Man Drives Wheelchair 2,000 miles for Disabled Veterans

posted on Jun 21 by Amelia in the Advocacy, Disability News, Fun, Interesting Links, Veterans category

A man that goes by Dutch, The Rolling Dutchman, and officially by the name of Robert William Van Vranken II is on a mission, again.  Currently Van Vranken is on a 2,000-mile journey in his wheelchair that began on Memorial Day.  He will be on the road for quite a long time.  He is starting his trip in northern Minnesota, and he doesn’t plan on stopping until his wheelchair hits the Gulf of Mexico.  His cause?  He is raising awareness of all the struggles that disabled vets face.

Van Vranken will be stopping at every American Legion, VFW post, military base, and veterans cemetery he can find on his trip. He plans on staying at local campgrounds with a spot to plug in his wheelchair and cellphone, motel rooms, and local host families along the way.

Van Vranken lost his leg from above the knee down back in 2006 in an automobile accident.  Within months of his accident, he was rolling down the road from Minneapolis to New York in a similar journey with an effort to raise awareness for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV).

Retired from Northwest Airlines where he was a ground services crew chief and currently an amateur blues guitarist in a local band called “Mr. Blue,” Van Vranken is not taking any of the money that he raises.  In fact, he’s never been a veteran and only does this out of respect for them. All money will be given the the Disabled American Veterans (DAV).

What does he want from all of us? “Remember, when you see a veteran just say thank you.  See ya’ on the road!”

With a top speed of about 9 miles an hour and a 10 hour battery life, he hopes to dip his front wheels into the Gulf in about 6 or 7 months.