Jim Mills

Jim Mills,
CSF, President * CEO, Certified Surgicial Fitter.

Lessons in life give Jim the compassion to do a good job

Trying to take the sensitive approach with James Mills is not an easy prospect. Mills, who has spina bifida, makes sure of that.

"I do?" he'll say if you broach the subject, a light approach that one suspects is designed more to put others at ease than Mills himself. Spina bifida is a birth defect in which the skeletal structure of the spine is formed incomplete. Mills lives with its most severe form, myelominingocele, in which the spinal cord protrudes from the opening in the spine.

Though he approaches his disability with good humour, Mills knows it's no laughing matter.

Now a 44 year-old certified orthotic fitter, he was driven into his line of work partly by memories of being fitted for orthopedic shoes as a child in the 1960's.
He began operating Healthgear Medical & Safety ten years ago in an effort to provide not only good service but affordable products for those in the market for medical surgical, orthopedic and home health care supplies.

"It's the reason I got into this business. Years ago, my mom & dad would have to buy me orthopedic shoes for something like $100, which would be $1,000 today," Mills says.

He acknowledges, too that some clients may feel more comfortable dealing with a supplier who can relate to them.

"I think it makes it easier, and I'm a little more compassionate, especially with the kids. If a kid comes in with a wheelchair or needs braces, it hits close to home for me. I try to help them as best I can, and if I can't, I refer them to someone who can".

Another factor in his career choice is his dad, Barry Mills, a local entrepreneur who owned Sea Buoy Fish and Chips, among other numerous businesses, who died of a massive heart attack at 51, 12 years ago.

A self-described "kind of person who doesn't like having a boss," James inherited his father's independent spirit and his mother's scense of compassion.

Some of Mills' happiest memories are of a boyhood spent on the waters of the Goulais River, where nobody could touch him.

"The thing about swimming that I liked is that everybody was on an even keel. You may be able to walk faster than me but when we're in the water, no," he recalls. "I would spend the whole day in the water if I was allowed."

Mills, who competed at the provincial level for freestyle swimming, still keeps a hand in with golf, hunting and passion, weightlifting.

Mom and Dad brought the weights home when James was in his early teens, as a rehabilitative exercise.

One of the lessons he left Mills is not to let others do for you what you can do for yourself.

My mom & dad were hard on me but I think they did it for a reason.

"If it wasn't for my parents, family and friends I wouldn't be where I am today."

Visit Jim at HealthGear!

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