Stepping into a better life

Dr. Eyal Gur came to Long Island on April 14 knowing that the most difficult thing for him to do is walk from the kitchen to his living room without spilling a cup of coffee; he left nearly two weeks later thinking he could take part in a mini-marathon or mountain climb.

Gur, 54, has had a prosthetic right leg since 1982. He lost his leg after being shot in Syria during the first Lebanon War. Then a member of the very elite Shaldag unit in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Gur, who also has a private practice, is chief of the plastic surgery department at Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv.

Being a very active person before his leg was amputated, Gur missed running and cycling. “It’s not just physical, but freedom to have that motion again,” he said, sitting on a bench at A Step Ahead Prosthetics and Orthotics in Hicksville. They also have locations in Boston and Haifa, Israel.

A Step Head teamed with the Friends of Israel Defense Forces Strides Program last year to provide IDF veterans with advanced prosthetics primarily used for sporting activities, which cannot be provided in Israel. The Strides Program is also in its second year of existence.

Gur used a prosthetic that allowed him to stand for up to 16 hours, but it was limited in scope. He had not run for 30 years and cycling was problematic as perspiration loosened the prosthetic’s connection to his body.

“I was always physical, in high school I played volleyball, basketball,” said Gur, who with his wife, Gili, a psychologist, have three children, including a daughter, Maya, who lives in New York. “It’s a natural continuation of your life.”

Invited to a medical conference last year in Chicago, Gur was asked to address 50 FIDF supporters at a doctor’s house. He didn’t know much about the Friends group, but did learn about the Strides Program. Several months later he was contacted by the FIDF office in Israel, interviewed, assessed and selected to be part of the 2013 group that will receive advanced prosthetics.