On May 4th Frank LaMacchia stood up, stretched to his full height, and surveyed a room filled with over 100 people. This might seem inconsequential, an everyday activity as normal as eating a sandwich or tying your shoes. But for LaMacchia it was different — he was standing for the first time in 17 years.
What changed, that enabled LaMacchia to stand tall after being confined to a wheelchair for 17 years? To put it simply, a gift — a single donation instantly changing his life. SoldierStrong, along with the support of the Benson and Cricket Groundhog tables, donated an Ekso Bionics GT exoskeleton to Philly’s own, Magee Rehabilitation Hospital. A single $150,000 robotic suit will help countless patients at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital recover from injury, disability, and stroke and fulfill their dream of seeing the world and walking — on their own two feet.
SoldierStrong’s Executive Director Marc Morgenthaler said of the donation, “I couldn’t be more pleased to support Magee and the great work they do, it’s moving knowing this device will serve 1000’s of military veterans over its life at Magee.”
