2016 Accessible Vehicle Update

Dear friends:

My brother Scott Darnell's latest Ability Report focused on helping a C-6/7 friend look into replacing his accessible vehicle. The result is a highly detailed 18-page report fully exploring six different options, spanning solutions available from or involving All Terrain Conversions, BraunAbility, Classic Vans, Mobility SVM, Rollx and Ryno Mobility. You may be surprised to learn that Scott's second and third choices for this Recipient both came from BraunAbility.

After recommending a 2015 Toyota Sienna SE with the in-floor Entervan conversion (he found one for $65,000), Scott also gave high marks to a 2015 Ford Explorer XLT MXV that came up for $69,735. Here are a few of his notes.

"Much to my surprise - I really like it! Unlike their vans, they address the ground effects all the way around the Explorer. The rear end does not look jacked way up, and the ground effects make it look factory-original. So, to have the technology that has been perfected in minivans over the years combined with factory looks… I dig it."

We also are excited to announce that Scott is anticipating spending time in Florida beginning in early March. He will make his home-base in Orlando for the foreseeable future, and all of his contact information will remain the same. Be sure to keep-in-touch... he always looks forward to hearing from friends and to being of-service to anyone he can help.

Very best wishes - Roger D.

http://AnAbility.com

Update 12: Thank you.

Dear friends:

As of today, mobility consultant Scott Darnell has been commissioned to create five Ability Reports, thanks to your generosity and support. To our campaign contributors, we owe you a great deal, and it will be our privilege to deliver phenomenal support to our Recipients, plus their parents and loved ones.

Our crowdfunding campaign has been educational in many ways. Naturally, we feel especially indebted to everyone who made a donation; beyond that, this experiment brought us into direct contact with a large circle of wonderful people. As a result, Scott is now facing many exciting new opportunities, and he is very interested in what's to come.

To date, two Ability Reports have already been completed, and progress is underway on the third. We will share more updates here over time, and we also welcome your further questions and interest.

Is there something we can do for you or someone you love? The offer stands; we look forward to hearing from you any time. Also, please note that despite our initial campaign ending, you can still make our day any time in the near future by funding Free Ability Reports via this link: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/

With love - Roger Darnell

http://AnAbility.com
http://anability.blogspot.com

Update 11: Please Fund Free Ability Reports

If you have not yet supported this campaign, friends, now is the time, and here is the link: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/

Since we chose to use Indiegogo, even if we don't meet our overall goal, almost all the funds we've raised so far (minus five percent) are ours.

Remember:
. Ability Reports are for those with disabilities (our Recipients), plus their parents and loved ones.
. The goal of an Ability Report is to help these people find smart new ways to regain freedom and independence.
. The results we've generated so far have been life-changing for our Recipients... and those results would not exist right now if it wasn't for our involvement.
. Thanks to this crowdfunding approach, small contributions add up quickly, and this gives us a tremendous opportunity to create Ability Reports for those in need.

Please be our hero and help us out today: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/

And if you have questions, suggestions, feedback or comments, post here; we can't wait to hear from you.

Thank you!

Sincerely - Scott and Roger Darnell

http://AnAbility.com
http://anability.blogspot.com

Update 10 on "Please Fund Free Ability Reports"

Dear friends:

Thanks to 11 contributors, we have now raised $1,440 to help disabled individuals and their loved ones regain freedom and independence. At this moment, we have eight days plus 15.5 hours left to meet our fundraising goal. Can you please help?

Since launching seven weeks ago, we have reached thousands of people to share information about Scott, Ability Reports and our campaign objectives. Raising awareness is one of the most important things we hoped this campaign would help us achieve.
. 1,265 visits to our Indiegogo campaign page: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/x/2985422
. 145 referrals to Indiegogo campaign
. 680 website pageviews: http://anability.com
. 500 blog pageviews: http://anability.blogspot.com
. 220 new Facebook followers: http://facebook.com/ability4all
. 4,350 Facebook impressions
. 2,564 Twitter impressions: http://twitter.com/an_ability

We're also proud to share two key findings from Scott's research to-date. For our first Recipients, their Ability Reports were crucial in these ways: (1) Helping a man based in Tennessee learn about and begin using new mobility options he was previously unaware of; (2) helping a man hospitalized in Maryland - and his family - navigate the healthcare/insurance system to maximize daily care and learn about new life choices available in Maryland and in Florida. Please rest assured that Scott will find a great use for any contributions you can offer.

