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Thursday, March 28, 2024 - 08:29 PM

INDEPENDENT CONSERVATIVE VOICE OF UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

First Published in 1994

INDEPENDENT CONSERVATIVE VOICE OF
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

WheelChair-1

Family and friends of local resident Chad Foster gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony to present Chad with his Action Track Chair. The event took place in the Spinx parking lot in Marietta, South Carolina.  After five months of fundraising efforts, Chad was able to purchase his chair. The Action Track Chair will enable Chad to travel over sandy beaches, hike rough terrain with his family and ride in the snow. Chad is 40 and is a substitute teacher living in Marietta, SC. He is beloved by all who know him and is very active in his community and abroad in spite of the loss of mobility due to a spinal cord injury at birth.

Chad greets you with a smile and words of encouragement. He has an incredible sense of humor with a hint of sarcasm. He enjoys playing quad rugby, softball, visiting the beach and is an avid hunter. However, until now he needed assistance with these activities and  often had to be carried by an able-bodied person. The Action Track Chair gives him independence and freedom to be unstoppable.

According to his friends Chad never complains or asks for anything and because of this attitude they felt he needed a track chair of his own. Once the news of this wish reached Marietta resident Sandra Crain, she kick-started a fundraiser to raise $15,000, the cost of one chair. She organized chili dog sales and raffle for a Yeti® cooler at the Slater-Marietta 2016 Moon Boom event where more than half of the needed $15,000 was raised. Sandra reached out to friends, officials, and business owners about the need to help this young man achieve his dream. Virgil Bonham, owner of the Buster’s Barber shop raised funds by offering a hot dog sale at his business. With his help and the help of Sandra Crain, Karen Holmes, the Spinks Family, Marietta Smiles, and many other generous donors, Chad was able to purchase his chair.

Members of the community who gathered together cheered with excitement as the chair was presented. Now with his Action Track Chair Chad has the freedom to enjoy life as he wants and deserves.

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