Bradley J. Updegrove (March 19, 1966 - December 26, 2011) My name is Daniel Boyer, I’m a Special Agent in the FBI and I created this site to celebrate the amazing life of my good friend, Bradley James Updegrove. Because of my job I have been fortunate enough to travel to just about every state in the US and many countries overseas. I have met thousands of people from all over and I can say with confidence that Brad is the most amazing personality I have ever met. Unfortunately Brad passed away the day after Christmas in 2011. That is the day the human race lost one of its best. There are no words that can describe Brad and if you did not get a chance to meet him then it is just too difficult to understand his amazingly powerful personality, but I will try my best to tell you about him just based on some of my experiences. Please share your stories and pictures on this site so myself, family, friends and others can enjoy them. I think it will be great too if someday, when his son Grayson grows up, he can enjoy the photos and stories. I have known Brad since birth. Our mothers were good friends which lead to sleepovers and a longtime friendship. We were in the same grade and we played high school sports together. I remember one particular JV football game in which Brad scored a couple of touchdowns and I had one. He was our running back. I called him crazy legs because he was short and made some crazy moves with his legs to go around would be tacklers. Even as a kid he was a leader not a follower. He was the first person I knew to get a job. Myself and others would go to Castles Family restaurant to visit Brad were his was a cook. Some of my fondest memories of Brad are sleepovers in Chris Wilbers Barn. We were about 15 years old. We would each drink about 2 liters of Mountain Dew, listen to Queen, Styx and other 80's bands and ride our bikes all over Newfane and Olcott. Sometimes Wilbur would drive us around in his mothers car but that’s another story. It’s also were we had our first taste of beer and after having a few Genny Cream Als we went back to the Dew! Well things took a turn in tenth grade during final exams when Brad was involved in a car accident on Transit Road less than a quarter mile from my house. The accident left Brad paralyzed from the waist down. He spent many months in the hospital in pain and trying to recover. I can remember visiting him with our good friend Chris Wilber. Brad would put on a brave face. He never once complained. He was ALWAYS in good spirits and had a big smile on his face. At the time I just could not believe how good his attitude was, but that’s just Brad being Brad. The ironic thing about Brad was instead of others trying to make him feel comfortable because he was paralyzed, he so easily made others around him feel comfortable. I always found that odd but remarkable. Well he came back to school in a wheelchair and a big smile on his face. This is when his life really kicked into gear. He purchased a black Trans AM and a van. I cant remember which came first, but both vehicles were modified so Brad could drive and drive he did. He went everywhere. He also purchased a boat. I remember that he would tow the boat to Olcott Harbor and put the boat into the water all by himself. I’m not sure I could do that, but he did. He was an amazing water skier. He would catch air jumping over waves from the wake and even jump off ramps! That’s with one hand holding the rope and the other holding himself in his modified water ski. I tried to ski on the modified ski and took a couple of nasty wipeouts! I have great memories of taking scuba diving lessons with Brad. We got certified at Sherkston Beach. Again, I called him crazy legs because he had no control of his paralyzed legs and they would float above his head. He knew he looked crazy and he would look at me and make a crazy face to try to get me to laugh while 40 feet underwater. It always worked. He could always make me laugh. I also remember that I could not keep up with him because his arms were so powerful. We went camping, fishing, canoeing, and the list goes on and on. He never sat still. I could tell many great stories about Brad and our high school years but I would run out of room. He graduated from Newfane School and went to NCCC and then to SUNY at Brockport where he graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Therapeutic Recreation. I didn’t see much of him while he attended college but we did still get out on the boat with Michelle Logan during summer beaks. It was a blast! Then one day he told me he was moving to Dallas Texas because he got a job at the Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation. I was very sad and happy at the same time. I only got the chance to fly out and visit him a few times, but he looked great and now had his own business called Rehab Specialties. I was not surprised at all to learn that he owned and ran his own company. After that I only saw Brad when he came home to visit his family. His mom, Joyce, was always kind enough to call me and let me crash the family get togethers. I am forever grateful to her. Brad then moved to Deer Park, WA to start yet another company called Rocky Mountain Medical Supplies located in Spokane. I believe he was about to or did sign a contract with a big company and his business was headed for greatness. He also got married to a wonderful person named Traci. I never got the chance to visit him in Washington but I would call him once in a while to see what he was up to. The list of things he did was endless such as, water skiing, riding ATVs, hand cycling, playing basketball, skydiving, going to sporting events, concerts, starting another company, signing big contracts, dancing, playing darts and the list goes on and on. I would get tired just listening to what he was doing. He also won a gold medal in the 1996 Paralympics. Not too amazing?!?!? He would ask me what I was doing and I would say, “I went to work, came home, mowed the lawn and went to bed”. Not too amazing!?!? I have also witnessed and heard many amazing stories of how Brad helped and inspired many many others who were paralyzed. At Brads funeral, I think it was his good friend Ken Korth who told the story of the young boy who needed a wheelchair but his family could only afford the basic hospital type wheelchair so Brad kicked in his own money to get the boy a cool sports chair. Brad knew that having a cool chair can really affect how a person feels about themselves. He volunteered countless hours helping people with spinal injuries. His list of accomplishments and humanity are endless. Just look at some of the photos in the photo gallery. I also looked at many many photos of Brad and could not find one were he wasn’t smiling or goofing off. For those of you who knew him you also remember the silly seal laugh of his, his great sense of humor, his powerful competitive drive, his crazy hand that didn’t work well that he named, his man crush on Sylvester Stallone, the endless years of the mullet???, etc etc, but most of all his good heart, his ability to make anyone feel at home no matter what the circumstances, his endless desire to help others and that shit eating grin of his as he wheeled up to see ya. His passion for living life to the fullest was immeasurable. He lived the life of a thousand people. I am sure he is some type of VP in Heaven. There is no doubt in my mind. It’s because of all of things mentioned above and for the many great and wonderful things not mentioned, that I have started the Brad Upderove Memorial Fund (BUMF). I plan to continue the good work Brad did his entire life. I can never do justice to what he has accomplished but I feel I owe Brad something for all he had given me and others. I think it only fair to pay it forward. My kids raise money for BUMF by taking bottles and cans back to the store. I will tell them about my buddy Brad, what he did for others and hope they learn what it means to be a good human being and pay it forward. My goal is to keep BUMF going as long as I am alive and then have my kids continue it. I also hope to someday give away funds to those in need with the help of Brad’s son Grayson. I eagerly await to see what this little guy will do in life! If you would like to contribute to the Brad Updegrove Memorial Fund then please make checks payable to: The Brad Updegrove Memorial Fund. Send the check to: Daniel Boyer 2575 Fuller Rd Burt, NY 14028. OR you can also send the money directly to the account by sending the check to: Ontario Shores Federal Credit Union, The Brad Updegrove Memorial Fund, PO Box 9 Newfane, NY 14108-0009. Put Acct 100422005 on the check. The folks at the bank remember Brad and are happy to help. 100% of all the money will go to someone in need. It doesn’t have to be much. Share/post pictures of your you/your kids taking cans back and donating the deposits. Have them sell some items at a yard sale. Then have your kids log on and see the people they directly helped. I hope to put the photos of people helped by BUMF on this site. It all adds up and we can make a difference. If you cannot give at this time then please do something nice for someone in your area.