UATP financing helps veteran receive a van to fit his spirit

Bryan and Kim demonstrate the lift in his new van.

SANDY--As an outdoor enthusiast, Bryan Rowe skied, snow-boarded and mountain biked through Utah’s stunning landscapes. As a member of the US armed forces, he went to northern Iraq after the Gulf War to help provide comfort, build roads and manage refugee camps. As a custom woodworker, he has literally left his mark in many Utah landmarks, including the Utah State Capitol, the Salt Lake Library, the First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City and the Coffee Garden on 9th and 9th. 

As an army veteran with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), he needs some customization of his own. The degenerative, neurological disease has affected his movement, and getting in and out of his truck became more difficult. 

In the fall of 2018, Bryan and his friend Kim Olmore began looking for an adapted van that could transport him and the wheelchair he received from the Veterans’ Administration. (When this interview took place in May 2019, the ALS had affected Bryan’s speech. Kim offered some background and interpreted for him.) They knew he would also need financing that would help pay for the modifications, which would drive the price of the van well above its blue book value. 

They learned of the Utah Assistive Technology Program’s reduced-interest loans and began working with Lois Summers, UATP’s financing coordinator. UATP is part of the Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State University.

Summers and UATP partner Zions Bank put together a loan that financed the van Bryan wanted—a Ram Promaster. 

The conversions were done in a way that would not affect the van’s warranty, Kim said.

They bought the van from a dealer in the Midwest. The dealership manager’s father drove it out to them over the Thanksgiving holiday, free of charge. “It’s just a unique breed of people when it comes to this type of situation,” Kim said. “It was amazing customer service.”

The van features a lift system that allows Bryan to keep a lower profile in his wheelchair, so he can see out of the windows. It also has a back bench seat that allows for the transport of additional passengers. He’s used it to see friends and attend barbecues, and he hopes to make a trip to the Oregon Coast to see his parents. 

The van purchase would not have happened without UATP, Bryan said. “I got the van to fit my spirit.”

Bryan, Kim and Elsie, Bryan's Vizsla dog.

USU's engineering design night features low-cost trike

Student designers from left to right: Nathan Linville,
Zachary Wilson, Connor Toone and Liz Housley

Students from Utah State University's College of Engineering partnered with the Utah Assistive Technology Program and Intermountain Pediatric Rehabilitation to build a therapeutic trike. This ongoing project could open up more opportunities for families to work on a youngster's physical therapy at home.

Students from USU's Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering department, UATP volunteer Mike Stokes and Intermountain Pediatric Rehabilitation physical therapist Shaun Dahle collaborated on the project. They showed it off during Senior Design Night at Utah State University.

Several versions of therapeutic trikes are on the market, but they are more expensive and less adjustable than the prototype created by the engineering students. The group consulted with Dahle and UATP volunteer Stokes as they crafted their design. "We've used every kind of trike, so we know [what works]," Dahle said.

"There is a need for families to have a lower-cost alternative to these special needs trikes," said Stokes. "The goal is that through the [UATP] lab, we'll rebuild these based on need. The students will be giving us a set of plans, they kept track of where they bought the parts. We will just build as many as there's a need for."

UATP, which is part of the Center for Persons with Disabilities, paid for materials used in developing the trike. The plan now is to use donated time, labor and equipment at UATP in Logan to construct additional trikes for families who pay for materials. "We're looking at families who cannot afford or do not have insurance, and we will build it... we can save them money," Stokes said.

The bike project is currently awaiting the university's approval before the design can be used off-campus.

The trike could benefit children who have not yet walked or crawled, Dahle said. "I've taken kids that you'd think would never ride a bike... This actually teaches kids how to reciprocate their legs." The act of pushing one pedal after the other is similar to the motion needed for walking or crawling, he said. "A lot of kids that don't do those things can ride this bike."

The trike can be made for $580 in material and parts (expertise and welding equipment not included).   The plan would make the equipment available at 40 to 15 percent of the cost of therapeutic trikes that are currently on the market.

The students' design also includes some built-in, improved usability.

"We took cues from existing designs," said Nathan Linville, one of the project's team members. One feature their trike had that existing designs did not: a seat that could be adjusted up and down, forward and back. It also allows the child to power the bike by pushing the pedals, or to "freewheel" while the parents push. This would allow the parents to still push a child home if the child's legs became tired or stiff.

The students who worked on the project included Linville, Liz Housley, Connor Toone and Zachary Wilson.

Project manager Derek Scott, volunteer Mike Stokes and the four students work on a version of the trike in the metal factory at Utah State University. Photo courtesy of Intermountain Healthcare.

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