January 20th of 2011 marked the one year anniversary of Wheelchair Foundation’s Plane to Haiti relief flight. The opportunity to join among the world’s first responders to the catastrophic Haitian Earthquake, and to be granted permission to land our two plane loads of medical aid, doctors and nurses, is a testament to the work of Global Health and Education Foundation and all of its’ assets. As quickly as Haiti’s tragedy came to the public eye it soon faded, as other world news took precedence.
Just this week, a little over a year and two weeks following the earthquake, we received word from our partners that nearly all 2,600 wheelchairs we have sent to the people of Haiti have been spread across that country. With the help of CARITAS, the HHS Foundation of the Dominican Republic, Rotarians, The Carlos Slim Foundation and
CODETEL, our wheelchairs have reached Port au Prince, Cayes, Jacmel, Cap-Haitien, Fort Liberte, Jermine, Hinche, Port de Paix, Anse a Veau et Miragoane, and Gonaives.
Our efforts to assist the disabled in Haiti will continue, with 800 wheelchairs sponsored by Rotarians staged in Miami, Florida, awaiting transport to Haiti. We will continue to help, as long as there is a need.
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A LOOK BACK – East Bay Foundation Gives the Gift of Mobility
KGO-TV/DT – Written and produced by Ken Miguel, March 15, 2010.
A wheelchair can mean the difference between being bed-ridden or leading a productive life. But in many parts of the world, cost keeps them out of the hands of people who need them. One East Bay charity is hoping to make a difference two wheels at a time.
On the island of San Pedro in Belize, artist Kurt Jason Cruz was attacked in 2006. It left him completely paralyzed.
“I got stabbed in my lower back and neck and was paralyzed for four months and I couldn’t even move from neck down,” he said.
He has regained some mobility, and can now get around thanks to the Danville-based Wheelchair Foundation. The non-profit has given away hundreds of thousands of wheelchairs over the past decade to people in need all over the world. The idea began with developer Ken Behring. Now his sons have taken up the cause.