Tetra Society of North America
| Founded | 1987 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Sam Sullivan |
| Location | |
| Volunteers | 300 |
| Website | tetrasociety |
Tetra Society of North America is a not-for-profit organization that provides volunteer engineers across Canada and the US to design and construct custom assistive devices for people with disabilities.
History
[edit]The Tetra Society was founded in 1987 in Vancouver, British Columbia, by quadriplegic Sam Sullivan.[1] It grew to more than 300 volunteers in 45 chapters across North America. It states that, over the years, its volunteers have completed 5,000 projects for people with disabilities.
Tetra devices
[edit]Tetra volunteers create devices that “facilitate education, work and recreation” by tackling barriers to mobility, personal care and communications.[2] Projects can relate to the home, workplace, leisure location, or anything in between, such as a wheelchair or motor vehicle.[3] They were involved with adapting Sullivan's wheelchair when he became the first quadriplegic to accept an Olympic flag.[4]
Affiliated societies
[edit]The Sam Sullivan Disability Foundation consists of six affiliated societies:
- British Columbia Mobility Opportunities Society
- ConnecTra
- Disabled Independent Gardeners Association
- Disabled Sailing Association of British Columbia
- Tetra Society of North America
- Vancouver Adapted Music Society
See also
[edit]- TAD, a similar organisation in Australia
References
[edit]- ^ "Sam's Story". Disability Foundation. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
- ^ Chandler, Felishia (2021-06-28). "Advocates say more wheelchair training needed for N.S. occupational therapists". Retrieved 2022-01-04.
- ^ About Tetra retrieved February 9, 2010.
- ^ "Vancouver's Sam Sullivan first quadriplegic to accept Olympic flag". Archived from the original on 2011-07-17. Retrieved 2022-01-04.
