IM ABLE Foundation – Get Up and Move

At our 3rd Annual Duathlon/5k on Sunday Sept 9th we will start the day with our morning announcements at 8am by presenting adaptive equipment to 3 deserving recipients. Each will be receiving a hand cycle and one of them will be using his new ride in the duathlon!

The mission of IM ABLE to get out to expose and empower people with disabilities to be more active and it is with great pleasure that we can show our supporters the impact we’re having on the lives of those we help. Without their support we would not be able to complete that mission so thank you to ALL who believe in IM ABLE.

Cindy on her 1st handcycle ride at IM ABLE

CINDY LEVAN:
Cindy is from Lancaster, PA, and came to IM ABLE through a recommendation from her physical therapist.  Cindy contracted polio as an infant and has always walked with leg braces and forearm or underarm crutches.  Until recently, Cindy was able to walk to stay active.
In the past few years, Cindy’s polio symptoms have worsened, and she has endured four surgeries to her hands and back.  She and her husband began researching fitness options, but none seemed to be a good fit.  Cindy came to us and tested a handcycle and was amazed at what a great workout it was.  She is really excited to be able to ride a bike with her husband for the first time ever!  We are proud to present Cindy with an Intrepid handcycle.

CHRIS UTZ:

At the age of 25, Chris Utz from Pasadena, MD,  was involved in a car accident which left him paralyzed from the waist down.  Prior to his accident, Chris was active in biking, boating, and other water sports and led a busy life running his own business.  Chris’s medical bills forced him to sell everything including his business to cover the costs.  Chris contacted the foundation earlier this year about obtaining a handcycle that would help him improve both his physical and mental well-being.  He will be participating in the duathlon with a team and is very excited to receive his new Top End Force handcycle!

Tim using the Ekso trainer at Good Shepherd in Philly

TIM MCVAN:

Tim is a complete T-11 paraplegic as a result of a car accident when he was 17.  Tim, who is from Yardley, PA, has maintained an active lifestyle through boating, quad riding and skiing, but he had always wanted to add a handcycle to his activities.  Due to the medical costs not only for Tim, but also for his twin daughters who were born prematurely, he approached the foundation after meeting Chris at Magee Rehab in Philadelphia during the Ekso training process.  We are excited to present a handcycle to Tim and know he will use it to stay active with his young daughters

Come out Sunday September 9th for our 3rd Annual RU ABLE? Duathlon & 5K in Wyomissing, PA. Great event showcasing the abilities of both disabled and able-bodied athletes with a 5k run/wheel, 14 mile bike, and 5k run that can be performed as individuals or as a team.  5k only also offered. In addition we will have our 2nd Annual Tug of War competition!!! Last year this event was a crowd favorite and had kids and adults going head to head to see who could overpower their opponents!!!

Gallery from 2011

IM ABLE is proud to announce we will be awarding 3 grant recipients at this year’s race. We have the honor of having Natalie Parisi from Reading Orthodontic, who has been a staunch supporter of IM ABLE, and the young ladies who are all in 8th grade who raised over $5800 for IM ABLE. We want people to see how their support is changing the lives of people in and out of our community by having them help us present our deserving grant recipients. Don’t miss this portion of the day starting at 8am

Great day on Saturday July 28th with a group of disabled and able bodied kids playing together. Our 1st Adaptive Playground was welcomed with a lot of smiles and we’re so thankful that we were able to collaborate with Gilmore Henne Community Fund and Berks Youth in Action to make this park a reality.

Thank you to all of our supporters and people who backed this project from the start. To see the smiles on ALL the kids faces reminded us why this projective was so important.

Watch our media clip from Channel 69 News

“Disabled former Marine leads charge for playground” -Reading Eagle

Join us in the brand new adaptive playground that we installed at the Opportunity House in Reading, PA. This playground has so many pieces that will accommodate physical as well as sensory disabilities and we are getting those affected to come out and see what there is to play with! All abilities are welcome and we want to create an environment where ALL kids can play together.

Very excited about this day and hope you can join us!

Last standing! Members from all three organizations that contributed to the success of this day

IM ABLE Board members Eric Schippers, Dave Mclain, Len Burton and Gretchen Kaag

What a phenomenal day with a great crowd of great people coming together to help make this project happen. IM ABLE, Gilmore Henne & Berks Youth in Action collaborated to build the first adaptive playground at the Opportunity House in Reading, PA. The day was beautiful and a lot of hard work was completed by some motivated volunteers. Thank you to everyone who came out and made this a reality for the community of kids that deserve this great playground!

To our sponsors, volunteers, community members and the groups that put it all together, we made this a reality and made an impact on our community!!!!

See more photos in our gallery thanks to Stacey Olexy, our photographer extraordinair!!!

