This past fall, a team from Right at Home traveled to Costa Rica to see firsthand the impact your gifts are making.

There, they connected with a team from the Do It Foundation, which was founded in 2005 to provide mobility to Costa Ricans who have disabilities but cannot afford wheelchairs on their own.

Overseas distribution partners such as the Do It Foundation play vital roles in Free Wheelchair Mission: they not only import, store, assemble, fit, and distribute the wheelchairs we ship to them, they also help coordinate vision trips.

Together, this group visited the home of a 45-year-old woman named Vivian.

A recent vision trip team consisting of members of the Do It Foundation (in white), Right at Home, and Free Wheelchair Mission.

 

Nine years ago, Vivian was diagnosed with a degenerative illness that gradually robbed her of mobility. Her husband left her after this diagnosis, and Vivian’s father passed away around that same time.

Vivian now lives with her sister, Eraida, who provides care for Vivian while also raising her own son.

When the team brought a new wheelchair to Vivian, Do It Foundation manager Ileana explained that the wheelchair came from Free Wheelchair Mission, was donated by supporters like Right at Home, and had been assembled by the vision trip team—all just for her.

Unable to respond verbally, Vivian nevertheless conveyed her delight by excitedly tapping her hand on the wheelchair.

She broke into a grin when a team member named Denton helped her transfer into her new wheelchair. Once she settled in, the first thing she wanted to do was to go out onto the porch for some fresh air.

Vivian (right), her sister, Eraida (left), and Eraida’s son (center).

 

Thanks to the gift of a wheelchair, Eraida can take Vivian beyond just their porch. They can now go to the market, the clinic, or wherever else Vivian would like to go.

While our distribution partners are key in the final distribution of wheelchairs, it all starts with you.

Your prayers and generosity make it possible for us to manufacture and ship containers of wheelchairs to partners in places like Costa Rica.

Thank you for your part in this united, worldwide effort to provide mobility for those in need.