This is the expanding headquarters of Hope to Walk, a nonprofit dedicated to building low-tech, low-cost prosthetic legs for the world’s poorest amputees. And for several weeks now, volunteers have been remodeling the group’s facilities to make room for expanded training and manufacturing.

Over the past six years, professional prosthetist Phil Johnson has developed a $100 below-the-knee prosthetic device that has allowed Hope to Walk put more than 600 adults and children back on their feet in Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, Vietnam and the Bahamas.

But this year, the global coronavirus pandemic has put a hitch in the group’s step.

Normally volunteers would be flying off for weeklong trips to fit legs for the needy and train locals to continue that work. But the group has been grounded since February, Marketing Director Kristen Staples said.

A trip to fit new prosthetics that was set for March was canceled, and a wall calendar of the groups’ events has been written over in red letters: COVID. One of those, a 5K fundraiser, had been scheduled in Johnson City, Tennessee, where a group of supporters lives, she said. Its cancellation seemed at first to be a setback but now has created a new opportunity.

Hope to Walk has made the 5K a virtual project and hopes to raise at least $50,000 with the effort, but more importantly, they hope to cultivate as much global awareness as they can, Staples said.

Participants are asked to register as individuals or groups at Hope to Walk’s website, make a donation and on Aug. 8-9 run, walk or roll 3.1 miles in support of more than 30 million amputees worldwide who lack access to prosthetics, according to World Health Organization estimates. Registration is free and all donations are accepted.

Staples said participants are asked to post photos and videos of their 5K journey on social media using #wewalksotheycan.

“Anyone can participate, any way they want to participate, any time during that weekend, anywhere they are,” Staples said.

Johnson said he’s going to do his miles in as many different ways as possible, perhaps including his mountain unicycle, which he actually rides down mountains, he said.

The group will still organize in-person 5K events in the future, but they may be held in conjunction with a virtual event, Staples said.

“I actually do think this is the model going forward. Our story is compelling to people not just in Southwest Virginia,” Staples said. “I want to make sure someone in Oregon knows about us, and somebody in Bangladesh — wherever they are.”

The event has so far drawn registrations from the U.S., Spain and Paraguay and has already raised more than $35,000, Staples said.

That money can go a long way in the developing world.

The commercial prosthetics that Johnson makes for clients out of his Blacksburg business, New River Valley Orthotics and Prosthetics, can cost $10,000 to $25,000, he said.

For an average Honduran who makes the equivalent of a few dollars for a whole week’s work, there’s no hope of ever buying a commercial one, Johnson said. And in many developing countries, without prosthetics, amputees can’t work, go to school or care for their families.

Hope to Walk builds Johnson’s simple device using donations to pay for the materials, and its volunteers fit them to needy people in the countries where they live. For every $50,000 the group raises, Johnson said Hope to Walk can provide free prosthetics to about 150 people.

The expansion of the organization’s space coincides with efforts to expand both its reach and its line of devices. Johnson said he’s working on a prosthetic leg with a simple articulated knee that he hopes to build for $200 each. Staples said the group has a long waiting list for a such a prosthetic in Honduras alone.

Johnson also has begun work on prototypes for a prosthetic arm with a simple grasping device — something he said amputees working as rural farmers in the developing world could really use.

Helping struggling amputees is life-changing, Staples said. And not just for the recipients.

“It’s really quite addictive when you see those people stand up and walk,” she said.

Staples joined the group two years ago and has since given up her photography business in Northern Virginia to move to Blacksburg to do marketing, social media and Spanish-language translating for Hope to Walk.

To register for the Hope to Walk Virtual 5K, visit https://hopetowalk.donordrive.com.

by Tonia Moxley

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Their hope, is our hope,
with every step we take.
Our ability, their new ability,
in everything we make.

With heart and hand,
legs we can create.
With faith and hope,
to humbly change their fate.

Hope to Walk is more,
than the plans of you and me,
We can but plant a seed,
Our Father grows the tree.

Lord, let us be Your hands,
in everything we do.
Be our strength, our guide,
and pillar of hope, in all we seek to do.

Written by Jack Richmond for the Hope To Walk Team

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Ricardo McPhee can speak to the hope medical care can give. He met Bahamas Relief Crews volunteers in his job at the port. McPhee is a double amputee from diabetes.

On Friday morning, medical workers with the relief cruise and a the charity “Hope to Walk,” which specializes in low-cost prosthetics in underprivileged areas, gave McPhee two new legs.

“I was just thinking how wonderful, how remarkable God is to bring people into my life like this,” McPhee said.

He stood for the first time on his tile floor, still slightly slippery from the on and off island rain.

“It feels good,” McPhee said through teary, blurry eyes.

