A small town in Canada is warming hearts with their accessible beach chairs
A small town in Newfoundland is making their sandy beach more wheelchair accessible this summer, warming the hearts of Canadians across the country.
Pasadena, a town of about 3,600 people located in the west of Newfoundland, has recently installed water wheelchairs and a roll-out "Mobi Mat" that makes it easier for people with mobility issues to cross the sand.
"We are ready to roll at Pasadena Beach!" the Facebook post reads.
The town is making all of the new chairs completely free of charge and available for 90-minute bookings. Each chair will be sanitized between uses, in accordance with public health guidelines.
Pasadena Beach just got a little more accessible! https://t.co/9diLG8m0Rr pic.twitter.com/yvL5bb4xMh
— Town of Pasadena (@PasadenaNL) July 24, 2020
Fortunately, other places in Canada are also making their beaches more accessible with roll-out mats and water wheelchairs, although the resources are usually harder to access.
Vancouver, for example, has about 10 water wheelchairs for a population of 631,000 people; of that number, roughly one per cent (6,310 people) require a wheeled mobility device.
In that sense, Pasadena's choice to have multiple water wheelchairs available for use in such a small population is truly inspiring — and Canadians have taken notice.
"This makes my heart melt," one person wrote. "Thanks so much to the town of Pasadena to make everyone in the town accessible to the beach."
"This is just beautiful," another person added. "You guys are truly amazing."
BRAVO!!!! This is excellent!
— Richard Churchill 🏳️🌈 (@MrChurchillNL) July 24, 2020
"My brother-in-law, who uses a mobility scooter, was unable to access the beach during our entire time in the Dominican Republic," yet another person wrote. "It was so disappointing. I hope if we ever get to go somewhere like that again, something like this is in place."
Hats off to you, Town of Pasadena.
Town of Pasadena
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