Ramp project rolling into Donley County

A statewide charitable organization that builds wheelchair ramps is looking for volunteers to take up that mission in Donley County.

Texas Ramp Project representative John Laine says his organization needs 14 to 16 people who want to lead a local ramp team, and two ramps are scheduled to be constructed on Saturday, November 2 – one in Clarendon and one in Lelia Lake.

The Texas Ramp Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization funded through a variety of public and private sources throughout the state. Laine says the group has received a challenge grant to help spread its mission throughout the Texas Panhandle. If the local community can come up with $1,000, Texas Ramp Project will match it with $1,000 and use the money to buy all the tools a local team will need to build ramps for people who need them but can’t afford them.

Laine said the effort has to be locally driven, but the state organization will provide support and funding for new ramps moving forward. Youth groups, service organizations, and churches are typical groups that come together to form local ramp teams, Laine said.

The Texas Ramp Project builds more than a thousand ramps across the state every year and wants to expand to build ten times that amount. Requests for ramps are not accepted from individuals or family members but must instead come from a third party health provider, Laine said.

For more information about the Texas Ramp Project, contact Laine at 214-675-1230 or view the online video at www.TexasRamps.org/story.