The 3 Legs For 3 Legs Campaign is supporting our Blade Runner Racing Team that is participating in the Tennessee Ragnar Relays. The Tennessee Ragnar Relay Race will cover 186 Miles between Chattanooga and Nashville. Our team will consist of 6 Amputees and 6 Able Body athletes that will each run 3 Legs during this 26 + Hour Race. Thus, that is why this campaign is called, '3 Legs For 3 Legs' since each runner will run 3 different legs during the race, with the goal to raise funds to help 3 new athletes receive running legs!
Ragnar will be an awesome, grueling experience for our team, but something they will remember forever.
To learn more about the TN Ragnar Race, please check out the link below.
https://www.ragnarrelay.com/race/tennessee
The Campaign goal is to raise $10,000, which is enough to support 3 new individuals with a running prosthetic. Insurance doesn't deem a running prosthetic medically necessary, and therefore individuals must pay out-of-pocket $10,000 or more for a running leg. Our organization is able to provide amputees a running leg for around $3,000, based upon some great partners we have and the fact that members on our team donate their time to fit soemone for their new prosthetic.
We believe that one piece of equipment has the ability to change someone's life moving forward, as it did for our Co-Founder, Ryan Fann. Ryan was the recipient of a running blade during his senior year of high school and went on to receive a scholarship to run track in college. Ryan then ran with the US Paralympic track program earning multiple Gold and Bronze medals in the Paralympics. A whole world was opened becasue someone cared enough to give him a running blade in high school. Now Ryan and our other Co-Founder, Aaron Fitzsimmons, want to share this gift with other amputees.
Help us give this FREEDOM to amputees that are seeking a more active lifestyle!
You can DONATE to this campaign and SHARE it with your friends (there is a Facebook & Twitter button up to the right!) We have cool Gift Options to the right, or you can choose just to donate and support the cause. EVERY dollar rasied during this campaign will be used to help new applicants and not one penny will be used for Admin cost.
Our goal is to help at least one individual from every state, so if you know someone that would like to learn more about our grant program, then please check out... https://amputeebladerunners.squarespace.com/grants/
We are raising funds to support the next 3 Amputee Blade Runner athletes and team members. Here is the first of those new ABR Team Members we will be helping out by the end of the year...
Brooklyn is an active 8 year old, from Michigan, that was born with a congenital birth defect. She is missing her left leg and left arm, but that hasn't slowed her down from being active with her friends!
Brooklyn participates in school PE classes, runs with her friends, dances, plays baseball, and even plays basketball. But her current will not prosthetic will not always allow her to keep up with her friends, as it is not designed for this type of activity. Brooklyn and her family fall into the same category that a number of amputees are in: they want a running/sports leg, but cannot afford one. Insurance WILL NOT cover anything more than a walking leg and the cost can be $10K plus. So Brooklyn and her family applied for a grant through ABR and were recently accepted.
Brooklyn wrote in a note to ABR, ' I want a new running leg so I can run faster to first base, play basketball better, participate in the track events at NubAbility Camp, and to help my grandma and gramdpa and others with cancer. I promise to use it alot and take really good care of it!'
She and her family will be traveling down to Nashville in mid November to be fitted for her custom socket and new running leg.
Colonel Ben Mitchell, USA Army (retired)
Colonel Ben Mitchell was involved in a near fatal injury during a training exercise, causing him to lose his right leg, below his knee. Following the injury, Ben underwent 17 surgical procedures and spent 3 weeks in the hospital. Through all the surgeries and procedures, Ben found courage through his family, knowing his 6 year old twins needed their daddy to to be back home with them.
Ben has since recovered and received his walking leg, but is in need of a running leg and a new socket setup. He is having problems with his current leg 'slipping' off during any type of physical activity, which leaves him unable to compete in many high level activities. Ben is scheduled to visit Nashville in mid November, where he will spend one week with the ABR team, getting fitted for his new leg and socket, learning how to handle his new running leg, and brainstorming ways to #PayItForward to other deserving individuals!
In his grant application Ben states, " I have 6 year old twins and wish to jog, run, and have fun outdoors with my family. I am seeking the opportunity to be granted a running balde to enhacne my quality of life, to participate in motivational sporting events, and to further assist and insprie my Wounded Warrior brethren's."
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- We will release names and stories of the next 2 ABR team members in the follwing weeks
- Gifts from donation will be delivered in early November, after the campaign has ended
- For questions or comments, please email amputeebladerunners@gmail.com
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