Local article about the great day

July 7th will be our ribbon cutting in conjunction with our “Get Up and Move” Day where we will have children of all abilities out to showcase the park and all the opportunities that are available for them to play together

When: June 23rd- Registration opens at 9am

Where: Opportunity House
430 North 2nd Street
Reading, PA 19601

Parking located at L & H Sign company located down the street at 425 North 3rd Street

Volunteers needed for a wide range of tasks so please come check us out and become involved in a great contribution to the community

A collaborative effort of the IM ABLE Foundation, Gilmore Henne and Berks Youth in Action is making this 1st adaptive playground a reality at the Opportunity House! Gilmore Henne, an organization that was started by two NFL players John Gilmore and Chad Henne and whose mission is to revitalize neighborhoods and communities by building and restoring their playgrounds and creating ownership by the community to care for them. IM ABLE wanted to ensure kids of all abilities could play together and put together pieces on the playground that would accommodate children with a wide variety of disabilities so they could be included in play in this park and create more awareness of their ABILITIES.

June 10th IM ABLE took to the Perkiomen Valley Trail starting at Oaks, PA and round trip going 30 miles. Cyclists of all abilities rode together to showcase the abilities of those riding hand cycles as well as the inclusive nature of being active. We had 7 grant recipients including our youngest recipient, Jordan as well as other supporters of IM ABLE. Dan Webb, our grant recipient from January 2012, helped to organize this event and was successful in bringing out a great crowd. We had a group that did a walk and was able to be a part of this great gathering. What a great way to spend a Sunday and think we made an impression on the trail!

Check out the other great PHOTOS in our gallery

This Sunday June 10th at 9am, supporters of IM ABLE and grant recipients will take to the Perkiomen Trail starting at Oaks. This is an out and back ride and the full distance is 34 miles but you can turn around at any point and shorten the ride. We will have breaks along the way to regroup and ensure everyone is doing alright. Cyclists of all abilities are welcome and you’ll be inspired by the day! In 2010 we had over 20 riders and this year we’re expecting over 30!!! This will be a great way to spend a Sunday and looking forward to taking a bike ride!

Details: June 3rd starting at 9am

Where: Perkiomen Trail in Oaks, PA. Meeting in the parking lot of the Dump furniture store, which is across 422 from the Perkiomen Trail Park. Reason is the trail parking lot is stone and the Dump is paved. Click here for Directions

We will have water & snacks but plan to bring whatever you’ll need including tools to fix your bike if needed.

Please contact our recent grant recipient Dan Webb who is helping to organize the day for any questions or if you plan to attend

Great finish!!!!

May 19th 2012 was our 9th installment of our biggest event IM ABLE puts on and what a day! Beautiful sunny day, 66 degree water temperature made for an upbeat mood of everyone in attendance. This our 4th sold out capacity crowd with athletes from all across the country coming to Mt Gretna, PA to compete in a sprint distance triathlon of 500 yd swim, 16 mile bike and 5K run. We pride ourselves in putting on a fun, organized, family friendly and all abilities triathlon. Beginner to veteran triathletes, abled and disabled, young and old and teams comprise the field of competitors. Got the Nerve? had over 120 volunteers who are responsible for the event going smoothly and resulting in no incidents with the competitors.

Motivated group of volunteers from Wilson High Student Government in Sinking Spring, PA

Indicative of the philosophy of IM ABLE, No Excuses Just Move, we welcomed Craig Dietz who participated in the swim portion as a relay team. He is a man with no arms or legs and completed the swim in 10 minutes! Craig demonstrated to the crowd that was assembled on the beach that regardless of your perceived limitations you can still get out and push yourself. We congratulate Craig for his inspiring demonstration of will.

In addition to the triathlon, we ran our “Tour de Gretna”. This is a physical event that demonstrates the inclusive nature of fitness and combines able bodied spinners with their disabled counterparts on the Krankcycle. Must keep the piece of equipment moving for 3 hours as an individual or as a team. We had 5 IM ABLE grant recipients participating and showing everyone that despite their disability they are still staying active. Congrats to all who participated and kept things moving the entire time and inspired those spectating!

Check out the Official Photo Site for shots of the day at

2012 grant recipient Dan Webb taking his turn on stage during the TDG

Next year will be our 10th year and we are already planning for another great year. Discounted pre-registration for May 18, 2013 opens August 1, 2012 so if you want to be a part of this day get in early.

IM ABLE enriches lives through raising awareness about physical fitness possibilities for disabled individuals and encouraging individuals of all abilities to be more active. We get motivated to see people with disabilities Get Up and Move but even more important is the attitudes and interactions with the people around them. When we go out into the community we show able bodied individuals what someone with a disability is capable of to create more understanding between the two. This is especially important to young children who if they’re taught why someone is different but not to judge them because of it, they grow up with that knowledge and are less likely to form stereotypes or pick on someone who is different.

Our organization is packed with people who support us in everyway possible and those people have children who are directly exposed to the good we’re trying to do and get to see first hand the Abilities of someone who is disabled. The above picture was from one of our whiteboards at our facility in Wyomissing, PA and was done by an 8 year old Alyss whose parents work and workout with us. It put a smile on my face to see the positive words that were coming from this young girl’s mind and how she perceives IM ABLE. We’re so proud of all the things we’re doing and the lives we’re changing and by seeing this we know we’re making an impact on those surrounding the ones we’re helping, which is just as important.