We have received a donation

We have received a donation. I went along with a co worker and picked it up today (Friday). I went and looked at the donation on Wednesday. Gathered all the information about it. Checked the value of it and it's accessory as it will be sold to assist in funding our TechACCESS project. Found this donation to be in great condition fully functional and easy to use. Called the individual who handled all the required maintenance and received an excellent report from him. As well as care instruction to pass along to whomever purchases this item. Contacted the state authorities as to how to handle the transfer of ownership esp since we are not going to use it ourselves but rather sell it.....By now your asking what we have received.

We have had donated to us 1 Dodge Grand Caravan Stretched (and lowered) accessible van. It has a kneel on it...which means with the push of a button it just about lays on the ground so the ramp folds out and entering the van is made easier. It can be used with the kneel feature either on or off for entering the van. It also has other accessible features. It came with a new electric wheel chair so that whomever purchases it will be able to anchor the chair into the front passenger side and ride as the passenger or if able to drive they can transfer to the driver seat. There is possibly if it wasn't removed another anchor under the driver seat if the user is able to drive but it may not be compatible depending on what wheelchair the driver needs or it may have been removed. Since I lacked the proper tools to pull the driver seat out at the time this is in need of confirmation.

I have experience with accessible vans as my grandmother has always had them since I was a small child. I've driven a couple of them when she has needed help (which wasn't often) and always been taught how to use the ramps or lifts when she decided she preferred a lift. This one can easily be suited for a new owner if they are required to do anything at all to it (most vans are custom built to the individuals needs however if they have not required to drastic an amount of customizing they can easily be resold for a different user). Since the main thing is that the van and wheelchair be compatible with each other the donation of the chair the van was built for along with the van is great. It will make it much easier for potential new owners to see if the van is a good match for them and their needs. Luckily for us this van received a minimal amount of customizing.

Pics of it are here if anyone wants to see.

Comment from Kevin Palmer on August 13, 2007 - 10:47am

Nice van for a donation. Plus it comes with a compatible chair. That's amazing. Have you had any luck finding construction donations (dry wall, lumber, etc.)? I know you were trying to get Lowes or Home Depot to deliver on some in-kind donations for rebuilding/upgrading the facilities at YES.

Also, I mentioned this to Pat in an email but I was planning on coming out to Orange next week sometime and see how everything at YES is going. Does next week work/what day?

Comment from Rayna Ramirez on August 13, 2007 - 12:47pm

Next week would be fine. If you want to give me a call we can coordinate schedules.......that still sounds strange to me lol. Not used to having to schedule meetings and such yet.

I will be contacting Lowes about the donations of building supplies. My supervisor and I are working on a presentation for them. We qualify for their assistance program they offer so the first step is forming a list of exact needs and meeting with the store manager for our area.