July 30, 2003
Clinic provides greater mobility for wheelchairs
Easter Seals sponsors free clinic held at Traverse City Fire Department station
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Wielding wrenches, cleaning rags and diagnostic tools, Bob Merrill of Interlochen provided a boost for mobility of area wheelchair users on Friday.
Merrill, the service manager for Access Michigan Mobility in Gaylord, participated in a wheelchair clinic sponsored by the Easter Seals of Northwest Michigan, held Friday behind the Traverse City fire station on Front Street. This year the clinic was offered only in Traverse City as demand at other sites had been so low in previous years.
Merrill and Mike Andrews, co-owner of Access Mobility Michigan, have helped out at the clinic for nearly ten years by donating their time and expertise. They spent the day working on both manual and power-operated wheelchairs plus scooters, which are electric mobility carts.
"A lot of people have equipment that they can't afford to repair or maintain," said Andrews, noting the average life of a wheelchair is five years for a daily user.
Roen Tharp of Traverse City brought his wife, Kathy's, wheelchair to the clinic for basic maintenance. Kathy Tharp has had Multiple Sclerosis for 30 years and uses the wheelchair as her main mode of transportation. Keeping a wheelchair in working order is crucial for people whose arms are stronger than their legs.
"They get pretty rough use, they go through mud and snow," Tharp said. "You have to keep the brakes in order, they are important."
Tharp said his wife's ten-year-old chair is still going strong, a credit to the regular maintenance it receives from qualified technicians.
"Like a pair of shoes, if you use a wheelchair every day it will wear out faster," Tharp noted. "Wheelchairs are just like a bicycle, they get rotted and cracked and you get them tuned up and they go another 1,000 miles."
The wheelchair clinic perfectly reflects the mission of the Easter Seals, which is to help people with disabilities.
"That's what we're all about," said Elizabeth Hughes, regional manager of Easter Seals of Northwest Michigan, which covers 26 counties. "We've been doing these clinics for more than ten years and have had them in various locations throughout the region."
Wheelchairs cost between $450-10,000 in general, said Andrews. However, he was delivering a $12,000 four-wheel drive model that day to a client who needed extra sturdiness to get around her remote home and yard.
"You want to return as much as normalcy as possible to people with disabilities," Andrews said. "You want the disability to be the hang up, not the product."
Tharp agreed that improved technology has helped people with disabilities integrate into the community.
"I think the disabled are getting out more, not staying at home as much," he noted.
One barrier that remains is keeping public wheelchairs or scooters, such as those in grocery stores or malls, working and available to those who truly need them.
"Kids like to play in them, they are curious," Tharp said. "But they are not to be played with, they will break."
"If you had to use them every day, it wouldn't be as much fun," he added.