Super Senior: Sandy Kish

BOLTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Every Wednesday, Sandy Kish holds court. He leads a group that calls themselves “The Hit Squad,” helping people cope with Parkinson’s Disease by playing tennis.

Steve Herrero has been dealing with Parkinson’s for close to a decade. He was once a serious marathoner.

Reporter Joe Carroll: Does it feel good to be out here?

Steve Herrero: It feels great. I count this as one of the most important days of my week.

Herrero says the arm movements help him combat the disease. “It makes me not think about walking, not think about shuffling, just reacting,” he said.

The squad has been in full swing for about three years, helping people like Herrero. Kish has also had his own health issues to deal with. “At the end of October, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer,” he said.

He had no symptoms that summer and was at the top of his tennis game, playing at the National Senior Games. “I felt great and then, bam,” he said. It was a prostate-specific antigen or PSA test that revealed everything wasn’t ok. “There was a quick jump and that alerted the doctors that maybe something was wrong.”

To understand Kish, you have to understand his passion to compete. “A lot of people know me through ski racing,” Kish said. “I played high school football, wrestling, and track... I was the captain of the team and then coached after that.”

When Kish got injured, he says he worked through pain, but cancer was his toughest opponent. “That invincibility that I had felt as an athlete kind of came crashing down,” he said.

Karen, his wife of 50 years, was by his side. “For me, it was more figuring out what to do and how do we do it,” Karen said.

“I knew that it was going to be easier for me -- because I could fight the cancer -- than it was for Karen,” Kish said.

The two were long-time teachers. They researched the cancer and its effects. Kish says his recommendation to others boils down to this: “Men, get the test,” he said. “I’m cancer-free. At the beginning of December, I had surgery.”

There were some bumps on the road of recovery -- an infection briefly put him back into the hospital -- but in early February he turned 75 with a celebration on the slopes. He was joined by Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, another group where he volunteers. “Every time I give to others, I feel very happy,” Kish said.

A life that’s far from going downhill.

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