About Us: Testimonials
Do you like your wheelchair? What color is it? Do you like it? To his parents: Has it been useful?
Where do you go with your wheelchair? Do you like your wheelchair? Note: Amanda has license plates for her wheelchair that say “Eat My Dust”. September 17, 2007 Dear Ladies Auxiliary,
Due to the MD affecting her arm strength, we were unsure if Ashley would be able to push a manual chair herself. We hadn't even considered a manual chair until her Physical Therapist mentioned it. When we heard that Ashley would be able to get a manual chair from Shriners, we were SO relieved! As parents, it was a huge life transition for us to begin using a wheelchair with Ashley. Yet, we feel that you helped us through a difficult time by providing Ashley with a manual chair. You helped us, and continue to help us, take control of our lives when so many things seem out of our control. My husband, Rich, and I sincerely thank you for providing our daughter, Ashley, with her wheelchair. You have made our lives easier in so many ways! P.S. I cannot begin to tell you how many comments we have received about “those wheels that light up!” -Ann and Rich Cloud September 26, 2007 To: SHC-TWI Womens Auxiliary:
- Kae Crawford, OTR/L
For over two decades I have had the privilege of seeing the wide-eyed looks and huge smiles of patients as they receive their new wheelchairs. The gratitude of their parents is instantaneous. Even better are the wonderful stories from parents whose children have newfound independence with their wheelchair. Sometimes, it's the simple pleasure of being able to watch their child splash in the bathtub, because they now have a bath chair and don't need to be held anymore. Thank you for your continued dedication to the Shriners Hospitals for Children® — Twin Cities. Mary Kay Rose, Physical Therapy Assistant September 17, 2007 Dear Ladies of the Womens General Auxiliary,
Other patients who have benefited from equipment are patients who have had spine surgery and that have difficulty getting on and off the toilet. Families that are unable to afford adaptive equipment are told of our program where the Womens Auxiliary can provide raised toilet seats and toilet safety frames so their child can use the toilet independently. The biggest impact your support has had with our families has been in the area of mobility. Many children that otherwise would sit cradled in a small stroller or in an ill-fitting wheelchair are able to be evaluated by our team of experts for wheelchairs and seating systems that provide the support they need for their growing bodies, which are often afflicted with orthopedic anomalies. I would like to thank the Womens Auxiliary on behalf of the hundreds of patients and families who have benefited from your generosity. I feel so lucky to be able to help those in need and feel very fortunate to have these resources that would otherwise be unavailable. Thank you so much for your support today and in future years to come. Sincerely yours, Wendy Tomhave, OTR/L
- Sarah Rowley, Physical Therapist |
From an interview with Hunter...
From an interview with Amanda...
We started water therapy services with Barb Knudson at Shriners when Ashley was 17 months old. One of Ashley's Physical Therapists told us about the free services Shriners provides, and we quite honestly thought it sounded too good to be true. For Ashley's type of Muscular Dystrophy (MD), it was suggested to us that we involve her in water therapy. [...] Therefore, when we heard about the free water therapy offered at Shriners, we were ecstatic!! To this day, Ashley continues to undergo water therapy once a week with
Barb, and recently, Ashley began walking in the pool by herself—something that is virtually impossible for her to do on land.
I am writing to THANK YOU for your generosity over the years providing ALL of the equipment to the patients we serve! As a pediatric Occupational Therapist, I have worked in various
hospital and clinic settings over the past 25+ years. I am ALL too familiar with the challenges of getting the proper equipment for a child to allow them to be as independent as possible. At Shriners Hospital for Children® — Twin Cities, the rehab staff appreciates your support that allows us to give the kids what they need! Sometimes it can be as simple as a shampoo basin for a child in a spica cast that allows a caregiver to wash the child's hair. Often it is
a bath chair or a toilet safety frame that can make a world of difference. The luxury you afford to families that do not have insurance, to obtain a wheelchair, is overwhelming each time we work on a final fitting of one of those chairs. As "front line staff", we see the faces on the parents as their children drive a power chair down the hallway for the first time. Your generosity makes our jobs as OTs and PTs at Shiner's very rewarding and for that, I thank you!
October 5, 2007
My name is Wendy Tomhave and I have worked as an occupational therapist at Shriners Hospitals For Children® — Twin Cities for the past 15 years. I would like to thank you for your outstanding support
by providing durable medical equipment to patients in need. Our patients with cerebral palsy have probably benefited the most from your generosity. Many times I have heard parents describe their child's bathing situation where they must lean over the bathtub and hold their child in their arms while they bathe them. This is because children
with cerebral palsy often have spastic muscles and are unable to sit without support. I feel like one of God's angels when
I tell families about our Womens Auxiliary program and how we can provide them immediately with an adjustable mesh bath chair so their child can enjoy a warm bath safely.
“The support of the Womens Auxiliary has benefited many children who may not otherwise receive needed equipment. As a Physical Therapist, I've seen many situations
where care of a child with disabilities has placed an unnecessary hardship on the families because they don't have the proper equipment to care for them. I have seen families that have been unable to bathe their children, or who are carrying around large children who can't walk. The help the Womens Auxiliary has given us with bath chairs and wheelchairs has allowed children and their families to participate in everyday activities that we often take for granted. Thank you for helping us provide the very best for our patients!”