Wheelchair Foundation

Sully Sullenberger Honored At The Wine For Wheelchairs Ball!

The Wheelchair Foundation is honored to have Wines For Wheelchairs partner with them in providing mobility for those in the world who cannot walk.

Saturday night several hundred people joined the Wine for Wheelchairs  group in honoring Sully Sullenberger  for his heroic landing of the US Air jet in the Hudson River.  A member of the group was so moved by Captain Sully’s heroics that she purchased an entire container of wheelchairs to be delivered to East Bay veteran facilities to assist with those who cannot walk.  Jeff Behring and The Wine For Wheelchairs Annual Black Tie Ball invited Captain Sully and his wife Lorrie, to be their honored guests in presenting this gift in his name.   What a night of moving stories and celebrating “Service Above Self”.

In June of 2000, Ken and Pat Behring, announced to the world that they were committing their time and resources to create mobility for those in the world who cannot walk.  They created the Wheelchair   Foundation as their way of giving back to the world that has been so good to them. From that moment, what has evolved is a partnership with Rotary International  to create matching grants for anyone who would like to donate a wheelchair to those less fortunate.  David Behring, Ken and Pat’s son, now is the president of the foundation and leads it’s efforts to provide a wheel chair for every person in the world who needs one.  It only takes a donation of $150 to purchase a wheelchair and the remainder of the cost is paid by the Wheelchair Foundation and Rotary International.  Today, over 750,000 wheelchairs have been delivered all over the world!

Over 150 million children, teens and adults worldwide are in need of a wheelchair but cannot afford one. In many developing countries, the only way for a person with physical disabilities to be mobile is to crawl along the ground or be carried by family or friends. An all-too-common reality is that many people stay in bed or the corner of a room for years at a time.

Wine for Wheelchairs was co-founded by Gordon Holmes of LookOut Ridge Winery, uses wine as a medium to purchase wheelchairs for those in need. They work with wineries including Lookout Ridge Winery  to host events, offer specials, and draw attention to the worldwide need for wheelchairs. On Valentine’s Day 2008 for example, Arrowood Winery  hosted a wine tasting, and all $6,000 in proceeds were donated to purchasing wheelchairs.  In cooperation with Lookout Ridge Winery and The Wheelchair Foundation, Wine for Wheelchairs donates wheelchairs to needy individuals around the world when you purchase their wines.

California’s most recognized winemakers have teamed up with Lookout Ridge Winery and The Wheelchair Foundation to use their winemaking skills to donate wheelchairs for needy individuals.  You know my love of great wines.  What a great way to enjoy great wines and also give back to this critical world need in such a dramatic way.  If you would like more information as to how you and/or your community can get involved in the Wheelchair Foundation project please contact me  and I will provide you all the information you will need.

Wheelchair Foundation

What Does Kenny Loggins, Berkeley Honda, And The Wheelchair Foundation Have In Common?

The East Bay rocked last night at Blackhawk Country Club’s Amphitheater with a Kenny Loggins Concert!

Who would have ever guessed that Blackhawk Country Club would be the location of an unforgettable world class concert with Kenny Loggins?  If you clear out tennis court #1, and set up tables on the court and all around the tennis court amphitheater you have the most wonderful and intimate setting for a concert.  Last night this location at the Blackhawk Country Club was another magical moment happening in the East Bay.  To a sellout crowd who paid some BIG dough for a ticket which included dinner, Kenny WOW’d them!  He and his band had the audience dancing in the isles singing along with 30 years of his many hit songs , and even a few new ones from his latest album – “How About Now?”.

Berkeley Honda and it’s owner, Steve Haworth, were one of the few corporate sponsors that allowed this evening to happen.  Steve and his company are key supporters of the Wheelchair Foundation.  Not only does Berkeley Honda sell one of the best cars on the road – Honda, they are committed to giving back to their community.  As you have read in my past articles, I want to hangout with people that have the values of “service above self”.  This company is one of them.  And, their leader, Steve Haworth, is leaving a legacy behind of being the auctioneer at many of the Bay Area’s key fundraising events…from the Lazerex Foundation annual dinner, to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation auction held last year in Danville.  He is also the most sought after auctioneers at most of the school and sports fundraisers in the East Bay.  He personally has raised millions of dollars with his skills as an auctioneer in getting people to open up their check books and give BIG to causes that are critical to the service to our community, schools, and those less fortunate.  Within nine minutes last night Steve was able to have people contribute $40,000 to the Wheelchair Foundation as they purchased items such as a week’s trip for two to Paris, a two day Cal / Oregon football game event ending at the Claremont Hotel for four people, and even an two day wine country event for four people that went for almost $4,000!  He is a marvel to watch as he passionately involves the audience in contributing to this worthy cause.

