News Release
Media Advisory: SF State experts available to comment on Haiti's post-quake recovery
Sending wheelchairs to Haiti
Ralf Hotchkiss, cofounder and chief designer at Whirlwind Wheelchair,* is an expert on wheelchair design for developing countries. He can comment on the rehabilitation of disabled people following trauma, including earthquake survivors in Haiti, and effective distribution of mobility devices.
To arrange an interview with Hotchkiss, contact Whirlwind Wheelchair Marketing Director Keoke King at keoke@whirlwindwheelchair.org or 415-218-8278.
*SF State's Whirlwind Wheelchair program is preparing to send rugged wheelchairs to thousands of Haitians injured in the quake who now have lasting mobility impairments. Whirlwind Wheelchair designs and builds rugged, affordable wheelchairs for developing countries. As millions of dollars of aid pours into Haiti, Whirlwind's low-cost, durable wheelchairs will help injured people return to life as normal and help rebuild their country. Their factory in San Juan del Rio, Mexico, is producing a rush order of the Whirlwind RoughRider chair -- a model that uses off-road bicycle wheels and wide front caster wheels that are ideal for Haiti's devastated streets. Whirlwind is accepting donations online at: www.wheelchairsforhaiti.org
Professor Abdiel Oñate
Associate Professor of History Abdiel Oñate is an expert on the modern history of the Caribbean, including Haiti. He can comment on the political and economic situation in Haiti as the country recovers from the earthquake and the relationship between Haiti and the U.S. Oñate is available for interviews in Spanish and English.
Contact Oñate at (415) 338-6177 (office) or onate@sfsu.edu
Professor Nancy Raquel Mirabal
Associate Professor of Raza Studies Nancy Mirabal is an expert on Haitian
communities living in the U.S., the history of Haiti and U.S. foreign and
immigration policy toward Haiti. Mirabal is available for interviews in Spanish
and English.
Contact Mirabel at (415) 338-6804 (office) or nmirabal@sfsu.edu
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