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Stories That Move You.

 

The Mary Free Bed Guild was a proud sponsor of the 36th Annual Fifth Third River Bank Run’s Wheelchair and Handcycle Divisions. This year, 29 handcyclists and 13 wheelchair racers competed in front of an estimated 38,000+ spectators. View this video to view highlights of the race.

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Woman avoids foot surgery after wearing crow walkers made by Mary Free Bed.

Laura Guzman doesn’t like to sit still and refuses to let her disability bring her down. After being evaluated and fitted for custom boots at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital’s Orthotics Program, Laura is now more mobile than ever

Guest post: Laura Guzman shares her experience with the Mary Free Bed Orthotics Program. This is her story.

Four years ago, I found out that after being diabetic for 45 years, the bones in my feet had softened and broken. I had a condition known as Charcot foot. There is no cure, but there are adjustments that need to be made in your life. I was sent to Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital to have a crow walker boot made for my bad foot. Crow walkers are basically plastic boots that provide an exoskeleton of sorts for your legs. They look sort of “Darth Vaderish”.

Being sent to Mary Free Bed was the best thing that has happened to me in these past four years! There are true superheroes who work there. Once I met Ethan Leavitt, life started to look up. He and his team have worked on my boots (I now wear them on both feet), and refined them to fit my lifestyle and keep me going full speed ahead.

I started out with big black boots that got stuck under my kitchen counters. I broke and cracked my first sets of boots regularly, and every time I came back, Ethan and Jeff redesigned and reworked them into something better. I am not a great handicapped person, as I refuse to be stopped by anything! It just isn’t an option for me. At …

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 Johnnie Tuitel came to Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in March 2013. The celebrated West Michigan author, motivational speaker, and disability advocate with cerebral palsy was found barely conscious, having spent nearly 9 hours in freezing temperatures after falling from his wheelchair. Emotionally drained, with frostbitten fingertips and a mild brain injury, Johnnie found in Mary Free Bed a place not only to recover, but to also be transformed. Johnnie says, “Mary Free Bed gives you hope for your mind, body and spirit to make sure that a person comes out of here ready to tackle the world and become the best person they choose to be.”

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Meet some of the artists of the 31st Annual Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital Fine Arts Exhibition. Lane Cooper, featured artist of this year’s art show, shares he learned about the art show about six years ago when he was a patient at Mary Free Bed, and has been participating ever since. Lane loves the opportunity to share his art work with the community and see the amazing pieces of art created by other artists with disabilities.

All are invited to enjoy this event, which is located on the 2nd floor of Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. This exhibition focuses on contributions of Michigan artists who are physically challenged. Exhibit hours are Monday-Friday from 10:00 am to 4:00pm. The art show ends July 31, 2013.

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During the groundbreaking ceremony, Susan Ford Bales announced the establishment of The Betty Bloomer Ford Cancer Rehabilitation Program honoring her mother and grandmother. The daughter of President Gerald and First Lady Betty Ford acknowledged her family ties to Mary Free Bed. Bales’ mother and grandmother were active supporters of the hospital. Betty Bloomer Ford was a founding member of the Junior Guild in 1935. Hortense Neahr Bloomer was Guild President from 1931-1932.

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David cannot be more pleased with his experience at Mary Free Bed. He’s thankful for his recovery and the ability to play in his band during recreational therapy.

Research shows that recreational therapy restores a sense of purpose and enjoyment to a patient. David Robrahn is no exception.

On September 11, 2012, David clipped the back of a moving car with his motorcycle. After arriving at the hospital, doctors realized he sustained several serious injuries including, a broken right hand, a broken knee, a shattered leg, and a brain hemorrhage.

David doesn’t remember the first month after his accident, but his wife knew there was only one choice for therapy. She requested him to be taken to the Brain Injury Program at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital.

As David fully regained consciousness, he was ready to get moving.

“After a couple days of getting in and out of the wheelchair with the harness, I was worried about moving on to the parallel bars because I had no upper body strength,” David recalls. “But the therapists are so motivating.”

Two days later, David progressed to only using a walker. He used the walker for the rest of his inpatient stay.

