Vintage motor bike lovingly restored by brain injury group
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Wednesday March 10 2010
The skills and workmanship of a group of men from Sligo and Leitrim affected by brain injury will be on display in Sligo this week as Acquired Brain Injury Ireland (ABI Ireland) showcases a Bantam Super Model motorbike restored by the group as part of their rehabilitation programme.
Guided by a fully trained tutor, the group of men restored the vintage 175cc BSA Bantam Super motorbike over an eight month period. The HSE/ABI Ireland Community Brain Injury Team devised a suitable rehabilitation programme which saw the male service users actively involved in all decisions and work associated with refurbishing the motorcycle.
The service users involved in the programme were Leitrim's Darren Rhodes from Dromahair and Vincent Mannion from Killargue and Sligo's Michael Gillespie from Ballintrillick; Michael Carroll from Grange; Eric Boyle from Cliffoney and Ronan Kilgannon from Dromore West. Their tutor was Gordon Ryan from Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim.
To mark Brain Awareness Week 2010 (8th – 14th March), the motorbike will be on display at the following locations in Sligo/Leitrim: Thursday 11th March - Tesco arcade in Carrick on Shannon, Co Leitrim from 2pm – 7pm; Friday 12th March - Quayside Shopping Centre, Sligo from 12pm – 6pm; Saturday 13th March – Quayside Shopping Centre, Sligo from 12pm – 6pm.
Barbara O'Connell, CEO of Acquired Brain Injury Ireland said, "This rehabilitation programme has been particularly successful and has really helped these young men to realise their creative abilities. I would like to thank the BK Museum in England which kindly donated the bike and made this project possible. I hope that the launch of this restored motorbike will prove inspirational to other people with ABI and the wider community."
Every year in Ireland, over 10,000 people are directly affected by ABI and ABI Ireland is committed to making a difference to their lives and to the families who struggle to support them. Established in 2000, ABI Ireland provides support and services to people with brain injury throughout Ireland.
