From the Field to a New Mission
On April 14, 2004, a routine intrasquad scrimmage at Ohio State turned into a nightmare for Tyson Gentry. While making a block, a collision left him paralyzed from the neck down, an injury that fell on Good Friday and forever altered his trajectory.
Gentry now sees the accident as part of a divine plan. He chronicles the transformation in his recently published memoir, *Once a Buckeye … a Story of Football, Family & Faith*, released on Amazon in May 2024, a narrative that weaves faith, family and the unexpected gifts of his new life.
During a linguistics class in 2009, he met Megan Vanderhorst. Their partnership blossomed into marriage and parenthood, giving Gentry a family that he describes as his greatest blessing.
Together they founded the New Perspective Foundation, which has raised roughly $750,000 to date. The organization assists about 350 families across Ohio, Florida and Georgia with travel costs for treatment, turning personal hardship into communal support.
Despite the loss of mobility, Gentry insists that joy is found by focusing on what remains. He shares his story with his two sons, emphasizing that perspective, gratitude and purpose can flourish even after the most devastating setbacks.