Give a little bit: A Success Story
Tuesday, June 3 @ 6PM ET- News 12 at 6 ran a great story about a MicroGiving member, Becky Raymond and her quest to independence and mobility.
BEECH ISLAND—A Beech Island woman who can’t walk on her own anymore didn’t take her disability lying down. In fact, she found a new way to get around, a scooter.
It’s called www.microgiving.com. You can give a little to help out someone in need. And in Becky Raymond’s case, she’d still be a shut-in if she hadn’t found it.
For Becky, walking is a challenge that most can’t relate to.
“I have osteoarthritis. The pain happened in one knee, the other knee, and then the hip. I fall a lot. Trip over things.” she said.
Crutches used to be able to get her around, but after some recent falls she needed something else.
“It came to a point where I needed to do something.” she said.
What she came up with is a scooter that can get her where she needs to be. But getting it wasn’t easy.
You see, many scooters cost around a thousand dollars. For someone on disability, that’s money that isn’t easy to come by.
So Becky dug deep to find a way and what she found was a website called www.microgiving.com.
“You put in a request saying what you need.” she said.
After some verification, your request is posted and people can make donations to help your cause.
The idea is everyone can make a small donation to help you get something you really need. All those small donations added up quickly for Becky.
“I had most within a week. Within 2 weeks I had all I needed.” she said.
Every cent from complete strangers who just wanted to help.
“It put me to tears cause people care and cared enough to donated a bunch every day,” she said.
It’s a way for people like Becky who’ve lost so much, to get what they need on their own and regain some independence.
“I had to do this that I had the power to do on my own.” she said.
Posted in Micro Charity, Press, Updates by The MicroGiving Team
Tags: MicroGiving, Press, recipients, web2.0
It’s been a year since my independent walking days came to a close. When I first started on this journey I was hopeless and really thought I was going to be stuck inside my house unable to enjoy life. Since the scooter came into my life, I rediscovered the life I was missing out on for many years. My scooter takes me on trips around the botanical gardens. It takes me to major charity events, it takes me to all day trips to the flea market. I can go for walks in downtown Aiken SC. If there is an emergency I can get away from my house.
There is no longer the line “oh I don’t think I can walk that far” or “I won’t be able to stand up that long”….the only comment I have now is….is there time for me to charge up the battery?
I returned to life in April of 2008 and since then have attended six major events and several family outings. My overall health has improved with the ability to get out of the house and do things and I have been able to come off some of my medications.
MicroGiving, including the team and the members have helped me find a life I didn’t even know I could have.
Thanks for sharing Becky! We are glad to help!
Becky has been an inspiration to us all..in spite of the many problems, she has never once failed to be there for others….she has a winning never give up attitude..
She has helped me in many ways, and soon I will show her my appreciation, and also to this site..
It is a warm family…
You must master your time rather than becoming a slave to the constant flow of events and demands on your time. And you must organize your life to achieve balance, harmony, and inner peace.
Hallo! Is there anybody here to tell me how much time have we got left till the end of the lesson?
That is an amazing story. I am suprised that it didn’t include anything about Becky’s animal sanctuary for disabled pets.
That really gives me hope about this site. Because my doxie needs an eye surgery. And I hope that I can raise the needed money on microgiving like Becky.
A penny saved, is a penny earned..
Here is a quick story of how, the smallest amounts of change can add up …
This man, saved quarters and coins for thirteen years…
and ended up buying hisself a car, worth over 26,000.00!
It just goes to show you, that small change adds up, and patience is a virtue!!
Never give up!
http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/smartspending/archive/2007/12/24/man-buys-half-ton-pickup-with-half-ton-of-spare-change.aspx
Hi Lynnie, that interview wouldn’t have mentioned anything about my animal sanctuary because it was geared more towards helping to show the public that recipients are indeed verified and the money donated did indeed go to someone who is of very low income and disabled.
I think it also helped in a strong area, by showing that people on Medicaid/Medicare don’t get things handed to them as many people think. A scooter is very hard on medicaid because you can only get one if you need one INSIDE your home. A scooter is actually not a practical piece of equipment for inside home use. Imagine using your bicycle every day to cook your meals, eat at a table, do your laundry, go to the bathroom etc. It’s not easy with a set of handlebars and large frame to move around. It’s designed to help you have a social life outdoors and go shopping independently, go for walks etc.
For Medicaid doing these things is a luxury…not a necessity so very few on medicaid will get a scooter unless you are prescribed the scooter for inside home use, then you must pass the other tests…is your home scooter accessible? Most likely not, because it’s very different from a wheelchair, it’s not designed for inside a home, it’s designed for those large open spaces that mobility challenged people can’t do. So medicaid recipients will probably be buying their own scooters or getting power chairs which are nearly impossible to transport unless you can afford to have your vehicle adapted and really how many on medicaid can do that?
For medicare however you can get a scooter, but you usually have a hefty co-pay for the scooter which makes it not worth getting it. Same requirements of having to have it for inside use and most wind up with a power chair rather than a scooter because the scooter wouldn’t be practical inside whereas the power chair would. The benefit to the scooter is lighter weight and much easier to transport by simply cargo carrier, trunk of your car if you have an able body person to help etc. Power chairs don’t go in trunks very well.
People often think the disabled/elderly just get this stuff for free if your doctor writes a prescription. I think the video showed that disabled people don’t just get these quality of life things given to them, and if you are too poor to save up the money for one you are stuck inside your home, probably in one small room until MicroGiving happens.
I’ve already come to the conclusion that one diet will work wonders for one person yet not make a slight difference to another.
What diets have you done that actually worked for you?
How long did you keep it up? (Yes I’m assuming you gave up at some point)
I’ve done many diets in my life and each time I gave up keeping it going for various reasons.
One does stand out though and that’s the cabbage soup diet. It is meant to cleanse your body of all the bad foods you’ve had and should only be done for one week since it is not a diet for life. I can say it really worked. My mum and I did it (I think 10 years ago) She lost about 3 kg in that week and looked no different in her appearance. I, on the other hand lost nothing, yet I looked great.
In a nut shell the diet consists of having a certain recipe for cabbage soup which you can eat as much as you want the entire week, and every day you eat something else (can’t remember the list though..)
How about you?
I’ve been watching for a while but now i’m making my first post.
So, I’m looking for some feedback about the forum from regulars.
Leave me a post and introduce yourself.
Later, .
John – Nice to hear from a new face! Thanks for visiting our blog!
I found the best thing to my friend’s birthday… It’s really hard to find cool and still unique.
So today I saw this thing from ZTARLET on facebook where you can name a real star in heaven and have the certificate and a teddy bear sent to you and pay it by a single SMS. So awesome
Thats pretty cool! A cool thing to give online to someone!