When he was 4 years old, Alec contracted encephalitis. After an 18-day coma and months in the hospital, he was forced to re-learn how to walk, talk and eat. He fought back, defying all the predictions, only to face a new set of challenges…epilepsy and intellectual disabilities due to the damage to his brain. He is now 29 years old and continues to battle daily life-threatening seizures.
Alec began competing in Adapted Athletics in 7th grade. By the time he graduated in 2010, he was a decorated four-sport Athlete. He and his team advanced to the State Championship in Adapted Softball and he was named All-Conference in each sport. As a Senior at Minnetonka High School, he was the recipient of the Einer Anderson Award : Awarded to the senior student athlete who best exemplifies the qualities of courage, humor, generosity, humility, faith and dedication.
Alec continued to pursue his passion for sports by joining Special Olympics Minnesota. He and his West Metro Warriors teammates compete year-round in: basketball, track & field, golf, softball, flag football, bowling and floor hockey.
Upon graduating from Minnetonka High School, faced with limited employment opportunities, we took matters into our own hands and started a screen-printing company, Warrior Graphics, with the goal of transforming how individuals with intellectual disabilities are involved in the workplace.
In 2012, we developed and trademarked the Everyday Warrior™ brand, hoping that we would have the opportunity to evolve into our own inclusive apparel brand. After seven successful years in the screen-printing business, Alec was ready for a change, so we decided to bring Everyday Warrior™ to life.