2022 Annual Report
Message from The Board of Directors 2022: A milestone year mixed with sorrow Dear friends and supporters, In late April of 2022, The NorCal SCI Board gathered to celebrate 5 years of growth and incredible service to the SCI community all made possible by your kindness and generosity. As well as expanding our core programs, we discussed the potential opening of our most ambitious endeavor to date, our own rehabilitation and wellness facility. Less than a week later, our inspirational co-founder Franklin Elieh passed away as a result of a heart attack. 13 days after that shock, founding board member Carl McGrew passed away in hospital. Our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to Franklin and Carl’s loved ones. We simply cannot put into words this tragic loss; your love and support over the past months has meant so much to everyone at NorCal SCI. When Nick and Franklin founded NorCal SCI in May of 2017, they subsequently invited Carl to be on the board and he graciously accepted. Carl played a vital role in the fledgling organization and as they developed and expanded their contribution to the community they served, Carl naturally preferred to take a behind-the-scenes role and as a consequence, Carl and Franklin had a very different footprint on the organization. With Franklin no longer with us, his presence is evident in everything we do. We witnessed an unprecedented outpouring of support from Franklin’s family, friends, colleagues and newspaper co-workers. Inspire 2022, our annual fundraising event was dedicated to Franklin and despite the economic headwinds, we raised a record $250,000. We announced our intention to open The Franklin Elieh Center and expand our capability to deliver vital post-hospital intensive SCI rehab through the Franklin Project with the latest status contained in this report. Updates on The Nielsen Grant Program, initiated by Franklin, our Mental Health Initiatives and many of our expanded core programs that continue to have a positive impact can also be found in this report. Franklin Elieh with Carl McGrew in 2018 NorCal SCI has now set the foundation for a sustainable organization which will forge ahead to honor Franklin’s vision and cement his legacy. We simply could not do this without your compassion and generosity and on behalf of The NorCal SCI organization and the SCI community in Northern California we sincerely thank you. Arash, Chris, Dan, Dave, Julie, Nick, Pravin and Tricia. The NorCal SCI Board of Directors ON THE COVER: Carl and Franklin created by Mio Dzakula http://www.artofmio.com 2 www.norcalsci.org 2022 Annual Report
The Franklin Elieh Center Update Driven by the continued erosion in vital SCI rehabilitation offered to the newly injured, in October of 2020 Franklin announced “The 5/22 Capital Campaign”. Our goal was to raise a minimum of $500,000 by May of 2022 to help launch that overarching vision of offering continuing intensive rehab to those newly injured, as well as develop a program for those with longer lengths of injuries to maintain their physical health and mental well-being. In October of 2021, we announced that we would be opening our own center and set the target of raising a total of $750,000 so that our center would be fully funded for the first two years of operation. We created a committee within our board to focus solely on this task and Franklin was an integral part of this committee. Thanks to our incredible supporters we met our original goal to raise $500,000 and were confident of being able to raise an additional $250,000 in 2022. With the initial funds raised and all of our budget and equipment plans in place, we focused all of our efforts on opening our own center. There were two primary objectives in order to get our facility up and running: 1) find a suitable space in the Bay Area and; 2) hire a Physical Therapist (PT) with SCI experience that would help us build our program from the ground up. In the first few months of 2022, we were able to find an ideal location in San Jose and had just begun negotiations for signing a lease when Franklin passed away. Despite the overwhelming sense of loss, Franklin’s vision had left an indelible mark on our organization which inspired us to pursue this initiative (NorCal SCI’s largest and most impactful to date). Our board unanimously decided that our facility would be named: The Franklin Elieh Center. The task of hiring the key PT was made even more challenging as a result of unprecedented market demand for such therapists. We used every resource available to us to recruit that qualified PT and although we interviewed a number of good candidates, we ultimately weren’t able to fill this vital position. Until we do find and hire that key individual, we are not in a position to commit to leasing a location. Without a defined date for the opening of The Franklin Elieh Center, it was paramount for us to offer an opportunity for the newly injured to receive that vital continued rehabilitation so we came up with a temporary, yet effective, solution and launched The Franklin Project in December 2022. This program will offer the opportunity for up to 20 newly injured individuals to spend 5 weeks of intensive rehabilitation with our partners and friends at Neuroworx, in Salt Lake City, Utah. We’ve sent people there in the past for similar rehab opportunities, but nothing like this scale. The Franklin Project enables us to give the newly injured outpatient therapy and we will look for other opportunities to provide this vital service. We continue to do everything we can to open The Franklin Elieh Center. We want to thank our incredible donors who continue to demonstrate their faith in Franklin’s vision of what rehabilitation should look like when one is faced by a catastrophic, life altering event like a spinal cord injury. We are grateful to every one of them. Pictured Left: Franklin and Arash visiting a potential site 6 www.norcalsci.org 2022 Annual Report
