The Direct Response Industry’s Life-changing Impact
I am very proud to report that the Wheelchair Foundation has changed the lives of more than 650,000 people around the world—and the lives of every member of their families—with the delivery of life-changing wheelchairs. And ERA members helped us get there!
This mission started for me back in April of 2000 when Ken Behring called and asked if I would help him create this life-changing humanitarian mission. It has indeed been life-changing for the wheelchair recipients, their families, the donors, the volunteers who raise funds and especially those who participate in the hands-on distribution of wheelchairs. And while we were in the process of changing so many lives for the better, mine was also changed. I have never felt more blessed to be involved in anything in my life, and I can honestly say that the mission of helping people with physical disabilities realize their dreams and abilities is one of which I am very proud.
A true gift for me is when I find a kindred spirit that feels the same way I do about helping people. Mercury Media’s Dan Danielson is that person and was the one who contacted us and proposed working with ERA members to sponsor large numbers of wheelchairs around the world. With the incredible support and dedication of ERA President and CEO Barbara Tulipane, Dan was able to get the message out to the entire direct response industry about our mission and how easy it is to change people’s lives.
To date, ERA members and other DR companies have sponsored the delivery of almost 3,700 wheelchairs to Chile, El Salvador, South Africa, Israel, China and Vietnam, and containers are on their way to Cuba and Ethiopia. These wheelchairs are allowing children to go to school for the first time, adults to go to work to provide for their families, and the elderly to get out of a bed that some have stayed in for many years. But the immediate change in lives is not limited to the wheelchair recipient. We estimate that 10 lives are changed for the better by each wheelchair we deliver. Not only the family and friends that have helped care for a person without mobility, but the neighbors that have a new person to talk to next door or around the corner tell us of their happiness.
Our mission has received a wonderful boost from the direct response companies and individuals that have used their talents and resources to help us get more exposure, deliver more wheelchairs and create awareness about our life-changing efforts along the way.
If I could squeeze 25 hours out of each day, I would call every ERA member and DR donor personally to express our gratitude for the incredible support to date, the happiness we feel about the ongoing process of working together to bring mobility into the lives of people around the world and our excitement about the future and the things we can see happening on the very near horizon.
Thank you Barbara, Dan, ERA, ERA members, DR companies, magazines and everyone else that has helped us make such a substantial impact on people’s lives.
Chris Lewis is vice president and director of The Wheelchair Foundation
Tags: barbara tulipane, charity, chris lewis, dan danielson, ERA, wheelchair foundation
January 25th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
Chris - Our work with the Wheelchair Foundation has been a wonderful experience. Not only did this industry help those in need, we also demonstrated the power of direct response. Chris perhaps you can provide a link to the shows that were produced. I also understand that there are ERA members blogging about their experience with the Foundation. We would love to hear from them too!