A local therapeutic riding center has received a new all-terrain power wheelchair to help customers move around the stable more easily.
Stride Mobility Group LLC donated the chair to Boots to Grasses after learning that the equestrian center needed a new wheelchair.
Boots to Grasses is a non-profit organization located at 5712 Hill Road in Berlin Heights.
The center currently includes five and a half acres, five riding horses, two miniature horses, two rabbits, a sheep, a goat and a tortoise, according to farm owner Laura Steuk-Mastropaolo.
Boots to Grasses is a family farm opened to the public six years ago by Steuk-Mastropaolo’s daughter, Isabella Mastropaolo-Bender.
“Our program strives to provide a state of peace and fulfillment for our students,” according to the farm’s website. “We really strive to make our program inclusive of every student.
“Whether it’s a five-year-old child with Down syndrome, a 45-year-old man recovering from a spinal cord injury, an elderly person recovering from a stroke or a teenager struggling with depression, research shows that people of all ages who participate in EAS (equine-assisted services) can provide both physical and emotional rewards. »
After graduating from Edison High School in 2010, Mastropaolo-Bender earned a bachelor’s degree from Lake Erie College’s equine studies program in equestrian facility management with a concentration in therapeutic riding, according to his mother.
The girl taught therapeutic riding at the Fieldstone Farm therapeutic riding center in Chagrin Falls and was the lead instructor for the Mane Stride therapeutic riding program in Oberlin.
The family was thrilled to receive the chair for their customers after a long process of finding an affordable chair.
“Wheelchairs are very expensive,” said Steuk-Mastropaolo, who handles grant writing and public relations for the farm. “We wanted to have our own chair that we could transfer our clients to.
“That way it doesn’t wear down their personal gear.”
Steuk-Mastropaolo applied for and received a $1,500 grant for a basic wheelchair for the farm last year.
“We were so happy to have received the grant,” she said.
However, Steuk-Mastropaolo was unaware that the shipping costs to get the chair were unaffordable.
Luckily, Steuk-Mastropaolo said she stopped at a Huron store to look at other shipping options where she met Bryan Benedict of Stride Mobility.
Stride Mobility’s store, 2455 Sawmill Parkway, sells a variety of wheelchairs and other items.
When Benedict heard of the Steuk-Mastropaolo dilemma, he said he got to work trying to help.
“(Benedict) went above and beyond,” Steuk-Mastropaolo said. “I can’t say how wonderful he was.
“Now we have this very, very wonderful electric drive all-terrain wheelchair. We could never have afforded something like this.
The delivery of the chair took place on Valentine’s Day, February 14, to the Huron store.
“What better day for a special gift,” said Mary Weir-Boylan of Stride Mobility.
Jason Parsons, rehabilitation product specialist for Quantum Rehab, and Benedict were both on hand to present the donation with people from the equestrian center, Weir-Boylan said.
“It was really cool…very impressive,” she said.
When the chair was presented, one of the young women present broke down in tears, Weir-Boylan said of the touching response.
“We give their customers an electric wheelchair while they are at the ranch which allows them more mobility and ease to enjoy their experience while they wait to ride,” she said. .
Stride Mobility is a private healthcare company specializing in the service, rental and repair of electric and manual wheelchairs, lift chairs, hospital beds and mobility scooters, according to its website.
The company serves northern Ohio from Toledo to Cleveland, according to its website.
Comments are closed.