Road To Recovery Since its inception in 2018, the Road To Recovery program has been offering grants to deserving individuals who wish to pursue additional therapy and exercise programs, acquire new medical equipment, or pay for home or other lifestyle modifications that they otherwise would not be able to afford or have their health insurance provide. 2022 marked another year that this program made a meaningful impact in the lives of individuals that otherwise would have had few other places to turn to that could provide them the financial support they urgently needed. Specifically, we provided 11 individuals with $29,000 of total grants to pay for everything from hand controls to rehab and exercise therapy to wheelchair parts and equipment. Moving forward into 2023, as we launch our initiatives to provide mental health services and resources, we plan for more Road to Recovery grants to be applied for these services and for improving mental health among the SCI population. 2022 Grant Recipient Highlights 67-year-old Joe Foot experienced an incomplete cervical injury in 2014. In 2022, with the help of a R2R grant, he was able to commit to intensive therapy to improve specific goals of standing, walking, and moving more independently. He thanked NorCal SCI repeatedly for his improvements, which will allow him to spend more time with his grandchildren and be more independent. Israel Hernandez was injured in 2020 and when he connected with NorCal SCI, he shared his desire to be able to go back to school and work. His R2R grant provided him with hand controls for his car. As a result, we’ve seen Israel at a couple of different events in 2022 and he told us in person how grateful he was to be able to drive himself and be more involved in the community. For 25-year-old Leia Fernandez, who suffered an incomplete cervical injury in 2015, the purpose of her grant was to get a super lightweight WHILL power wheelchair. She plans to go back to school and resume working and having a lighter and better suited wheelchair will give her better opportunities to pursue her professional goals as well as reduce the physical challenges for herself, her boyfriend, and her family. 2022 Annual Report www.norcalsci.org 7
Neilsen-NorCal SCI Grant Program Thanks to a generous grant from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, NorCal SCI has been enrolling newly-injured individuals in the “It's Within You: Life After A Spinal Cord Injury” program to help support the lives of those individuals with SCI who are within one year from their injury date. The program is 4 months long with various components to help each participant with their recovery journey. o Physical activity is a key focus with 4 activities promoted; exercise at a local rehab gym, virtual fitness class, adaptive physical education classes, and creating an at home program. o Education, a video library provides information about an SCI injury, nutrition, exercise, cooking o Support Information is provided about Independent Living and Department of Rehabilitation services. o We offer engagement with a Peer Mentor for support during the program. Lindsay Ulrey working on her upper body strength Marcus Robinson-Jackson having fun during his workout In 2022, thirty two applicants were approved for the grant. The program has received very good feedback from many of the participants for the opportunities it has provided them to improve their recovery journeys. Victor Mendez working hard 8 www.norcalsci.org 2022 Annual Report
Care Packages, Technology and Equipment Making all the difference Our Smart Home Independence Program continues to bring game changing voice controlled technology to enhance the security and independence of the recipients. Using the Google Nest range of products and OnTech services, we install Smart Locks, a Nest Camera and a thermostat along with the Google Home System. In 2022 we delivered our 20th Package since the program inception and have plans to further expand this in 2023. “Thank You for providing me with this awesome equipment which otherwise I would not have been able to afford, it’s made such a difference” – Claudia, San Francisco It is hard to believe that many health insurance policies do not cover individuals with essential items for life after a devastating spinal cord injury. Larry from Novato Smart Home Independence Package Recipient Claudia Through our extremely highly utilized donated medical equipment program, we were able to provide Larry with a powerchair, hoyer lift and an electric hospital bed valued at tens of thousands of dollars. "With their comprehensive programs, NorCal SCI will continue to be a vital part of Larry's recovery. They have been a godsend.” – Larry’s friend Lisa Our Care Package program continues to be an essential resource to the newly injured and we delivered close to another 200 in 2022. Along with vital literature dealing with all aspects of living with an SCI, we make available a Smart Home Starter Package which is an introduction to how technology can be used. 2022 Annual Report www.norcalsci.org 9
Outreach With the innovative e-assist handcycling program running throughout the year, 16 individuals with SCI had that “Able Bodied” experience passing regular cyclists on roads and trails. Patrick riding with “Able Bodied” founder Wojtek NorCal SCI supported Santa Clara Valley Rehabilitation Center’s accessibility day in September enjoying our first face to face meet up with the SCI community. The SCI community is back at the NorCal SCI booth Provided both virtual and in-person peer support to the newly injured at the major rehab centers in San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland, with vital interaction with experienced SCI Mentors. We continued to take a high volume of calls on our telephone help line and answered many questions from our community through our email service. The NorCal SCI Virtual Consultation Team in action Our Virtual Consultations continued to be successful and vital, bringing together our talented team of SCI clinicians to help address specific SCI concerns. We restarted our inservice presentations by visiting 3 smaller rehab facilities and we plan to do much more outreach on all fronts in the coming year. Co-founder Nick with the rehab staff at John Muir We could feel the love and support from Franklin’s incredible family, friends, colleagues and newspaper co-workers at our record-breaking Inspire event. Thank You to our Inspire 2022 Sponsors 2022 Annual Report www.norcalsci.org 11
Donations 12 www.norcalsci.org 2022 Annual Report
Donations 2022 Annual Report www.norcalsci.org 13
Donations NorCal SCI co-founder Franklin Elieh pictured at Inspire 2019 We’re grateful to all our donors who supported us with their generosity during 2022, bringing the total amount of donations to over $320,000, our highest amount ever. THANK YOU. A special thank you to Franklin’s family, friends, co-workers and newspaper colleagues for your heartfelt compassion and generosity, your contributions accounted for 42% of all the donations we received. Thank you to those who donated equipment, auction items and participated at our fundraising events. If you wish to contribute to our cause: https://norcalsci.org/donations With sincere gratitude The NorCal SCI Board of Directors 14 www.norcalsci.org 2022 Annual Report