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Hi! My name is Larry. I am a retired architect. After spending nearly my entire adult life in Denver, my wife, Rhonda, and I recently moved to Lawrence, Kansas. We have a son (Christopher) and daughter-in-law (Tina) in nearby Kansas City, and our younger son (Patrick) is a high school teacher in Portland, Oregon. I grew up in the very small village of Morrisville, New York, about 30 miles from both Syracuse and Utica. As a youngster, I loved baseball (Joe DiMaggio posed for an old black and white on-the-field photo for my mother at the Hall of Fame game in Cooperstown in 1947, and I inherited my love of baseball from her), and football (the great pro football Hall of Famer, Jim Brown attended college at Syracuse, and I was a fervent fan), and I tried to play basketball to have something to do in the winters besides shoveling snow. I played baseball in an adult league until I was about 26, and then I played a little softball and volleyball after that. When I could not do the team sports anymore, I resumed bicycling.
My journey as a bicyclist began when I was in elementary school in Morrisville, NY. It continued in junior high and high school, even when it required hauling my trumpet case on the handlebars of my one-speed between home and school. When I moved to Boulder, Colorado for college, I worked as a pots and pans washer in my dorm to get money to buy a bicycle to get to my classes. After I graduated, I moved to Denver for work. I selected apartments that were close enough to my work place that I could bike to work every day. After I married Rhonda, we chose homes around Denver that were close enough to where I was working (up to about 6 miles) that I could bicycle to work most days. Eventually, we found a home that was close to the Cherry Creek bike path, and I could finally get off the streets for most of my ride into downtown Denver.
As a dog-loving family, we always had dogs sharing our home. Two of our dogs were yellow labs (#rockymountainlabrescue, #yellowlab, #labradors, #lablove), one we got as a pup (Bucky), and the other we rescued from a couple who could not care for him properly (Beau). Now, if you know yellow labs, you know that they are full of energy and they LOVE to run. As an adolescent, Bucky was relentless in his zeal to run, and we could not keep him happy with our walks or chasing tennis balls in the back yard. I tried bicycling with him and holding his leash so he wouldn’t dart in front of oncoming bicyclists. He loved that, but one time he managed to get the leash wrapped around the handlebars, and I took a spill, crushing a couple of ribs. So no more of that. I made a little device out of plastic plumbing pieces that I could attach to my bike and keep a harnessed Bucky a couple of feet away from it, and he was back in nirvana. Then we got Beau. Beau was bigger and leaner than Bucky, and was even more energetic. But he had no impulse control, something we learned in a variety of ways as we got to know him (once he pulled me into a bloody face-plant (#betadine) when he spied another dog 200 yards away). I hooked Beau up to my bicycle contraption for a run, and he bolted almost instantly and broke it into a gazillion pieces. Plastic pipe was not up to the challenge of Beau. I rebuilt it using galvanized iron pipe, a spring, and a bungee cord, and that worked great. Beau would have run until he died, I think. He did run until his feet bled. We got some dog boots with all-terrain rubber soles (#ruffwear), and some foot pad toughening salve, and we were back in business.
By the time I was about 55, I began to have back aches, and problems with my shoulders, elbows, and wrists from riding my bike. So I changed to a recumbent bike (#recumbentbicycles). It was a heavy one, but I very much enjoyed getting around town on it, and Beau loved getting guided tours of the neighborhood. Until one day...
That day, I was crossing over 8 lanes of traffic on Colorado Boulevard in Denver, and I didn't make it all the way across before the light changed. Foolishly, I kept going, thinking that the cars could see me and would let me finish crossing. I was wrong. I have never been more wrong. I was hit broadside by a Ford F150 traveling at about 40 miles per hour, driven by an off-duty police officer. I was extraordinarily lucky. I was helmeted, and my head was not injured. I didn't have any injuries to internal organs, and I wasn't paralyzed. I had some broken ribs, two separated shoulders, and bruises all over, but I survived a very traumatic accident. Today, I am thankful every day that I can walk at all.
After that, I didn't ride for a long time. I took up walking and got into a very satisfying routine of listening to audiobooks and podcasts while I went on walk-abouts. I walked in Colorado, I walked in Oregon, I walked in Washington, and then I continued walking when we moved back to Denver. But I began to have debilitating pain in my left hip and annoying pain in my right, and I simply could not keep it up. So I got the old recumbent out, and I tried to get back in the habit of riding around on that. But riding the recumbent requires a fair amount of skill and good balance, especially when starting up from a stop with traffic around you. My skills had eroded seriously, and my balance was very poor. I had great difficulty getting started, and if I was on an upslope, I had to walk it. I was a risk to myself, and I sold my beloved recumbent. So now, at the age of 73, I don't walk because of hip pain, and I don't bicycle because my balance is poor. It has been very difficult adapting to a more sedentary life.
