The Taft Correctional Institution teamed up with Walmart to provide approximately 350 wheelchairs including pediatric and specialty chairs, 100 pairs of crutches, 35 walking canes, and 100 walkers to victims of Hurricane Harvey.

“There’s such a great need right now to help the people of Texas and Louisiana, and we want to do all that we can,” said Warden Craig Apker. “Through our partnership with Wheels for the World, the men at our facility are restoring used wheelchairs to help victims of the devastating storm.”

Wheels for the World is a program at the Taft Correctional Institution where inmates are trained to restore wheelchairs to like-new condition. The men learn teamwork and the mechanical skills required to produce a product that makes a difference in someone’s life.

Wheelchairs restored by the men at the Taft facility are typically shipped to Mexico, Guatemala, Jordan, Philippines, Thailand, Iraq, Zambia, and the Dominican Republic where they are distributed through the Joni and Friends International Ministry Outreaches and Harvest Project program.

Walmart will transport the wheelchairs and other medical devices to areas affected by the massive storm.