutely terrified, but Marney was incredibly welcoming and helped me feel safe… She exemplifies a fighting spirit, not only in overcoming her own adversity, but in her genuine desire to help others do so as well.”
Fellow nominator Bert Abbott adds, “Marney reminds us that the fighting spirit is not only about overcoming adversity, but about choosing joy, building community, and lifting [up] others along the way.”
Smithies reacted to the news of winning the Fighting Spirit Award with characterisitc humility: “I’m pretty shy, so I wouldn’t be seeking attention or seeing myself being a nominee. [When I found out], I was like, ‘Oh that’s really sweet. Thank you for thinking of me.’ When I got injured, it was a low time. Now 40 years later, I’m proud of the person I’ve become. It’s not easy to accept help or even admiration, it’s kind of a weird thing.”
Nominations for the 2026 Susan Marshall Fighting Spirit Award open January 1, 2026. The award includes a $1,000 cheque and will be presented at SCI BC’s Annual General Meeting. Learn more at sci-bc.ca/awards.
This article was originally published in the Winter 2025 issue of The Spin. Read more stories from this issue, including:
- Mindfulness
- Adaptive skateboarding
- Ozempic
- Menopause
And more!
