Episode 1622: Interview with Nuka Hart About the Free Wheelchair Mission

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Scott Maderer: [00:00:00] Thanks for joining us on episode 1,622 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

Nuka Hart: I'm Nuka Hart. I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence and impact the world by using your time, your talent, and your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to realize we all have a responsibility to care for others is key.

And one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this The Inspired Stewardship Podcast with my friend Scott Maderer.

So we come and we give him a wheelchair and he is just a delight, super bright. We asked him if we could give him a hug, and he said, nobody ever wants to hug me. He was so shocked and he starts crying and tears come rolling down his [00:01:00] face and actually had my husband on the trip with me. And he prayed with him.

Scott Maderer: Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling in the Inspired Stewardship Podcast who will learn to invest in yourself.

Invest in others and develop your influence so that you can impact the world.

In this podcast episode I interview NCA Heart. I asked NCA to share with you her work with free wheelchair mission. Nka also shares with you how her service actually serves her. And I also ask Nka to share with you how finding a way to share your mission is important. I have a great book that's been out for a while now [00:02:00] called Inspired Living.

Assemble the puzzle of your calling by mastering your time, your talent, and your treasures. You can find out more about that book over@inspiredlivingbook.com. It'll take you to a page where there's information and you can sign up to get some mailings about it, as well as purchase a copy there. I'd love to see you get a copy and share with me how it impacted your world.

Hart joined Free Wheelchair Mission as executive director in 2017 and was appointed CEO in 2019. She has the overall operational responsibility for free wheelchair mission programs and management of its team, leading the strategic planning processes, implementation of programmatic strategic initiatives for the growth of the organization.

NCA has worked extensively in nonprofit fund development and operations. And she also has expertise in identifying ways to engage and grow, giving within affinity [00:03:00] groups or donor segments. New, graduated from Darmouth College with a degree in studio art and has two young adult children. Because of her Haitian heritage, she felt called to work with an organization that has been making a significant impact in Haiti, providing renewed dignity, independence, and hope through the gift of mobility at no cost to wheelchair recipients and their families.

Welcome to the show, nca.

Nuka Hart: Thanks so much for having me, Scott.

Scott Maderer: Absolutely. I'm looking forward to talking to you today and learning a little bit more about the work that y'all do over at Free Wheelchair Mission. And I love the ideas that, that we've already talked about a little bit, but I'm looking forward to sharing it with the listener.

But let's back up before we talk about what you do today. I, I always like to uncover for people. What brought us to the point in our journey where this is the work we do, because I, I think a lot of times we see what someone does and we're like, oh wow, [00:04:00] they found their mission, they're doing something great.

But it's kind of a messy process sometimes to get there. So take us back in time and unpack the journey. What, what brought you to where this is the work you're doing today?

Nuka Hart: Oh, wow. Well, I mean, I think if I go all the way, all the way back, it would really be about my parents. They were both medical professionals and they came from Haiti and they moved to the United States, got their educations before that moved to the United States to practice medicine and to really take advantage of the opportunities that are here.

They became citizens and in their work, they were all about service and caring for people. I think. Most medical professionals, that's why they enter that work.

Scott Maderer: You would hope. Yeah,

Nuka Hart: exactly. And my mom in particular she died when I was really young, but she was very much [00:05:00] known for serving others, caring for others, doing a lot with her hands, not just through her work, but in her personal life and.

When she developed cancer, she really went out there and tried to educate women about what they should be doing for themselves. Went all the way into the church and local community to do that. Having nothing to do with her profession because she wasn't an oncologist. And so now fast forward to me, trying very hard to live and try to embody a lot of the things and the principles that my mom, uh, tried to, you know, really be about on this earth. And I am not a medical professional, but I end up at an organization that is serving with a medical device and serving in the developing world countries like Haiti.

Mm-hmm. And how that came to be really was me. [00:06:00] Listening to God. I was recruited to work at Free Wheelchair Mission eight years ago, and I was not seeking to work at Free Wheelchair Mission. It was something that I think God put in front of me, and initially I resisted because free wheelchair mission wasn't in the city where I was living.

