International Wheelchair Foundation donates 35 wheelchairs to SP

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

The International Wheelchair Foundation on Wednesday afternoon handed over wheel chairs to 35 people in San Pedro Town. The donation was made in a special ceremony at the San Pedro Town Central Park. Since 2006 The International Wheelchair Foundation has been visiting Belize and this year 206 wheelchair will be distributed countrywide.One of the volunteers of the International Wheelchair Foundation is Glenn Perry, who is a member of Sueño Del Mar. According to Perry, the international organization had donated over 800,000 wheelchairs in 140 countries. “Wheelchairs to us are the essence of goodness,” stated Perry. He added that, “it gives hope, it gives mobility and does not only change and individual and the family but also the community.”

The wheelchairs were assembled by the volunteers. Following the brief ceremony the wheelchairs were handed over to the residents and their families. The wheelchairs came in four different sizes and are originally made in China. Factory cost by wholesale is about US $150 but in Belize the same type of wheelchair is estimated at about $1000. The 50 volunteers are all from North Carolina in the US and as part of their visit on the island; the San Pedro Lions hosted the volunteers to lunch just before the handing over ceremony.