Belize City, Belize: The hearts of Rotarians from Western Canada drew them back once again to a place they know well this November. Through an ongoing partnership with the Rotary Club of Belize City a small group from BC and Alberta delivered more than 100 brand new wheelchairs to those in need of mobility.
In this developing nation that currently faces weighty challenges to economic stability, the UN reports that over 40% of the population lives in poverty. Developing global partnerships has been recognized as a key factor for countries like Belize to achieve the 8 Millennium Development Goals established by the UN, and this has become an active endeavour of the local government (http://www.bz.undp.org/content/belize/en/home/countryinfo/).
The Canadian Wheelchair Foundation is proud to contribute to advancing these initiatives through its work with partners and sponsors around the globe. Touching the lives of over 1,000 people with the provision of these wheelchairs will have a positive impact on many of the goals that Belize is working to achieve. But perhaps more importantly, the new mobility that each wheelchair affords will transform a life through dignity, independence, freedom and hope for a better future.
Background
The Canadian Wheelchair Foundation is an independent Canadian registered charity with the goal to deliver brand new, free wheelchairs to persons with physical disabilities throughout the world who are without mobility or the means to acquire a wheelchair. With a strong focus on developing and newly industrialized states, the Canadian Wheelchair Foundation continues to change the lives of people and communities with a gift that extends hope, dignity, opportunity and independence to all.