I felt I knew nothing about wheelchairs, but. After the first interview and really digging into what the mission was all about, I saw it all very clearly in terms of why God wanted me here and where that aligned with my upbringing and aligned with my own desire for my walk and my faith and my work to serve.

That's my story in terms of why I'm here and how it aligns with my past.

Scott Maderer: And one of the things I like to unpack for people is how our faith journey [00:07:00] and our life journey kind of intersect and feedback and forth on each other. You know, you just mentioned a little bit about you felt like this was something God was putting in front of you and you resisted, and yet, you know, you ended up doing it.

Talk a little bit about how. Both answering that call, how that has affected your faith, and then now how the work you do is affecting your faith and then you know the vice versa. How does your faith affect the work you do?

Nuka Hart: Yeah, I think faith and those of us who are believers know that it's all about a relationship with Christ, right?

It's all about that discussion in your head and. You're hopefully talking to him and you're hopefully listening to him when he's putting things in front of you. And the push and pull that we have throughout our life journey is about the times when we didn't listen or the times [00:08:00] when we felt like we wanted to be in control and we didn't want to surrender to what.

I think the Holy Spirit is whispering in our ears. And for me, I think, and I, if I look at my journey in professionally and coming to Free Wheelchair Mission, that resistance I had initially was about me not wanting to listen and me thinking that it was going to be too complicated. It was too far from home.

It wasn't something that was. In line with my own plan. It's, that's the control part, right? And then when I listened and I saw things a little bit more clearly, and then I'm actually doing the work, I recognized that this is the best thing that could have ever happened to me. And so there's so many memes out there now about.

I I'm not really recalling the exact quotes on the memes, but it's about you having [00:09:00] something in mind like that you want, and then behind the back of the Jesus figure in the meme, they have something even better for you, but you need to trust. Take his hand in order to receive that bigger gift, right?

Scott Maderer: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Nuka Hart: And so I've seen that in just my decision to kind of leap on faith and listen and, and take God's hand and do this thing in working at Free Wheelchair Mission and leading an organization that I never thought I would lead. And then I also see it play out. A lot in the work that we do, and I'm sure we'll dig into that a little bit.

When I go to the different countries where we give out the wheelchairs. It could be something. As small as a little bit of fear inside of me about going to that specific destination because of whatever's happening in terms of social unrest and [00:10:00] me preying on a plane and trying to trust in the Lord that everything will be okay.

Or it could be in what I see with the wheelchair recipients when we give out the wheelchairs and what I learned from them about faith that I didn't expect. To learn. Again, I thought I was controlling the situation, but then God reveals something to me differently.

Scott Maderer: Mm-hmm. That's

Nuka Hart: a lot better.

Scott Maderer: Well, and surprising too, right?

I, I know I've, 'cause I've traveled in south America and Central America and, and several countries that people would say are quote third world countries. And it always surprises me with how happy and how generous people are in they're in places that. Most people in America were put in that situation.

They'd be grumbling and and complaining about how unfair everything is. And they're some of the happiest Es people I've ever met on, on the planet. I'm like. Yes. Reminds me. [00:11:00] Yeah, I'm sure you've had similar experiences, so talk a many,

many,

talk a little bit about the wheelchairs themselves before we kind of get into the delivery, because I think I, I wanna say that because I think everyone has this picture in their head of what a wheelchair is, and that's not really what exactly what we're talking about here.

So

Nuka Hart: I think people have a picture of what a wheelchair looks like and a picture of who's sitting in it. Right. And I think the stereotype is someone who's elderly. And the stereotype is also. Maybe if you're in the States nowadays, it could be that motorized wheelchair that we're seeing everywhere, right?

In grocery stores and everything like that. Or it could be that standard black, simple frame wheelchair that you may see at an airport, right?

Scott Maderer: Mm-hmm.

Nuka Hart: Mm-hmm. Our wheelchairs are neither. There're shades of blue and they come with mountain bike tires. Specifically, uh, made and in a standard diameter for the [00:12:00] developing world, and they're made for that terrain that you see in countries anywhere from a country like India, Haiti, you know, where they may not have.

