Faces of Fortescue - Meet Steven Streat

Steven Streat, Service Person at Christmas Creek, volunteers his own time to arrange the collection of used drink cans and steel items at Christmas Creek and transports them to Wheelchairs for Kids WA. Wheelchairs for Kids WA then recycles them and uses the funds to give children all over the world the gift of mobility.

Wheelchairs for Kids WA is a registered charity based in Wangara that has, over the past 23 years, donated more than 49,000 wheelchairs to children living with disability in under-resourced countries.

“I was originally inspired by a fellow team member who had collected clips from cans to turn into a prosthetic limb for his family member. This got me thinking about what I could do to help those less fortunate, so I sought permission to collect the cans and bottle caps at Christmas Creek after my shifts,” Steven said.

“Over time it has just gotten bigger and l collect more and more each day. Currently I have about six pods set up at Christmas Creek’s Kartama Village to collect the can clips, bottle caps and other small steel waste items, with more pods to come.”

Gordon Hudson, Volunteer CEO at Wheelchairs for Kids thanked Steven for his efforts and highlighted what his contribution has meant for disabled children.

“The monies received from the recycling is used to purchase materials for our volunteers to produce specialised children’s wheelchairs, with these being donated to disabled children around the world,” Gordon said.

“In a short time, this recycling program from Fortescue has resulted in 148 disabled children receiving or soon to receive their first wheelchair. These rough terrain wheelchairs, built to World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines, are completely adjustable for all sizes of children and come with all possible accoutrements for the wellbeing and comfort of the child.”

Reusing and recycling these metal items also contributes to Fortescue’s sustainability efforts.

“It’s fantastic to know that collecting these waste products will not only benefit children in Australia and around the world, it will also help to keep our beautiful environment clean,” Steven said.

Steven’s commitment to help those less fortunate is a fantastic demonstration of the Fortescue Values of family and enthusiasm.