A friend and neighbor asked me last week if I was interested in helping with a project that I had never known about until he extended me the invitation. It’s called the “New Mexico Ramp Project.” It is a volunteer-based program to construct wheelchair accessible ramps to homes of low-income disabled residents in 15 New Mexico counties.
Individuals who qualify can request a ramp be constructed at their home at no cost. Several private companies in the state have provided funds for the program as well as receiving some support from the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority. Those seeking a ramp must fill out a simple request form that is reviewed by the organization before approval is given. Tools, decking screws and lumber are supplied by various organizations or through donations. A shipping container in a lot in an industrial area not too far from our home is used to store the equipment in between projects. It’s not unlike the Habitat for Humanity program, which I have volunteered for in the past, but on a much smaller and more focused scale.
I agreed to help with the program last Saturday. In about two hours, a crew of about 15 people were able to construct a wooden ramp with a 5% grade at the side of a mobile home that it turned out was owned by a woman I knew who used to work for a local car dealership.
Work on the ramp begins earlier in the week before installation, with construction of a standardized framework which is attached to the home or mobile home at the front door or on an existing porch. Once the framework is installed at the home, workers complete the ramp by installing treated wooden decking and railings.
At the project last week, we seemed to have an overkill on volunteer workers. I think we could have done the job with about half the number of workers we had, but no one complained and everyone offered some bit of assistance.
It’s one of those programs that many people don’t know about that goes on in our state and is a great reminder — despite all the turmoil in the nation these past few weeks — that good things can be done to help the needy by volunteers. According to the organization’s website (which I have shown below), this kind of program exists in several other states around the nation and was started in Texas several years ago. The New Mexico program was started in 2019, largely through the efforts of an individual who worked with the highly successful Texas program.
The program received accolades two years ago from New Mexico Magazine as one of the state’s “True Heroes.”
Here’s a link to the video below if you want to watch. It gives kudos to several volunteer programs throughout the state, but it runs about half an hour. You can fast forward to the segment about the New Mexico Ramp Project at about 11:50 into the video.
aero-cordero.com 