Cooking with Gabby

On October 10, 2017November 18, 2018 By Women On WheelsIn EventsLeave a comment

In October, Women on Wheels (W.O.W.) participated in our group’s first-ever cooking class held on KCC-2, the inpatient SCI unit at Mount Sinai Hospital. The workshop was led by WOW member, Gabrielle Broder, who is herself struggling to find ways to continue enjoying her passion of cooking after having sustained a spinal cord injury at the C5 level almost 2 years ago.

We are women of different ages, physical abilities, and of differing experiences with cooking, but we all came together as a team and made a yummy, homemade Mexican-themed meal. Adaptive cooking devices such as special cutting boards and knives were available for those with limited hand function. Everyone played an important part, from the several members who said they had never cooked before to the one who said she cooks for her family every day to the professional chef.

The dish had numerous components, and everyone was responsible for a large section of the recipe. The menu centered around chicken quesadillas. Everything was made from scratch, from the spice blend for the grilled chicken to the roasted tomato salsa to the guacamole. We even made agua de jamaica, a popular Mexican beverage made from hibiscus flowers, ginger, and lime.

“The cooking demonstration that we all participated in was an awesome experience. I personally do not like to cook, but doing it with my fellow W.O.W members made it fun. I look forward to our next recipe.
*Thanks Gabby, you Rock.” ~*Tina J.

Our thanks goes out to the financial supporters of WOW, as well as to the staff, volunteers, and home attendants who lent a hand (and just to be clear, we didn’t allow them to do the actual COOKING, but they did help a lot with organizing equipment, and cleanup).

A great time was had by all and we enjoyed the shared activity as well as the delicious meal!

~Written by Gabrielle Broder

KAYAKPALOOZA!!!

On August 22, 2016August 28, 2016 By Women On WheelsIn Events, FitnessLeave a comment

Yesterday, Women On Wheels joined friends and family at the Sebago Canoe Club for a fun-filled afternoon of kayaking. It was a great escape from the hot city temperatures with bright skies, relaxing sounds of waves, lunch and loads of exercise! Many thanks to the Mount Sinai Rehab crew and the Sebago Canoe Club for hosting the event.

Sebago Volunteers helping Adaptive Paddlers

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Sebago Volunteers helping Adaptive Paddlers

Sebago Volunteers helping Adaptive Paddlers

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Adaptive Paddler’s get on the water at Sebago Canoe Club

Sebago Volunteers helping Adaptive Paddlers

Photos courtesy of Sebago Canoe Club http://www.sebagocanoeclub.org/

Ride with Pride

On July 10, 2016July 16, 2016 By Women On WheelsIn Events6 Comments

On Sunday, July 10th, Women On Wheels was excited to take part once again in New York City’s annual Disability Pride Parade. In the hope of increasing visibility and changing public perceptions of the disabled, we joined thousands of other participants in rolling and strolling up Broadway from Union Square to Madison Square Park. Following the parade there were dance and musical performances to be enjoyed as well as disability-related vendors and community organizations available to provide information about their products and services. All in all it was a perfect day and we’re already looking forward to participating in next year’s 3rd Annual Disability Pride Parade. Won’t you join us?

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A Greenmarket Tour

On October 21, 2015August 30, 2016 By Women On WheelsIn Events, Health and WellnessLeave a comment

GrowNYC recently offered to give Women On Wheels a private tour of their Madison Avenue Greenmarket located directly across from Mount Sinai. We jumped at the chance and met the following Wednesday. We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day — not only fun but highly informational as well! Many thanks to Monica for helping to organize the event and to Rob our fantastic guide. To learn more about their programs and to find a market close to you, visit www.grownyc.org.

Go here WOW and GrowNYC to learn more about our experience!

Mt. Sinai’s 17th Annual Rehab Fair

On September 30, 2015July 15, 2016 By Women On WheelsIn Advocacy, Events1 Comment

Question: What do you call it when some of the top community outreach programs, agencies and vendors in the disability healthcare industry come together in one room ?

Answer: Mount Sinai’s Annual Rehabilitation Fair!

For the past 16 years Mount Sinai Hospital has hosted an annual Rehabilitation Fair allowing individuals with disabilities, their families and caretakers the opportunity to connect with different lifestyle providers and learn about available services, support groups, funding and more. Exhibitors from a wide variety of organizations attend the event with groups ranging in services from health and wellness, emergency preparedness, advocacy, travel, adaptive equipment, sports, and much more.

This year, Women On Wheels was invited to take part in the fair and given the opportunity to meet and reach out to other women with disabilities while continuing to spread the word about our group. It was a fantastic day with entertainment provided by participants from Mount Sinai’s Wheelchair Dance Program and paintings exhibited by artist Sergio Acevedo.

SCI Awareness 5K Run Walk & Roll

On May 31, 2015July 14, 2016 By Women On WheelsIn Events, Fitness, Fundraising

Women On Wheels is a spinal cord injury peer and advocacy support group sponsored by The Alan T. Brown organization, Mount Sinai and NYCSCIA. With their support we have spent the past year developing the first SCI women’s group in New York City. Being that women only make up approximately 20% of the overall SCI population, we are a minority within a minority in our society. Because of this, women with SCI often have unique concerns and experiences related to their dis/Ability, but rarely have the opportunity to comfortably share these issues among a room full of men with SCI voicing their own “personal or intimate” concerns. Through this group, we provide women with spinal cord injuries a space where our knowledge can be shared across age ranges, injury levels, and years of experience. We seek to empower, educate and support one another.

On May 30th, Women On Wheels took part in the 2nd Annual Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Awareness 5K Run Walk & Roll in order to raise funds for our sponsors and aid in their efforts of helping people with spinal cord injuries maximize their independence and quality of life. With the help of the many generous donations from our supporters, family members and friends, Women On Wheels was able to raise over $3000 for the cause more than doubling our goal of $1500. Plus, as you can see, we had a fantastic time the day of the race!