With song (Amazing Grace) led by Yvonne (who alone knew the second verse), followed by poetry from John Rice, we honored President Carter. His state funeral in Washington, DC, was just wrapping up as our meeting began. A moment of silence honored Carter, Algene Bailey and Cathy Herold, wife and mother of our Rotarians Bob and Andrea.

Gene was a larger-than-life presence in this club for many years. His celebration of life is February 15 at the Best Western Traffic Circle at 7:00 P.M. Cathy’s Visitation is over the weekend of February 11-12. Donations in her honor can be made to Dana Farber.
 

Speaker Allison Battles of Victoria’s Victory Foundation shared a video and then her experience with this Stratham-based organization. The Foundation helps people with mobility disabilities, whether caused by trauma/accident or disease. 

Victoria Arlen and her mother founded the non-profit, which focuses on developing resilience and courage in its clients. They provide a resource navigator, victory scholarships and have funded more than one million dollars in requests nationwide. Of this, $187,000 dollars has gone to New Hampshire clients.
 

There are more than five million adults in the United States living with paralysis, some caused by trauma or injury and some by disease. Many other organizations focus only on trauma cases, Allison explained, but Victoria’s Victory benefits more broadly. A non-profit development professional, Allison is new to this organization. Some 60 percent of their board are folks with lived experience in mobility disability, as are about 25 percent of the staff.
 

Allison explained that lifelong activity-based training, the heart of their work, is often not funded by insurance. She described many restrictions of Social Security and insurance funding, such as making a new wheelchair available only once in five years. This is even though a young person might rapidly outgrow a chair between age ten and fifteen.
 

Allison reported that 94 percent of funds raised go directly to programs and services. Some 325 people have been helped in the last 18 months. Scholarship applications are received and reviewed four times each year, along with emergency grants when appropriate.
 

Victoria’s Victory Foundation will soon launch a new adaptive driving program that will be piloted here in New Hampshire.

For more information:
www.victoriasvictory.org
scholarships@victoriasvictory.org
(603) 534-36709