Rev. Mel West saw a need and aimed to fill it. That’s the short story of how the retired minister started Personal Energy Transportion (PET) Project in his garage in Columbia, Missouri in 1995.
The idea for PET came about when Larry Hills, a visiting missionary from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then called Zaire), told West about the need for three-wheeled chairs that could navigate muddy, rocky trails. Retired and with some extra time and energy on his hands, West decided to see what he could do to meet that need. West enlisted the help of friend Earl Miner, an airplane product designer, and together they came up with a metal-framed prototype with a wooden bed and bicycle-like pedals powered by hands instead of feet.
“We sent it over and told them to put it in the worst places to see if it will stand up and work,” West said. The prototype stood up very well, and the requests for PETs started rolling in.
A lifelong do-gooder with plenty of friends and connections, West was able to organize a team of volunteers quickly. He toted PETs to church meetings, conventions and conferences to enlist help and raise money for parts. Over time, the word spread and the ministry steadily grew.
In 2004, Freddie Brown with members of Blackman United Methodist Church founded The P.E.T. Project of Middle Tennessee, Inc. workshop, an IRS 501(c)(3) organization, to join the handful of small-scale PET workshops at that time.
Please see PET International’s history for additional information about the overall PET Project Ministry history timeline. Please visit PET International for additional details about PET Project Philosophy and PET Design constraints.
