LANSING, Mich. — At 40 years old Justin Caine is practicing for what could be his final competition. Getting to this point is remarkable. Justin's dad was driving him to school on the first day of fourth grade when his life changed forever.
"On the way, he saw my shoe was untied. 'He said Justin your shoe is untied' so I bent down to tie my shoe. When I did this pain that I can't describe just overcame me and it was just like more pain than I ever felt in my entire life. I just started vomiting and I fell back. Everything went mechanical," Caine said.
Justin had a cancerous brain tumor that caused a brain hemorrhage. He had less than a 50 percent chance to live. Doctors saved him but he lost his ability to do anything.
"It was extremely hard. I was fully aware of what had happened, I hadn't lost any of that. Not being able to walk not being able to talk not being able to swallow, it was extremely frustrating. I couldn't communicate with people," he said.
Over time Justin was able to re-learn most everything. He was never allowed to play any contact sports and there wasn’t another avenue for him to participate. A decade later Justin’s stepmom started the Lansing Strong which changed everything for him.
"Anyone that I'm competing against let's remove their cerebellum and then let's see pound for a pound how we can do against each other and that's the opportunity that I started to get," Caine said.
At the same time, Justin had finished college and was frustrated with opportunities for people with disabilities in the workplace.
"There are a lot of people that don't expect you to be able to do much because of the way you walk or talk don't walk or don't talk," he said.
So he bet on himself and started a business.
Justin is just the life of the party. He's always quick with the wit and a joke. And just driven, I mean that's the one thing he is driven and there's no lack of effort," Good Fruit Media co-founder Craig Westfall said.
As he started good fruit media and a family, Justin decided he wanted to make up for lost time and go jump feet first back into athletics.
"He's like there's more, I can do more and I was like okay we have a toddler," Justin's wife Megan said. "Justin is an interesting character in that he gets ideas in his head and he gets really passionate really fast."
10 years in Justin’s biggest fan is his mom. Every time he laces up his cleats he’s focused on making her proud.
"Right before the pandemic, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. I told her I am going to go win a medal for her," he said.
Justin plans to hang them up at the end of the year, so he can spend more time with his family and business. If he qualifies for the 2024 Paralympics retirement day might get pushed back.
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