R O T A R Y DISTRICT 6110

TEN YEARS

HOPE HAPPINESS

of &ROTARIANS DELIVERING FREEDOM, MOBILITY AND INDEPENDENCE

American Wheelchair Mission

Our Mission

The American Wheelchair

Mission is a non-profit

organization with a goal

to deliver brand new, free

wheelchairs and mobil-

ity aids to physically dis-

abled children, teens and

adults throughout the

world who are without

mobility or the means to

acquire a wheelchair. The

American Wheelchair

Mission will continue to

change the lives of entire

families with the gifts of

hope, dignity, freedom

and independence.

The NeedWe estimate more than

100 million people world-

wide are in need of a

wheelchair but cannot

afford one. Our gift

immediately changes the

lives of entire families by

answering prayers and

making dreams come

true.

This young Panamanian read a bible verse to express his gratitude

Cathy Crouch and an honorary Tyson Tiger

This little girl was so happy for her brother

Chris Weiser and friends at the Jamaican orphanage near Montego Bay Entire families benefit from the gift of mobility

A very happy lady in Panama

The gift of a wheelchair means first mobility for many children

PDG Wallace Williams and Mary Catherine Crouch help a young man into his first wheelchair

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$150 Sponsors the delivery of a brand new wheelchair

The wheelchair deliv-

ered by the American

Wheelchair Mission would

sell for more than $500

at a medical supply store.

Yet because we purchase

wheelchairs directly from

the manufacturer, and ship

them 100 to 280 wheel-

chairs at a time by ocean

freight containers directly

to the country of destina-

tion, we can deliver this

$500 wheelchair with each

$150 donation we receive.

VISIT OUR SITEAmwheelchair.org

On our website you will see

videos of wheelchair distri-

butions around the world,

photos of people and their

families who had their lives

changed by the gift of a

wheelchair, and stories of

our mission that touches

lives in a very tangible and

immediate way.

Join Us!

Join us on a wheelchair

distribution trip – Please

email Chris Lewis at:

clewis@amwheelchair.org

for details.

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www.amwheelchair.org

Rotary clubs around the world change the lives of millions of people every year. Preventing polio, providing clean water sources, medical missions and educa-tion are all vitally important projects. But sustainable improvements on the health and welfare of communities around the world are Rotarian’s greatest achieve-ments.

The Rotary Club of Springdale, Arkan-sas and Rotary District 6110 can be very proud of their commitment to providing mobility to thousands of families around the world in the form of wheelchairs. These wheelchairs allow children to go to school, adults to go to work and provide for their families, and the el-derly to get out of a bed they may have been confined to for years. Answering prayers and making dreams come true for entire families is the immediate result of these efforts.

In the spring of 2012, Rotarians and their families from Springdale, Rogers, Mountain Home, Tulsa and other areas of District 6110 traveled to Guanajuato, Mexico to celebrate their 10th annual wheelchair distribution mission. The previous year was Jamaica, the year be-fore Panama. Costa Rica and cities in Mexico go back to the first trip to Tepic, MX in 2003.

Each relief container delivered contains 280 brand new wheelchairs. In the United States, each wheelchair would sell for over $500 in a medical supply store. But because they are purchased directly from a supportive manufacturer and shipped by entire containers to the country of destination, these wheel-chairs can be sponsored and delivered for only $150 each.

The Springdale club, community and clubs of 6110 have sponsored the delivery of more than 7,500 wheelchairs in the past ten years. It is estimated that each wheelchair delivered changes and improves and average of ten lives. This means more than 75,000 people have been touched by the generosity of these Rotarians and their communi-ties. Canes, crutches and walkers have also been delivered, helping people get around in an easier, more independent way.

Dedicated Rotarians act like dominoes. When one gets involved in a project, the affect spreads out within their fam-ily, community and orbit of friends and associates. A perfect example is Jim Crouch of the Springdale club. His wife Cathy inspired the “Tyson Tigers” at John Tyson Elementary School to participate in raising money for wheel-chairs, and in the past seven years have raised over $50,000 with their annual “Walk for Wheels.” Jim and Cathy’s son John completed a 1,700-mile “Biking for Wheels” ride from New York to Spring-dale, raising $2,300 along the way. The Crouch family have made an incredible difference in many, many lives.

What does a container of 280 wheel-chairs do to a community in a develop-ing country? It allows people who have been rarely seen come out into the world and participate in family activities, visit neighbors, go to worship services, go to work and school. The influence of all this newfound mobility causes villages and towns to adapt to the influx or return of good teachers and workers, kids in school, and the elderly who share the wisdom of their lives with the next generations.

