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MEMPHIS, Tenn. — One Shelby County woman was left feeling loved and grateful after the Sheriff’s Office Community Service Volunteers helped repair her wheelchair ramp. Service volunteer Roosevelt Jackson began making calls after seeing the deteriorating condition of the 14-year-old wheelchair ramp of Bernice Knox, who’s also known as “Granny.” Harwell and Thomas Home Improvement volunteered to help fix the ramp for free. “I couldn’t get out by myself before they lifted the ramp,” Knox said. “I always had to have help, and sometimes you get tired of calling and asking just to put you on the porch.” The kindness didn’t stop at the wheelchair ramp; they also rebuilt the porch ceiling and made sure some trees and bushes were also trimmed.
“It was a blessing that somebody volunteered to do these things. It’s some good people still here to do it, that’s what went through my mind,” Knox said. “I said, ‘Well God is good.'” Volunteers from the community services division visit about 275 senior citizens in the county every week. “It’s absolutely amazing what these people do for the sheriff’s department. I mean, they take time out of their lives away from their full-time jobs, away from their families to give back to our community.” Thanks to these volunteers, Granny has a huge smile on her face and can take her wheelchair for a spin whenever she wants. “I appreciate that I can go out by myself, that give me a little freedom, make me think I’m doing something about myself, make me feel good.”