Next month, Free Wheelchair Mission’s Magic of Mobility will again be center stage! It’s one of my favorite nights of the year, a chance to thank in person some of the people who have made such a difference for so many. Great camaraderie, good food, but most of all, I look forward to meeting our featured guest wheelchair recipients. Every year, we host someone who has received the transforming gift of mobility and has traveled all the way to Orange County to share their experiences with us. This year, I’m excited to tell you that we have joining us not one, but TWO such honored guests, the Phengphachan brothers from Laos. Here is their story:

Though both seemed to be healthy at birth, brothers Siengmy and Siengsy slowly began to lose their ability to walk as they grew up. Both had been enrolled in the local school at the time, but the family could not afford medical attention and when the boys could no longer walk, they had to drop out. They were glad to have each other, but were deeply saddened at being separated from school and friends, and felt that they had become a burden to their family.

That was ten years ago. Homebound, the boys learned to crawl to get around, tending to the garden and feeding the animals, trying to help out as much as they could. Life has been difficult but the family never imagined their boys would each be able to have a wheelchair of their own. Last year, though, two wheelchairs were provided through Operation Blessing International and the Christian Broadcasting Network, Free Wheelchair Mission’s partners in the region. 

Wheelchairs made all the difference. The boys are enjoying their freedom, and are happy to be less dependent upon their parents. Newly mobilized, they have been able to return to school, empowered and enthusiastic about the road that lies ahead. 

If you can make it to Costa Mesa on July 26, I invite you to join us and get a chance to meet Siengmy and Siengsy in person, and enjoy what promises to be a memorable evening.

I hope to see you there!
God Bless, Don

 

I have some exciting news to share with you! During the week of June 20-27^th, Free Wheelchair Mission will be the highlighted cause for Sevenly, an innovative group whose motto is “One Tee, One Week, One Cause.” They offer a tee shirt made just for us and donate a portion of the proceeds to the selected mission. We are grateful for the opportunity to be part of this program.

If you click on their site next week at www.sevenly.org, you’ll see that the tee shirt Sevenly designed for us is different from anything we’ve done before – it is stark and impactful, and features the image of a young boy gazing up from the ground. Next to the boy are the words “The world looks different without a wheelchair.”


The world looks different without a wheelchair.

Just seven words. But enough to give me pause from this busy life and get me thinking. What would the world look like from the ground, gazing up, reaching out, trying to make it through life without legs that worked or feet that were functional?  What would you see? What could you reach, touch, do?  Imagine your perspective if you had lived your entire life eye-level with knees, shoes, dogs, curbs, trash. How would the world look to you?  How would it feel?

It’s hard to imagine. Maybe impossible to truly understand. As someone gifted not just with mobility but with so many blessings, I know my perspective is terribly limited. But having traveled in the developing world now for many years, getting the chance to meet our recipients and being honored to touch their lives in a small way, I can certainly give it a try. 

I imagine that the world might look very close but far away. I imagine that everyone would seem far too tall and be moving way too fast. I think the world might appear daunting. Challenging.  Frightening. I wonder if I would give up hope, or begin to think I must have done something terribly wrong. I imagine more than anything else, I would be wishing that there would be someone up there who loves me, to lift me up and hold me tight, and make me feel a part of the human family. 

I imagine that life on the ground would make me feel very separate, and separate is not a feeling I believe God intended us to experience.

I’m thankful to Sevenly (www.sevenly.org) for making us a shirt, for sharing our message with the world, and for reminding me again why we do what we do. After all is said and done, it always comes back to the people we serve, the ones experiencing life on the ground, and the difference that a simple chair with four wheels can make.

God Bless, Don

One of the most challenging aspects of disability in the developing world is the inability to find employment. Without a wheelchair, jobs are tough to find, and the sense of accomplishment from being independent and self-sufficient is lost. One of our volunteer photographers, Rich Skolburg, has been in India all week, traveling and talking to the people touched by the gift of a wheelchair. Here is one of his stories:

Diabetes would claim his foot but not his will. A professional painter, Pithambaran is a master craftsman. Five years ago, one of his last jobs involved painting the hospital in which he is now a patient. It was one of the last projects he would complete before his health condition prevented him from working. The road back to independence would be a long and difficult one.

