PHAT Surprise

PHAT

Surprise

From left, Navy veteran Lucy Wong, Army veteran Kristen Hart, PHAT Scooters CEO Tim Moran, Air Force veteran William Taylor and his son, Elijah. (Photo by Annika Tomlin)

Veterans fi nd ‘freedom’ through electric scooters

BY ANNIKA TOMLIN

Sound of Freedom Staff Writer

Giving lives in PHAT Scooters’ DNA.

Th e Phoenix-based company asked veterans to send emails describing how a PHATTY G3 Electric Scooter would change their lives. Th e contest was supposed to have one winner, but CEO Tim Moran was touched by the entries.

“Our electric scooters would allow veterans to reengage in society with their family and or get around the community,” Moran says.

“Th ey all wrote three really heartfelt emails back to us in response to our contest so we felt that we should give away a PHAT Scooter and we have two gift s for the others.”

Army veteran Kristen Hart, who served

from 2003 to 2011, won the scooter, while Air Force and Navy veterans William Taylor and Lucy Wong, respectively, received gift bags.

The “gift bags,” however, held fobs to their own PHATTY G3 Electric Scooters. Hart took hers for a test drive around the parking lot of Ability 360, which partnered with PHATTY Scooters for the contest.

“We just couldn’t make a decision,” Moran says.

“Your outpouring of emotion made us pretty emotional. We want to thank you so much for all that you have done and thanks to Ability 360 for what they do for vets and the community.”

Hart, Taylor and Wong were shocked by the news and did their best to hold back tears of joy.

On a fixed income, Hart and her husband adopted three foster children and enjoy spending time as a family. Due to neurological issues affecting her leg and her husband’s debilitating knee injuries, they struggle to keep up with their children. One of them is on the autism spectrum and loves to bike.

Hart says she was joyful about the prize.

“We are really used to giving and just to receive something is a blessing,” she says.

One word describes her gift: “freedom.”

“Freedom to move around and move about especially with her, (my daughter Bryleigh,)” Hart says with her 8-year-old daughter by her side.

Wong was exposed to toxic chemicals on active duty. As a result, she developed systemic scleroderma, an autoimmune disorder that affects the skin and internal organs characterized by the buildup of scar tissue in the skin and other organs.

In her response email, Wong wrote that a scooter would give her the freedom to shop for groceries at a store a mile from her home. Previously, she had to bike or walk, which caused extreme fatigue.

“I have stories to do and places to go,” Wong says. “My partner and I, we want to take the drone with me on the scooter on the bike route and have the drone follow me. I want to do a story and give it to the owner of PHAT Scooters. We want to give him the footage. So, we are excited about doing that.”

Taylor ensured his three children had everything they need. With limited resources, Taylor heads to the VA for health and counseling services.

Ability 360’s staff told Taylor about the contest. He was shocked — to say the least — when he was revealed as a winner.

“I thought I was going to get a T-shirt or something, but it really made this year flash before my eyes and everything that I’ve been through,” Taylor says, as tears formed. “I’ve been working hard and fighting for me and my three kids. There is light at the end of the tunnel — it’s been exciting.”

The scooter means a lot to him.

“It means that God is watching over me and there is a lot of good things in the future,” Taylor says. “This is just a sign that there are breakthroughs that are happening. I just have to keep my head up and keep pushing forward, especially for my kids.”

Moran is proud of the PHATTY G3 Electric Scooter and the contest. The company worked for five years to improve the vehicle.

“It has a ton of torque, so you can get up any hill, which has been part of the problem with many other electric vehicles out there,” Moran says.

“The range has been extended so you get 30 to 35 miles on a charge. We just added all the features that our customers suggested over the last three years.”

The features include added safety measures; a new display, turn signals and stop signals; under lighting so others can see riders from the side; an improved headlamp and “all the telematics inside the front breastplate so we can also know where it is,” according to Moran.

One of his favorite improvements is the scooter’s soft back.

“I’m a larger person so having the hard tail was tough on my tail, so we went to a softer back,” he says. “We changed the footplates so you can change your look whenever you feel like it. That’s what makes it really different is power and safety.”

Moran says his company donates 18 scooters through charity, primarily in the Valley.

“We try to stay local but sometimes not,” Moran says. “We give another 24 gift bags, roughly a $500 value, away to charities that can’t afford it. We also give charities a 25% discount, if they do a live auction of our scooter.”

Like PHAT Scooters, Moran says charity is embedded in him.

“All of my companies have a designated gifting plan, which companies don’t generally do,” he adds. “For us, it is part of the community, and we are responsible to give back what we can.”

Army veteran Kristen Hart takes her daughter, Bryleigh, for a spin on the PHATTY G3 Electric Scooter by PHAT Scooters. (Photo by Annika Tomlin)