Forward Mobility wants your vote

Published 3:41 pm Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Joel Smith and Patty Steele-Smith own Forward Mobility. (Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald )

I know, I know — you just got done voting. But that was for politicians and referendums. This is something else entirely.

Joel Smith and Patty Steele-Smith want you to vote for them in an Inc.com competition for $100,000 in grants.

The couple owns Forward Mobility, an Edmonds-based start up that designs and sells mobility devices. They have a seated scooter to help compensate for foot, ankle, knee, leg or hip injuries. And they’re in the process of patenting a 2.5-pound prosthetic that attaches to the thigh and allows a person with an injured leg to walk without crutches.

Then there’s the bread and butter of the business — a 24-pound collapsible wheelchair designed to meet the needs of patients in poverty-stricken countries.

I met with them last week to hear their story, which starts with Joel working in the bike-building business.

The Smiths financed the start-up with their savings, supplemented with loans from family members. Bill Borders, their sales director and lone employee, worked without pay for the first few months to help get the business running.

Forward Mobility chairs are built by Kids First Enterprise, a manufacturing nonprofit in central Vietnam.