Moving Forward by Giving Back: A Career of Service to Others

By, Dr. Anne Hruskoci – O2X On-Site Specialist

I have the pleasure of sharing the story of a physical therapist who not only lived a career of service towards others, but also a life of service. Irene grew up in Ithaca, New York, as the 3rd youngest of 7 siblings. She eventually attended Ithaca College to pursue clarinet performance, but along the way found her path in physical therapy. Immediately following her degree in PT, she pursued a job in Vietnam in 1971. American medical doctors started a hospital in Cholan (Chinese section of Saigon) to address the needs of children. The doctors would hike into remote villages and carry back children who fell victim to agents of war such as napalm and were impacted by significant burn trauma. PT Irene’s job in Vietnam was to listen to warfare in the distance from her hospital apartment, provide compassion to children despite language barrier, and treat these children via the burn PT techniques of the time.

Kim Phuc Phan Thi appeared on the cover of Time Magazine known as “Napalm Girl” following a South Vietnamese attack in her village when she was 9 years old (photograph on right by Vietnamese-American photographer, Nick Ut, on June 8, 1972.) Irene was one of her burn PTs and is seen photographed with her on the left years later, but never forgetting the shared experience.

After time dedicated towards care for both adults and children in inpatient settings, Irene and her husband, Peter, did an ultimate act of service-giving the gift of family to 2 children. They adopted their son, Michael, in 1989, and in 1992 they adopted again. She was born in Russia with a foot and ankle deformity, and without mobility saving surgery in the United States, would not be able to walk today. That 3 month old baby they adopted is me! I was born with a relatively common, but poorly understood as far as adult outcomes, deformity called clubfoot. With best practice age to perform surgery and casting intervention starting at 1-3 weeks old, my 6 month old surgery came late but allowed me the gift of movement.

Despite an excellent role model PT mom and marathon runner dad, I dove into a sedentary lifestyle to focus on music, studying voice performance at New England Conservatory with opera aspirations right after high school. My heaviest weight was close to 230 pounds during my first year of college, my foot and ankle made it hard to perform on stage in whatever footwear was required, and I had trouble keeping up with my friends wandering around Boston. I started to implement 1% changes in an attempt to reduce my foot/ankle problems by losing weight. It started with drinking water as my main liquid (whoops!), limiting my chicken nugget intake to 4 days per week instead of 7 (if you know, you know), and doing whatever in the gym for strength training 2-3 days per week. This turned into a love for fitness, helping my friends with their goals, reduced pain from permanent joint changes and deformation, and maintaining a significant weight loss for over a decade.

I graduated from conservatory and immediately started a career in fitness. The impact of 1% changes showed up in all aspects of my life, but most notably the desire to get 1% better as a 1% change itself. After movement achievements that I wouldn’t have thought possible with how my foot and ankle is, such as a 2.5x bodyweight deadlift and being able to run (although painful, I was proud to be able to do it since I was told I couldn’t), I felt inspired by our classic mantra in the profession: “movement is medicine.”I was inspired by the classic mantra in the profession, “movement is medicine,” after achieving movement goals I didn’t think were possible due to my foot and ankle condition. These accomplishments included a 2.5x bodyweight deadlift and running, which was painful, but I was proud to be able to do it since I was told I couldn’t. I achieved my Doctor of Physical Therapy degree and licensure to figure out how to help myself with my own mobility needs, as well as expand what I could do to serve others.

There was something my dad used to say and continues to say when I leave their house, “Anne, go make the world a better place.” As a kid in high school this made no sense to me and he’d say it practically every day. There were 700 students in my graduating class. How could I make that many people’s worlds better? This felt daunting to me and I’d brush it off.

The work we do in human performance has a ripple effect that reaches far beyond organizational change. This impact is felt by the tactical and executive athletes we serve, both in workshops and within integrated human performance sites. Having undergone a career transformation inspired by my mother’s professional journey, I now have a deeper understanding of my father’s words and a greater appreciation for the work we do. If we help 1 person who can then go out and serve themselves, their family, their community, and/or our country more effectively, we see that ripple effect in action. By helping 1, you did indeed “make the world a better place,” 1% (1 person) at a time.

My mom’s final job was volunteering multiple times per week for 9 years at a free clinic. She treated patients and ran their “move to health” program of free workout classes. In order to be 1% better in this new role, she got Spanish language lessons from one of her amazing friends at the women’s strength training gym she attends, and expanded her PT skillset. Her career was in inpatient care, but this was an outpatient clinic environment. She cracked open orthopedic PT textbooks and resources to help her new patient population. Irene hung up her PT license in 2024 after 53 years of clinical practice. My mom, Irene, exemplified our THRIVE pillar in regard to career satisfaction. At the same time, she and my dad gave me the best brother I could’ve asked for, the gift of mobility, and the understanding that family can absolutely transcend blood. At O2X, we have the unique opportunity to use all of our gifts to field a larger sense of purpose by serving those who serve others. Remember that every time you interact with someone, you have a new opportunity to THRIVE by making the world a better place, 1% at a time.

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