Rural Georgians with disabilities need more medical equipment. A nonprofit partnership is helping

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Nonprofits in Georgia are expanding to provide more people with disabilities access to medical equipment and assistive technology.

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Nonprofits in Georgia are launching a comprehensive program designed to empower individuals with disabilities to achieve independence and secure employment.

Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC), Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency (GVRA) and nine Centers for Independent Living centers are working together to bring things like wheelchairs to people who need but cannot afford them.

FODAC started 36 years ago in Atlanta, operating out of a 65,000-square-foot building and repair facility, warehouse and thrift store, Executive Director Chris Brand said.

"Really, our goal is to collect gently used home medical equipment that people need to stay independent in their home, and fix that and give it away," Brand said. "People who are struggling to get access to it."

The primary focus with these partnerships is to ensure rural Georgians with mobility and other limitations have seamless access to essential products, equipment and systems that enhance learning, working and daily living for persons with disabilities, he said.

This unique and significant program has not been replicated anywhere else in the country, Brand said, noting his excitement in serving communities outside of the Atlanta area, where FODAC has service delivery partners bringing equipment to six local hospitals on an almost weekly basis.

A new branch in Savannah will help serve people on the coast, he said.

"We're just getting a renovation started down there in the next month, and that's another big chapter that's going to help our coastal partners we've been delivering to for years down there," Brand said. "And, this will be more real time collection and distribution along that part of Georgia."

Centers for Independent Living locations are in Tucker, Bainbridge, Savannah, Columbus, Macon, Augusta, Athens, Rome, and Demorest.