When we asked Pithambaran what a new wheelchair would mean to him, he told us something surprising. One thing he liked about spending so much time in the hospital was the fact he had access to a wheelchair, a mobility and freedom he did not have at his own home. A new wheelchair could give him that luxury once again, wherever he might be.


Could he paint with a wheelchair? Yes, he believed he could, and within hours of receiving his gift he was at work on a piece of furniture there in the hospital, happy to share with us his enthusiasm. His passion for the craft had never faded and on this day like so many others, he wore the shirt with his company’s name. He wore it proudly and insisted we get a shot of it. His joy was clear to see, as his family and friends watched. On this day, there was something different about Pithambrum’s smile. Yes, he was smiling with happiness, but with a paint brush in hand and employment within reach, he was also smiling with pride.  

We are blessed by our many Ambassadors for Mobility, people from all over, sharing the word about Free Wheelchair Mission! They run races, sell lemonade, collect pennies...all kinds of people doing all kinds of things to help send wheelchairs around the world. One of our most dedicated Ambassadors is John Warnick of Wheeling, West Virginia, currently in the middle of a marathon adventure that recently took him to the state of Pennsylvania. Here is his story:

On Saturday, May 14th, after completing two full days of our three-day “Pittsburgh Push” mobility effort, I found myself with time on my hands and no certain place to lodge for the night. I wasn’t concerned; I knew God would provide as he had done the night before, after an extraordinary trip to Pittsburgh to push a FWM wheelchair in the Pittsburgh Marathon.

At the Friday send-off from my hometown, Wheeling, West Virginia, I pulled a FWM wheelchair behind my bicycle, the same wheelchair I would be pushing in the Sunday, May 15^th, marathon event. On hand were a couple dozen supporters, many cycling and running with me, as the Wheeling Police escorted us through the streets. At our stop at Woodsdale Elementary School, a sea of children greeted us with signs of support and thunderous cheers. Our final stop was my church, where I see God at work every day. Taking God's love beyond our walls to the world is what we are all about, and the FWM wheelchair is the vehicle of choice.

The end of the day Friday found me drenched from the rain on my trip and drenched with God's blessings of those I encountered. A church family took me home for a night of sleep to prepare for Saturday. On Saturday morning, a dozen cyclists from the Hot Metal Bridge Church and I proudly rode to our REI store event to share FWM with the people of Pittsburgh. After the event, I had time on my hands and mobility on my mind and heart. I seized the evening to pull my wheelchair around Pittsburgh. With each pedal stroke I was reminded of the privilege I had been given to be an ambassador for mobility.

I rode and stopped and visited and shared the FWM story, which brings me to Jack, an extraordinary eight-year-old I met along the way. Jack was with his dad and his sister. They were riding bikes along the river, and as I came into their vision, they gazed at my rig with curiosity. We exchanged hellos, and with that I reached into my pannier and handed Jack and his sister a Be the Blessing bracelet and a yellow Livestrong bracelet.

Jack looked at his Dad and said, "We should go. I thought we weren't suppose to talk to strangers.”

His dad put an arm around him and said, "Jack, this is a good stranger doing a good thing. Let's ask him some questions."

I told the FWM story to Jack and his family. I was reminded how important it is to be an ambassador for mobility and God’s love in small exchanges just as I am at large events like the Pittsburgh Marathon.

As I began to ride off, Jack yelled, “Sir! Can we make a donation?” Tears came to my eyes as he handed me $5.00 and I told him that now he too was an ambassador for mobility!

I cannot paint a vivid enough picture of how greatly God has transformed my life by using it to help lift people off of the ground. And he has that same transformation in store for all people, many who have not yet been reached to hear the FWM story.

After my experience with Jack, I joined in fellowship with all the great people at the Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community. After dinner and worship, God came through just as I knew he would, and I was again taken in by a friendly stranger for a night’s rest.