See News Clip on CBS News 12

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The Rotary Global Award will provide for the manufacture, fitting and maintenance of prosthetic devices, as well as training and certification of local technicians, enabling the expansion of the Hope to Walk mission. The long-range goal for the Hope Center is to develop a sustainable delivery model to provide prostheses to individuals in larger areas of Honduras and other impoverished countries.

Johnson is a Blacksburg prosthetist and orthotist who has invented a low-cost below-knee prosthetic leg which costs less than $100 and an above-knee prosthetic leg for $200. This is in contrast to commercially available prosthetic legs that range from $4,000 to more than $50,000. So far, Hope to Walk has fitted more than 300 prostheses to impoverished individuals living in the Tegucigalpa region of Honduras. The Hope Center is supported by two partnering institutions: the JMA Baxter Clinic in Tegucigalpa, and the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine in Blacksburg.

Rotary International is a global network of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change across the globe, in our communities and in ourselves. For more than 110 years, Rotary’s people have used their passion, energy and intelligence to better our world.

Submitted by Terri Fisher

Read Article in the Roanoke Times

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The purpose of this study was to explore the hypothesis that a newly designed prosthetic leg, which costs less than $100 to manufacture, can assist persons with amputation by increasing their ability to gain employment—thus improving their quality of life. The specific criteria to accept the hypothesis is that greater than 50% of the participants with amputation who previously reported they were unable to work would be able to obtain a paying job as a direct result of using the prosthetic leg used in this research.

Materials and Methods This study was approved by the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (institutional review board number 2014–033). Persons with amputation older than the age of 17 years were seen at the James Moody Adams (JMA) Clinic at Baxter Institute in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. They received an approved consent form before participating in an investigational prosthetic leg research, and their medical history was collected. Each patient was assessed by a medical doctor and board-certified prosthetist for their ability to safely use the newly designed prosthesis called the Johnson prosthetic leg (JPL).

Persons with amputation received a prosthetic leg at no cost if found to be an appropriate candidate. Participants were followed by a physician, and a follow-up survey was administered after using the prosthetic device for a minimum of 6 months.

Results In this study, 306 persons with amputation were surveyed and 149 had transtibial amputations. Amputation due to diabetic infection was most prevalent with 118 (38%), whereas traumatic injuries accounted for 95 (31%). Participants received the JPL, and surveys were obtained after prosthetic use of 6 to 27 months. It was found that 64/66 participants (96.9%) reported wearing their prosthesis 6 to 7 days a week. Before this research, 38/66 participants (57.6%) had some ability to perform a paying job.

After having the ability to walk using the JPL, 59/66 patients (89%) reported an ability to obtain employment and provide financially for themselves and their families. This indicated that 21 (75%) of the 28 patients, who previously reported the inability to work, were able to obtain a job after receiving the JPL.

Conclusions The research hypothesis was accepted based on a criterion of greater than 50% of the participants who were previously unable to work had an increased ability to obtain employment after using the JPL. It was also noted that 65/66 patients (98.48%) self-reported improved self-esteem using a researcher-developed survey and would recommend this prosthetic device to other individuals with amputation. By greatly reducing financial barriers, the $100 JPL is a potential cost-effective solution to help persons with amputation living in developing nations acquire prosthetic legs. This successful pilot study provides justification for continuation and monitoring for any additional refinement. Further, it provides the basis for future studies, in additional countries, to determine efficacy to assist persons with amputation living in poverty.

Article by the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists

Read Study in the Journal of Prosthetics and Orthotics

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Hope to Walk is an organization dedicated to providing affordable prosthetic legs for those in need. Created in 2013 by Phil Johnson and Michael Mabry, the duo was able to create a design that not only was cheaper than standard costs but one that they could give to patients for free.

According to a Jordan Thomas Foundation article, prosthetics can cost thousands of dollars for amputees. Hope to Walk however has been able to make these legs using materials that can be found in a hardware store such as, PVC pipes, wood, and other welding tools. The total cost, as a result, comes out to be around $100. The organization has been able to provide these legs across the globe while also training locals in the community on how to construct them. Countries, where there is a current focus, include Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, and Vietnam.

The nonprofit has also made its presence known on Virginia Tech’s campus. Senior Allison Burns represented Hope to Walk on the homecoming court as her platform earlier this semester. Burns, who finished second in the queen voting, said her campaign was unique because people could make a difference “with more than just a vote.” Through selling t-shirts and other donations, the campaign was able to raise $3000 or the equivalent of 30 legs for Hope to Walk.

Although Burns did not become homecoming queen, she believes victory was achieved a different way.

“We totally won in the way we had some many people at Virginia Tech encouraged and wanting to invest in the organization,” she said. “That was my whole heart and vision behind it.”

