College Times

Don Schoendorfer never forgot the moment, nearly 30 years ago in Morocco, when he and his wife watched a partially paralyzed woman try to drag herself across the street.

“She was at the point where she couldn’t even be a beggar,” he said. “And we had to turn our backs and walk away from that.” More than 100 million people worldwide share that woman’s plight: physically disabled and without access to a wheelchair.

In the late ’90s – in the midst of a successful career as a biomedical engineer – Schoendorfer decided to do something about it.

In the past, getting wheelchairs to third-world countries was an expensive proposition. American wheelchairs cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars, and weigh a lot. Shipping and delivering the bulky items meant costs for delivering a single wheelchair to a needy person were excessive.

So Schoendorfer created a simple wheelchair using a plastic outdoor chair, a steel frame and bicycle tires.

“I tried to use parts that were already manufactured,” he said. “Bicycle tires can be fixed in developing countries and a light resin lawn chair has the perfect design – it’s comfortable, adequate and built for the outdoors.”

Schoendorfer said he thought that once he designed the chair – which can be delivered to the end-user for under $50 – other organizations would carry-on with his efforts.

“It turns out God had a different plan,” he said.

In 2001, Schoendorfer formed the Free Wheelchair Mission.

“I realized I had to quit my job and give up my career,” he said. “I had a lot of people questioning if it was the right move. But it was the only way to make this thing work.”

Since then, the organization has enjoyed strong support in southern California – the group has delivered nearly 225,000 wheelchairs to date. But to reach the organization’s lofty goals, Schoendorfer decided he needed more national attention.

So he opted to bike across the country with Dr. Michael Bayer, a friend who has been actively involved in the Free Wheelchair Mission.

They aim to raise $670,000 – enough to purchase and ship another 15,000 wheelchairs. As of Monday, they had raised about $258,000.

On June 6, their bike ride will come through the Phoenix metro area. Those interested in donating, or riders interested in joining them, can trace their progress and get additional information at freewheelchairmission.org by clicking on the Ride for Mobility link.

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