Students Assist Homeless for 2018 Physical Therapy Day of Service

For Physical Therapy Day-of-Service 2018, physical therapy students volunteered on Oct 11. and Oct 18, 2018 with Portland Night Strike, one of a few events hosted by Because People Matter. Because People Matter is a local organization dedicated to assisting the homeless population of Portland. Many volunteers gather every Thursday night underneath the Burnside Bridge and provide services to the local homeless population. Services range from providing a warm meal, receiving a haircut, replacing worn down clothes and sleeping material, having their nails painted, or just simply engaging in conversation. This was an eye-opening experience to see what is going on in our community.  As adjunct faculty Dr. Evan Liu mentioned to our students, “You may not be able to change the world, but you can change the world for an individual, and that’s enough”.

Physical Therapy Day of Service (PTDOS) began a few years ago, an idea from a couple of physical therapists who envisioned a collaboration of all physical therapists to participate and come together for a day of service. This has grown into a worldwide tradition, with all 50 states and 40+ countries participating in PTDOS 2017.

Picture above from left to right: Front row Dr. Evan Liu (’15), Annie Milburn (’20), Jaylen Wilson (’20), Jodie Miyamoto (’20). Second row: Dr. Lydia Jahn (’18), Zoe Morris (’20), Rachel Char (’20), Kendell Erb (’21), Audra Lewis (’20). Third row: Marlyn Kato (’20), Katie Phan (’20), Rachel Herron (’20), Liz Seagrave (’20).  Fourth row: Joseph Kersh (’20), Andrew Nelson (friend of program), Nabil Falconer (’21), Dylan Young-Vazquez (’21), Sam Nicholas (’20), Shianne Blessing (’21).