FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How
do
you pick the persons who receive the Pets?
What
are
the costs of transportation for the PETs
?
Why is a PET better
than a regular wheelchair?
I've
heard you use clothing
for packing material with the PETs you ship. Is that so?
Are
the recipients able to put the PET together
when they receive it?
What tools do you send?
Could
you make a littlie trailer for the PET so they could haul
more?
Is
my donation tax deductible
What
percentage of monies donated goes to the construction of
PET?
What
colors are the PET when delivered?
Do
PET recipients have any obligation?
Can
they be purchased for use in the USA?
Are
any PET's assembled in any third world countries?
Can
items for care packages be sent to UMBC P.E.T.?
Can
PET's be sent in memory of a loved one?
How
do you pick the persons who
receive the Pets?
A:
For the most part, PET Project works in partnership with existing and
trusted NGO's (Non Governmental Agencies). These agencies are already in
place in areas of need. They have staff, they know the people, and can
place the PETs where most needed and monitor their use.
Hope
Raven,
of Rock Valley, Iowa, has an extensive wheelchair ministry. They collect
some 5 to 6,000 used wheelchairs a year and rebuild them using the
volunteer work of prisoners. They have a worldwide system of placing
wheelchairs and monitoring their care and use. We provide them with PETs
for persons the PET will better serve. They want all we can provide.
At
the same time, they provide PET Project with wheelchairs to go along with
our shipments. For some persons a standard wheelchair will serve their
needs better than a PET.
Mercy
Ships Intl. is a long-proven ministry to
the poor around the world. They are working with 5,000 polio victims in
Sierra Leone, Africa. We have recently sent them 52 PETs,
and it is anticipated that they will want all we can provide. 50 more will
be shipped from PET Florida in August 2002.
Rainbow
Network is a
Missouri based Christian ministry with the rural extremely poor in
Nicaragua. They have an extensive in-country staff focused on healthcare.
PETs are sent to meet the needs of specific persons.
Zambia/Congo.
Africa:
This base
for PET assembly and distribution was originally established by UMC
missionary Larry Hills (now retired) in Zaire (now Congo). Because of
continuing wars the base has been moved nearby to Zambia, and under the
direction of UMC missionary Delbert Groves. PET frames and wheels are
shipped from Darby, MT. The wooden beds are added in Zambia, and the PETs
distributed.
Individual
requests
do receive our attention and consideration. Several PETs have gone to
several countries with short term mission teams.
TOP
What
are
the costs of transportation for the PETs
?
A. We get free transportation for many PETs. Hope Haven picks the PETs up in
Columbia and ships them on at no charge to us. PET Florida delivers to
Hope Haven with volunteers and a u-haul truck. Mercy Ships delivers the
PETs on their ship, so we have only the shipping to their port in Texas.
The shipments to the country of Georgia go at no cost to PET.
TOP
Why is a
PET better than a regular
wheelchair?
A. The
PET and the standard
wheelchair meet two different needs The wheelchair is best suited for a
hospital, an office, inside a home, in a supermarket, on smooth city
sidewalks, and similar settings. The PET is designed for rural areas where
trails and roads are rough and where the driver will often need to carry a
load.
Wheelchairs
are very difficult to move over rough terrain and will soon fall apart. In
rural areas many streets are cobblestone or dirt or simply foot paths or
bicycle trails. People have a terrible time trying to maneuver a
wheelchair over them but PETs scoot right along on the sarne terrain.
TOP
I've
heard you use clothing for packing
material with the PETs you ship. Is that so?
A. Yes. We pack with good used clothing. Americans are by and large very
large compared to those who get PETs as PET recipients have often endured
years of malnutrition or outright starvation so we urge people to give us
the smaller sizes. We never have enough children's and baby clothing. We
also put in some simple toys. A ball is the universal toy and not
available in many parts of the world unless you make your own of wadded
and tied plastic or rags so we include two or three tennis balls We also
include shoes, belts, and purses and a dozen wire coat hangers. Wire is
not available in most places where PETs go and fiber from trees is used as
a good substitute so the hangers are greatly appreciated.
TOP
Are
the recipients able to put the PET together
when they receive it?
A.
Most PETs do not go
directly to a recipient in a box. They are a part of a distribution by the
health agency in the country who selects the recipients. Reports and
observations by U.S. volunteers who go along on distributions tell us
recipient groups find it very easy to assemble the PETs. The PET is only
partly disassembled in the box and goes together in a simple and logical
way. We also include a set of pictorial assembly instructions.
TOP
What
tools do you send?
A. We send a set of wrenches which include a
7/16" or an 11 mm (ft's metric
equivalent), and a 1/2" or 13mm, a Philips screwdriver, a
6" adjustable wrench, and a pair of locking pliers. We also include a
tire pump and extra screws, bolts, nuts, washers, raw plug, cotter pins
and bearings
TOP
Could
you make a littlie trailer for the PET so they could haul more?
A. A
trailer could be practical in situations where the running surface is
consistently smooth, level, and firm. Most places where PETs operate are
not like that and the front pulling wheel will loose traction if pulling a
trailer. We feel it is best that each PET owner decide based on their
conditions whether they wish to add a trailer to their unit and how to do
it.
A: Yes, we are a 501C3 Organization, your
entire donation is deductible.
A: 100%.
A: PET recipients enjoy color.
Any color combination is great!
A: No, PET's are donated. We give PET's
in the name of "Jesus Christ".
A: No, governmental restrictions
prohibit use other than in third world countries.
A: Wečre not sure if any are being produced
in Mozambique. The shops set up by our PET missionary through the
church were diverted for other uses after he left. But Zambia,
Africa is definitely assembling and distributing PETs on a
regular basis. They have hired a manager to oversee the PET shop
A: No, we don't have facilities for storage.
These items are presently being obtained at the origin of shipping and
not by our mission.
A: PET's do not have logo's as they as given
in the name of "Jesus Christ".
But, a note can be sent to
the person being honored that a donation has
been sent in their name
TOP
17
persons were killed in France in 2001 by WW1 land mines. They never quit
maiming and killing
