May is National Mobility Awareness Month!

This May is National Mobility Awareness Month, and at Van Products, we are encouraging you to take some time to learn a little more about how mobility issues affect different folks around the United States as well as abroad. For instance, did you know that more than 18 million people in the United States and Canada alone have mobility issues?

In fact, the National Mobility Awareness website states that people with disabilities “constitute the largest minority group in the United States”.

Recognizing Local Heroes As Part of National Mobility Awareness Month

This May, find out how mobility issues affect those who live around you, and learn more about mobility equipment manufacturers, just like Van Products. Its mobility equipment manufacturers that many disabled persons have come to rely on in order to live productive, fruitful, independent lives.

Finally, look around you. There are local heroes everywhere you go – local heroes who are making a difference and who also need your help. This May, the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association is hosting a “National Mobility Awareness” Program whereby people with disabilities, caregivers, or a person in need of a wheelchair accessible vehicle are allowed to enter for an application for the opportunity to win a wheelchair accessible vehicle, customized to their needs.

Erik Fugunt of Mebane, NC, is one such hero.

Spotlight on a Local, NC Hero: Erik Fugunt

Fugunt, of Mebane, NC, is a paraplegic who saved a young man’s life when he heard a car crash near his house while taking the trash out. Upon hearing what sounded like a bad car accident, he wheeled into his van and drove out to investigate. Eventually, after scouring the roadway, he called 9-1-1 when he saw evidence of a potential automotive accident.

If it wasn’t for Fugunt’s persistence and quick thinking, the young man involved in the accident, Brandon Jeffries, may not be alive today. Now, Jeffries’ family is working with Fugunt to help him garner nominations towards winning the nationwide contest. Winning a new van would be a dream come true for Fugunt, whose van is currently 15 years old and breaks down somewhat regularly.

Read more about Erik’s inspiring story, and vote for him here.

At Van Products, we’re honored to have our friends at BraunAbility sponsor the Local Heroes Contest again this year. Click here to learn more about how they are making life a little easier for those living with disabilities.

About National Mobility Awareness Month:

National Mobility Awareness Month is dedicated to showing the world how people with disabilities can live active, mobile lifestyles. Teamed with national spokespeople, Mike Savicki and Ashley Lauren Fisher, we support and utilize the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA) network of members to help educate the public.

About NMEDA:

The National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association (NMEDA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding mobility options for people with disabilities. The organization promotes and supports members engaged in the modification of quality transportation and wheelchair accessible vehicles. Over 600 international members work to provide safe and reliable adapted transportation solutions to help build the road to independence. Transportation is the key to freedom and NMEDA is the key to quality transportation.