Giving Thank s!   
Look What Happened in November
PE Teacher, Mary Scavone teaches class while using a wheelchair. 
Wheelchair Ambassadors Lead the Way at 
Amador Valley High School


This is the fourth consecutive year that our Wheelchair Ambassadors at Amador Valley High School have planned and coordinated an Abilities Awareness Week.  This year, the 3 Ambassadors paired with Key Club to ensure the support and participation needed to pull off their event.  A variety of activities were planned to raise awareness and to get students involved.  

Firstly, they organized 7 periods of presentations by the  Whee lchair Foundation for the entire freshman class.  The presentations were delivered during the students PE hour.  The following week, those same students were able to engage in activities involving wheelchairs during their PE class which helped sensitize them to the challenges one may face while using a wheelchair for mobility.  Other activities planned and carried out included allowing students to check out a wheelchair for a day and a lunchtime wheelchair basketball event in the quad.  This activity always draws Klien  a lot of support and engagement.  
 
The Ambassadors used the school's media outlets to get the word out and have distributed canisters throughout the school to motivate the students to give.  Other events they are planning this school year include participating in the Fun Run for Education in the spring and one of our Ambassadors, Rachel Zhang, is planning a TEDx Talk about "A Right/Path to Mobility.  

Thank you to our Ambassadors, Rachel Zhang, Casey Chang and Rachel Klein for your commitment and for your passion in helping us make a difference and t hank you Key Club members, for the additional support making the event a huge success.  Fundraising will continue into December.  


Students participate in a lunchtime activity of wheelchair basketball.

Oakland School is Creative in Implementing FTH

A visit was made to Redwood Day School
in Oakland where the 5th grade Leadership Students received a presentation from our FTH School Program.  The goal of the meeting was to inform and inspire the students to plan their fundraising efforts that they will launch later in January.  The students were then able to use 10 of our wheelchairs for a week during their PE time.  

The next step for these 5th graders will be spending time designing their very own campaign using their wheelchair experiences and their creative talents.  They will start the new year sharing with the student body, what they learned, what they feel is important to know about mobility issues in the world and then proceed with a fundraising event.  

Redwood Day School leadership/PE teacher, Stephanie Roth, is well versed in service learning and empowers her students to use their talents to make a difference in their world.  We can't wait to hear what the students have planned.  Thank you Stephanie Roth for empowering and inspiring your students!

A video you all might enjoy to kick off your Ability Awareness Week is one Stephanie shared with us.  If you are interested, take a look.  It is very inspiring....

What Lies Ahead for December
Matt Medeiros assembling a wheelchair during a distribution in Peru.
St Isidore School
Sells Candy Canes for Wheelchairs!

St. Isidore School is joining our efforts to raise money for wheelchairs.  They will do so by having hosting a FTH presentation and by selling candy canes.  They will also be honoring a beloved student alumni, Matt Medeiros,  who passed away last spring.  They will help to raise money for the Wheelchair Foundation as it was a cause that Matt strongly supported.  Matt  believed  that it was not enough to talk about the problems in our world, but more importantly to look for opportunities to take action in an effort to make the world a better place.  He was committed to serving, and he worked alongside us b oth by fundraising and by traveling with us on whe elchair distributions. Matt joined us in Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina and Mexico, during his high school and college years.  
 
The students at St. Isidores will be selling candy canes throughout December and the proceeds will go towards providing wheelchairs for Guatemala .  The students will also be encouraged to think of ways they can take action on their own, to help those who lack basic mobility. 

Thank you to St Isidores for supporting our efforts and for continuing Matt's amazing work with the Wheelchair Foundation through From the Heart!  
Participating Schools so far in January....

Monteviedo Elementary  -  San Ramon Valley Unified
Montair Elementary         -  San Ramon Valley Unified
Monte Vista High School -  San Ramon Valley Unified

You can still schedule 
From the Heart 
for your school.
Contact  us Today to reserve your spot.
Barbara Bosse| bbosse@wheelchairfoundation.org
STAY CONNECTED: