- Apr 21, 2007
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RICHARD TOMS, PRESIDENT AND CEO
MICHAEL LESLIE, PH.D., VICE PRESIDENT
Dr. Leslie has lectured, coached, and conducted communication training and research in the U.S., Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa, for more than 25 years. He holds degrees in politics and journalism from the University of California at Berkeley (B.A.) and Columbia University in the City of New York (M.S.). His Ph.D. in international communication is from the University of Washington at Seattle. Professor Leslie served as a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Intercultural Communication at the University of Mons-Hainault, Belgium in 2002 and 2004, and was a Fulbright Senior Lecturer at the Advanced School of Mass Communication at the University of Yaoundé, Cameroon from 1987 to 1989.
Limbs for U empowers amputees in developing countries to live an expanded life through the provision of artificial limbs, related components, and training for their effective use. We do this by linking suppliers of artificial limbs and components with prosthetic clinicians in low-income countries, providing infrastructure support as needed.
Limbs For U is committed to helping children and adults who suffer from limb loss and limb deformities to access high-quality orthopedic limbs and rehabilitation services. Our secondary goal is to help create conditions within Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, that allow children and adults who suffer from limb loss and limb deformities to obtain the necessary supports for their successful (re)integration as productive members of their communities.
THE CAUSES OF SUFFERING
Many people in these regions lose their limbs through war, disease, work and traffic accidents. Because of inadequate health care, untreated infections frequently end in forced amputations; many people are born with severe limb deformities or no limbs at all. Others develop painful and debilitating conditions due to diabetes, polio, cerebral palsy or clubfoot. The end result is the same: a loss of mobility and independence.The disabled are often the poorest of the poor. Rehabilitation services are minimal and too expensive for them to access, especially in rural and remote areas. Unable to support themselves, amputees and other mobility impaired children and adults often rely on hand-outs and are condemned to lives of immobility and neglect.
OUR MISSION
The mission of Limbs For U is to provide amputees in developing countries and the United States with mobility, empowerment and freedom, using recyclable artificial limb components when possible. When necessary, Limbs For U assists with the purchase of the required limb components.
We work with established clinics to provide our amputees with quality prosthetics containing recycled parts. We also assist with rehabilitation to continue to enhance their quality of life.
OUR VISION
The vision of Limbs For U is to assist individuals in need of a prosthetic limb, who cannot afford all or part of their treatment. Financial assistance can be provided for the prosthesis itself, for rehabilitation, or for travel expenses to visit the clinics with which we have partnered. Financial assistance for the purchase of artificial limbs and components are awarded directly to the partner clinic and not to the individual.
Limbs For U is committed to finding ways to improve the lives of people living with limb loss and limb deformities, raising awareness about limb loss and limb deformities worldwide and educating the public about the recyclability of artificial limbs. Our goal is to use recyclable resources to positively improve the lives of amputees worldwide.
Website: http://limbsforu.org/