Then, recently, Rhonda introduced me to the Alinker walking bikes (or trikes, if you will). I was immediately encouraged and optimistic. It seemed like the perfect answer to my current situation. It would enable me to be active once more. I was delighted!
Unfortunately, the price of the Alinker puts it beyond my reach, so I have decided to avail myself of the crowd-funding option that Alinker offers. It excites me to think that I may be able, once again, to get out on the bike paths and walkways, and listen to my audiobooks and podcasts. I'm excited to see what I have been missing. But this is where it gets tough, because I am not comfortable asking for help. But I am asking. I would appreciate any amount you would be willing to share, even a dollar. If you can’t spare a dollar, then perhaps you can share my story with your friends on Facebook or Instagram… who knows who we can reach? It’s only 6 degrees of separation, or, as I prefer, 6 degrees of connection. Perhaps I can reach Selma Blair!
Many thanks… I appreciate it very much. Sincerely.
The campaigns are about sharing. Most people have no idea what life is like when you live with MS or what happens after you have a stroke. Isolation is often a bigger problem than the symptoms of the disease itself. With the campaigns we can share and educate people, because it can happen to all of us. When we create a movement where people simply show up for each other, it might get a bit ‘safer’ and less ‘scary’ to engage with each other. Some people share their experiences on their campaign, others share their funds to support the campaigns. It is not about asking for money, it is creating an opportunity for people to learn and show up with #generosity. Being generous resonates with who we are as humans. We understand generosity deeply and when you practice it, you feel so much better
PLEASE NOTE
- The campaigns are in USD $, and since to the pandemic the price increased from September onwards $2950 USD. This includes the Alinker, shipping, process and campaign fees and our #AlinkerFamily support.
- The campaigns are all or nothing, no credit cards are charged unless the campaign reaches its goal.
- As soon as the campaign reaches its goal, we ship an Alinker (from direct stock or you'll be placed in line, delivery 6-8 weeks).
- Campaigners do not handle money. On disability or welfare, you cannot handle money without being penalized, but you can receive an Alinker !
- When the campaign raises more than the goal, the campaigner can chose another campaign which we then make the donation to, paying it forward, or the balance will be placed in our Collective Campaign to help future campaigners.
- If you want to start a campaign and are outside Canada or the USA, write an email to stephanie@thealinker.com. We can potentially get a shipping quote to where you live, and include that in the campaign goal, though we like to keep shipping at a minimum, so we will not ship anywhere beyond $250 shipping costs.
Together we build a movement of kindness and generosity, because we all need it
Why do we facilitate crowdfunding on our site?
We believe that the Alinkers should be available for everybody, regardless of income and people who start a crowdfunding campaign here, will have access to a life changing Alinker. These crowdfunding campaigns are the first step to make Alinkers available for everybody. BE and the Alinker company are now putting their energy together to build a generous community around all the campaigners! The campaigners are people who allow others to show up generously, give them love!
Here is the Alinker segment as was aired on CBS Innovation Nation October 2019 - https://youtu.be/pk96VDkJ9NU
Why an Alinker?
Generally, medical devices are a technical solution for a body with a
problem.
The Alinker is designed for who we are, a whole human
being, who wants to live an active and engaged life. We are a human,
we have a body. Whether we miss a leg of have MS, it does not change
who we are.
Yet the world we live in, treats us as a body with a problem, which creates a social divide between people based on their body, based on what we have, not on who we are. Isolation and loneliness are more devastating than the disease itself. So we need to show up for each other, acknowledge each other and be present to who we are.
These campaigns are here to bridge the gap between a high quality custom Alinker, and the people who live at the receiving end of a 'sickcare' system that drives people into poverty.
So, show up, be radically generous, it is something we humans really
understand.
When you read each story in each campaign, pause and
imagine who that person is, and why they started the campaign, reach
out to them, let them know they are surrounded and seen, heard and not
alone. When we do that, we feel better and create a safer community
where we know we can show up for each other. It connects us with our
essence, we are radically generous creatures, we just got a little
lost in systems that are not designed for our wellness.
Alinkers change lives, here are a few people
GO TO CROWDFUND, WHY, HOW, START
Who is the Alinker for?
The Alinker is for people who want to stay active, regardless of mobility challenges.
To operate and use the Alinker you must have the ability to:
- walk to some degree
- flex and extend your legs
- bear weight on one leg briefly while getting on and off the Alinker
- be consciously aware of your surroundings
- be aware of your ability and limitations
What is the Alinker?
The Alinker is an exceptionally cool, three-wheeled walking bike
for humans with mobility constraints. It’s not a medical device,
it’s a lifestyle tool, designed to enable users to lead active and
socially engaged lives — at eye level.
On the Alinker, users sit upright -- at eye level with standing
companions. Weight is supported by the seat with no stress on the
lower body, while handle bars provide additional support. Feet remain
on the ground, keeping users stable and safe.
GO TO CROWDFUND, WHY, HOW, START
Together we'll make this work, in kindness and from the heart
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