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Dear,
'Twas the night before Christmas...
Yesterday afternoon, we witnessed the true spirit of Christmas at our Stamford library branch. At 3:15 PM, we received an urgent call from a nurse at a local hospital system. A patient was eager to spend Christmas with her family and was well enough to be discharged but needed specific equipment for a "safe" discharge. A hospital system is not allowed to discharge a patient unless they have the necessary equipment to be safe at home. That person might have qualified for insurance to get the equipment they needed (or maybe not), but approval takes time, and delivery takes even longer, and Christmas comes but once a year.
There are many use-cases for our library, but the most powerful one is that we have the equipment you need, and we have it NOW!
Without hesitation, our team sprang into action. By 4 PM, we had a volunteer ready at our warehouse to meet her husband. Our library branch is only open between 10 AM - 3 PM on weekdays, but in emergencies, we do our best to be accommodating. We had the exact items needed: a wheelchair with elevating leg rests and pull-away arms, plus a specialized drop-arm commode. These aren't typical requests, but we're always prepared. Because our library has thousands of items, we had both— sanitized, inspected, and ready to go. Regarding the specialized commode, our data tells us that we often run low on drop-arm commodes, so we buy many yearly in anticipation of situations just like this. That costs our library money, but honestly, that made the difference between this patient being home for Christmas versus being in the hospital.
Can you put a price on that? We have never needed to say "no" to anyone who has needed basic equipment.
Thanks to our quick response and dedicated volunteer, this patient is home today, surrounded by loved ones for Christmas. This was just one of 19 people we helped borrow equipment yesterday, loaning out 27 pieces of equipment in total. Ten people also returned equipment to our library and many more donated no longer needed equipment. Each family has a story; each piece of equipment lent out free of charge changes a life.
Our team is honored to play a small part in bringing families together this holiday season.
In the spirit of giving, please consider supporting our mission so we can be there for your family and neighbors in a time of need— $10, $20 or more goes a long way, and we lend out over $3 of equipment for every dollar we spend.
Happy Holidays!
Elliot Sloyer - CEO
Wheel It Forward
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