Meeting Stephen Lawrence Boren is not unlike watching a Kung-Fu movie: you know there is more to the story. Steve is more than his disability, he is a businessman, a friend and the heart of his family.

Steve's early years were based in the west Kootenays, in southeastern British Columbia, against the majestic backdrop of the Rocky Mountains. His memories are reminiscent of images from Lord of the Flies where as a young boy he, along with a gang of other kids, explored the nearby forests of Salmo, B.C. Their days were filled with fishing and other expeditions which piqued his growing imagination and curiosity. This led to Steve's fascination with how things worked. He could take anything apart such as a clock, a radio or even his grandparents' black and white television and, invariably, put it back together again (sometimes in better working condition), even if there were a few pieces left over in the end.

At the age of twelve, Steve moved to nearby Trail, B.C., where he continued his education as well as his boyish pranks. When he was fifteen he was building a bike with friends, a day that changed his life forever. While doing wheelie's and jumps Steve was thrown over the handle-bars and broke his neck. He was airlifted to Shaughnessy Hospital in Vancouver with a severe spinal cord injury. Paralyzed from the neck down, Steve was rendered a high-level quadriplegic.