Newsletter

Volume 6, Issue 8

August 2024

Statewide Conference Sets a Record

Just a few weeks ago, August 9 and 10, cars traveling west on LBJ Freeway in Dallas saw this sign at King of Glory Lutheran Church: “Welcome, Texas Ramp Project, 2024 Statewide Conference.” 

Over 130 TRP volunteers from all over the state gathered on that Friday night with a welcome banquet exceeding our expectations and setting us on a happy course for the rest of the conference. During the evening we heard from keynote speakers representing community partners and the voices of clients. A lot of information exchange and networking went on at both the reception and the dinner.

The planning committee felt it was important to celebrate our successes and accomplishments, particularly as we were just emerging from COVID when we last met in February 2022. Thus, work sessions on Saturday morning began with “Look at What You’ve Done!,” a celebration of milestones and improvements since that last conference.

TRP president Keith Henderson delved into the state of the Texas Ramp Project, which is better than it has ever been in terms of build numbers and financial health. We heard how Central Support—the board and key volunteers—has been working hard to upgrade or implement new technologies to make communication pathways easier for all to access and use. And board member Rachel Marchand told how TRP’s new client experience survey is demonstrating the efficacy of the services we provide to people with disabilities.

“Growing Healthy Regions” took the next spotlight. Mark Hinzman, who is responsible for TRP’s corporate relations, offered some practical tools for regions to use in promotion and recruitment. This included a Power Point presentation and script that can be adapted to each region. He also moderated a panel discussion by members of the Region Coordinator Advisory Committee, who discussed key issues in building and sustaining healthy regions.

After lunch, it was time to “Follow the Money,” facilitated by Kay Champagne, TRP’s master grant writer. This session looked at multiple funding streams that are readily available in the regions once they have been identified. It incorporated regional leaders who gave their personal experiences on how they were able to access local funding. John Alexander, executive director of Waco Habitat for Humanity, discussed his partnership with the Waco region and encouraged relationships between regions and Habitat affiliates.

The last session of the day—the one everyone waits for—was Roy Harrington’s “Building Better Ramps.” Roy is a board member, Bryan/College Station region coordinator, and author of the TRP handbook “Building Basics.” This session really dug into construction challenges with a panel of seasoned builders. Attendees huddled around a demo ramp built by Roy and his team to discuss the pros and cons of ramp construction. Roy and his team also built a ramp for the church to use with the risers.

This conference announced special Leadership Awards to six highly productive and exemplary region coordinators: Scott Badger, Pete Carey, Jerry Halpain, Roy Harrington, Alan and Cindy Moore, and Henry and Dinah Wyckoff. The stories behind the awards are cited below.

Evaluations submitted by attendees included favorable comments about both the content and the logistics of the meeting (especially the food) and offered some constructive suggestions for future meetings.

A special thank you goes to the conference planning committee, who faithfully met every week for four months. They wanted this meeting to be worthy of the volunteers who would be attending. Planning committee members were Kay Champagne, Jerry Halpain, Roy Harrington, Molli Harris, Keith Henderson, Mark Hinzman and Sandy Knutson (chair). 

Please Note: Throughout this newsletter you will find links to documents, resources, award narratives, and the current edition of “Building Basics.” Please use the click-through links to avail yourself of these resources.

Six Honored at Conference with Leadership Awards

Pete Carey

Henry and Dinah Wyckoff

Scott Badger

Alan and Cindy Moore

Roy Harrington

Jerry Halpain

One of the featured segments of the statewide conference was fundraising, both central and local. TRP receives about half its funding in grants from foundations and trusts. Another 6% comes from reimbursements from Area Agencies on Aging and other organizations that pay for ramps. The remainder comes from churches, civic organizations, businesses, and individuals—most of which require region coordinators and their volunteers to seek out donations locally.

Three organizations were highlighted that have provided funding or volunteers, or both. They were Habitat for Humanity, Home Depot and H-E-B. All have local affiliates or locations. Here’s a rundown on how to work with them.

For more information, feel free to contact John Alexander at jalexander@wacohabitat.org or 254-756-7575.

To access this informative resource, click the document below.

As the Old Saying Goes: Many Hands Make Light Work

Thank you to these unsung volunteers who pulled all the last minute details together by assembling, labeling, stuffing and generally have a great time. They're wearing the new t-shirt: it's a heart, which is the core of everything we do.

Request the updated Building Basics

This document contains details, example drawings, pictures, and so much more of the ramp building process from start to finish including the paperwork. The updated edition was available at the conference. You can request a copy by contacting Roy Harrington at texasramps.roy@gmail.com or Sandra Knutson at: sjknutson@texasramps.org.

