November 2011 Newsletter Published

The November 2011 issue of the Texas Ramp Project is now available.

Read some great build stories, find out about the latest milestones the organization has reached, discover how foundations have partnered with the Texas Ramp Project and see how the organization has realigned in Austin and East Texas, and more!

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Johnson City: Veterans pitch in to help a comrade

They volunteer for duty once more on the homefront

Updated: Friday, 11 Nov 2011, 6:00 PM CST
Published : Friday, 11 Nov 2011, 5:40 PM CST
by Heather Gillett

Link to video and original article.

AUSTIN (KXAN) – For the past year, every time Don Broyles needed to get in or out of his home his daughter had to lift him and carry him down the stairs.

Broyles, an Army veteran, was injured in a service-related training accident some 20 years ago.

So for Veterans Day, several military folks volunteered to help out a comrade in need. On Friday, they pitched in to build a ramp so Broyles can come and go with a little more independence.

“There are a lot of ceremonies, salutes and parades and so forth,” said George Barnette, a veteran who is part of the Texas Ramps Project and helped organize the effort. “But we think this is a better way to observe the day, actually doing something for somebody that needs it.”

Broyles’ daughter, Tara, said her family salutes the volunteers who came to help her dad.

“To me it’s really important — it shows what a community does when one person is down. They get together to do something that’s nice for everybody,” Tara Broyles. “You know my brother just got back from a 14-month tour. And when he got back they really pulled together for him and it just shows how a small community can really pull together.”

31′ Ramp Built From Scratch in Less Than 3 Hours – October 29, 2011

It was a combined effort of 1st United Methodist Wichita Falls, 1st United Methodist Archer City, and Air Force personnel.  First, a ramp that was too short, too steep, and too rotten had to be removed.  In it’s place a new, sturdy ramp of 31 feet was built in just under 3 hours.

Initially, we thought we’d only have 6 volunteers, but as you can see in the picture, that number grew unexpectedly.  Now that is a great problem to have!

If you are interested in taking part in building ramps with the Texas Ramp Project in the Wichita Falls area, contact Rev. Troy Sims (tsims@fumcwf.org or 940-766-4231).

Milestone: 10th Mile Reached and 2000+ Ramps Built

August was a big month for the Texas Ramp Project! We reached 2 major milestones – Our 10th mile and our 2000th ramp.

Thanks to all of those who contribute time, talent and funding to help people gain the gift of access. Your truly amazing work is much appreciated.

Personal Testimony of Building With Texas Ramps

Alan Ballard is a member of First United Methodist Church of Wichita Falls, but more than that he is a faithful volunteer and team leader in that region.  On July 17, 2011, he spoke about his experience building with the Texas Ramp Project in the 10:30am Worship Service.  Here is what he had to say. . .

In The News

The Texas Ramp Project has been featured  in several news articles over the past few months.  Some of the publications include Florida Tech Today, The Odessa American and The Norman Transcript.

Check out our “In the Media” page of our website to read these and other articles.

Record Number of Ramp Referrals in One Day

Dear Friends,

You probably have heard me say that there will be a continued and growing need for our services as the baby boomers age out and as we become better known within the state. Yesterday, May 11th, is likely a harbinger of things to come. We received 22 referrals yesterday – five each in Austin and the Permian Basin (where we will build our first ramp on Saturday), four in Abilene, two each in San Antonio and the North Central Texas region and single referrals in Texarkana, Fort Worth, El Paso and Houston. If we received ten referrals each work day for a year that would be 2600 referrals/year. Our current expectations are that we will build slightly in excess of 600 ramps this year.

We all have some work to do.

John Laine
Executive Director
Texas Ramp Project