Pavement or sophisticated smooth roads, especially in the rural parts of those countries, they're made to last. They go through a lot of rigorous testing and they come in multiple sizes now, and that's intentional as well to make sure that we're accommodating the needs of the user. So we do a lot to make sure that our wheelchairs are durable and also comfortable for our end user.

We give them out for free. And we give them out brand new. And that's also intentional because we know that there could be a high likelihood that that individual who gets the wheelchair may not be able to get a new one for some time. And having a wheelchair that's reliable and. Also [00:13:00] made in a sensible, cost efficient way allows for that user to know that they're getting a sound product.

That and our partners to know that they're getting a sound product That can be something that the end user will rely on.

Scott Maderer: Talk some about the folks that get the wheelchair. And you know what, again, you said we have a picture in our head of who's using a wheelchair and that's not really in every case who you're delivering them to.

So talk a little bit about the end user and what a difference it makes and what you've seen as you've been able to interact.

Nuka Hart: Well, we, you know, we've touched 95 countries, so there's a multitude of reasons within those countries that vary as to why you may have a disability. And the common denominator typically is either extreme poverty, so things, diseases, ramifications of having [00:14:00] extreme poverty, or on the other side, things that are standard with aging.

And so when you have countries where you have. Low li life expectancy. That stereotype I was talking about, about an elderly person being in the wheelchair actually is not necessarily the case, right? Or that life expectancy being lower means that the diseases and the things that we see in the developed world come to to pass.

When you were in your sixties, seventies, eighties. A lot of times happen a lot younger for people in other countries. So one example of that could be diabetes, right? So we see a high incidence of diabetes in the United States creeping up over the last couple of decades, but it's at its worst usually when people reach over middle age, right?

And elderly years in the developing world, we're seeing that a lot younger. I've seen many [00:15:00] cases of people with diabetes in their thirties and they end up becoming an amputee and then they need a wheelchair. We also see malnourishment in count in countries all over Africa, in the Caribbean, in Asia.

Where you then see a mother delivering a child with cerebral palsy or other diseases that may be associated with the lack of access to nutrition, and then that child is born with a a a A disability. We also see other things like infections and viruses that come to pass because of the lack of access to quality medical care in these countries where we serve.

Scott Maderer: For those that are are listening, share a story that you have about going and, and I'm not gonna ask you to share your favorite story 'cause I'm sure that's like asking a parent to talk about their favorite kid. You know, it's, it's, it's impossible. Thank you. But, [00:16:00] but pick one or two stories that have really impacted you over the years, and I'm sure you have like a million you could share, but

Nuka Hart: Sure.

Well, there's one that I've been sharing the last couple of weeks that is one. That actually took place a couple of years ago, but I've been sharing it recently because it's a country that is. I would say a little bit more in the news recently, and it's in Jamaica. There was a major hurricane that took place there recently, and it has devastated the country to the point of I, they're estimating about one third of the island of Jamaica has been destroyed.

And so there was a child, his name is Antoine, 14 years old. Who was born with a disability at birth, unable to walk. He literally crawls on the ground and his mom died when he was about six years old of a liver disease, and his dad is not in the picture. He's being raised by his [00:17:00] grandmother and also has his older sister that lives with him.

And this boy needed a wheelchair from us and he also needed a lot of love. He has suffered a lot and. Not just because of. His mom passing, not just because of his disability, but because he has a disease called vitiligo. Which is a pigmentation it rears itself as a pigmentation disease that people get either.

Uh, early on in childhood or later on in their adult life, and that has caused him to be severely bullied in school and in his community. So much so that our distribution partner on the ground had to get a me tablet so he could be educated and teach himself at home because it's not safe for him to be at school.

So we come and we give him a wheelchair and he is just a delight and he's super bright, [00:18:00] and we asked him if we could give him a hug, and he said, nobody ever wants to hug me. He was so shocked and he starts crying and tears come rolling down his face and actually had my husband on the trip with me and he prayed with him.

