Week 5 Class Reflection

On Wednesday’s class, representatives from ‘Get a Cane’ came and introduced their non-profit organization to the class. The mission of this non-profit organization is to collect and redistribute medical and mobility devices to economically disadvantaged persons in the community. The reason this non-profit organization came into existence is because the founder discovered the need for medical/mobility devices at an early age, when he was volunteering at Thornton Hospital. It was his first day as a volunteer, and saw how a man fell to the floor as he approached the entrance door of the hospital. He soon discovered that the man had cardiac problems, and had to walk a long distance to get to the hospital from his car. If only the man had access to a mobility device, such as a wheelchair, perhaps this incident would have been prevented altogether. From this moment, he realized something had to be done, in order to increase medical/mobility device accessibility, so he started his own non-profit in college, with the help of a few fellow students. They’re currently serving San Diego residents, but are hoping to expand their services to Mexico. Overall, I am quite amazed to hear that college students managed to start this non-profit organization on their own and actually run it. I wonder if they had to pass a lot of loop holes to actually make this happen or if it was a smooth process. I regret not asking them these questions in class. Nonetheless, I admire their passion and dedication and wish them the best of luck, as they continue to expand their services. :) ​