Retiring and want to use my shop to help others.

[extropic]

The phone number for Wounded Warrior Project is 888-997-2586. Give them a try.

Regardless, keep trying. Your thread is giving me an education on how hard it can be to give away your help.

 

[vtcnc]

The phone number for Wounded Warrior Project is 888-997-2586. Give them a try.

Regardless, keep trying. Your thread is giving me an education on how hard it can be to give away your help.

That is an excellent suggestion, I had forgotten about this group. They are pretty diverse in their interests because it is often one-on-one interactions. Good suggestion!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[woodchucker]

The phone number for Wounded Warrior Project is 888-997-2586. Give them a try.

Regardless, keep trying. Your thread is giving me an education on how hard it can be to give away your help.

After the holiday's I will give them a call.

 

[woodchucker]

We have an organization called The Tetra Society here that does that sort of thing — engineering and building specialty accessibility products and aids for people with challenges. Don’t know if they’re international or in your area but you could always look into it. I have in mind to do the same thing when I fully retire if I still find enough time.

-frank

BTW I contacted them, never heard back.

 

[middle.road]

It's going to be a tough nut to crack.
One avenue that you might want to try is the originations that help out people that need prosthetics.
Perhaps not for the main portion of the devices, but maybe ancillary 'add-ons'. Perhaps mods for vehicles or scooters or even wheelchairs.

Now I'll bore you with two stories of 'trying'. It's tough sometimes.
Back in the late '90s I bought a home from a widow, the husband had just passed away after a long term illness.
House needed a bit of TLC and she was headed for a retirement community.
She asked if I could handle the 'stuff' she needed to leave behind because she just didn't have the resources to get it cleared out.
Scored some sweet items in the garage, he had been a machinist, but then there was 'the room'.
Totally equipped, medical room, for lack of better words. From a hospital style bed to a wheel chair to a walker.
It took me three weeks to find an organization to take it, and more importantly - put it to use.
I could have just donated it to any number of organizations for re-sale.
Finally ended up connecting up with an obscure Veterans group that I'd never heard of.
They had a Vet who was in need of all of the equipment, immediately. So that worked out, just took awhile.
But all the other 'main stream' organizations' I contacted weren't able to find a need for the equipment.

Next one was 9/11. I had (4) dish-pak boxes of 3M series 6000 respirators along with filters from an auction.
After watching the recovery efforts in NYC and seeing first responders wearing paper masks, I figured I'd try to get them up there somehow.
I knew the crew at a major airline here, and one of the managers said he could put them on a plane to Newark but we needed to find someone to 'receive' them at that end.
Spent three days making calls and posting on newsgroups, but never was able to find any entity to receive them at Newark.
Ended up donating them a few years later to Habitat...

 

[woodchucker]

It's going to be a tough nut to crack.
One avenue that you might want to try is the originations that help out people that need prosthetics.
Perhaps not for the main portion of the devices, but maybe ancillary 'add-ons'. Perhaps mods for vehicles or scooters or even wheelchairs.

Now I'll bore you with two stories of 'trying'. It's tough sometimes.
Back in the late '90s I bought a home from a widow, the husband had just passed away after a long term illness.
House needed a bit of TLC and she was headed for a retirement community.
She asked if I could handle the 'stuff' she needed to leave behind because she just didn't have the resources to get it cleared out.
Scored some sweet items in the garage, he had been a machinist, but then there was 'the room'.
Totally equipped, medical room, for lack of better words. From a hospital style bed to a wheel chair to a walker.
It took me three weeks to find an organization to take it, and more importantly - put it to use.
I could have just donated it to any number of organizations for re-sale.
Finally ended up connecting up with an obscure Veterans group that I'd never heard of.
They had a Vet who was in need of all of the equipment, immediately. So that worked out, just took awhile.
But all the other 'main stream' organizations' I contacted weren't able to find a need for the equipment.

Next one was 9/11. I had (4) dish-pak boxes of 3M series 6000 respirators along with filters from an auction.
After watching the recovery efforts in NYC and seeing first responders wearing paper masks, I figured I'd try to get them up there somehow.
I knew the crew at a major airline here, and one of the managers said he could put them on a plane to Newark but we needed to find someone to 'receive' them at that end.
Spent three days making calls and posting on newsgroups, but never was able to find any entity to receive them at Newark.
Ended up donating them a few years later to Habitat...

That's sad. Wish I knew about the masks. Both of my BIL were professional fireman in Jersey City, one was down for the count permanently injured , but the other worked on the pile. Had I known back then I probably could have offered them to him back then.

I figured I would be overloaded with work, I didn't know it was going to be a job to find some group with need. I just figured they all had need.
For the ones that never responded (all) and I didn't get in touch with... I'll never know why. Unless they call when they have a need.

 

[francist]

Huh, that’s disappointing.

I just checked the website for the Canadian arm of Tetra that has a chapter right near me. I was mostly looking to see if there was some notice that due to Covid they were no longer accepting applicants, yada, yada, yada, but no such thing. The page is current (it mentions Covid compliance so I know it’s up to date), openly discusses volunteering and also has the application forms and new volunteer registration right there on line. So I don’t know, seems like they’re still doing the same thing as always. Obviously things may be different by region and I can’t say what your area might be like but a reply either way would have been nice.

Having said that, getting someone to return a call these days seems really hit or miss. I get this all the time trying to line up contractors and such — oh we’re so busy I didn’t have time to reply — which I think is the ultimate in ridiculous. Our world has more ways than ever to reach someone at any time any where and still it takes too much time to hit “reply”.

Wish I had more to suggest but others have already covered it. Keep asking around at places like museums, non-profit societies, etc. Somebody, lots of people actually, need your help with something, it’s just a matter of finding a way to connect.

-frank

 

[JPMacG]

There is a organization nearby here that restores WWII military airplanes called the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum. Another that comes to mind is Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in New York. I wonder if they would want the help of a volunteer with machining and woodworking skills.

Our Aircraft

wingsoffreedommuseum.org

 

[Technical Ted]

Maybe you could get lucky with an organization for older kids like 4H, Boy Scouts, church youth group, etc.. Also, any vocational schools in the area you could contact and maybe discuss things with a teacher. Working with kids might be tough because of worries about some of the weirdos out there, but with supervision it might work out. Maybe worth a try...

Ted

 

[woodchucker]

There is a organization nearby here that restores WWII military airplanes called the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum. Another that comes to mind is Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in New York. I wonder if they would want the help of a volunteer with machining and woodworking skills.

Our Aircraft

wingsoffreedommuseum.org

that's cool I didn't know about Wings of Freedom.. is that on the old Airforce base?
Rhinebeck is a long drive about 2.5 hours, Wings is only 30 miles but 1 hour travel... all 1 lane back roads until I get to 611.

I'm going to pass on these for the moment.... I'm looking to give back to those in need first.