And this boy, Antoine just started crying. He had his eyes closed and was just holding my husband's hand and just so moved. We ended up needing to go back to him to adjust his wheelchair. So we said We're, we'll, we're gonna come back in a few days and adjust your wheelchair. And so we come back. He's again crawling out from inside the house onto the porch, and I will never forget, he says, you came back.

You came back. And we said, yes, of course we came back. We promised you we would. And he said, I prayed and prayed to God for a second chance for you to come back. And he answered my prayer [00:19:00] and we said, why did you need a second chance? He said, because I cried when I met you. And that's not what you should do when you meet people for the first time.

And so, you know, we said, well, Antoine, you're allowed to cry and you made all of us cry, so if that's really the case, we should be apologizing to you. So we had a bit of a laugh over it, and then we. Ended up adjusting his wheelchair. And I asked him, I said, what? What do you wanna do when you grow up Antoine?

He says, I wanna go to America. I hear there's so many people of different cultures there and you can learn from them. And I also want to learn how to do a business where I could help other people like me.

And so that. In of itself. Between the hug and the praying that we did with him, his sincerity around his feelings and appreciation for us being there [00:20:00] was huge.

But then on top of that, he's telling us that he wants to surf others. He's not saying, I wanna be rich. He's not saying, I wanna go to Paris. He's saying I want to serve, and he actually is recognizing that America is a country where people serve others and give back to others. Lastly, the best part of the story was we asked him if he wanted to pray again and he said, no.

Let me pray this time. And he prayed for us, and I have a recording. He prayed, like I tell people, he prayed like a Southern Baptist preacher and with the cadence and the passion and the conviction, and it was clear that Jesus is in his heart and when we were there, we were confirming for him. That Jesus exists and that he hasn't been forgotten.

So it was a it's one of my favorite, favorite stories, [00:21:00] but I bring it up now because I think of Antoine and, uh, Jamaica right now and what they've been facing. And I'm hoping to go back there in January as we're trying to do a trip to help with the relief effort.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. The, the, i, I think sometimes we forget and it's, it's almost cliche to say it, you know, that when you serve other people, you're served more than they are in a way.

And, and, and we, we kind of turn that into a, a, a trite cliche, you know, that it's almost something that people just say, but it's really true. And it's true in a way that I don't think. Everyone realizes so talk a little bit about how the work you've done has impacted, you know, you personally, your family, your life the way you see people and just day to day, you know, here in America.

[00:22:00] How does it affect the way you look at the world?

Nuka Hart: It, it it is a gift. It is a gift to work at free will tradition. And it's. People think of it as a gift that we're giving out, but the gift actually comes from the people that we give the wheelchairs to. You know, they talk a lot about, you know, when you give something you should give with a open heart and a generous heart, not.

With the intention of getting anything back. Right, but those of us who serve, and those of us who are generous, know that there's a little bit of a, the only way I can call it is a high Right. An excitement that comes from the giving. And the reward that ends up coming back is the feeling that you get when you, you get to give somebody something.

And the giving doesn't have to be a tangible thing. It could be you're giving somebody your time or your love, but in our case, it's a wheelchair. And so what [00:23:00] I personally have experienced is a greater appreciation for. As you said earlier, the simplicity of life, right? That you see in these other countries and you see the joy yet that they have in their hearts.

Every time I go to one of the countries that we serve in, it could be Thailand, it could be Guatemala. Every single time when I come home, I have a different perspective about the little things that typically irritate me or the things that I want to improve in my life that I learned from someone who has a situation that a lot of people would say is a far more dire than anything they could imagine, and it could be how to hug somebody a little bit more, right?

That's the Antoine story or. How to appreciate just going outside and enjoying a walk and the sunlight, which a lot of our wheelchairs or [00:24:00] recipients tell us when we ask them, what's the first thing you wanna do? I just wanna get outside and feel the sun on my face. Being able to do something like that.

And so I recently had a surgery on my foot and I had, I've lost my mobility. I'm actually still limping from it, right? So I've had to actually. Experience what our wheelchair users experience and. I said to myself, wow, you know, I have mobility devices. I have access to lots of medical care, and the perspective I now have is even greater because I've also technically experienced the pain, the physical pain of losing mobility for a time, but.