Very best wishes - Roger and Scott Darnell

Update 8 on "Please Fund Free Ability Reports" campaign

It's "Giving #Today" friends - can we count on your support to fund free Ability Reports? Here is the official contribution link: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/x/2985422

We are so very grateful for all of your support... and with our campaign's half-way point fast approaching next week, we're requesting financial donations that will be critical for our mission to succeed.

Also, we truly understand that there are endless worthwhile charitable organizations and causes - and that every penny counts for everyone during the holidays. Please mark your calendar to note that this campaign will end one week into the new year on Wed., Jan. 6. Today, tomorrow, or any day between now and then when you feel so moved, we welcome even small contributions - as well as feedback on the soundness of our mission and the information we're sharing as we progress.

As you can see, Scott is hard-at-work, and more results are shaping-up to be shared by us, our appreciative Recipients and their loved ones.

Best wishes - Roger D.

Update 7 on "Please Fund Free Ability Reports" campaign

Dear friends:

Right now, thanks to your support, we are identifying Recipients for free Ability Reports. How is this being done? Essentially, every day, I am personally contacting individuals affiliated with all of these types of groups.
. Social workers/therapists at hospitals and rehabilitation centers
. Spinal cord injury support groups through hospitals, rehab centers and centers for independent living
. Peer counseling groups and their educators, therapists, etc.
. Vocational rehabilitation counselors in just about every state
. Sports groups - those who participate, their families, and attendees
. Other activity groups for those with disabilities
. Activist groups who support the disabled community
. Facebook - I am asking all of my friends to forward this campaign information on to their contacts
. Everyone knows someone with a disability! Remember that each of them has their own goals and networks.

So, each of you can help! You may run into someone on the street, at work, in a restaurant, at church, etc. Please spread the word to visit AnAbility.com and to reach out to me directly. Also, for anyone who might benefit from an Ability Report, tell me about them in the comments here, or email me contact information.

All the good things happening here due to our collective efforts are extremely inspiring to me. Thank you very much much for your generosity, and please keep us in mind moving forward. Thanks again everyone!

Best wishes - Scott D.
Phone: 1.618.292.1426

Update 6 on "Please Fund Free Ability Reports" campaign

Dear friends:

We are a few weeks in and I'm incredibly excited! This is Scott Darnell - I wanted to let you know that our Ability Reports are finding their ways to people with varying needs, even beyond our original hopes. We are already helping people in different situations in numerous ways.

. Recently injured - we help with the path to mobility and also research, validate and share key information concerning further rehabilitation, independent living centers, home health agencies and other vital details regarding their specific HOME locations.

. Injured facing a change - whether it's relocation or time for equipment change, modification or updating, or even if it's time to replace their current mode(s) of transportation.

. Parents with disabled child who need to explore their local area for accessible activities, support groups, insight into available transportation, etc.

. For anyone with disabilities exploring travel for work or vacation - we can gather and validate info on the most accessible hotels and restaurants, area activities and other important logistical details like local weather and events.

With your support, I am getting in contact with people from every realm of the disabled community. In the next update, I will further discuss what's going into our research for Recipients. I'm sure you can relate how, from their perspectives, when people are willing to lend a helping hand without even knowing who they are, it is a profound and great experience. Thank you once again for making it possible.

Please fund free Ability Reports: http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/x/2985422

Very best wishes - Scott D.

Update 4 on "Please Fund Free Ability Reports" campaign

Dear friends:

Please remember that the goal of our campaign is to leverage the power of many to help newly disabled individuals (our Recipients) regain freedom and independence. If we're successful in meeting our campaign's goals, Scott will be able to create Ability Reports for dozens of Recipients aimed at helping them (and their family and supporters) adapt to the difficulties they're facing, take control and succeed.