While occupational, physical, and speech therapists were encouraging David to push himself further, something in recreational therapy really touched his heart.

“When they first asked me what I liked to do, I wasn’t sure what to say,” David said. “Even before the accident, I wasn’t really much of a physical guy, I just like to read and play in my community band.”

When David’s recreational therapist, Brianne Taylor, told him that he could participate in the Allendale Community Jazz Band as the main portion of his recreational therapy, David admits he just started …

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In this second part of David’s training series leading up to the 5/3 Riverbank Run handcycle race, you will hear about the importance of a proper diet during the winter months – and how ready David is to get outside with his handcycle.

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Ann maintained her sense of humor as she conquered her stroke rehabilitation. “Don’t miss the opportunity for therapy at Mary Free Bed,” says Ann, “It will change your life.”

A sense of humor can be priceless when it comes to rehabilitation. Research shows laughter can reduce pain and ease recovery.  And humor is exactly what Ann Mitchell needed to get her life back after suffering a stroke.

As an English literature teacher at East Grand High School, Ann, now retired, was known for her sense of humor and fun-loving attitude. But little did she know how much she would need to rely on those character traits.

On August 9, 2012, Ann collapsed in her kitchen. Although she was conscious, she was unable to move and couldn’t reach her phone to call for help. Fortunately, Ann wasn’t alone. Her dog, Murphy, came to her side and provided comfort by kissing her face.

Ann’s husband came home 20 minutes later and called 9-1-1 right away.

After Ann arrived at the hospital, she was shocked to learn she’d suffered a stroke because she was physically and mentally active.

“I didn’t even want my husband to call an ambulance,” Ann said, “I thought the fall was nothing.”

Once Ann was medically stable, she was transferred to Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. She spent a week in the inpatient Stroke Rehabilitation Program receiving physical, occupational, and speech therapy.

“Although I was able to rest and was served meals in bed, I knew I wasn’t there for a vacation,” Ann laughed.

She describes her inpatient care as very rigorous and challenging, but fun. Ann enjoyed her therapists and doing brain exercises with word games and puzzles. In fact, during her first outing to the mall, she purchased …

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“Do men understand as well as women that the only way to look at another human being is as a miracle? Who else but a guild of women would empathize so closely with the pain our patients and their families feel every day?”

- Kent Riddle, Mary Free Bed CEO

Hosting concerts was a way for the Mary Free Bed Guild to raise funds. Concert series ticket sales team members took a moment to pose for a photographer in 1912. Top row (left to right): Mrs. Percy R. Miller, Mrs. Claude P. Wykes, Mrs. Tom Thoits, Mrs. Earle S. Irwin, Mrs. Frank A. Montelius, Mrs. James Keegan. Bottom row: Mrs. A. B. Smith, Rosamund Rouse, Mrs. Curtis Bunting. Photo courtesy of Grand Rapids Public Library.

Mary Free Bed Guild History

The Mary Free Bed Guild began with just six cents.

In 1891, Grand Rapids attorney Moses Taggart found a purse lying on the sidewalk. He opened it hoping to find a way to identify its owner, but instead he discovered half a dozen pennies. Timing is everything. Taggart’s sister-in-law and her friends had been discussing medical care for the city’s poor. Taggart’s newly found six pennies became the impetus for something none of them could imagine.

Buoyed by their good fortune, these civic-minded women devised a novel campaign based on a popular name at the time. If your name was Mary, or if you knew someone named Mary, you were asked to donate ten cents. Soon the group raised enough money to endow a free bed, which became known as the “Mary free bed.” As the community need grew, so did the group of female fundraisers.

Mary Free Bed Guild Today

For more than a century, the Mary Free Bed Guild has …

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In April 2000, David Briggs was in a motorcycle accident and suffered spinal cord injury. He was introduced to many recreational therapy activities during his 3 1/2 month stay in Spinal Cord Injury Program at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital, including handcycling – a sport he actively enjoys. This year, David will compete in the handcycle division of the 2013 River Bank Run. In this first video of David’s training series, you will hear about what motivates him to stay active, healthy and engaged.

Stayed tuned to learn more about David’s training for handcycle race on May 11, 2013.

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