In the morning I mounted the bike, pulled the wheelchair to the starting line, unhooked it, grabbed the handles, joined 22,000 runners, and did what I am doing today and pray God continues to use me for tomorrow: getting mobile for mobility.

I sincerely believe our mission is all about Jack. Jack represents the solution to the problem; he is someone willing to help but uninformed. These are the people you and I have to reach to share the awesome things God is doing through Free Wheelchair Mission.

I was in Bogota, Colombia, rushing around to get what I needed for a full day of wheelchair distributions.  The airlines had just delivered my lost piece of luggage, and inside I found a forgotten, tied-up grocery bag. A couple pairs of children’s shoes. It had been days since we dropped off our delivery of children’s clothes at the orphanage. What to do with these? Without an answer, I stuffed the bag into my backpack.

A few hours later I met Julia. Just fourteen, she is deaf, blind, and has cerebral palsy.  She has been carried all her life. Julia has experienced her entire world through what she could feel, taste and smell.

Her mother, Maritca, gave her constant communication and encouragement through hugs, kisses, strokes of her hair. We placed Julia in our wheelchair and she came alive with joy. She found the wheels all by herself, and when she pulled them toward her, she moved. She felt motion. She smiled, and I have to believe she smiled because she felt comfortable and secure. I reached out and took hold of her hand. Julia could tell that it was a new hand, a stranger's fingers, yet she seemed to take comfort in my coarse clumsy grasp. We held hands a long time. 

Her shoe fell off so I went to work to replace it, a very tight fit. I noticed a red mark on her sock. I asked her mom about it and she showed me that under the sock was an open sore. Her shoes were way too tight. 

I remembered the bag of shoes stuffed into my backpack, and ran out to the car to get them. One pair of shoes and one pair of slippers, both perfect fits for Julia! 

Most of the time I don’t even try to follow the complicated paths God puts before us to accomplish these important tasks. But, today even I could see God’s plan, and along the way I got to hold hands with an angel. 

One of our ambassadors recently traveled to El Salvador for a wheelchair distribution. He shared many stories upon his return, one of which was that of María:

María del Carmen Ortiz Linares lives in Cantón Dos Jotas, Sitio del Niño, in the department of La Libertad. After driving for several hours, we finally came upon her home; although a true picture of poverty, it was a place of dignity as well. I had never seen anything like this! Everything was neatly in its place, and even the dirt floors seemed spotless!

When we arrived, María was cleaning corn. Now 41 years old, she was struck by a terrible disease—most likely poliomyelitis—when she was two years of age. In spite of many challenges, her mother was able to raise her and her four siblings, managing to put them all, except María, through school.

María is totally self sufficient. She can get around anywhere, and we were witnesses as to all she can accomplish on her own: she cooks; she cleans, washes, and takes care of crops and small farm animals! Once her mother and son come back from their day out, María has a humble tortilla and bean meal on the table every day for them.

María is a true live example of love, hope, tenacity and willpower. Her face was lit when she first saw her new wheelchair and, needless to say, brought us all to tears at the sight of her authentic gratitude.

It was a busy day in southern Malawi. We were several miles east of the Namikango Mission distributing wheelchairs.

We distributed the first wheelchair to a boy who was born disabled. He was unable to go to school because it had become impossible for his parents to continue to carry him 7 kilometers each way to and from school. Determined to be educated, the boy felt betrayed when he had to stay at home while the other children attended classes. But the parents had no option. A relative of the boy brought a photo and proof of disability to us, and we were able to provide him with a wheelchair. Upon receiving the means for the boy to be able to go to school, the parents expressed their gratitude, ”We did not expect this. We just say thank you for the help!”

Before the truck could leave for the return trip to the mission, a tired, sweat covered man rushed up. “Only if possible, please help! There’s another girl, she is on the way, and she needs your help.” Later, we learned that he had met a girl who heard that we brought wheelchairs to a nearby village. The girl did not wait for help to get where she was. She started crawling on her knees. After crawling for several meters she could not get past the rocks spread out in front of her. She sat down. It was here where she met the man who advised her to wait there. The man ran to tell us about Patuma Masautso. Thankfully there was one wheelchair remaining.