We are thrilled to report that after only 10 days our campaign has already raised $1,060! That's enough to fund four free Ability Reports. We have 49 days to go, and while this successful start is very exciting for us, we want everyone to understand just how important our cause is. Our next update will summarize what goes into creating an Ability Report. From there, we'll explain the process Scott's using to identify Recipients, and provide information on how the individuals that this campaign will support can be nominated.

Just for the record, Indiegogo is one of the world's most renowned and successful crowdfunding platforms. You can learn more about how secure it is here: https://www.indiegogo.com/trust

As I mentioned in my Nov. 12 update, Scott recently completed an Ability Report for another family member of ours. Here's a review from our sister-in-law Mary Kiefert, MBA, who is VP of Operations for Brooks AmeriCare Home Health.

Interview with Scott Darnell: Drawing, Art and Creativity

How long after your accident did you start taking-on the creative/art projects you created using a typewriter - and writing your life story?

It was about 15 months after my injury while I was at an independent living center. I had a few friends who enjoyed cross stitching, and I thought I could use a typewriter to do patterns for them. The surprise and enjoyment everyone shared when seeing them made it easy to continue - and yes, those first several were done on a typewriter.

It took another year for me to start writing things down, as my brother's hooking me up with a computer truly changed the "world" I lived in. I thought there were some memories too precious to forget, and I wanted to challenge my ability to report it as I would hope - so that readers could close their eyes and visualize it, without going too far and making it boring.

Briefly, what drove you to do these things?

Pleasing/surprising others, proving to them and myself that there was much more to Scott Darnell than the previous physical person I was.

What did you get out of them?

I like to affect people in a positive way.

Please fund free Ability Reports!

Dear friends:

Today, many months of planning come to fruition with the launch of our crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo, which you can access here:
http://igg.me/at/freeAR430/x/2985422
The goal of our campaign is to leverage the power of many to help newly disabled individuals (our Recipients) regain freedom and independence. More specifically, if we are successful in meeting our campaign's goals, Scott will create Ability Reports for dozens of Recipients aimed at helping them (and their family and supporters) adapt to the difficulties they are facing, take control and succeed.

As you will see, we have set up several levels of support to provide everyone a means to contribute.
$25 - Ability Fellowship
$100 - Ability Hero
$255 - Ability for One
$300 - Ability Explorer

We are very optimistic about the prospects for this campaign to generate bona-fide results for our Recipients. We respectfully invite you to learn more about Scott, and to help us validate his work by funding free Ability Reports.

Thank you!

Sincerely - Scott and Roger Darnell

Welcome

Since 2003, Scott Darnell has been creating customized mobility solutions for himself and other wheelchair users. After debuting a show-stopping proprietary system at the 2006 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, three years later at the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association Annual Conference in Daytona Beach, he earned the NMEDA and Adaptive Driving Alliance New Technology Award for Innovation in Engineering and Technology for the physically challenged. Scott's experience and expertise can help you get back on the road in style.

Please stay-tuned here and on Facebook for news on developments we hope you'll find to be of interest... as Changing Stares, its partners and friends help others find and create the perfect solutions.

Solutions

Thank you very much for visiting the official website of mobility solutions provider Scott Darnell. Since experiencing a life-altering spinal injury in 1991 at the age of 27, Scott has risen as a nationally recognized expert on the mobility needs of wheelchair users. A highly resourceful, ambitious, independent C-5/6 quadriplegic, he has counseled medical professionals, others with spinal injuries and their families, transforming his experiences and dreams into numerous inventions aimed at helping create important new mobility options for others in chairs.

Scott has earned recognition for innovation, ambition and passion, having designed successful, stylish and award-winning custom mobility solutions for himself and other drivers in wheelchairs. In the recent past, his support for others has been especially hands-on, interfacing directly with U.S. regional and national government officials to ensure his and his partners’ custom solutions gain all necessary permits and approvals. Building on these experiences, Scott’s counsel continues to grow more impactful. Constantly at work on original product ideas and consulting on custom projects, he values friends new and old, and looks forward to helping everyone succeed. Please contact Scott to discuss your situation today. He looks forward to hearing from you and helping you find the perfect solution.