Ming, a 59-year-old grandfather, had always been a hard worker.
He made a living as a farmer, working a small plot of land in a village nestled in the rocky hills of the Chinese countryside.
But five years ago, an accident left Ming unable to walk, forcing him to stop working.
Ming would be confined to his home much of the time. His wife became full-time caregiver to him as well as to their young grandson, whose parents lived and worked in a city hundreds of miles away.
Ming hated the thought of being a burden on his wife. He would try to move about the house on his own, using a small chair as a mobility aid, but he couldn’t get very far this way.
But thanks of the generosity of friends like you, Ming received a new wheelchair—and with it, a renewed hope, independence, and freedom. “With this wheelchair, I can help my wife do housework and look after our grandson,” he grinned.
Ming is one of 130,228 individuals whom you’ve helped empower with the gift of a wheelchair in China—and one of over a million individuals whom you’ve helped in 93 countries total—since 2001.
The mission continues in China and around the world, even with the outbreak of the coronavirus.
Our factory is located in Shanghai, which is over 400 miles away from Wuhan, where the outbreak began. Production halts for several weeks every winter due to Chinese New Year, which fell on January 25th this year, and the factory remained closed until February 20th to minimize contact and control the spread of the virus.
As of now, all factory employees and their families are in good health—we invite you to join us in prayer for them, and for all of our international staff and distribution partners.
The need for mobility remains great, and we hold firm to our commitment to provide another million wheelchairs to those who need them the most.
Thank you for all you do to help provide the gift of mobility.