Matt Lucas
Board Member
Matt Lucas retired from the Department of Veterans Affairs in May, 2024. Matt worked as a
Recreation Therapist until 2008 became the Supervisor, Recreation Therapy at the VA- Western Colorado Health Care System (Grand Junction) for over 31 years. Matt worked with the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic during his time in Grand Junction. He was in charge of all the adaptive equipment for the Clinic including mono skis, bi-skis, sledge hockey, Nordic, standup equipment, etc. He was responsible for the safety of the equipment, fixing, purchasing, logistics etc. In total the clinic had over $1million in equipment and supplies. He also spent half his time in Recreation Therapy and then as the Supervisor, Recreation Therapy. He and his RT team was responsible for developing one of the the best outdoor recreation therapy programs within the VA which included but not limited to; kayaking, rock climbing, golf, hunting, hiking, photography, fly-fishing, Nordic, downhill skiing, snowshoeing, equine, art therapy, guitar program, aquatic, bowling. Matt worked with a lot of individuals, businesses, and service organizations throughout the country to promote and improve the RT programs for Veterans on the Western Slope of CO. Matt was involved in the VA National Special Programs as a coach or as a staff member including the Wheelchair Games, Creative Arts, Summer Sports Clinic, Golden Age Games and of course the Winter Sports Clinic.
Matt holds a BA in Outdoor Recreation from Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa University) in Grand Junction. He has been a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist since 1992. During his time at Mesa he played college baseball for four years. As a student he did over 700 volunteer hours at the VA while at Mesa.
Matt is married to his wife Lisa for 32 years and they have two children Jenna 29 and Joe 26.
He has been an outdoor enthusiast all his life and loves to hunt, camp, hike, fish, ride ATV, and enjoys sharing his experiences by inviting family and friends to come with him. Matt also volunteers with the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (17 years) where he is a mentor/guide on youth
big game hunting and fishing trips. Matt enjoys teaching others about the outdoors and
showing individuals with disabilities they can still participate in recreation activities despite their disabilities through the use of adaptive equipment or modifying the activity to meet the needs of the individual.