In order to be able to make it through something like that, I feel it wasn't just my faith, it was actually learning from other people of faith that are in these countries that have suffered far more than me. So it has done wonders for me and it has also done wonders for my [00:25:00] family. I think through me you know, explaining these stories and my marriage and my husband being able to witness this firsthand and.

It being something that we can share together and we actually pray every night and for the individuals that we've crossed and met, and sometimes even for our distribution partners.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. And, and I think too with, when you have a mobility problem here in the United States, we also have there, there are sidewalks with ramps and there's doors that automatically open and there's, the ramp at the grocery store, and there's all of these things that, again, having traveled enough internationally myself, it's like that, that is not the norm in many, many countries. Oh no, no, no.

Nuka Hart: Yeah, we give out a wheelchair and then I look at the person's house and I go, oh goodness. How are they gonna get it over the curb?

You know, [00:26:00] the different steps and the doorways. You know, the doorways are not as wide as our doorways a lot of times, so that's one of the reasons why our, uh, models of wheelchair, particularly the brand new one we just launched, the Gen for Joy is so critical because it's a foldable wheelchair.

But, you know, there's no a DA accessible,

Scott Maderer: you

Nuka Hart: know, compliant architectural, you know, considerations when people are making these homes in a lot of these countries. Mm-hmm.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. So I've got a few questions that I like to ask all of my guests, but before I, I ask you those. Is there anything else about the work you do with free wheelchair mission or, or the stories you share that you'd like to share with the listener?

Uh.

Nuka Hart: Yeah. You know, a lot of people wonder, well, why wheelchairs? You know, why is it so important? And I think the thing that really rocked me when I first started and still is staggering, is the, is the need. And it's estimated that there are 80 million people in the world that need a [00:27:00] wheelchair at any given time.

And the vast majority. Do not have access, and that a wheelchair doesn't just provide them with mobility, but it also provides them with opportunity and hope. From a per spiritual perspective, it allows for them to be in community with others, to be able to go to church, and to get confirmation that they're loved by God, that they're not cursed, that they shouldn't feel marginalized.

That they should feel in community with their other brothers and sisters in Christ. And it also, the wheelchair provides. An opportunity for their family members. You know, there's so many times when we see it that you see a mom who's about as short as me, five, two and a half, and, and she's trying to carry her 10-year-old, her 14-year-old, her 18-year-old on her back because she doesn't have a wheelchair.

And so that burden, that stress [00:28:00] is. It's debilitating at times, even physically for the mother. And so the wheelchair allows for that mother, that family, to then potentially have economic stability because now she can go to work and she can provide and not have to worry about babysitting her 18 year olds necessarily, or having to carry them.

So these are some of the things that I think people don't recognize the magnitude of and how far it reaches. And then I would also say that. Our mission is motivated by Jesus. That's the core of why we do what we do, and we're trying to model what we feel he would be doing if he were walking the earth today in the same way that we see it in scripture, that he performs so many miracles with those that were the most marginalized and those were the people that told his story.

And so. As much as we can. We think that when we give our message [00:29:00] of hope with our wheelchairs, and that's what we do when we give them out we're, I think, looking at it as we're not just giving them mobility, but we're giving them the opportunity, like Antoine, to then share with others the beauty of not the sadness of their disability, but the beauty that came from their disability, which is.

That others cared about them, and now they want to pass that on to o to others who were suffering and all because of gut. So my brand has inspired stewardship and I kind of run things through that lens of, of stewardship, and yet I've discovered over the years that that's one of those words that can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people.

Scott Maderer: So when you hear the word stewardship, what does that word mean to you?

Nuka Hart: Huh. It's, uh, the word that comes to mind that's kind of synonymous with stewardship is [00:30:00] like it's a strange word, but it's management.

Scott Maderer: Okay.

Nuka Hart: And I think of it as managing relationship. In terms of spirituality and our faith as Christians, it's about managing actively your relationship with God, whether it be in prayer, but, or it could be through gratitude, it could be through, uh, sharing with others and and serving with others.

