Evaristo with his son and wife
Evaristo Herrera was in a vehicle accident with his wife that injured his spinal cord leaving him quadriplegic. Today HeadNorth presented 73 year old Evaristo a Response ONE $1,000 grant. His wife and son shared his appreciate Evaristo has gone through a number of facilities and is hoping to go home soon.
The Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) Education Foundation recently awarded HeadNorth $10,000 grant to host three educational forums and symposia. HeadNorth’s mission is to support people with spinal cord injuries through monetary grants and peer mentoring support. Additionally, HeadNorth strives to champion a cure through a variety of educational research initiatives. Funding from the PVA will help these efforts.
HeadNorth founder Eric Northbrook and Dr. Edmund Hollis discussing the upcoming SCI Symposia at UCSD.
While research lectures generally pertain to only the medical professional and scientific audience, HeadNorth’s lecture series will be open to SCI survivors, their families, caregivers, rehabilitation and social service providers. Michele Bart, Executive Director, commented “the education series lectures will be led by a variety of scientists working on spinal cord regeneration research and will serve as an opportunity to share research with a wide audience. The presenting scientists will also take questions from the audience. Scientific research often has the association of being inaccessible to the laymen and, moreover, the people whom the research would directly benefit. The main goal of this series is to enable understanding of the latest scientific research.” In addition, “having people outside of the scientific community participate in these forums will hopefully promote quality of life initiatives and encourage the spinal cord injury community -survivors, families and caregivers alike- to support promising research.” Dates for the education series will be announced later in the summer with the first one planned for fall of 2012.
Funding from the PVA will also be used to host a one-day symposia on the UC San Diego campus bringing together seventy postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and other research faculty. The first symposia of this type was held last year, but this summer’s symposia will be on a larger scale, connect more labs, and have other institutions involved. The symposia will be an opportunity for researchers to share biomedical and health research findings as well as exchange ideas. The symposia will ideally foster cooperation and inspiration throughout the research community. The symposia will take place on Monday, June 11, 2012.
On April 7th, 16 year old Ronan was injured while playing in a high school rugby game. During the game, Ronan had a collision that forced his head to whip forward that caused the injury to his spine at the C6 level. HeadNorth presented Ronan a Response ONE $1,000 grant today at Sharp Rehab. Ronan is doing very well and has determination to get better. HeadNorth wishes Ronan all the best on his road to recovery.
Mobility is crucial within in the disabled community as it goes hand-in-hand with the ability to live an independent lifestyle. For people using wheelchairs an important, but complicated, step towards mobility is obtaining a handicapped accessible vehicle. Mo Abusham, the owner of Better Life Mobility Center car dealership and a wheelchair user himself, knows all about the importance of accessible vehicles, “For someone who is a wheelchair user, they rely on their vehicle every day to live their life. If that vehicle fails they can’t just rent a car or borrow their friend’s car, they have to trust their vehicle and it has to work day in and day out.”
The MV-1
The introduction of the MV-1 van, produced by The Vehicle Production Group, is truly a step in a more accessible direction. While normally handicapped accessible vehicles are converted vehicles – such as a Honda Odyssey with alterations like a lowered floor and a ramp – the MV-1 is the first vehicle designed with wheelchair users in mind. “It’s a game changer in the industry,” Mo commented, “We’ve never had anything like it before.” The MV-1 has a sleek design and numerous optional features for a customizable vehicle – even including a natural gas fueled green option.
For those who aren’t car buffs, the MV-1 is still a practical vehicle, and not just because it is already handicap accessible. “It’s also a lot cheaper,” Mo commented, “The MV-1 brand new is about $41,000, it’s a big, big difference.” A brand new, modified vehicle usually costs at least ten thousand dollars more at about $54,000. Until May 31st, there is also a deal available to trade in an old conversion vehicle to get an allowance for a new MV-1. Furthermore, unlike the old conversion vehicles, the MV-1 can be completely serviced at the dealer, so no more driving to one dealer for transmission problems and another dealer for accessibility functions. “It’s a one stop shop,” Mo described.
An open door view of the MV-1
The MV-1 is currently out on the market and Mo and his team are proud to carry this vehicle at Better Life Mobility Center. Go check it out or head to http://www.vpgautos.com/ for more information!
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