Achilles International - Nashville Chapter
Programs
Budget
$66,634.00
Description
Achilles International Nashville pairs athletes with disabilities and able-bodied athletes to enjoy the camaraderie of running/walking at weekly runs and local and national mainstream races. We welcome individuals of all ages with disabilities in Middle Tennessee. Our Athletes range in age from 12 to 75 and present with many different challenges, including spinal cord injury, amputations, cerebral palsy, cancer, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, paraplegia, stroke, traumatic brain injury and visual impairment. Achilles Nashville meets weekly year round and twice weekly during the spring and fall to "run," train together and encourage each other. We pair our Achilles Athletes with a Volunteer Guide who (1) functions as an Athlete's eyes, ears, navigator and motivator, (2) helps with special equipment and/or (3) provides support, advice and race day support.
Achilles International Nashville provides up to $1,000 per Athlete for expenses and registration fees for our Athletes and Guide
Beneficiaries
People with physical disabilities
Elderly and/or Disabled
People/Families with of People with Disabilities
Program Areas Served
None
$66,634.00
Description
Achilles International Nashville pairs athletes with disabilities and able-bodied athletes to enjoy the camaraderie of running/walking at weekly runs and local and national mainstream races. We welcome individuals of all ages with disabilities in Middle Tennessee. Our Athletes range in age from 12 to 75 and present with many different challenges, including spinal cord injury, amputations, cerebral palsy, cancer, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, paraplegia, stroke, traumatic brain injury and visual impairment. Achilles Nashville meets weekly year round and twice weekly during the spring and fall to "run," train together and encourage each other. We pair our Achilles Athletes with a Volunteer Guide who (1) functions as an Athlete's eyes, ears, navigator and motivator, (2) helps with special equipment and/or (3) provides support, advice and race day support.
Achilles International Nashville provides up to $1,000 per Athlete for expenses and registration fees for our Athletes and Guide
Beneficiaries
People with physical disabilities
Elderly and/or Disabled
People/Families with of People with Disabilities
Program Areas Served
None
CEO/Executive Director/Board Comments
| Following 2020 and Covid, one of our challenges was getting all our athletes back at practice. While most of the athletes have been vaccinated and are back to regular practices, there are a few who due to compromising medical conditions have not yet come back. Meeting those athletes needs individually is both a priority and an ongoing need. Also following Covid, we continue to revisit our growth. We want to be intentional as we move forward, maintaining the quality of our program, with the personal connection that so many enjoy. Since the Nashville chapter began in 2012, we have served over 600 athletes and guides. We strive to serve our athletes with disabilities providing the attention they deserve, and to provide every volunteer guide with the skills and training to safely guide these athletes. We continue to reach out to the disability community to build awareness and to manage our current membership. We have a vision where every person with a disability in Middle Tennessee knows about Achilles and has the ability to participate if they so choose. Along with growth in numbers is diversity in programs and opportunities. Achilles Nashville is primarily a running community, with running defined as any form of forward movement whether suing feet, wheelchair, handcycle, crutches, or canes for that forward movement. We recently purchased three tandems in order to participate in biking events. Several of the members (visually impaired and blind) had expressed interest in more biking events). |
