Volunteer Locally with Wheels for the World™

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

Matthew 25:40

Volunteers at a Wheels for the World outreach

Collect Wheelchairs

Partner with Joni and Friends, local churches, businesses, and civic organizations to collect wheelchairs in your community.

A wheelchair and a shipping container

Store Wheelchairs

Provide space to store donated wheelchairs and other mobility equipment prior to restoration.

FedEx trucks with wheelchairs being loaded into them

Transport Wheelchairs

Help transport mobility equipment between collection sites, storage facilities, and restoration centers.

Volunteer Roles

The Collection Team Leader oversees team development, fosters positive team dynamics, and offers direction to the Collection team. Team Leader ensures the successful execution of all related tasks of wheelchair collection and storage, including administration, onboarding, logistics, and event planning.

Required skills:

  • Heart for the mission of Joni and Friends
  • Demonstrates enthusiasm for sharing the Gospel
  • Ability to build, train, and develop a team of volunteers
  • Administrative and planning
The Assistant Collection Team Leader supports the Team Leader in collection-related tasks such as equipment pickup, wheelchair loading, administrative duties, event execution, and training new team members.

Required skills:

  • Heart for the mission of Joni and Friends
  • Demonstrates enthusiasm for sharing the Gospel
  • Ability to build, train, and develop a team of volunteers
  • Willingness to serve where needed
A Collection Support volunteer fills various roles based on their unique abilities and skillset, demonstrating flexibility and a willingness to serve where needed. Support roles may involve assisting with equipment pickup, transporting collected items to shared storage facilities, wheelchair loading, participating in Wheelchair Drives, and recruiting new team members. Roles will vary from administrative to the physical loading of wheelchairs, adapting to the varying abilities of our volunteers.

Required skills:

  • Willingness to serve where needed
  • Heart for the mission of Joni and Friends
  • Demonstrates enthusiasm for sharing the Gospel

 

Pray Over the Wheelchair Restoration Process

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

2 Corinthians 5:17

Donated wheelchairs and other items are shipped to Joni and Friends restoration programs located in U.S. prisons. There, inmates get to serve people in need by repairing, restoring, and loading the equipment for transport abroad. Inmates serving with Wheels for the World often report a new sense of purpose and hope as they work for the good of people with disabilities worldwide.

“God’s helped me help other people now—basically what I should have been doing in the first place. Wheels for the World has made such a big impact on my life. It’s a great feeling knowing I’m able to help other people.” – Javier, inmate

Joni and Friends also restores wheelchairs at our international wheelchair restoration center in El Salvador. This center trains local people living with disability to restore used wheelchairs to like-new condition, reducing shipping costs and creating skills for employment opportunities.

Volunteer in your area.

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