SWAMPSCOTT — Community members and those who travel amongst the various beaches in town can now reserve beach-friendly wheelchairs to better navigate over sand and shallow water, courtesy of the Commission on Disability and two families that donated to the cause: the Newmans and the Puzzos.
They all gathered under the sun on Fisherman’s Beach early Monday afternoon for the unveiling of the new wheelchairs. The Mobi-Chair, designed to glide over sand and float in water, was donated by Deb Newman and her siblings: David, Jessica, and Bernard.
Deb Newman spoke about what compelled her and her siblings to donate the wheelchair to the community.
“I used to be the chair of Commission on Disability years ago, and at that time, people were looking for better beach access — and even if you can go across a mat to the beach, if you don’t have the proper chair — then you can’t go on the beach and you can’t go in the water,” Newman said. “I asked my siblings to help pay for the wheelchair, and I wanted them to be a part of it, because of the family aspect that went into this.”
Newman continued, “We had our family bakery for 55 years, and my father and mother both ended up in wheelchairs — my father not for two long, but my mother was in a wheelchair for decades, off and on — but she always wanted to be able to go to the beach with my father when he walked the dogs. … So, it all sort of culminated together like, ‘This is a good idea for people.’”
Nikki Puzzo, founder of the nonprofit Stepping Stones for Stella and co-founder of BeFree, donated a child-sized beach buggy, based on a prototype built by Puzzo’s father, Joe Banda. This will help children move easily over sand, and will help them sit securely in shallow water.
“We wanted to have our beaches in Swampscott be accessible for everybody,” Puzzo said. “We started Stepping Stones for Stella for our daughter (Stella) when she was three and a half. … We knew how much it changed her life by being able to get on and off the beach, and join our family down at the beach. “We thought it was really important to be able to offer that to everybody else in our community.”
To showcase the success of the new addition to the town’s beaches — which is kept at a locker at Fisherman’s Beach, but can be reserved by calling the police station and can be used at various beaches in town — the Puzzos helped their daughter, Stella, glide around the sand to show how easily people can traverse with it.
Stepping Stones for Stella has donated more than 750 buggies to families in need.
The two wheelchairs are completely free to use, and will be distributed to users on a first-come, first-served basis. Users must also provide valid identification, and are encouraged to bring a companion for assistance.
“I love the town of Swampscott, we’re a beautiful seaside town, and to give people the opportunity to be able to access the water is something that we want for everyone to be able to enjoy,” Commission on Disability Chair Lauren Shrestha said.
Commission on Disabilities member Michelle Steingiser said she’s happy that the innovation that went into the wheelchairs will help benefit the community.
“I’m so excited that the town has these chairs now that everyone can use. Now, everyone can enjoy the beautiful beaches that we have here… I think it’s wonderful that the innovation one man had from a family member, and now everyone can benefit from it,” Steingiser said.
