Coming Home from Wheels for the World with Deeper Faith
Greetings from the Joni and Friends headquarters in California. My name is Miguel and I serve here as a Senior Coordinator for our Wheels for the World™ program. One of my favorite parts of my job is seeing donated wheelchairs get restored by inmates working in prison-based restoration centers.
I’ve seen many times how prisoners’ lives change as they work on restoring wheelchairs. But when I went on a Wheels for the World outreach to Ghana, I experienced firsthand how a wheelchair changes the life of a child living with disability. Let me tell you about it…
God told me, “Get out of your comfort zone.”
I am from Ecuador originally and I speak Spanish. So when I was thinking about going on a Wheels for the World outreach, I assumed I would go somewhere in Latin America. But then one day I coordinated a load of restored wheelchairs from a prison in Washington that were headed to Ghana. And God put it on my heart: “Get out of your comfort zone.” There was a trip to Ghana coming up, so I made the decision to go!
What amazed me about being in Ghana was that it felt like family there even though I didn’t know the language or the culture. I worked as an assistant wheelchair mechanic, feeling what it’s like for the inmates in our restoration centers. It was challenging but the team was so supportive.
“I loved the local church—they are on fire for God!”
During the outreach, we were blessed to work with a local physical therapy supervisor and three physical therapy interns from the hospital in Sunyani. I made friends with Peter, one of the interns. I was encouraged to see his love for Jesus in serving his community with his talents and medical insight. That local physical therapy team was amazing and helped us so much with translation and serving each recipient. We were even able to provide a few wheelchairs for their hospital in Sunyani.
One of my fellow assistant mechanics, a teenager named Clinton, was from a partner church in Sunyani, western Ghana. He shared with me how, even without a lot of resources, they provide wheelchair ramps, accommodations for people who are hard of hearing, and help for people with cognitive disabilities. His church really is committed to serving people with disabilities. I loved seeing pastors and church leaders engaged during the distribution. It was cool to see their love for God and others.
Throughout the Ghana trip I saw with my own eyes how God works through Wheels for the World—both for the mechanics who restore the donated chairs and for the children and adults who receive them, like a little girl named Melissa.
Let me tell you about Melissa…
Melissa came to the wheelchair distribution hoping to be fitted in a chair. But none of the wheelchairs on hand fit her because of her body size and specific disabilities.
So our whole team of mechanics and assistant mechanics worked together to find a solution for her. Our goal was to modify a pediatric wheelchair with all the appropriate features that will be fit for her.
I worked on modifying a headrest for Melissa’s wheelchair while others focused on the seat, footrests, buckles and harnesses.
In the end, after hours of work, we were able to provide Melissa with her unique wheelchair! She and her family were so grateful. We learned that they believed in Jesus, and you could see their joy through difficulty. It was such a special experience for me to serve our brothers and sisters in Ghana. I came home with my faith deepened, and more grateful than ever for the work we do at Joni and Friends. I can’t wait to go back!
Written By—Miguel
Volunteer at Wheels for the World!
When you volunteer with Joni and Friends, you make an immediate and eternal impact on the lives of people with disabilities.