Imparting. Faith upon others, it's about managing a relationship managing your faith, managing your gifts that you've been given by God. But it's the management word is, to me, the active verb in there that's synonymous with stewardship because it's something that you have to action, right? Stewardship is not, to me, [00:31:00] a word that is about.

Just sitting. Mm. It's about doing and actively using your voice, your gifts, prayer to be in community with the Lord and his kingdom.

Scott Maderer: So this is my favorite question that I like to ask everybody. Imagine for a moment that I invented this magical machine, and with this machine, I was able to take you from where you are today and transport you into the future, maybe 150, maybe 250 years.

But through the power of this machine, you were able to look back and see your entire life, see all of the ripples, all of the connections, all of the impacts you've left. What impact do you hope you've left in the world?

Nuka Hart: Oh wow, that's a, oh my goodness. What impact do I hope that I've left in the world? [00:32:00]

I hope that

I left an impact of sharing with people what it

means to be generous and kind. And to serve and to think and be outside of their own selfish desires and gains. But to think and to be in community with others because God wants us and calls us to love others. Actually more than we love ourselves. And so I hope that everything that I'm doing, whether it be as a mom, as a wife, as a friend, as a sister, as a boss, is about serving others, and that what I've left behind is evidence that I did that, [00:33:00] because I think that if I'm successful in that.

Then I'm leaving people with nuggets of love, nuggets of hope, nug nuggets, nuggets of feeling

valued, positivity.

Scott Maderer: So what's on the roadmap? What's coming next for you and the mission this year?

Nuka Hart: We just launched our brand new Gen for Joy Wheelchair. That's something we're really proud of. It's a new model we haven't innovated to create a new wheelchair in about 12 years, so it's a big deal for us to move in this direction.

It has more sizes. We're expanded our size offerings to six sizes now, so we'll be able to serve. Uh, the smallest user, um, maybe even a three or 4-year-old, and then someone who's much larger. We also have added an extra, extra [00:34:00] large, and we are excited that the new wheelchair has a more durable design, that it's made in a much more modern.

A cost effective way, we'll be able to get more wheelchairs in a container. So currently we are shipping about 500 on average or so wheelchairs per container. And with the new wheelchair, we'll have 550 that will fit in a container. And further, we know and are confident that the wheelchair. Is more comfortable, will give somebody more mobility and really is an answer to the things that our wheelchair recipients and participants have have asked for.

We added a new feature, a quick release wheel that you can push a button and the wheels pop off. So in addition to being foldable, the wheels also pop off. So those are the features, and what's exciting is that we'll be able to get the [00:35:00] wheelchairs out next year in 2026. And we will slowly trickle those out and our partners are so excited about it and we are too.

And we've been trying to blitz the world with this announcement. And, uh, we're confident that it will transform lives for years to come. Beyond that we're continuing to serve in all the countries that we work in, and we have many, many distribution partners around the world. Who we work on many different projects with, not just our ongoing wheelchair program, but in some cases, some relief efforts.

So we are working, as I mentioned earlier on, trying to figure out how we can serve the Caribbean through this recent storm and other countries that are dealing with many, many challenges.

Scott Maderer: You can find out more about noca and the free wheelchair mission [00:36:00] over@freewheelchairmission.org, and of course I'll have a link to that in the show notes as well. Anything else that you'd like to share with the listener?

Nuka Hart: Uh, well, you know, free Will mission, why I came to work at Free Will Transmission, I mentioned had a lot to do with me listening to God and what excited me.

One of the things that excited me about working at Free Will Mission was that it was a tangible solution to a big problem and something that was measurable. And I think a lot of times with charitable work, it can be hard too. Communicate the results and the impact. And so I ask our, your listeners to consider us as a charitable organization to give to, uh, they could give a monthly gift, they could give a legacy gift, or they could just give a simple donation for about a hundred dollars.

They could transform one life or many lives through the caretaker, the family, and the community being [00:37:00] transformed by this tangible gift from God.

Scott Maderer: Absolutely.

Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode. Please. Please do us a favor. Go over to inspired stewardship.com/itunes.

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