Burns is not the only student associated with Hope to Walk. Junior Brooke Merryman got involved her freshman year due to her interest in prosthetics and traveled with them to Honduras to help in their ventures. Currently, she is involved in a research project in the mechanical engineering department with the next step being to redesign the prosthetic to fit above the knee amputees, as the organization had to previously turn away such patients because they had not created one yet. According to Merryman, the group will test the knees in Peru in Jan. 2019, and if all goes well Hope to Walk will be able to “take it and run with it.”

Other students will have the opportunity to volunteer with Hope to Walk as well. The organization will partner with Burns in the spring to host a workshop where those who come will help in the construction of the leg.

“We want to be able to bring people together and get them involved,” Burns said. “In turn, we can give back to individuals in need.”

by Billy Parvatam

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Hope to Walk is located in Christiansburg and is giving the gift of walking to as many people as possible. HTW is an organization that brings freedom and hope by designing and delivering low-cost prosthetic legs to individuals in developing nations who cannot afford them.

There are approximately 35 million individuals around the world in need of prosthetic or assistive devices, and 24 million of these people are living in developing nations where income is less than five dollars a day. Additionally, there is approximately one amputation every 30 seconds caused by disease, trauma, birth defects, or tumors. Unfortunately, the starting cost of a prosthetic leg is between $3,000 and $5,000, and can even exceed $80,000. Amputations are 10 times more likely to occur in low income neighborhoods in the United States and in third world countries, where it is nearly impossible to afford the necessary equipment.

Allison Burns, a senior homecoming candidate, is partnering with Hope to Walk (HTW) to raise awareness in the Hokie community about the need for affordable and accessible equipment for amputees, equipment that can change lives and bring hope to these individuals. HTW is a non-profit organization based in Christiansburg that has succeeded in designing a significantly cheaper prosthetic leg.

Allison discovered HTW during her sophomore year while doing a field study at VCOM in the International Outreach Department. Here, she met one of the co-founders of the organization, Michael Mabry, and was inspired by Hope to Walk’s origin of seeing a need, creating a practical and affordable solution, and then meeting that need.

Allison is passionate about this organization because she has a heart to serve others in need, specifically through medicine. She stated that she has “been blessed to have had the privilege of going on several missions’ trips growing up and through college that have shaped her passions and goals of serving underserved populations on a global and local scale.”

Also, growing up, Allison had a kidney disorder that resulted in frequent trips to doctor offices and hospitals. Here she developed the desire to pursue medicine because of the care that she received, and it inspired her to help individuals that are not able to receive healthcare at all. She will continue to pursue her dream of medicine at VCOM beginning Fall 2019.

Allison chose HTW for her homecoming campaign because she stated that she “loves that the organization has a sustainable, practical, and influential focus in their missions and service.” In the communities that HTW serves, they train locals on how to construct prosthetic legs so that they are being created beyond the few weeks that the mission trip team is present. This encourages and empowers sustainability within these communities and allows more people to be reached.

Hope to Walk is a relatively new organization that was founded in 2013 when Phil Johnson met Michael Mabry who shared a passion for helping others who were incapable of helping themselves. In April of 2014, they took their first trip to Honduras to assess the needs of amputee patients. They encountered over 50 patients in need in just five days, and knew this is where Hope to Walk would begin.

Applying thirty years of experience, Phil Johnson developed a prosthetic leg design that costs $100-150, a fraction of the cost of standard designs. Each of the prosthetic legs are made to suit the specific needs of a patient.

The prosthetics are made of wood and a flexible rubbercrepe material that allows the patient to walk easier. The prosthetic leg pylon is constructed using a one-inch wooden dowel that is bonded inside a PVC pipe that can be cut to any length. The Johnson Prosthetic Leg (JPL) socket is reinforced with fiberglass, and a coupler connects the socket to a neoprene sleeve or a fork strap that is used as a JPL suspension device.

HTW’s prosthetics are currently accessible to individuals in Honduras, Guatemala, Vietnam, and Haiti at no cost to the patients. They train locals in these communities to construct prosthetics to empower them and encourage sustainability. HTW is hoping to continue to expand as their ministry and partnerships grow.

There are many ways to get involved in this organization.

Join the more recently developed research team, primarily in the Mechanical Engineering department, that is working specifically on creating a knee prosthetic.

Donate money to Hope to Walk! If you donate $200 through their website, HTW will give a prosthetic “In Honor Of” an individual or group.

Join them on one of their mission trips– no experience required! They have a trip going out nearly every month this upcoming year.

As part of Allison’s campaign, she and HTW are planning to host workshops in spring 2019 to raise support for this organization and get fellow Hokies involved.

As Hokies, we strive to live by our motto, Ut Prosim, That I May Serve. There are many ways that one can get involved and make a difference in the lives of people around the world, and even here in the local community. Hope to Walk is changing lives every day. In the words of Allison herself, “Together we can help transform lives by giving the gift of walking!”

Get involved and help change the world today!

