On Jan. 12, 2002, native Napan Garrett Van Scyoc was a passenger on an uneventful ride along Monticello Road when his life changed forever. The car he was riding it collided with a tree, and Van Scyoc suffered a debilitating spinal cord injury.

Van Scyoc, now 26, soon discovered he is not alone, as members of the Napa Spinal Cord Injury Network helped him acquire a new wheelchair that summer and offered suggestions about how to make his home more wheelchair-accessible. Five years later, Van Scyoc regularly joins the organization's peer support group.

"At the meetings, they see how everyone is doing and you make friendships with others there," he said.

Bill Iverson, president of the Napa Spinal Cord Injury Network, explained why the group is so beneficial to men and women with life-altering injuries. "It's such a catastrophic injury for people that the only ones that can really communicate about it (effectively) are others with spinal cord injuries."

Iverson also said many people don't realize they can assist those with disabilities merely by helping them with "the little things," like slowing down to open doors or lending a hand when a wheelchair user gets a foot tangled in a wheelchair foot rest.

"After I was disabled, men would look right by me like I was invisible," said Iverson. "At first, it bothered me, and then I figured out they didn't know what to do. ... I really think people are genuinely good but they don't know how to react to people with disabilities. But they can help."

Iverson founded the group in 2002.

"I was in an accident in 1999, when I was 47 years old. Normally, it's younger men like Garrett and they haven't even started their life yet. ... I felt there was no voice for people who had gone through this," he said.

Iverson said his organization hosts its peer support group the last Friday of each month at the Community Outreach and Education Center on Villa Lane in Napa.

The group provides a forum to discuss common challenges and devise practical solutions for people with spinal cord injuries. Members also share information about medical supplies, wheelchairs and even which airlines best accommodate individuals with mobility issues.

But the focus isn't only on overcoming routine obstacles. The Napa Spinal Cord Injury Network also offers scuba diving lessons, is a facilitator for use of the Queen of the Valley Wellness Center and raises funds to help people make their homes wheelchair-friendly.

Van Scyoc said one of the challenge he faces is when people park in handicapped spaces illegally. He said this usually happens at smaller businesses, where people think they can get in and out quickly and without anyone noticing. "The network helped me with the little things in the beginning," he said, adding that a few years back, members told him he should have a hardwood floor put into his home's foyer and sitting room as carpet hinders his mobility. Van Scyoc also said bathrooms are often not big enough to accommodate people in wheelchairs.

Despite these and other challenges, Van Scyoc still enjoys the activities he did before his accident. Van Scyoc, who said he started hunting during childhood, continues to explore the wilderness.

"Now, I fish and hunt ducks, geese, turkeys, doves -- and I try to hunt deer." He said he travels to state and federal wildlife areas to hunt birds, including one area just outside of Fairfield.

Van Scyoc also plays with the Redwood Rollers basketball team, and the group gets together for practices at least once a week and congregates for competitive games, usually monthly.

On Saturday, the Napa Spinal Cord Injury Network hit the hardwood to challenge Napa city officials in a basketball game.

Van Scyoc's plans for the future include enrolling in gunsmithing classes at Susanville's Lassen Community College, where he will study the fundamentals of gun repair, he said. "I got an application for school and I'm waiting to get the class schedule and go for the summer or fall semester." Van Scyoc said as a gunsmith, he'd like to build a client base and plans to return to Napa after attending school, unless he is offered work with a gunsmithing company outside of the area.

Erika Kennington, the network's executive director, said Van Scyoc is an inspiration to others at the peer support group offered by the organization.

"Garrett plays basketball, hunts, drives ... and he's in a place where he's able to offer support to other people and has the confidence to do that and the ability to persevere beyond his injury. His parents (Gary and Cheryl Van Scyoc) have also done a lot for us," she said.