Making A Difference In Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee is a vibrant town, full of music and energy and well known for its contributions in education, the arts, and even the civil rights movement. Recently this city earned the distinction of being home to one of the newest groups of AMBUCS volunteers: the Memphis Friends chapter.

The formation of this chapter was led by Tekela Cooper, a mother of a child with disabilities.  She discovered the AMBUCS organization will searching online and quickly became inspired by its mission of creating mobility and independence for people with disabilities.

“When I saw all the things that AMBUCS members were doing in the community and all the ways they attempted to help special needs children, I knew this was something that we needed here in Memphis,” said Cooper, who recruited some of her friends and co-workers to help launch the chapter. “There were not any other AMBUCS chapters in my area but I still wanted to do anything I could to help out.”

Cooper, who works as a housing coordination for the Southeast Mental Health Center, first learned about AMBUCS after searching online for therapeutic equipment for her daughter Tenea, who has cerebral palsy. 

When she saw how AmTrykes are able to make such a dramatic impact in the lives of people with disabilities she was immediately impressed.

“I couldn’t believe how these tricycles were,” she said. “This was just the thing I was looking for to help my daughter gain more strength and endurance and also give her an opportunity to enjoy riding a bike like other kids her age.”

However, Cooper didn’t just want to stop with helping her daughter ride a tryke. She realized how a great of a tool it could be for Tanea and wanted to find a way to make sure other families in her area could experience that same joy.

“I don’t think people know just how much the AmTryke can benefit the life of a child and their family” she said. “Without help, a lot of kids would not be able to experience the joy of riding one and like the video says ‘every kid needs a bike’”

Immediately, Cooper contacted the AMBUCS Resource Center and spoke with staff members there about how she could help bring the AmTryke program to her community.

“I really appreciated the warm reception I received when we first started” said Cooper. “Everyone I spoke too was just so helpful and they gave me a lot of great information and were very encouraging. I started getting emails from people I had never even met. That was really something special.”

The Memphis Friends chapter was officially chartered on March 1, 2008 and thus far they have five dedicated members. Cooper serves as the chapter’s president and is joined on the leadership committee by Chapter Secretary Danielle Wells, Treasurer Suzanne Shelton, and Vice Presidents Articia Polk and Jelks McKinney.

The group is currently formulating a plan to organize their first big fundraising effort. They are also looking at a number of ways that they will be able to get the word out and attract more support in their city. Although they are a small group, Cooper said the Memphis Friends chapter hopes to be able to raise enough money to donate about three to five AmTrykes by the end of this summer.

“I think if we can do that then it will be a success,” she said. “I see our chapter growing a lot in the months ahead and we’ll be able to help a lot of children with disabilities ride their own AmTryke.”