A welcome helping hand for adaptive winter sports
This week, Verbier4All inaugurated its first sitski on the slopes of Verbier. This purchase was made possible by a generous donation CHF10,500 from the UBS employees charity fund. The association, A Helping Hand from UBS Employees was represented by Mr. Iwan Willisch, Regional Director of UBS Valais, Mr. Flavio Schmid, Vice-President of the fund and Mr. Pierre-Jean Darbellay, Manager of UBS Verbier.
The visitors from UBS were given a demonstration of the Tessier Tempo Duo in action by Leila steering with the outriggers and Verbier4All’s President, Valérie Vaucher and Technical Manager, Annick Meystre piloting in turn from behind. Patron, Jean-Yves Michellod followed in his Tessier Scarver.
“We are delighted to have received this support from A Helping Hand from UBS Employees association. This sum of CHF10,500 has helped us to buy the dualski which will enable us to share the joy of skiing with people with a physical or mental deficit,” explained Valérie Vaucher, President of Verbier4All.
Technical director, Annick Meystre added “A big thank you to The Helping Hand from UBS Employees association, the representatives from UBS who attended the inauguration and especially Mr. Pierre- Jean Darbellay, who guided and supported us through our application.”
“Medical studies support the opinion of health specialists that family sporting activities in the mountains have a positive impact. Sport not only improves overall health, but also self-confidence. This is why it is really worthwhile making quality equipment more available to people of limited mobility, especially at affordable prices,” commented Iwan Willisch, Regional Director of UBS Valais, as he handed over the symbolic cheque. “For this reason, we are delighted the Helping Hand from UBS Employees association has been able to support the purchase of this piece of specialised technical equipment.”
Verbier4All’s patron, Jean-Yves Michellod said, “I’m so happy to see this first rig arrive in Verbier, it’s just huge to know that we are going to be able to offer such moments of freedom to people of limited mobility with this adaptive equipment, and for free!”
The Helping Hand from UBS Employees association, an initiative of the bank’s workforce, was created some 40 years ago to improve the quality of life of people in Switzerland suffering from physical, mental or multiple handicaps. It is financed by contributions from current and retired employees and gifts, with UBS doubling the employees’ contributions.
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