Hidden Assets

No, not some offshore banking strategy to evade taxes or misrepresent holdings in divorce court. We don't want our assets to be hidden! We want everyone to know about the lightly used assistive technology (AT ) that is available for reuse at low or no cost. We need a massive awareness campaign.

On my morning walk I encountered a neighbor with his wife and we fell into a discussion of AT reuse. This neighbor owns a pharmacy and durable medical equipment (DME) business. In addition to numerous small items available for donation, he has a high-end power chair for a child that retails for over $17,000. He would love to free up some space in exchange for a donation receipt for his taxes. Here's the catch: He didn't know about our state/regional refurbishing hub at Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC) in Stone Mountain, just 50 miles away.

We need to mount major awareness campaigns for our reuse programs. If we can't reach all prospective customers, we can reach out to DME providers, physicians, physical therapists, occupational therapists, hospital case managers, social workers, and others in our communities who encounter people in need of affordable AT. Most states have associations of DME or home medical equipment providers. All states have professional organizations for physicians and therapists. Most have annual conventions. Find the dates and locations and join them to share the reuse message. That's a first step toward greater awareness in our communities.