Ship Surplus Mobility Devices to those in dire need.
Crutches 4 Africa enables the physically disabled people in dire need to begin life again with hope for the future.
About You
About You
First Name
Candice
Last Name
Talbot
Twitter URL
About Your Organization
Organization Name
Crutches 4 Africa
Organization Website
Organization Country
United States
Country where this project is creating social impact
Kenya
Is your organization a
Non‐profit/NGO/citizen sector organization
How long has your organization been operating?
More than 5 years
Has the organization received awards or honors? Please tell us about them
References - Please provide two references with a two-sentence biography, email address, and phone number for each
Chad Hills long time friend, Works for Focus on the Family fighting gambling and encouraging abstinence.
chad.hills@citizenlink.com
719-648-0319
Maxwell Marx
•Director at Marx Consulting International
Youth and Policy Consultant (Rwanda) at USAID
Director and ex-officio at Global Education in Action Inc
Consultant - HIV and AIDS Branch at UNFPA
Friend and distributor of crutches for our organization since 2009
: (202) 437-9722 (US) (+254) (729) 774909 (Kenya)
e-mails: Maxwell.marx@gmail.com disabilitydevelopment@gmail.com
The information you provide here will be used to fill in any parts of your profile that have been left blank, such as interests, organization information, and website. No contact information will be made public. Please uncheck here if you do not want this to happen..
Innovation
Select the stage that best applies to your solution
Growth (your pilot is up and running, and starting to expand)
How long have you been in operation?
Operating for more than 5 years
The Need: What problem are you trying to solve?
Funding the containers we fill. We are able to get people to see the need to recycle their devices and we have hundreds of volunteers willing to gather them, but short term storage and shipping funds are lacking. We have 4 states collecting and we have to travel to them all to get the devices gathered to a central shipping port.
The Solution: What is your solution? Be specific!
The solution we believe is letting people know what we are trying to do and garnering their financial support for ongoing costs.
We believe there are multi millionaires who could fund us with their interest being shifted to our non-profit for a year. The loaner donor solution. We need three million dollars to get the project well organized, and the verification of recipients and follow up covered.
Gathering devices is expensive and storing them is becoming a problem. We see the answer is funding so we can rent space and trucks to do the work needed.
The Model: Walk us through a specific example of how your solution makes a difference; include your primary activities
Funding will allow us to branch out to every state in the country, and store and ship the items efficiently. Time is everything to those who are waiting for a device to help them integrate into their communities.
Primary activity is letting people know not to discard their surplus items. Recycling these keeps our landfills cleaner. Moving them to a storage shed, barn, warehouse or other space that has been donated has been a blessing, but is very temporary and unreliable. Renting a warehouse or a storage unit would make so much sense.
Finding truckers willing to pick up small amounts of devices has been a problem. We need to find people (via internet or direct mail) who are willing to pick these up and get them to a local warehouse or storage unit.
The Marketplace: Who are your peers and competitors? Identify others also working to address the needs you are and what differentiates you from them. What challenges could these players pose to your success or growth?
no one is doing what we are.
There are wheelchair donating organizations, but canes walkers and crutches are ignored. We are also looking into creating new devices as we see unique needs in the African communities we have seen already where none of the devices we have to offer will work. Engineers at the Colorado school of Mines is working to develop a wheeled cart for those who are so twisted by polio and other birth defects so as to be unable to even utilize a wheelchair.
This Entry is about (Issues)
Social Impact
Founding Story: We want to hear about your "Aha!" moment. Share the story of where and when the founder(s) saw this solution's potential to change the world.
When we went to Uganda to help Hope4Kids International we saw the need for mobility devices as people were dragging themselves to church on their hands, or using a tree branch to hop along. When we were editing the footage we taped for a DVD intended to promote the H4KI project we were again impressed that there was something we COULD do.
Please describe the goal of your initiative; outline what you are trying to achieve
Get mobility devices to everyone who needs them, by redistributing surplus items found worldwide.
What has been the impact of your solution to date?
We have gathered and distributed over thirty thousand devices since 2006.
Countries who have benefited include Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Togo, Nigeria, Senegal, Christmas Island, Viet Nam, Bangladesh, and Ghana.
What is your projected impact over the next five years?
We grew from 10,000 devices in 5 years to 30,000 in the 6th year.
This is growing exponentially as manufacturers of devices find that we can take their outdated models, and surplus and utilize it abroad. I feel that we can keep the landfills free of this material and cause many people to gain independence, diginity, and common respect in their communities. I have seen first hand how a person can change and become productive and proud of their achievements in a very short time when they are free to move about.
Education, health, voting, respect, jobs, the list is endless. Right now the people who are disabled are so marginalized as to be chained in huts, never to see the light of day or go to a toilet. This has to change.
Winning entries present a strong plan for how they will achieve and track growth. Identify your six-month milestone for growing your impact
Have enough money in the bank to fund the project for one full year. $127,000.00
Identify three major tasks you will have to complete to reach your six-month milestone
Task 1
Educate the public
Task 2
Itentify ways to have successful fundraisers.
Task 3
Create a video production that will encourage empathy, giving and volunteerism.
Now think bigger! Identify your 12-month impact milestone
Have a million three dollar donors
Identify three major tasks you will have to complete to reach your 12-month milestone
Task 1
Educate the public internationally and viral style
Task 2
Have such a strong online presence that we will be recognized around the world
Task 3
Contact schools, and churches nationwide to have assemblies, and awareness days.
Sustainability
Tell us about your partnerships
We are partnered with our local church Lookout Mountain Community Church who gives us $500 a month.
Carex is a manufacturing and distribution company who has donated thousands of items for us to give away.
NOVA orthomed has also contributed many items we have given away.
Project C.U.R.E. helps us store and ship items when they have something going out.
We partner with Rotary Clubs wherever possible worldwide to promote what we are doing and to collect and distribute when possible.
Are you currently targeting other specific populations, locations, or markets for your innovation? If so, where and why?
Yes we believe that the teenagers of America have the most disposable income of all the demographics in the nation.
They also have a desire to help, an innate will to make this world a greener and better place, and have a heart for the less fortunate.
We plan to take teens to Africa to see in person the difference one walker can make, and plan to start fundraisers, and awareness days in schools and churches around the nation.
What type of operating environment and internal organizational factors make your innovation successful?
Keeping it simple is very important to us. Get what others need from those who have too much. Not really Robin Hood, but hey, there are billions of used mobility devices, or excess production locally, or overstock that needs to be diminished. Clean, fast, turnaround is our goal. This year has been exceptional in those areas and with help we know that the future holds fabulous success in reaching our goals.
Please elaborate on any needs or offers you have mentioned above and/or suggest categories of support that aren't specified within the list
We can go and make videos of the projects in situ.
We can do photography of items, ideas, products, people who need imaging.
We can create marketing tools including brocures, business cards, promotional materials, and are willing to offer art for auctions and fundraising.
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 | 29 weeks agoCandice Talbot updated this Competition Entry. |
| 29 weeks agoCandice Talbot submitted this idea. |
