By JC
Background
Before it was Iron City Trykes, it was Birmingham AMBUCS, and this video comes from those days. Same people, same mission, newer name. AMBUCS itself was born right here in Birmingham back in 1922, under a motto that still fits: “Shoulders together.”
Most folks know Iron City Trykes for putting children with disabilities on custom therapeutic tricycles. Fewer know they do the same for veterans. A man who came home with an injury, an amputation, or a body that doesn’t cooperate the way it used to can get a tryke adapted to him, including hand-powered models for riders whose legs aren’t up for the job. Each one is fitted by hand, one rider at a time.
I ride a motorcycle every day, so I have some idea what it means to feel the wind and go where you want to go. I also know what it feels like when that freedom gets taken away. Usually in my case it’s just a dead battery. For a veteran, it’s a lot more than that.
Through a Christian Lens
Veterans Day is this Wednesday. Most of us will say “thank you for your service,” which is good, and then go get lunch, which is also good, but maybe not the whole job.
Jesus didn’t thank the man at the pool of Bethesda for his patience. He got him moving. Iron City Trykes does a small version of that. They take people who gave their strength for the rest of us and hand some of it back, on three wheels.
Shoulders together is a pretty good summary of the Gospel, too. We weren’t made to carry our loads alone, and we weren’t made to watch somebody else carry theirs from the sidewalk.
Lend a Hand
- Veterans and adult riders: email ironcitytrykes@gmail.com for an application
- Give or volunteer: ironcitytrykes.org
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15:13 (KJV)
JC is a Birmingham-area musician, writer, and founder of We Rock Network.
