Joan Manley established RATS in 1995, due to her own experience living in a wheelchair and the limited resources available to her in Rockbridge County at the time.  In her early 30s, Joan was living in California, walking her dog on the beach every day, and working with children with special needs.  One day while driving to work, a drunk driver drove into on-coming traffic, hitting her head on.  When she awoke in the hospital, she was mostly paralyzed from the chest down, no longer able to walk or move her hands or fingers, not even to open her hand to pet her dog. 

After extensive rehabilitation at Woodrow Wilson Rehab Center in Waynesboro, Virginia, Joan moved to rural Rockbridge County to live with her mother, Emily, a retired nurse, who took care of all of Joan’s needs.   Emily had to pick up and carry Joan out to the car every time she wanted to go anywhere.  When Emily suddenly died of a heart attack, Joan became even more stranded at home.

Joan realized that there were other people in the community also stuck at home because of transportation limitations.  She recruited volunteer drivers, applied for grants, rented vehicles, and created Rockbridge Area Transportation System.  She was the dispatcher, manager, and volunteer coordinator from her kitchen table for many years.

In July 2020, when Joan could no longer live independently, she moved to a nursing home.   In pure Joan fashion, she survived two waves of COVID-19 in the nursing home, which tragically killed 25% of the residents.  Joan passed away on April 28, 2022 at age 73.  She two-fold outlived the life expectancy doctors estimated following her accident.

Like most other small businesses, it was not easy for RATS to continue to pay the bills during the pandemic.  Since then, raising inflation, gas prices, and wages have compounded the problem.   We ask you to donate in Joan's honor, to help keep her vision a reality.

When Joan was Ms. Wheelchair Virginia in 2009-2010, her platform was “Making Choices and Having Choices to Make.”  RATS is committed to continuing Joan’s legacy by giving everyone in our community the opportunity to access the resources necessary to live a full life with choices.  Please consider giving to the Joan Manley Founders Fund today so that no one in our community will be left stranded.

You can donate online using the button above or send a check to: 

R.A.T.S.   

712 N. Main Street, Lexington, VA 24450