Woman crafts wheelchair designs for a smile

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - One woman is crafting plastic spokes guards for senior citizens and their wheelchairs at no cost.

Charlene Bolton makes that her mission during visits to nursing homes in the Baton Rouge area. She said the goal is to bring a little joy to others.

“If you speak to one, all they talk about is the olden days,” Bolton said. “It’s like, you know, it’s all about memories and nostalgia.”

Bolton said the idea was born out of a desire to make people smile.

“They are just sitting there. What’s it look like? They can’t see it. After we finish, I take a picture of it with my phone, and I show them. And they are like, I love that,” Bolton added.

She calls plastic spokes “Wheels of Love.” Some of the artwork depicts funny old cartoons, Elvis Presley, or just really bright colors that light up the room.

“I did the design on an overhead projector. I took whatever memory. I wanted to go 1950s nostalgic, where they can look at each other’s wheelchairs and say, well, I remember that. We want them to talk about their memories because that’s what it’s all about. They live through their memories,” Bolton explains.

Bolton uses plastic to make the colorful wheels and then uses zip ties to fasten the spoke guard onto the wheelchair.

“Imagine what it looks like if you go into a nursing home and you see all of these wheels rolling, and it’s just cool designs. They are seeing it too,” Bolton said.

Bolton is looking for volunteers to help her make more “Wheels of Love.” If you are interested in helping her out, you can reach her via the email address charliehorse228@hotmail.com.

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