Emmanuel College was always a part of Adam Beadles’ plan.
“I never considered any other option,” he recalled. “There are pictures of me holding a basketball at Emmanuel’s gymnatorium (Wrestling Center) when I was just 16 months old. Emmanuel has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.”
During his senior year of high school, Adam suffered a strained hip flexor injury which required physical therapy. In that experience, he gained insight into what physical therapy entailed, and he was hooked.
He expressed, “Before that, I had plans of becoming an orthopedic surgeon. I had shadowed some orthopedic surgeons and found the job enjoyable, but I didn’t like the fact that I wouldn’t get to spend much time with patients as compared to PT.”
He attended Emmanuel from 1994-1998 and majored in Kinesiology. As a student, he played tennis and met his wife, who graduated in 2000.
Following Emmanuel, he earned his Master’s in Physical Therapy at the Medical College of GA before diving into the field.
After working in Anderson, SC. for five years, Adam and his family returned to Royston in 2005, where he started his practice.
Adam finds multiple aspects of his practice rewarding, but he particularly enjoys caring for community members whom he admired as a child.
“That’s been sweet of the Lord to let me see people and care for them as they did for me as a kid,” he said. “That’s a cool aspect, generally in PT I just enjoy caring for people when they’re in need. I’ve always said to treat everyone when they come in the door as your mom or dad, you’ll be successful. Don’t treat them as a number or a statistic, so that philosophy has worked pretty well.”
As a cancer survivor himself, Adam can connect to his patients who are going through it or are in remission themselves.
“I am seven years in remission,” he said. “That’s another connection point I can make to my patients going through it. The Lord graciously brought me through it unscathed except for a few scars, but if there’s someone who is going through it and needs someone, I’m here.”
He has had the opportunity to work with and mentor Emmanuel students who have served as interns in his practice.
“That’s been a reward to be a part of their journey,” he said. “To see them go from being a novice, just trying to see what PT is about, to go onto school and now 8-10 years later they’re practicing and calling me to ask questions.”
Adam enjoyed working with Emmanuel’s Kinesiology students so much that he chose to become a full-time professor at the college where he teaches from experience.
“That’s one thing I didn’t see as an asset until Dr. (Scott) Bryan and other colleagues who are academics but not clinicians brought it up,” he said. “Naturally in 23 years as a therapist, I can bring up stories to students about how something will look in a clinical setting if you go on to be a PT or an Athletic Trainer. It’s great to say, this is what the textbook says, and here is a real-life application to this and how it plays out. It helps students connect through the story.’
When Adam has free time, he enjoys spending it outside and with his family,
“I have a list of mountains I would like to climb, and another list of those I have climbed,” he said. “I love the outdoors. My family and I try to do two backpacking trips a year. I also enjoy being at home with my wife and three kids.”
He is also actively involved in creating self-sustaining international missions programs through Hopeful Hearts Ministries, a 501(c)3 foundation that he and his wife operate. These programs focus on feeding and educating the hurting and the hopeless by using aquaponic systems that provide food and generate revenue.
In his career as a therapist, Adam saw countless patients come through his practice. There are plenty of rewarding aspects of his job, but it’s the connections he’s made and the opportunity he has to teach from experience that he values the most.
