Our campaign is now complete. 134 supporters helped us raise US$10,100.00
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IM ABLE was founded in 2007 by Chris Kaag, ten years after he had a life-changing moment. “I was 21 years old serving our country in the US Marine Corps. Everything changed in 1997 when I was sent to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The eventual diagnosis was AMN (adrenomyeloneuropathy), a degenerative nerve condition that cut short my career in the military. Over those nine weeks at Walter Reed, and in the years since, the diagnosis could have consumed me, defined me. I still remember seeing kids hooked up to all sorts of machines. Seeing parents and siblings by their sides, questioning what their future would look like. It rocked me to my core. I wanted to hug all of them. It was then that I realized a new purpose. I chose to show them that life wasn’t over for us. We would need to adapt, but we could still achieve and accomplish incredible things.”
People with disabilities have the motivation, they just need the equipment. But it's expensive! An entry-level adaptive handcycle can cost $3,500 - $15,000+. Individuals who are interested in purchasing their own adaptive equipment, but are unable to afford the cost of doing so, are able to apply for a grant. A survivor of childhood cancer has won the Boston Marathon on a bike we gave her. Accident victims have found again a way to participate in the sports they enjoyed prior to their trauma alongside their friends and families.
Right now, Aaron is asking for a basketball wheelchair that fits him. He's using a loaner and he's growing out of it. Let's get him what he needs to get to the next level.
Operation Lead from the Front is a program where military veterans utilize the traits they learned in service (discipline, mental agility, strength, and initiative) to mentor a child with a physical, cognitive, and/or behavioral disability in a relationship centered around fitness. Veterans work alongside other veterans re-establishing connections with their peers while serving children with challenges. Their mentorship goes beyond simply exercising to help young children with other challenges in their lives.
IM FIT is a free-of-charge supportive, motivational, and inclusive environment where children and young adults with any kind physical, cognitive, and/or behavioral challenge can learn and practice the fundamentals of exercise. These kids are excluded from traditional sport opportunities and are not often given leadership roles. Not at IM FIT. More than just exercise, this program celebrates what athletes of all abilities can do while building community friendships and for everyone.
IM ABLE’s Adaptive Fitness Certified Occupational Therapist is for people who have had a traumatic injury (stroke, amputation, etc) and want to continue healing after insurance concludes paying for physical therapy. We provide personalized plans to help individual and/or small group clients achieve their goals, and then set new ones. Our adaptive athletes work on muscle strength, cardiovascular endurance, balance, and flexibility all of which aid in mobility, prevent falls, enable access, and increase options. By finding that they can physically achieve things that they never thought they’d be able to do, or do again after a traumatic injury, it creates a “can do” attitude which translates to life outside of the gym.
IM ABLE also hosts inclusive endurance events and adaptive equipment demonstration events to both provide adaptive athletes with an opportunity to participate in adaptive sports, but also to showcase what adaptive athletes are capable of doing, given the opportunity.
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