Helping Adaptive Athletes Access Outdoor Adventures

Oregon Adaptive Sports – Bend, OR

December 3, 2024

For adaptive athletes, access to the outdoors isn’t always easy. Oregon Adaptive Sports (OAS) is breaking that barrier, ensuring that people with disabilities have opportunities to ski, bike, and more, creating opportunities for everyone to experience the thrill of adventure. Transportation is a critical part of this mission, which is why our Tires For Purpose program is helping OAS—and other non-profits—keep moving forward.

From transporting athletes to mountain slopes to hauling adaptive equipment, OAS depends on reliable travel to fulfill their mission. With new, high-quality snow tires from Les Schwab, OAS can continue to safely transport participants and volunteers, ensuring more people can access the outdoors without limitations.

“Our mission is to provide every person with a disability access to the benefits of outdoor recreation. Transportation is one of the five tenets of how we remove barriers to the outdoors, and safe winter transportation is crucially important for our winter sports,” said Pat Addabbo, executive director at Oregon Adaptive Sports. “We are grateful to Les Schwab Tires for new winter tires, which in turn provides our athletes the joy of having access to alpine skiing, snowshoeing and snowboarding.”

OAS is just one of many non-profits that rely on safe, dependable transportation to serve their communities. Yet, operational costs like tire replacements can add up, making it difficult to stay on the road. Rising operational expenses continue to be a major hurdle for non-profits: 46% of U.S. non-profits cited rising operating expenses as their biggest challenge in 2023, while 42% struggled with inadequate funding or resources.

By donating tires, Les Schwab is reducing that burden and allowing non-profits to focus on what they do best: serving their community. Through Tires for Purpose, we’re committed to supporting non-profits that depend on transportation to carry out their missions. If your organization could benefit from new tires, we encourage you to apply today at lesschwab.com/tiresforpurpose.