PITTSBURGH — Behind a kaleidoscope of archery ribbons and medals at KJ's Pro Archery in Greene County, Pa., Kevin "KJ" Polish plots a massive breakfast and dinner feast for the opening of buck hunting season.

Bacon, sausage, ham, onion and peppers start sizzling at 4:30 a.m. Saturday for about a dozen people who will be hunting on his property or nearby lands. The crowd includes his parents, his sister, niece and close friends.

Polish will add a couple of dozen eggs to an amalgamation he calls a "garbage plate," his breakfast of champions.

The meal is a tradition for the the No. 3-ranked Paralympic archer in the world, according to World Archery, the international federation for Olympic and Paralympic archers.

Polish, who uses a wheelchair, practices with his bow for hours daily. He has represented the United States in archery at the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Paralympic Games, in Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and Paris, respectively.

"I love archery more than anything, but for me, there is nothing like gun hunting," he said.

He and his crew will be among more than half a million deer hunters in Pennsylvania participating in firearms deer season, which runs through Dec. 13.

For this family and many others, hunting is a time-honored tradition. But it's not just about getting your deer. "It's not all about the hunt, but the time you spend with people," Polish said. And his family agrees.

"For us, opening day of buck season is like most people waiting for the Super Bowl — you get to do it one time a year," said his mother, Chris Polish, 63, of Masontown.

She is often out in the field with her family for the opener. But the next day, she cooks meatballs and sauce and puts it out in the store for Customer Appreciation Day.

"Hunting is a peaceful, quiet time of the year," she said. "I sit ... hunt and get my thought process in order."

Hillbillies who hunt

Chris Polish's grandparents came from Walton's Mountain, in Lynchburg, Va., They were "rural hillbillies," she said. Her grandmother was a skilled small-game hunter, harvesting pheasant, turkey, grouse and rabbit for family meals.

"Hunting makes memories for my family and me," she said.

Her children and grandchildren are all hunters who shoot bows and guns.

KJ has followed the hunting tradition since he was a boy, tagging along with his father, Kevin Polish Sr., and his grandfather.

Kevin Polish Sr. opened his first archery shop in the garage of his Masontown home in 1987. Several years later, he bought the current site for the family business in Monongahela Township.

KJ leases a couple of thousand acres of open fields and woods near KJ's Pro Archery. Those acres are the top productive game areas in the vicinity, he said.

After combing the fields most of the day, the famished hunters will arrive at the archery shop looking for KJ's crockpot of meatballs for sandwiches or pasta (he has a Cajun cooker and Pit Boss vertical smoker).

"We're ready to eat, and we talk about our hunting, whether it was good or bad. Then we go to sleep and get up like it's Christmas and do it again," he said.

"Even with busy lives, during hunting season we all come together."

A debilitating accident

While hunting with friends in 1999, KJ's life changed dramatically when he was almost 17 years old.

After bowhunting deer, he was driving on a dirt road when he swerved to avoid a flock of turkeys. His Geo Tracker tumbled down a 100-foot bank and plowed into a tree stump.

Although he was wearing a seat belt, KJ was ejected and thrown into a tree.

First responders had to cut through the tree to free Polish, who broke his back. The first report his parents received was that their son was dead.

As he held onto life, his mother rushed to the hospital. "I wanted to vomit and die," she said.

But Chris Polish put her emotions aside and focused on KJ's recovery. When an ICU doctor told the family that KJ might not walk again, she told her son: "You can't base your life on something that might happen. Do you want to be miserable or to persevere?"

KJ spent almost four months in the hospital and rehab in 2000. He never regained movement from the waist down.

"When he returned home, he had nothing to do with a bow and watched movies and TV," said Kevin Polish Sr., 64.

That did not sit well with him or his wife. KJ was "sitting in a chair playing games" when his mother said to him:

"Do you want to be seen as someone in a wheelchair or to be seen as an equal? Then you will have to act like an equal."

Chris Polish attributes her tough-love approach to her father, a military man who didn't believe in excuses. More than once, her husband has witnessed her power.

"I have to credit my wife with the mental toughness over me," he said.

Chris Polish's mantra is simple: "We do this one day at a time."

Polish modified KJ's wheelchair, attaching steel pipes and padding so KJ could shoot a compound bow while seated.

"He shot the first couple of rounds. He knew he still had it," his father said. "There was his steadiness combined with my sarcastic comments like 'You can't do that — you're done.' He proved me wrong. The mental toughness is what got him back."

Less than a year later, KJ competed at a world archery festival in Las Vegas and placed second.

Long before his accident, KJ had struggled with archery like most children, his dad said. "He had to sit back and listen. He also learned from people from the shop. We have a lot of good shooters."

KJ shot his first perfect score at 9 or 10 years of age, he said.

"Archery is individualistic — it's just you and the bow. ... I can't stress enough how much mental control is involved."

KJ's parents prepared him for success and gave him confidence.

"When he goes to a competition, he rules," his father said. "Take yourself to the happy place, that is what my wife stressed."

KJ wins 99.9% of his matches, his father said. "He's not cocky or arrogant. He's got the mental game."

A passion to shoot

Polish started his son with a bow at age 3, and took him to the gun range on weekends to shoot a .22-caliber rifle. KJ hunted for the first time at 7.

"It was more about the experience of being with people than killing something," KJ said. "For some hunters, if they don't get anything, it isn't fun."

His competitive archery also took off. At 15, KJ was the youngest pro ever in the three-dimensional circuit of the International Bowhunting Organization and Archery Shooters Association.

Polish admits he has not beaten his son in a bow competition since KJ was 9 years old.

The importance of training burns in KJ's soul, and the sport of archery surrounds him. The family store is different from big box stores because they don't just sell bows and crossbows. They provide education, teaching people how to use their equipment for free while also offering fee-based training events.

"A lot of people go out hunting and don't know what they are doing," KJ said. "A lot more people have to be more ethical. It's about practice."

KJ credits his parents and hunting for his strong mental game and calmness for the success of his archery career.

"Hunting teaches you the morality of life. There's a lot of stuff. It is not just hunting and taking an animal. It's what happens before and after."

Self-reliance also runs strong in the Polish family.

"I'm the only one on our team (the U.S. Paralympic archery team) that never had a coach or a psychologist," KJ said.

"It takes blood, sweat and tears. People don't see what it took for me to get here. When all your friends are partying, you're practicing."

Years of archery practice and a liberal dose of hunting has made KJ fearless in the field.

"If you go out there and have a bad day and deer run off, maybe you have to play the wind a little," he said. "Go out there and have a bad day with the deer."

Thermal air pressure governs animal activity, KJ said. Hunters need to know when to hunt in different elevations.

"You have nothing to fear. Either way, you're going to win or lose. If you learn something, you win."

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