Teens building wheelchair ramps for Valley residents
Sanjuanita Mendoza is getting her first look at the new wheelchair ramp built outside her Harlingen home.
Mendoza isn’t wheelchair bound, but she has trouble walking. The new ramp will help her get inside her home a lot easier.
The wheelchair ramp was made possible thanks to a dozen teens from around the country who are volunteering for a Utah-based church affiliated humanitarian group that’s partnered up with Texas Ramp Project to build wheelchair ramps for those in need.
The teens have already built four wheelchair ramps this week, and hope to build a total of 36 ramps by the time the summer ends.
“When you see people be able to have freedom from their homes… you impact their life every day for the rest of their lives,” volunteer Cindy Moore said.
Moore helps find people that are in need of wheelchair ramps, and says the need for them in the Valley is great.
“We do our very best to build as many as we can, but in the Valley the obesity and Diabetes problem is huge, so [there’s] amputees and there's more need than there are volunteers,” Moore added.
Because of donations, the service is free of charge to those receiving the ramps.
To donate, volunteer or apply to be a recipient of a wheelchair ramp, go to the Texas Ramp Project website.
Watch the video above for the full story.