In the audience was the president of the Wheelchair Foundation – David Behring.  David’s father, Ken Behring – who built Blackhawk Country Club, was so moved by those he has met over the years during his world travels that could not walk, that he decided to make a difference in their lives by providing them a wheelchair.  This simple idea has exploded into the world’s most effective organization that provides mobility to those less fortunate.  The Wheelchair Foundation is a nonprofit organization, headquartered in Blackhawk, leading an international effort to create awareness of the needs and abilities of people with physical disabilities, to promote the joy of giving, create global friendship, and to deliver a wheelchair to EVERY child, teen and adult in the world who needs one, but cannot afford one. This simple idea that Ken had five or six years ago has now delivered over 750,000 wheelchairs worldwide as it continues to keep its promise.  Several years ago they partnered with Rotary International – an international service organization that has created matching grants for the purchase and distribution of wheelchairs.  A person can now donate just $80 for a wheelchair, and these two foundations will pay the rest of the cost!  So, you can make a difference today by going to their website and contributing $80 knowing that the small amount of money you just gave provided mobility for someone who has never walked.  How cool is that?

So, what does Kenny Loggins, Berkeley Honda, and the Wheelchair Foundation have in common – hearts of service.  Don’t forget…to whom much is given, much is required.  There are opportunities around us everyday where we can make a difference.  It is just a matter of paying attention and then acting.  Last night was one of those unforgettable moments.  Until next time…

Wheelchair Foundation

Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary & Jim Walberg Welcomes Kirk Bailey As New Member!

The Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary Club has been a key supporter of community service in the East Bay for almost 20 years!

Rotary International is a worldwide community service organization that addresses both local and international community service needs. The Danville/Sycamore Rotary Club was chartered in April of 1989. Today it has a membership of about 55 business and professional people who have a keen interest in Service Above Self as a personal value statement. Over the past years, Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary has raised over $500,000 in funds in order to give back to local and international service projects – from providing dictionaries to all of the third graders in the San Ramon Valley Unified School District, to delivering hundreds of wheelchairs to non-walkers in Mexico with the Wheelchair Foundation headquartered in Blackhawk. It has won the Community Service Award several times from The Town Of Danville.

Service Above Self is a “virus” that is caught because of the modeling of parents and friends during a person’s life time. Jim Walberg caught this virus from his parents who were constantly involved in local and worldwide service projects as long as he can remember. Kirk Bailey is also one of those people who caught the “virus” at a young age. His roots are in Northern Nevada, but he grew up in Walnut Creek. After his college studies, Kirk moved to Tahoe and started a real estate publishing company in the Reno/Tahoe area. That launched a very successful career in the publishing business. He was a member of the Reno Rotary Club because of wanting to give back to those less fortunate. What he didn’t know when he joined the Reno Rotary Club was his grandfather was a former president of the club. His dad is also a long time Rotarian, and Kirk continues the tradition of Service Above Self.

Kirk moved back to the East Bay several months ago to launch a new and innovative real estate magazine that will be delivered to the homes in Alamo, Diablo, Danville, Blackhawk and San Ramon in just a few weeks. Since he arrived back he has been checking out local Rotary Clubs in which to continue his community service. Yesterday, May 13th, the Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary Club inducted Kirk as their newest member. Jim Walberg was his sponsor and Jim’s real estate company is already one of the charter members of Kirk’s new real estate publication, HomeFolio.

Kirk not only has been a member of Rotary for several years, he has walked the talk of service by participating in Rotary International’s Polio Plus program that has vaccinated the children of the world since 1985 against polio. As of today over 99% of polio cases have been eliminated from the world because of their commitment to this project. Two years ago, Kirk traveled to Africa to participate in one of the inoculation projects, which profoundly changed his life and intensified his commitment to Service Above Self. The Danville/Sycamore Valley Rotary Club is honored to welcome Kirk to their club and looks forward to his contribution to improving the quality of life within our East Bay community and the world.

If you would like more information about Rotary and how you may get involved in this important group of professionals who are giving back to their communities in significant ways, please contact Jim Walberg and he will provide information for you. Congratulations, Kirk!