Mobility Worldwide is a

faith-based Faith-based may refer to: * Faith-based organization * Faith-based marketing * Faith-based community organizing * Faith-based school * White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships White is the lightest color and is ac ...

volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

-driven,

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

. PET is an acronym for the ''Personal Energy Transportation'', a vehicle that the group constructs and distributes at no cost to provide the gift of mobility to disabled children and adults worldwide. PET International, Inc. began

doing business as A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...

Mobility Worldwide in August 2016 and began using the name Mobility Cart for the vehicle. Since 1994, over 80,000 Mobility Carts have been built and distributed by over 70 distribution partners.

History

PET grew out of a 1994 trip by

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

missionary Reverend Larry Hills to

Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...

, where he first recognized the need for the device when he encountered survivors of

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

and

landmines A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon often concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets as they pass over or near it. Land mines are divided into two types: anti-tank mines, whic ...

who could not walk but could not use

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

s in their rural environments. Hills and his wife Laura spoke with Reverend Mel West about a modified wheelchair that might serve, hand-cranked with three wheels. During 1995, West involved product designer Earl Miner in producing a prototype built with an eye to sturdiness, simplicity and cost effectiveness. In 1996, four prototypes were put to the test in Zaire. Based on their performance, PETs went into production and shipped for distribution in Zaire."History"
Mobility Worldwide Web site The following year, PET production began to expand into other countries, beginning with

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

. In 2000, to meet growing demand, West opened a facility in

Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in Missouri, United States. It was founded in 1821 as the county seat of Boone County, Missouri, Boone County and had a population of 126,254 as recorded in the 2020 United States census, making it the List of cities in Misso ...

, US, which serves to receive donated parts, to assemble PETs and ship them internationally. A second US facility was opened in

Penney Farms, Florida Penney Farms is a town in central Clay County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Jacksonville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 821 at the 2020 census, up from 749 at the 2010 census. History In 1922, JCPenne ...

(near

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

), by the Hills that same year.Howard, Kate
"From Penney Farms to the Third World: Wheelchairs and love"
Florida Times-Union, April 13, 2010 In 2003, a third facility was established in

Luling, Texas Luling is a city in Caldwell County, Texas, Caldwell and Guadalupe County, Texas, Guadalupe counties, Texas, United States, along the San Marcos River. The population as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census was 5,599. History The tow ...

. In 2004, to help manage the growth and production of PETs, Pet International was incorporated, with a board of trustees and staff to help manage all issues related to assembling and distributing PETs. The cost of the components for a PET is roughly $300.

Countries

PET carts have been shipped to Afghanistan, Afghanistan, Argentina, Armenia, Angola, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia, Botswana, Brasil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chad, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Gaza, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Republic of Congo, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Samoa, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Republic of South Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vietnam, West Bank, Western Sahara, Zambia, and Zimbabwe."PET Around the World"
Mobility Worldwide Web site

References

External links

Mobility Worldwide Web site
{{charity Charities based in the United States Wheelchair organizations Organizations established in 1995 Disability organizations based in the United States 501(c)(3) organizations