Wheelchair Arrivals

January 2023

Thanks to your generosity, six containers of wheelchairs arrived at their destinations in Chile, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Pakistan, and the Philippines. Soon, 3,178 people with disabilities in these countries will receive the gift of mobility.

Container Arrival in Chile

January 6

Help for the Andes Foundation, a distribution partner of ours in Chile, received a container of 550 wheelchairs that are shipped in boxed kits.

A Life Transformed in Ecuador

January 6

Jamie, 45, lost mobility in a brutal attack that left him paralyzed in 2011. He did not have a wheelchair and spent most of his time on an old mattress on the floor in his room, which is only partially built.

The cinderblock structure was left wide open to the elements. Jaime was worried about rain coming in—and was especially concerned about rats and snakes, which he might not be able to flee from should they enter during the night.

Thankfully, that isn’t the end of Jaime’s story. Read more here.

Published in National News

January 7

Free Wheelchair Mission Founder and President Don Schoendorfer wrote an opinion piece that was published on Fox News. ​​​​​​Read the piece here.

Note: Any appearances or quotes in media outlets by Free Wheelchair Mission staff or representatives do not indicate any support, endorsement, or alignment with views expressed by those outlets, hosts, or reporters.

Interviewed on a Podcast

January 9

Don was a guest on the Mornings with Ed podcast on KXFM Radio to talk about his book, Miracle Wheels.

Listen to the podcast here.

Ministry Conferences

January 10-12; 20-22

Free Wheelchair Mission hosted a booth at the Children’s Pastors Conference in Orlando, Florida, to offer our church resources to more than 2,000 ministry leaders that were in attendance.

The following week, Free Wheelchair Mission connected with pastors from all over the country at the NW Mission Connexion Conference in Portland, Oregon.

For ways that your church can engage with this mission, visit FreeWheelchairMission.org/churches.

Don Interviewed on The Power Hour

January 14

Don was interviewed on the January 14, 2023 episode of The Power Hour with Pat Williams and shared a chapter-by-chapter recap of his book, Miracle Wheels.

Listen to the interview here, starting at the 27-minute mark.

Partner Gathering in Guatemala

January 16

Regional Programs Coordinator Ilse Caballeros (second from left) met with the team from Faith In Practice, one of our distribution partners in Guatemala, to further strengthen our relationship. Since 2016, Faith In Practice has distributed 10,560 of our wheelchairs throughout the country.

Television Appearance on Univision

January 19

National Director of Development Angela Gomez shared about our mission on Univision, the largest Spanish-language television network in the United States.

Watch the segment (in Spanish, with auto-translations available) here.

University Presentation

January 20

Longtime ambassador George Hage of Idaho Believes, a group that fundraises for Free Wheelchair Mission, held a presentation about our mission to more than 700 students at the Northwest Nazarene University chapel.

To learn more about becoming a Free Wheelchair Mission ambassador, visit this page.

Blessed in Texas

January 22

Chapelwood United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, included Free Wheelchair Mission in their Pastoral Blessing of Partners and was represented by longtime supporters Andy and Karen Loyd.

Engaging the Next Generation

January 23

Development Officer Nikki Tobia spoke at Rhodes Elementary School in Chino, California, to share with students the need for mobility around the world.

For more information on ways that schools can partner with us, visit FreeWheelchairMission.org/schools.

Ambassador Birthday Fundraiser

January 24

For her birthday, ambassador Ashley Caveda held a fundraiser for Free Wheelchair Mission on Facebook and other platforms. In just three days, Ashley raised more than $7,000, which will soon transform more than 70 lives around the world with the gift of mobility!

To learn how you can create your own Facebook fundraiser, visit this page.

Company Engagement Webinar

January 25

In our latest webinar, a panel of business leaders shared some creative ways that their companies have engaged in philanthropy, and how this engagement has affected their staff and clientele in positive ways.

If you missed it, you can watch the replay here.

Grant Report and Update

January 27

Members of our team, including Foundations and Grants Manager Monica Finifrock (left) and Director of Development and Strategic Initiatives Georgia Kloos (second from right) presented a grant report and Free Wheelchair Mission update to the Farmers & Merchants Bank Foundation in Laguna Hills, California.

A Longtime Friend Visits

January 27

Father Winner (right), who helped Don Schoendorfer (left) give away one of his first four wheelchairs in India in 2001, visited our office in Irvine, California to discuss plans for wheelchair distributions in five other countries. Father Winner is currently based in the Vatican, where he serves as general mission procurator.

Network 21 Presentation

January 28

Don spoke at the West Coast Winter Conference for Network 21, a company that holds the distinction of being both a supporter and a distribution partner of Free Wheelchair Mission. Network 21 has donated 18,917 wheelchairs since they began their partnership with us in 2007.

For ways that your company can engage with us in this mission, visit this page.