BY MICHELLE KIM
Jerry Donovan is the kind of guy who turns heads. And not just because of his zest for life.
A 1999 van accident left the former Boston Gas pipe fitter paralyzed from the chest down. But today, he can play 18 holes of golf, buy a beer at a bar and look you in the eye while talking.
He’s one of the lucky few with access to the ParaMobile, a three-wheeled motorized device designed to let paraplegics and people with disabilities play golf and maneuver outdoors while in the standing position.
“People go crazy,” he said, about reactions to the machine. “People stop what they’re doing and wave to me when I’m driving (the ParaMobile),” he said.
The machine, designed by a South African golfer paralyzed in a car accident and made in Germany, is sold in the United States by John Hikel of Goffstown, a master dealer and owner of Parabase Tech NH LLC. There are also other machines that bring people to eye level, but in a seated position, said Hikel, which makes playing outdoor sports difficult.
Hikel and Donovan met about a year ago at a sports activity conference for the disabled. After trying out the machine, Donovan never wanted to get out, said Hikel.
Donovan, a Massachusetts resident, reels off the physical benefits: breathing is much easier now that his diaphragm is opened up, his back pain is gone since he’s improved his muscle tone by having to maintain an upright position, improved his circulation and has a lower risk of osteoporosis by bearing weight on the bones.
“There are a lot of medical positives to using some type of medical device which allows you to stand and greet others eye-to-eye,” said Dr. Steve Williams, chairman of the department of rehabilitation at the Boston Medicine Center and Donovan’s doctor. There is also a huge social and emotional impact as well, he said.
The ParaMobile has let Donovan reconnect with people by bringing him to eye level instead of seated. He can also perform activities like play ball with his kids or cruise hand-in-hand by the waterside.
Hikel observed that people seem more ready to see Donovan as a person in the ParaMobile than in a regular wheelchair.
Golf is the original idea behind the machine, but it’s about much more than golf, said Hikel.
“This is about getting you back to doing the things you used to do before your accident,” he said.
An avid golfer himself, Hikel first became interested in disability issues when a friend of his suffered a stroke. Around the same time, a golfing associate, South African golfer Anthony Netto and Christian Nachtwey, had designed a prototype of the ParaMobile and contacted Hikel to see if he would be interested in getting involved.
Soon Hikel found found himself an unlikely advocate of disability rights as he realized the limitations at public facilities.
He points out that most golf courses have handicap accessible club houses, but nothing that can take disabled players out onto the green, defeating the purpose of going to a golf course.
Acceptance by the golf industry and by the insurance industry of the ParaMobile has been slow, said Hikel, which in turn has slowed the availability of the machine. The cost, about $20,000 per machine, is prohibitive to most people without insurance or assistance.
Hikel is also hoping to bring the ParaMobile to Walter Reed Army Medical Center to demonstrate to wounded veterans.
Donovan, who has played more golf in the ParaMobile than he ever did before his accident, is thinking of entering a few golf competitions. He hopes to show others who are disabled that they can live a full, regular life.
“When they see me hit the ball, that says, ‘Wow, if he can do it, I can do it,” he said.
For more informaton about the device, see www.uwillstand up.com.