The truck changed course to meet Patuma. Due to her mobility problems, she has never gone to school. To her, if she had a chance to have had a wheelchair years ago, she would have had a chance to learn at school and become a nurse. However, even though it had taken this long she expressed happiness because she will from now be able to comfortably move on a wheelchair. “I was feeling pain in my knees when I crawl for a long time.”

Having accomplished our mission we returned to Namikango. It was evident what a wheelchair can do for a person in a remote Malawian Village who has no hope, no plans, and no anticipation to ever own a wheelchair up until just today. Now it is all different.

I hope I kept you in suspense since my last Friday Story about visiting Lotus Blossom. It was a wonderful reunion. Her family has prospered these past ten years, as has the neighborhood. Lotus and her family moved to a multi-room home on a second floor. Her two sisters and one brother have married, and Lotus’ mother has five grandchildren.

Granted, it is still considered a slum where they live. 

You heard how contrary to the medical diagnoses she received, Lotus learned to walk, about 3 years after she got our wheelchair. Here are the details. The gift of the wheelchair inspired her. She would pull herself up from the ground, using the wheelchair to steady herself. She would try to stand, then take a step, and many times fall. Over and over, she would struggle. Often staff from the CMCT (Christian Mission Charitable Trust) would visit the family, and they too would see this struggle. Lotus’ family was inspired by her determination. They asked the CMCT staff for guidance. “Pray to God who brought Lotus the wheelchair,” was their advice. So, Lotus’ mother prayed. Soon others of the family joined her in prayer. Then it happened, and Lotus walked her first steps. The family and much of the neighborhood believed it was a miracle. We do too! Lotus and most of her family were baptized. 

The afternoon of my visit, they asked me to join them in a prayer meeting they have in their home. The room was wall-to-wall bodies of family and neighbors.  It was just so precious to see how our wheelchair, your wheelchair, our transforming gift of mobility has changed these lives over the past ten years

Actually it is Monday and I am on my way to India, cruising at 36,000 feet over Thunder Bay. Lord, I know you are the power beneath these wings that carry us back to link the past with the now. 

A decade back I was also in India. It was on a mission trip in February of 2001 that we gave away one of our first wheelchairs to a special little girl. Her family called her Kumudhavalli, but to us she was Lotus Blossom, the English translation of her name. Her smile became our logo; as it filled her small dark hut with radiant hope, it filled our hearts with abundant faith that what we did was something meaningful. The only word we had for “it” back then was “meaningful”. Months later came the focus, the foundation, and the conviction that millions of other Lotus Blossoms deserved more – a chance for a better life, a voice, and to hear the news that God loves them as He does all creation.

Ten years ago we were just a thought and a prayer. Lord, light this path. The path we did not know. It’s up to you, my Lord. We know millions live in bondage to the ground. We know they think something wrong was done and that is what put them there. We don’t have the answers why, but we believe they must know they are loved by God. They must, and if we give them our simple gift of four wheels and a chair, well, perhaps our gift and our prayer will help them see life differently.

I am on my way to see Lotus Blossom, ten years later. Since we met, she taught herself to walk, and we taught ourselves to be humble servants. We both learned incredible things. She made it so clear to us. Just give a little kindness and watch what happens. It needn’t be complicated. 

Stay with us, my friends. You will be in our front pocket, watching, listening, feeling what it is like to return to that alley in the slums of Chennai where we first met Lotus Blossom, and where the world became a better place.

Our good friend Dr. Lau and his nonprofit foundation, Holistic Integrated Services (HIS), just sent us this story from China:

Dr. Lau was with a team of volunteers from Chicago and the USA, Australia, and Hong Kong. They were traveling to one of the most forgotten places in the world, a leprosy center in a very remote area in Yunnan Province. Their truck broke down along the way, leaving them on a very desolate mountain road. Word spread, and the local farmers learned of the group’s charitable intentions and their peril.　Carts pulled by donkeys soon appeared, taking the place of the broken truck.　

The distribution was delayed, but the residents of the leprosy center were not disappointed.　