Ten Years of Hope and Happiness

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American Wheelchair Mission

Luke Hannon and Brenda Nelson give the gift of first mobility

Isaac Hannon meeting Geraldine for the first time in Jamaica

Chad Kumpe and a young friend

The group on wheelchair distribution day in Guanajuato, Mexico Ethan Neal’s “Walk for Wheels” Illustration

Dave Matty with Miss Alice in Spanish Town

John Crouch rode 1,700 miles from New York to Arkansas

Kalia, age 2 in her new wheelchair

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www.amwheelchair.org

Access ramps are built so wheel-chair users can get in and out of public areas and buildings. We have seen this extensively in Mexican cities and towns. Job opportunities are circu-lated through social workers and churches so the very capable people who suffered an injury that caused their inability to walk, can be productive for both the em-ployers and their families.

In 2003, a man named Xavier received a wheelchair in the city of Tepic, MX from the Springdale Rotarians on their first delivery mission. He had been injured in a fall and was confined to a bed for years without the ability to buy a wheelchair, or move within his house unless someone moved him. A year later, Springdale Rotarians returned to Tepic with more wheelchairs, and Xavier came to thank them. He told them he was now working for the city government as an advocate and advisor on the needs of the physically disabled people in their community. He was earning mon-ey and providing for his family. The city created this position for him because he was an extremely capable and charismatic person who wanted nothing more than to help others in the same position he was in before he received his wheelchair.

The influence of this newly mobile man caused the city to adapt its thinking and structure to allow for the inclusion of very talented and capable people with physical disabilities.

The “Leg Up Affect” is when a man like Xavier receives a wheel-chair, gets a job and is able to provide for himself and his family. This also includes the ability to earn enough money to service and repair the wheelchair he was given. Each container of wheel-chairs comes with numerous spare parts for maintenance and repair, but reports from the field over a number of years indicates the people who are able to earn a living because of their wheelchair, are also able to maintain, repair and replace it if necessary.

The most recent trip to Guanajua-to included working with the local Teleton Rehabilitation Center for Children (Centro de Rehabili-tacion Infantil Teleton or CRIT). There are 22 world-class CRIT centers throughout Mexico who have treated more than 70,000 physically and intellectually dis-abled children since their estab-lishment in 1996. The number of centers is growing yearly due to their very successful telethon that is broadcast annually throughout Mexico.

The visiting Rotarians and family members helped distribute more than 200 wheelchairs at the CRIT center to children from towns and villages up to 80 miles away from Guanajuato. They also split up and visited some homes to deliver wheelchairs to the children who could not make it to the CRIT that day.

In addition to the Guanajuato CRIT being the official distribu-tion partner of the American

Wheelchair Mission, they also have participated with AWM for the past three years in a “Lifelong Mobility” study conducted by Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh and Mer-cyhurst University. The ongoing research is funded by the Benter Foundation, and will determine the best possible design modi-fications for wheelchairs being distributed to children in Mexico, and has developed a set of pro-tocols to repair, reuse, retrofit or recycle wheelchairs being used by patients of the CRIT centers. This pilot program in Guanajuato will allow a child to always have a maintained and working wheel-chair, and therefore be able to enjoy “Lifelong Mobility.” The repair shop for the wheelchairs was built at the CRIT, and much of the vital equipment and tools needed were funded by a $4,500 grant supplied by the Rotary Club of Springdale.

The commitment of Springdale, their community, and the 6110 Rotarians has set all time records for a sustained impact on physi-cally disabled people in develop-ing countries and impoverished areas. Communities have begun to think differently about people in wheelchairs, and appreciate their abilities. Children go to school and laugh and play with their friends, where they never could before. Entire families rejoice be-cause of the simple ability to take their elderly members outside to sit in the sun, and tears of joy are shed because we have answered their prayers and made their dreams come true.

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American Wheelchair Mission

District 6110 Rotarians and families at the CRIT in Guanajuato

The Teleton wheelchair distribution ceremony in Guanajuato, Mexico

Xavier had his life changed with the gift of a wheelchair in 2003

Wheelchair “Jefe” Noel Morris presents the grant for the Lifelong Mobility depot Rotarians prepare wheelchairs for the distribution

Young man learning how to move himself

Chris Weiser taking wheelchair out of box in Spanish Town

Larry, Isaac and a very happy man

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www.amwheelchair.org

A sign of thanks at the CRIT wheelchair distribution in Guanajuato

Families arriving early for the day’s wheelchair distribution

The back of each wheelchair

The backdrop to a very successful distribution at the Guanajuato Teleton CenterGeraldine chanting, thanking God

A wheelchair gives a teenage girl dignity

Luis has a very bright outlook on life

Wallace presenting this man his new walker

Springdale / 6110 Delivery Missions

2003 – Tepic, Mexico

2004 – Tepic, Mexico

2005 – Constitucion & La Paz,

Mexico

2006 – Puebla, Mexico

2007 – Zihuatanejo, Mexico

2008 – San Jose, Costa Rica

2009 – Cancun, Mexico

2010 – Panama City, Panama

2011 – Spanish Town &

Montego Bay, Jamaica

2012 – Guanajuato, Mexico

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Lar

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Chris

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Mom watches as her happy son moves himself for the first time