Club builds ramp to help mother transport children

A Martinez single mother recently received a boost from a Columbia County organization.

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Members of the Columbia County Rotary Club volunteered their time and labor in March to build a wheelchair ramp for Rebecca Scherer's 22-year-old twins, Scott and Rachel.

They were born with autism and cerebral palsy, leaving them confined to wheelchairs.

"We do community service projects and that came out as one that could really help a family in need and really brighten their day," said Alan Hampton, the president of the Rotary Club.

Scott died unexpectedly after becoming ill shortly after the ramp was completed.

The ramp -- about 50 feet long and 4 feet wide -- can accommodate a large wheelchair. It was built to replace a plywood ramp that had become too small for moving the twins to and from their home in Maple Creek subdivision.

"We were delighted," said the twins' grandmother, Carol Ashworth. "It's not something we could have afforded to do for ourselves. It makes life a lot easier for everybody."

Scherer has been the twins' primary caregiver since they were 4 years old, Ashworth said.

The twins had attended Lakeside High School and started going to the Berry Center, a nonprofit agency in Augusta that provides services for adults with severe disabilities.

The ramp, Ashworth said, is a big help in getting Rachel to and from the center.

"It's a great help for me to be able to take her down that ramp in an easy manner and get her out to the bus in a timely manner," she said.

Materials for the new, treated lumber ramp, complete with railings, cost about $1,000 and were split between Medallion Construction and Maner Builders Supply.

The project took more than eights hours for volunteers to finish, but the hard work was well worth it after seeing Scherer's reaction, Hampton said.

"She was in tears," he said. "She was just so excited and thankful."

Ashworth said the ramp will benefit the family for years to come.

"Our gratitude will be there forever," she said. "I can't say enough good things about people who do something nice for others."