Ruth Holland says she used to be a great golfer.  But it’s been a long time since she was able to swing a golf club.  A stroke took that talent away ten years ago. “I played 18 holes of golf that day.  I got home and I went up the stairs and just that was it.  I don’t remember anything after that,” says Ruth.  The avid golfer and mother of three soon realized that the right side of her body was completely paralyzed.  “I couldn’t walk, I was in a wheelchair and I didn’t like that.”  So while her stroke may have taken away her golf game, Ruth wasn’t going to let it steal her spirit.  She decided to improve her quality of life by making stroke rehabilitation a daily activity. “You have to keep going, you just don’t give up.  I don’t let anything get me down,” Ruth says.  Dianna Highsmith is an occupational therapist who works with Ruth and other stroke survivors.  She says, “A lot of people are taught that stroke therapy ends after the first year because you’ve got back all you’re going to get.  I’ve learned not to believe that.”  Ruth says she’s now able to do about anything she wants including walking and driving.  She also hopes to hit the links sometime soon. “I’m just about ready to get my golf clubs and start over.”  Stroke is the third largest cause of death and the leading cause of serious long-term disability in the United States.