An Amtryke therapeutic tricycle
donated Wednesday by the Kiwanis
Club of Tellico Village is
specially designed for
13-year-old Athena, who is
legally blind and has both
cerebral palsy, which affects
her mobility, and hydrocephalus,
for which she has a shunt to
manage fluid within her brain.
With the trike, “she can go
outside and play with the other
kids,” said Athena’s mother,
Regina Owenby.
The therapeutic tricycle is
specially design for Athena’s
physical needs, starting with a
hand crank system to propel it.
“She primarily uses one arm, but
with the bike we hope that
she’ll use both arms,” said
Nancy Dunning, a physical
therapist with Speech Pathology
Services of East Tennessee, who
has worked with Athena since the
girl was in preschool.
Special mitts will attach both
hands to the crank, exercising
Athena’s left arm, even if it
isn’t powerful enough to push
the tricycle forward.
A push bar on the back will
allow a caregiver to help
maneuver her on the trike, and a
locking pin can be inserted to
keep the rider from
inadvertently turning it.
For a child with special needs,
the specialized trike “gives
them a feeling of normalcy,”
said Kiwanis member Fred Wicht.
“This will give her a chance to
do something other kids are
doing,” Dunning agreed.
The trike provides social and
physical benefits. For example,
having her hands up also will
lead Athena to keep her head up
and help with respiration,
Dunning explained.
“They’re getting exercise they
need, but it’s not like physical
therapy,” Wicht noted.
Several Kiwanis members visited
Greenback School on Wednesday
afternoon to present the trike
to Athena and her family. In
thanking the club, Principal
Mike Casteel said the donation
was an example of the school
motto, “Greenback Simply Loves.”
Athena’s bike is the 47th
donated by the Kiwanis Club of
Tellico Village in the past six
years to children with
conditions such as spina bifida,
muscular dystrophy and others
that seriously affect muscle
tone and control.
“These bikes are like little
miracles,” Wicht said.
“We partner with therapists, and
they give us candidates,” he
said. The therapists recommend
families that would benefit from
the trikes and then write the
specifications for the features
that will most benefit each
child. For example, a trike can
be pedaled by hand, foot or
both.
Each specialized tricycle costs
between $300 and $900.
The total cost so far has been
about $27,000, with funding from
individual contributions, local
companies, two grants from the
Kiwanis International Foundation
and fundraising events such as
the Kiwanis golf tournament and
pancake breakfast.
To make a donation, contact Rick
Bailey, treasurer of the Kiwanis
Club of Tellico Village, at
312-3876 or send a check in to
Kiwanis Foundation of Tellico
Village, Attention: Treasurer,
120 Tooweka Circle, Loudon, TN
37774.