Every day, things like this are happening. All around the world, our partners take the extra steps to reach forgotten people with your gift of a chance for a better life.

We just got this story from Cathy, a friend and supporter who just visited Uganda.

I was there with Rachel, one of Parkcrest's pastors. Rachel had been in Uganda for 3 months several years ago and had met a young woman named Doreen. Doreen was a victim of the civil war there when she was a young child and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) had run over her multiple times with a vehicle, leaving her for dead.

Rachel and I went to visit Doreen in the two-room hut where she lives with her mother who takes care of her. As a result of her ordeal with the LRA Doreen has no joints and cannot bend her arms or legs. But, she has the joy of the Lord.  She leads the choir at her church and she teaches the neighborhood children how to read, along with some science and other subjects. She is an amazing girl.

As we were visiting with her I happened to look in the corner of the room and there was one of your wheelchairs. I got so excited and I took pictures of it and told her that we were familiar with the organization. She has had the wheelchair for a couple of years. It has changed her life and allowed her to leave her hut - something she wasn't able to do before.

It was a huge blessing to unexpectedly see firsthand how your organization is reaching far into the world. It was one thing to watch your video and be touched by what I saw, but it didn't compare to seeing it up close and personal.

Thank you for what you do.

This story comes from Kjersti up in Seattle.

I first learned about Dorothy in Meru, Kenya through friends here in Seattle. Dorothy is in her early 20's and was born with disabled legs. I was born with Cerebral Palsy and have always used some type of wheels for movement, so I quickly identified with Dorothy. Unlike me, Dorothy has NEVER had wheels. In fact, her mother carries her 3 km each way to and from school so that Dorothy can pursue her educational dreams.

I prayed, and a plan that only the Lord could design began to form. First, I contacted Free Wheelchair Mission. I knew one of the FWM chairs would suit Dorothy. The plan to purchase a chair and fly it from CA to Seattle came together the same morning that the International Justice Mission speaker challenged us to use the resources we have to bless others. We quickly decided to purchase a wheelchair and fly it to Seattle. Then it could begin its Kenyan trek. Peggy, Dorothy’s school sponsor, then personally escorted the chair to Kenya, to Meru, and then to Dorothy.

This God-designed venture started when I felt the Lord’s tug after hearing a few details about a woman I have never met halfway across the world and has bloomed into something powerful. I cannot fathom life without mobility. We have all been transformed (and blessed) simply in our effort to be literally Christ’s hands and feet. I know Dorothy's world was utterly transformed when the UPPC Kenya team delivered her wheelchair in person.

This story comes from Don's recent trip to India:

So there we were, seven of us from the States driving along with CV Vadavana and his son Sam outside Vizag, India, just two weeks ago. “Stop the car!” I heard from the back seat, “There’s one of our wheelchairs.”

We pulled over and jumped out to meet SK Basha, his wife Salma and daughters Jasmine and Munisha. SK was in an accident and cannot walk. He supports his family by begging. We are not sure how long ago he got this wheelchair, but we are sure he gets good use out of it. The tread on the tires was nearly gone. The steel beneath the paint worn off the footrest shined like chrome. 

But the uniqueness of this wheelchair is the unusual modifications. SK fixed a beggar’s cup to one armrest, and it was primed with Rupees. The modified backrest made a comfortable spot for Jasmine. 

We wore our FWM shirts, and SK soon realized we were from the organization that gave him his wheelchair. He thanking us and just kept thanking us. We drove off. After a couple of miles we stopped for lunch. 

“We have to get him some new tires,” I said over lunch. CV picked up his phone. He asked his ministry team to assemble another one, and quick. Then he learned that the family had caught up to us and were across the street. CV ordered a full lunch for the four of them. We went out, thinking we would just swap out the SK’s old wheelchair for a new one. We realized he would loose all his unique modifications. “Keep the old one SK,” CV said. “You can use it for parts.” 

CV learned that the daughters were not going to school, as the family is too poor. “We run a school not far from here. Your daughters can attend. There is no charge. We will take care of the costs.” 

SK could not find the words for thanks. We could not find the words for welcome. Wheelchairs open doors to help people in many ways!