Free Wheelchair Mission
Transforming lives through the gift of mobility.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Without a wheelchair, individuals living with disabilities in developing countries are often left to drag themselves, crawl on the ground, or consent to being carried. Unfortunately, in many cases they are simply left alone in a back room of the home. Due to sometimes unsanitary living conditions and lack of a consistent method of ambulation, pressure sores are common, and individuals face a high risk of infection. By providing someone with a basic, durable mobility aid, doors that were once shut suddenly open. Children who were forced to quit school can learn alongside their classmates. Adults previously unable to work can leave their homes and earn an income. People who for years had been excluded from their own communities can finally participate, engage, and lead independent and transformed lives.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Wheelchair Program
Free Wheelchair Mission is a humanitarian, faith-based, nonprofit organization that provides wheelchairs at no cost to people with disabilities living in developing nations. In collaboration with a network of like-minded partners, Free Wheelchair Mission has provided more than 1.4 million wheelchairs to people in 95 countries, providing dignity, independence and hope through the gift of mobility.
Wheelchair Prescription Certification
Free Wheelchair Mission developed a wheelchair training and certification program for international wheelchair distributors on proper wheelchair service and delivery. This certification provides a unique opportunity for those with backgrounds in physical and occupational therapy to serve alongside trained staff members on a volunteer basis. Wheelchair prescription certification participants receive both classroom and hands-on practical instruction on wheelchair assembly, maintenance, and fitting, as well as identifying the various causes and manifestations of disability. Additionally, participants are trained in wheelchair use, transfers, exercises, and proper pressure relief techniques.
Gifts In Kind
Through our Mobility Beyond Wheelchairs program, Free Wheelchair Mission provides mobility aids and medical supplies to the partners and communities we serve around the world. As a complement to our wheelchair program, our GIK services expand the gift of mobility to many more families as we partner with selected hospitals to provide much-needed operations, many of which reduce or eliminate the need for a wheelchair. In other cases, even though a wheelchair is still necessary, surgery can improve a person's quality of life.
Wheelchair Test Lab
The Free Wheelchair Mission Test Lab reduces overall wheelchair manufacturing costs, creates a more durable wheelchair, and identifies better wheelchair components. The Test Lab provides data to assess, measure, and document wheelchair strength and durability. Data provides information on wheelchair endurance, functionality, stress, strain, fatigue, strength, durability and maneuverability to provide numerical facts to improve designs, reduce costs, and quantify the lifetime use of Free Wheelchair Mission wheelchairs in years.
Where we work
Accreditations
Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) 2017
Charity Navigator 2017
Charity Navigator 2016
Charity Navigator 2021
Charity Navigator 2022
Charity Navigator 2023
Awards
Affiliations & memberships
Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability - Member 2013
Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability - Member 2014
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of clients served
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with physical disabilities, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Wheelchair Program
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Free Wheelchair Mission tracks the number of wheelchairs provided using an Shipping Status Report or SSR. Weekly reports track the status of each order including manufacturing, shipping and arrival.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The World Health Organization estimates that over 80 million people need a wheelchair but most lack the resources to obtain one. As one can imagine, disability places a social and economic burden on communities with limited resources. People with disabilities do not have equal access to health care, education, or employment. Their exclusion is magnified in developing countries.
Since 2001, Free Wheelchair Mission has provided the transforming gift of mobility to more than 1.4 million people with disabilities in developing countries.
The problem of mobility in the developing world is too large for one nonprofit alone to solve. Free Wheelchair Mission is working to collaborate with other nonprofits and humanitarian agencies to serve as many people as possible with the transforming gift of mobility.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Through an efficient method of manufacturing, shipping, and distribution, Free Wheelchair Mission sends wheelchairs to the countries it serves for only $96 each. Wheelchairs are manufactured and shipped directly in containers of approximately 500 units to the port of entry of the destination country. We work with a like-minded network of distribution partner in the developing world who are either focused exclusively on disability work for those in need, or also are working to provide relief and solutions for the many challenges that arise from poverty. There, pre-approved distribution partners clear the container through customs, pay any duties incurred in importation, and arrange for overland transport and distribution of the wheelchairs to local recipients. Recipients receive training on the use and maintenance of their wheelchair, as well as contact information for the distribution partner should the need for repairs or any questions arise post-receipt.
Detailed training, monitoring, and evaluation processes ensure that every wheelchair recipient receives the appropriate mobility device for his or her age, size, and lifestyle. Free Wheelchair Mission has facilitated more than 130 training events for our distribution partners around the world. Our distribution partners also now have access to an asynchronous version of the training, offered in three languages, to train their networks of staff and volunteers. Training is a required part of our program to receive wheelchairs.
In addition to our core wheelchair program, we offer medical supplies to a select group of our distribution partners. Those supplies help support efforts to provide holistic health care to avoid the need for a wheelchair. They also provide relief in times of disaster, emergency, and widespread disease.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
By evaluating every partner through the use of an in-depth matrix, Free Wheelchair Mission can ensure all distribution partners have the resources and training to grow with us.
In 2022, Free Wheelchair Mission signed with a second manufacturer, located in India, to increase production capacity and help alleviate supply chain issues to ensure a steady supply of wheelchairs.
Free Wheelchair Mission is also continually updating and improving our program offerings including in-person training, remote training, and a combination of the two for distribution partners around the world. This training includes interactive activities, practical application, and classroom-style discussion-based activities; all developed in partnership with occupational therapists, physical therapists, and education professionals.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
An estimated 80 million people with disabilities around the world are in need of a wheelchair. In 2017, Free Wheelchair Mission delivered its one millionth wheelchair to Flor, a twelve-year-old girl living in Peru. In 2023, Free Wheelchair Mission sent a container of wheelchairs to its 95th country. Since 2001, we have distributed over 1.4 million wheelchairs throughout the developing world.
During the 2020 pandemic, Free Wheelchair Mission shipped needed medical supplies, including masks, gloves, and various mobility aids, to select distribution partners around the world, through our existing "Mobility Beyond Wheelchairs" program.
When war broke out in Ukraine in 2022, Free Wheelchair Mission sent critical medical supplies along with mobility aids that included 1,176 wheelchairs, sent in partnership with Invacare Europe.
The stigma of disability in the developing world is often heartbreaking. Free Wheelchair Mission is working to open the conversation on disability stereotypes, cultural interpretations, and myths to clarify the facts about disability causes. We hope to help initiate a discussion on the hardship of disability in the developing world to advocate for those without a voice.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Free Wheelchair Mission
Board of directorsas of 01/10/2024
Mr. David Hummelberg
Retired COO/CFO, The Capital Group
Term: 2022 - 2027
Debbie Hendry
No Affiliation
Don Schoendorfer
No Affiliation
Connie Salios
No Affiliation
Stuart Rattray
Retired; Hapag-Lloyd
David Hummelberg
Retired; The Capital Group
Dave Link
Retired; Precision Pet Products
Susan Shore
Azusa Pacific University
Mark Hedstrom
Retired; Colony Capital, Inc.
Sefakor Komabu-Pomeyie
No Affiliation
Felix Lin
Beacon Pointe Advisors
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/05/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.