DeKALB – Jennifer Link had no idea how different her life would become when an injury left her disabled three years ago.

Link, who represented Kishwaukee College when she participated in Saturday’s Wheel-A-Thon, had full use of her legs until October 2009. She was training at night while serving in the Army when she fell into a hole, and three people fell on top of her.

The accident caused a hip injury that hasn’t fully healed. Link said she’s used wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and canes to get around. The biggest challenge after the injury, she said, was becoming independent again.