James Lee in a scene from "The Invincible James Lee"

By Troy Gillard and Dan Hermanutz

The invincible james lee

Red Deer double amputee using movie about his journey to raise awareness

Jan 31, 2020 | 2:56 PM

James Lee is a father of two boys whose life revolves around sports and being active. Volleyball, baseball, you name it, they’ve probably been involved in it.

His busy lifestyle came to a halt when Lee was diagnosed with Buerger’s Disease, a blockage of the arteries in the feet. The diagnosis eventually led to the amputation of his legs about 12 inches below the knee.

“I played a lot of sports to stay active, and it was a great social thing. A lot of my friends, that’s how we met through volleyball and badminton, baseball, you name it. It was really hard for me to hit a brick wall and everything stopped,” recalled Lee, who is almost three years removed from his first surgery.

“I was working and I would get cramps in my feet. If I overexerted myself, if I started to play sports, if I walk around any distance or get my heart rate up, my feet would cramp in the arches of my feet.”

The surgeries prompted he and his family to move from Grande Prairie back to Red Deer, close to family and friends where there’s some extra help for them when needed.

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“Obviously, for me with the two missing limbs it’s a little harder for me to drive. Both of my boys are very involved with sports and usually one goes one way and the other goes another. We needed the extra help and we thought it would be better being closer to family.”

Lee is the subject of a documentary about his challenges entitled “The Invincible James Lee.” Director Rew Jones and Lee met while filming a documentary about the Grand Prairie Wolverines sledge hockey club.

“I was a part of the documentary just to give my five minutes of blurb. In that documentary and during filming I had found out I was losing my left leg,” Lee said.

The film crew followed him around for a year, documenting his journey along the way.

Lee says the point of the film is to help lift others in his same situation, to show them life isn’t over and that while there may be bumps in the road you can continue to do the things you love.

“It was just the start of something that I hope is greater than myself. I don’t deserve the spotlight any more than anybody else, any more than somebody in a wheelchair or somebody with a disability. However, for a lack of better words, I have a big mouth,” he joked.

“Getting people out of their apartments, out of their houses, people that think they have nowhere to go to. That you’re not done,” he adds, noting there is sledge hockey every other Friday at the G.H. Dawe arena.

“Every day is learning for me.”

“The Invincible James Lee” aired last Friday on AMItv. You can watch it below.