Most people enjoy riding bicycles.
For those with disabilities, the sport can be a challenge, but they can still participate. AmTryke Special Needs Tricycles makes models for people who can’t walk, struggle with balance or face other types of disabilities.
There’s only one problem: AmTryke cycles are a bit pricey.
According to the company’s website, its trikes cost between $718 and $1,422, depending on the model.
Affording a luxury purchase like that can be tough for families who deal with special needs, said Erin Sieberkrob, Wendell Foster therapist. Along with the mortgage, car payments and grocery bills, families dealing with a disability face additional expenses, such as medications, special equipment, therapy sessions and out-of-town trips to visit specialists.
“Insurance doesn’t pay for a bike for a child,” Sieberkrob said.
To assist, AmTryke provides a national wish list website that links donors with children and adults who can benefit from a special-needs trike. Currently, Wendell Foster has 12 clients on the AmTryke Wish List.
More want to be added.
“We have individuals we want to add to the waiting list, but we can’t because we have individuals who have been on the waiting list for two years. They haven’t gotten a bike,” Sieberkrob said.
Wendell Foster can’t add more than 12 names to the wish list at a time.
The nonprofit hopes to find donors who will help people realize their dream of owning and riding a bike. Contributions for trikes should not go to Wendell Foster. Instead, they should be made at https://ambucs.org/riders/wish-list/wish-list-riders/.
Riding bicycle promotes physical and emotional well-being, Sieberkrob said.
“It helps (children with special needs) improve their endurance and get stronger,” she said. “Besides, it helps them feel like a normal kid.”
More Information
To make a donation to a local person on AmTryke’s Wish List Riders, go to https://ambucs.org/riders/wish-list/wish-list-riders/.
Use Owensboro’s ZIP code — 42301 — to search for people in a 25- or 50-mile radius who are waiting for a bike. The list includes people from Owensboro, Utica, Rosine and other regional towns.
Donors can contribute the amount of their choice to help local residents pay for their bikes.
Local Wish List Riders
Savannah
Owensboro, KY
Age: 7
Cost: $880
Miles
Owensboro, KY
Age: 7
Cost: $847
Nate
Owensboro, KY
Age: 6
Cost: $924
Clifton Blake
Owensboro, KY
Age: 42
Cost: $876
David
Owensboro, KY
Age: 54
Cost: $877
Linda
Utica, KY
Age: 37
Cost: $882
Hadley
Richland, IN
Age: 14
Cost: $875
Joseph
Sebree, KY
Age: 5
Cost: $845
Annabelle
Boonville, IN
Age: 12
Cost: $847
Mallory
Henderson, KY
Age: 10
Cost: $939
Ezekiel
Rosine, KY
Age: 8
Cost: $738