Bevan Kearsley, is living with a spinal cord injury as a result of being involved in a motorbike accident 30 years ago.
It was sad to see on moving to Brisbane nothing has changed after 30 years. New patients have to spend their months of rehabilitation living in a hospital ward instead of being able to move into a Rehab and healthy living centre with close family.
Having experienced what this can be like I am keen to 'pay it forward' and raise funds towards building a cutting-edge Rehabilitation and Healthy Living Centre so new and existing patients can expedite their rehab back into the community while living with their families.
Along with raising funds for the Rehab and Wellness centre I am also undertaking this ride to demonstrate the ability of people with disabilities and to raise awareness about inclusive tourism.
My fundraising idea:
Despite acquiring my spinal cord injury through a motorbike accident, I remain a dedicated and passionate bike rider – I now ride a 150cc three wheeled wheelchair scooter and Ithe Challenge I have given myself is to ride around Australia to raise funds for this centre .
ABOUT THE TRIP
I will be riding my Scooter around Australia starting from Spinal Life Australia's headquarters, waved off by local dignitaries and media, heading south along the Queensland and NSW coastline to Sydney stopping in most major cities raising funds along the way with appearances on morning television.
A visit to our Capital Territory of course and back to the eastern coastline down to Melbourne with visits to inclusive tourist attractions, along the "Great Ocean Road" to Adelaide all the while posting my experiences to our website and Social Media. Then the trek across the Nullarbor with a rest day in Perth before heading up the Western Coastline of Australia towards Darwin.
After refreshing at Jabiru we go inland to visit Uluru before finding our way back into Queensland via Mount Isa to the Eastern Seaboard and back down to Brisbane where we arrive back home.
Check out this great video
Just because we're in a Wheelchair doesn't mean our life is over.
27 years ago after my accident Centrelink said I couldn't have a "Disability Pension" as I was a qualified "Chippie" and be able to work so they put me on jobsearch.
I guess They were right after all, HUH who knew.!!!!!!!!
This is a short video showing me building my wheelchair Accessible Camper Van.
June 19, 2020
Your support will help bring this life-changing app to all Australians with a physical disability. To help us create a more accessible Australia.
We’re looking forward to sharing an exciting new initiative later in the year to help people with a physical disability participate and contribute to their local businesses and communities through the development of an online app.
The Accessible Australia app will be a free resource providing comprehensive accessibility information on destinations in cities and towns across Australia, including hotels, restaurants and cafes, bathrooms, parks, beaches and more.
Users will be able to identify the accessibility levels of businesses and venues in their communities or the communities they visit, as well as leave reviews and share their own experiences with other users.
CEO Mark Townend said an important part of the app’s development was involving people with lived experience of physical disability, such as Spinal Life customers, in every stage of the development process.
“We wanted to put people with disability at the centre of the design of the app, to make sure that the project focused on the most important things for its users,” Mark said.
“Our team at Spinal Life have been working hard on gathering information on venues across Australia, while working with Telstra Purple on developing the tech side of the app.
“We are putting the finishing touches on the app and the first version will be available later this year as we work with our customers and other people with physical disability on testing the app and contributing reviews to get it ready for a wider Australian launch.”
Mark said the app will help users make informed decisions about inclusive local businesses, which helps them to participate in and contribute more to their local economy.
“This is especially important as Australia’s businesses and tourism destinations recover from the impact of COVID-19,” he said.
“The app has also enabled us to initiative higher-level advocacy conversations with local governments and tourism organisations across Australia.”
When visiting Bevan at home, his natural talent and love of gardening is clear.
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