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GLAD TO GIVE:
Steve Peteroni,
Alan Wilson’s
former supervisor
at Hecla Mining,
spearheaded
the community
fundraising efforts
for the purchase
of an FES bike for
Kootenai Health’s
outpatient
rehabilitation
services. Pictured
(from left): Steve
Peteroni; Janette
Wilson; Dawn
Fitzgerald, D.P.T.;
and Alan (front).
NEW TECH:
Kootenai Health
outpatient
physical therapist
Dawn Fitzgerald,
D.P.T., assists
Alan Wilson on
the FES bike.
C L O S E T O H O M E
A facility in Spokane had been Alan’s closest option
for therapy on the specialized bike. But now, since
Kootenai Health Foundation purchased an FES cycle
for rehabilitation services at Kootenai Health, Alan will
be able to do his cycling sessions much closer to home.
“It’s a huge timesaver,” Alan said. “Now that we
don’t have to kill an entire afternoon driving to Spokane
and back, I’ll be able to use the bike even more.”
The FES cycling system uses electrical stimulation to
create movement of the legs or arms in order to pedal
the bike. Electrodes, which are placed on the patient’s
muscles with a type of sticky pad, send electrical
currents to the nerves, causing the muscles to con-
tract. The benefits of FES cycling are numerous—from
aerobic conditioning to increased circulation, spasticity
management and muscle flexibility.
The bike is available to all Kootenai patients who
may benefit from FES therapy, including people with
incomplete or complete spinal cord injury, brain injury,
stroke or multiple sclerosis.
D O N O R S S T E P P E D U P
A $10,000 donation from Hecla Mining, where Alan
worked for 30 years before retiring in 2013, helped fund
the $30,000 piece of equipment. Hecla employees also
kicked in an additional $8,000. Steve Peteroni, Alan’s
former supervisor at Hecla, spearheaded the fundraising
effort within Hecla and in the broader Coeur d’Alene
community, helping to raise more than $26,000 in
about seven weeks.
“Alan is my friend…I wanted to do everything I could
do to help him,” he said. “Hecla’s primary goal in this
effort was to help Alan, but we also saw it as an opportu-
nity to give back to the community by providing a type of
therapy that was otherwise unavailable locally.”
Contributors to the purchase included the Coeur
d’Alene Elks Foundation; the Coeur d’Alene Section
of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration;
the Wallace Gyro Lead Creek Derby; the Wallace Rotary
Club; and numerous community donors. Many of the
Wilsons’ family and friends also contributed to the
fund.
“We were really impressed and deeply touched by
the number of people—near and far—who generously
stepped up to help fund this bike,” Alan said.
“It’s very humbling,” Janette added. “We are so
grateful.”
O N E F O R A L L
The Wilsons, who approached Kootenai last year about
the possibility of the facility acquiring an FES bike,
emphasized that the new equipment is not just for
Alan, but for the entire community.
“This was something that we really needed in the
area,” Janette said. “It was great to be able to partner
with Kootenai Health in order to get something the
whole community could use.”
Sue Donaghue, Director of Rehabilitation Services,
said the bike is a welcome addition to Kootenai
Health’s available treatment interventions.
“The FES bike is an additional resource for our highly
skilled physical and occupational therapists, and it will
help ensure that we keep current with evidence-based
approaches to rehabilitation,” she said.
KH . ORG
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