Give the Gift of Independence with the HART Travel Training Program!

Travel Training is available for anyone!

Driving to work, the doctor, school, the supermarket, to visit friends or just to get out and go is something many of us take for granted. 

According to different studies, lack of transit literally hurts many Americans. The 40 percent of American military veterans who live in rural areas report much lower health quality of life scores than urban veterans. The Veterans Administration attributes this in part to poor transit to medical facilities. Lack of transit to after-school sports means that rural kids are 25 percent more likely to be obese. And the future will be grimmer: by 2016, 15 million elderly people will be without access to transportation. Studies have shown that when seniors can no longer drive their cars, they cease participating in society: Visits to friends and family fall by 65 percent; shopping and eating trips fall by 59 percent. This lack of mobility impacts people’s ability to get around and Socializing becomes pretty much impossible. 

For many riders in Hillsborough County, HART means freedom, independence, self-possession. It gives people the ability to get out in the community, meet other people, be involved and to do the things that they enjoy doing.
 

Giving people a sense of independence is what drives HART Travel Trainer Mark Sheppard and his co-workers. This special group of individuals are passionate about what they do.  Mark has been a Travel Trainer with HART for 14 years.  

The HART Travel Training program has helped many folks in the Tampa bay area learn how to get around on their own and many have regained their much needed freedom but there is one program in particular that the HART Travel Training program helps out with that has made a world of difference for many. On occasion, Mark has the opportunity to assist the Recreation Therapist at the James A. Haley VA Hospital with the Traumatic Brain Injury veterans. These veterans typically only reach this stage of therapy of testing the use of public transit after 4-5 years as a patient at the hospital, many in power chairs. That’s where the HART Travel Trainer helps out. Mark and his team were asked to help with trip planning and participate in the trips to provide their assessment of the veteran’s ability to navigate a public bus system with the Recreation Therapist.

On a specific occasion, a veteran named Chester, from New York City, was scheduled to be assessed on an upcoming bus trip. As before on other occasions, HART Travel Trainers inquire from the therapist some basic information about the veteran. When Mark, heard he was from New York, and that he was a big Yankee’s fan, it was easy to determine where the trip plan would be taking them. It was early March, and Yankees Spring Training takes place in Tampa. In addition, HART had a Transfer Center within walking distance to Steinbrenner Field.

Let's tag along.

Mark, Chester, and the therapist headed to West Tampa Transfer Center. Once there, they crossed Himes Ave, and made their way to the pedestrian bridge over Dale Mabry Hwy. to Steinbrenner Field, where they were able to watch Chester’s favorite team practice.

We recognize people know HART as Hillsborough County’s public transportation system. However, there’s more to HART than buses on the street, or the bus stops and shelters you see in your neighborhood.

Give the gift of mobility with our FREE Travel Training program. ANYONE, regardless of ability, is able to take advantage of the HART Travel Training program.

Schedule a Travel Training session for parents, children, etc. by calling 813-254-4278! 

HART High Five: Mark Sheppard, Travel Trainer

We're introducing a new series titled "HART High Fives," which will recognize HART employees that have recently received commendations from patrons. We'd like to share a letter from Liz, who takes care of Brenda, the focus of this letter.

Congratulations to Mark Sheppard, Travel Trainer, who received this high five:

"An interesting thing occurred last month while Brenda was taking the bus to her doctor's appointment ... She lives right off of West Waters Avenue and went to her bus stop across from the Walgreens near her home and waited for the Route 16 bus, which her iPad said would get there by a certain time.

When it was 15 minutes past the time it was supposed to arrive, Brenda did an amazing thing. She called HART and found out that the [scheduled] time had been changed since the last time she had been to that doctor, and the bus would be arriving in about 10 minutes.

She waited for it but realized en route that she would be late for her appointment if she got off the bus at a designated bus stop rather than right in front of the doctor's office. She asked for a courtesy stop, but they were not able to.

She was dropped off at the next stop, past the doctor's office, and she figured out in which direction she would have to walk to get to her doctor's office. She arrived 5 minutes late, but that was no big deal.

Someone who doesn't know Brenda would wonder what was so special about what happened that day. You know Brenda and her cognitive abilities. This type of independent behavior would have been totally absent if not for YOUR travel training expertise and the time you spent with her PLUS all the experience and confidence she has gained through accessing HART's public transportation on a daily basis for the past five or six years.

She takes the bus to a couple of different doctors' offices, to the public library, three different malls, her credit union and the Super Wal-Mart on Henderson, to name a few. She is now asking if she can take it to night school (Chamberlain). It has freed my time up considerably and given her a level of confidence and independence. She's now able to have so much control of her life.

Thank you, Mark, from the bottom of my heart, for taking that time so very long ago to make Brenda the independent traveler that she is today."

- Liz Price

Mark Sheppard has been with HART since 2003 and is nationally recognized in the industry for his travel training work. Sheppard has been honored by a number of organizations, including: the Florida Diagnostics & Learning Resources System, Center for Urban Research, Council for Exceptional Children and the USF College of Education. Sheppard plans on hitting a milestone, when he trains his 1000th "trainee" in December 2011 or January 2012.

Here's a HART high five to Mark for all his great work. We're glad to have him as a member of the HART family!

How to Ride

Tampa is synonymous with pirates, so it’s only fitting that a few “arrrgh mateys” would help us teach you and other riders the ins and outs of riding HART. The video was shot in various locations of downtown Tampa and focuses on the Krewe of Gasparilla and their adventurous trek back to their ship.

Luckily, HART was there to help them keep their head above water!

The video can be found on the HART YouTube Channel, as well as on www.goHART.org.

Thanks to the Krewe of Gasparilla, the production “krewe” at CTTV and HART Employees, Marcia Mejia and Mark Sheppard for their help with the video! Great job!