Article by Caitlin McConnell

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When Johnson traveled to Guatemala several years ago to provide a prosthetic leg to a young boy, he was overwhelmed the next morning when 15 children waited outside the clinic hoping for one, too.

With traditional prosthetics that start at $5,000 and can exceed $80,000, Johnson knew he’d never be able to meet that need.

A Kindred Spirit:

Hope to Walk was formed after Johnson met Michael Mabry, when he was a first-year medical student at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. The pair shared a passion for helping others and took a trip to Honduras in 2014 to assess the needs of amputees.

Tapping his 30 years of experience in orthotics and prosthetics, Johnson developed a prosthetic leg that can be built for about $65 by attaching a PVC pipe filled with a wooden dowel to a crepe foam foot with a wooden heel. The socket for the stump is crafted using fiberglass and is attached to the leg using a plastic PVC cap.

“I wanted to create a leg that anybody could afford,” Johnson said.

An Expanding Mission:

Since the non-profit launched in 2015, Johnson, Mabry and other volunteers have traveled to Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti and Vietnam to give prosthetic legs to more than 300 amputees.

Dr. Ken Jones, a member of Hope to Walk’s board of trustees, said the legs may not be pretty, but they work. “It gets you from point A to point B, and it’s better than being in a wheelchair.”

Hope to Walk’s prosthetic legs last about three years, Jones said, which is comparable to the lifespan of a high-tech prosthetic leg made of titanium and carbon graphite.

Volunteer Mara Pineda, who is originally from Honduras, said the volunteers are able to provide about 20 legs per trip and are working to help develop clinics in other countries so eventually volunteers will be able to build legs on site. VCOM has been instrumental in helping establish Hope to Walk’s first prosthetic center in Honduras.

For now, the volunteers travel with legs (all one size) and feet (all one size and no differentiation between right and left) that can be cut and shaped to fit each patient’s needs. A pair of retired wood craftsmen in Smith Mountain Lake – a shop teacher of 30 years and an expert dulcimer designer – make all of Hope to Walk’s feet, relieving Johnson of a task he had been doing himself at night.

The legs for children are built like a crutch so they can be extended as the child grows. The socket is built a bit larger than needed, and the child is given extra cast socks to provide cushion. As the child grows, the socks can be eliminated.

The legs can be made and fitted to the patient in a day.

The World Health Organization estimates 35 million people need prosthetics. In Honduras, Guatemala and Haiti, adults most often need prosthetic legs due to diabetes. Young adults often lose limbs in motorcycle crashes and younger children are either wounded in accidents or are born with congenital deformities. In Vietnam, limbs are most often lost to landmines.

“There’s a huge need,” Jones said.

The Hope to Walk website is filled with success stories from the 4-year-old boy born without a lower leg who can now run and play to the man who walked on a bruised and possibly-broken foot for 35 years until an infection claimed his lower leg.

So far, the organization has only been able to help people with below-the-knee amputations, but Johnson is fine-tuning a prosthetic that will work with an above-the-knee amputation. Students from the Virginia Tech School of Engineering are collaborating with Johnson to help develop an innovative, low-cost artificial knee joint.

Overwhelming Support:

Good ideas spread quickly and people, institutions and organizations in the region have embraced Hope to Walk’s mission.

Physical therapy students at Radford University worked with their instructor, Wil Kolb, to create a teaching video that Hope to Walk volunteers use to help Third World amputees receiving prosthetic legs.

The Blacksburg-Christiansburg Chamber of Commerce selected Hope to Walk as the recipient of its 2018 Legacy Project so several teams of chamber members are devoting time and expertise to mentor Hope to Walk volunteers as they hone their skills in marketing, finance and management.

Several New River Valley physicians and business leaders have contributed time and money and the Christiansburg Fire Department donated its conference hall for Hope to Walk’s spring banquet, which drew more than 300 area supporters and raised more than $50,000 to provide new legs for the world’s poorest amputees.

And when the Gorilla Glue Corporation learned Hope to Walk was securing the dowels inside the PVC pipe with their product, the company contacted the organization to donate all the glue it needs.

Johnson also is filing for patents to protect his designs and ensure Hope to Walk can continue to produce the legs. The value of the work he and the Hope to Walk volunteers are doing is priceless, he told The Roanoke Times.

“To see the smiles on these people’s faces when they first stand up, there’s no money in the world worth it.”

Read Article in the Valleys Innovation Council

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The projects were the culmination of Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy Will Kolb’s 864 Health Policy and Administration class and were semester-long group projects which teamed the DPT students with a community partner to negotiate, plan and implement a health-related service or product to fill a community health need as determined by the students and their mentors.

According to Kolb, the exercise prepared the students for the challenges of leadership and benefitted the students’ community or profession of physical therapy. The projects culminated in a mock grant presentation on May 2.

Article by Don Bowman

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