As this is a living document, do share your tips and suggestions with Roy Harrington. Many of them are compiled in Building Basics. Please send any questions, comments, or potential ramp construction topics to texasramps.roy@gmail.com to help others build ramps better, stronger and faster.

Recent Grants and Donations

Habitat for Humanity affiliates continue to fund ramps in the Waco area and in five other regions in Texas. The Waco Habitat affiliate has provided $60,000 in the past two years. Habitat supplies the funding, and TRP’s Waco volunteers provide the labor and expertise. For more on Habitat for Humanity and how your region may be able to benefit, see the separate article in this newsletter.

Other grants and donations received in the past month include the following:

• $25,000 for Houston from The Guild Shop of the Church of St. John the Divine.
• $20,000 for Victoria North from M.G. & Lillie A. Johnson Foundation.
• $15,000 for Abilene Taylor County from Dian Graves Owen Foundation.
• $12,308 for statewide use and Dallas from King of Glory Lutheran Church.
• $10,000 for statewide use from Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation.
• $10,000 for San Antonio Central Bexar County from Terry Lynn Poerner Charitable Foundation Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation.
• $10,000 for Tarrant County from Helen Littauer Education Trust.
• $7,500 for Lubbock from Betenbough Homes, LLC.
• $6,300 for Abilene Scurry County from Colonial Hill Baptist Church.
• $5,000 for Amarillo from Amarillo Area Foundation.
• $5,000 for San Antonio Northwest Kendall County from First United Methodist Church Boerne.
• $5,000 for Texarkana West Titus County from Mount Pleasant Community Fund.
• $3,588 for Waco South from Waco Habitat for Humanity.
• $2,823 for Texoma from Pentex Energy Charitable Foundation.
• $2,500 for Dallas from Kiwanis Club of McKinney.
• $2,225 for North Central Texas East Hunt County from Golden K Kiwanis Club.
• $2,000 for Lubbock from the McCoy Corporation.
• $1,620 for Austin Central Bastrop County from First United Methodist Church Elgin.
• $1,500 for San Antonio Central from Oak Hills Church.
• $1,440 for Dallas from Community Council of Greater Dallas.
• $1,400 for Dallas from Texas Instruments Foundation.
• $1,200 for Austin East from Oviedo Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM Fiat.
• $1,000 for Waco South Limestone and Freestone counties from Limestone Project Employees’ Fund.
• $1,000 for San Antonio Northeast from St. John’s Episcopal Church.
• $567 for Bryan/College Station from United Way of the Brazos Valley State Employees Charitable Campaign.
• $539 for Austin West from The Church at Horseshoe Bay.
• $516 for Amarillo from Amarillo Habitat for Humanity.
• $500 for East Texas Emory from Hochheim Prairie Farm Mutual Insurance Associates, Branch 53.
• $500 for East Texas Marshall Panola County from New Destinations Inc.
• $500 for Abilene Scurry County from Snyder Wheels.
• $500 for East Texas Emory from Helping Because We Care.
• $350 for Austin West from Hill Country Fellowship.
• $282 for San Antonio East Comal County from Cranes Mill Baptist Church.
• $250 for East Texas Jacksonville from United Way of Rusk County.
• $200 for Austin North from Rotary Club of Georgetown Foundation (in memory of Bill Connor).
• $200 for Austin West from O.A.R.S.
• $200 for Austin West from First Baptist Church of Marble Falls.
• $100 for East Texas Tyler from Langen/Wink Bible Class.
• $38 for East Texas Tyler from Garden Valley Baptist Church.

Spina Bifida Day in San Antonio

Scott Badger set up a table for Spina Bifida Day 2024 at Morgan’s Wonderland in San Antonio. He signed up 14 volunteers, including four corporations and civic organizations. Morgan’s Wonderland is a theme park developed specifically for children with disabilities. It was created by Gordon Hartman, whose foundation is a long-time supporter of the Texas Ramp Project. The August 3 event was sponsored by Spina Bifida Texas.

Ramp of the Month, Wood County

East Texas Emory

Ms. K. is 52 years old and has a below-the-knee amputation. She uses a wheelchair and has found it not only difficult but also dangerous to enter and exit her home. Nine volunteers from the Broad Street Church of Christ donated 20 hours of labor to provide her with a 32-foot ramp. Both Ms. K. and her mother can now safely access their home with this new ramp. The referral came from UTHET Quitman Rural Health.

We hope you enjoy having the newsletter sent to you directly, as it is filled with useful information, building hints and tips, data collection updates and processes, client stories, special announcements and recognitions.

The newsletter only does its job when it is dispersed and shared with all who might be interested. We encourage you to liberally pass it on to others in your region.

Also, do send email addresses of people in your region who should be receiving it, along with their name and TRP region, to Sandy Knutson at sjknutson@texasramps.org.

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