Wheelchair Basketball Fundraiser Raises $80K

Wheelchair basketball is a sport that originated just after the Second World War. There were many soldiers who, due to medical advances, came home without the use of their arms and legs. These veterans wanted to be able to remain active and so they began playing basketball and bowling from their wheelchairs. Today people in wheelchairs participate in almost every type of sport imaginable.
This week the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan (RIM) held a fundraising event that pitted former NBA, hockey, and football players against the RIM wheelchair basketball team.

Former players from the Detroit Redwings, Detroit Lions, and the Detroit Pistons teamed up to compete against the Detroit Diehards, which is a well known team of players from the RIM. All told more than eighty thousand was brought in. These funds will be used to help allow other people who are mobility challenged play and compete in recreational activities.

The RIM is well known across the world and has been helping people recover from serious injuries for over fifty years. People from all over the country, come to receive rehabilitation for spinal cord injuries, strokes, cerebral palsy, and other medical problems. Currently they treat and help almost 150,000 people every year.