Senar Gül, who repairs battery powered vehicles and wheelchairs for disabled individuals free of charge in the workshop he opened in İpekyolu district about 3 years ago, says that they came to life 1-0 but they struggled to equalize this zero.
Senar Gül, who lives in the Edremit district of Van, is physically disabled after an operation at the age of 4. Gul, whose battery-powered vehicle, which was given to him as a gift years ago, broke down, goes to the cyclist to repair his vehicle, but it cannot be repaired. After that, Gül started to make repairs at home for a while, opening a workshop in Seyit Fehim District of İpekyolu district about 3 years ago, and rolling up his sleeves to repair the battery-operated vehicles used by disabled people in case of breakdown.
Two armchairs are in Gul’s workshop for his friends to sit and wait comfortably. This is not only a repair shop, but also a chat workshop where they discuss problems to solve. Gul says that he is happy with his work.
‘I started with a small repair kit’
Stating that he repairs vehicles so that he can benefit his friends, Gül says that only they can understand their own problems. Gül said, “I started with a very small repair kit. I experimented with battery-powered vehicles until midnight to learn about repair work. Many friends couldn’t go to the hospitals because their cars sometimes broke down when they had to go to the hospital. I tried to do something like this, thinking, ‘How can I be useful to my friends’. I am happy with this job and my friends are also satisfied. We see our own business. If we don’t believe we exist, no one will see us. I was going to the bike shop when my vehicle broke down and when I said ‘my bike had a flat tire’ they couldn’t help me. We grew up with many difficulties, but I am happy with my life.”
‘We can’t do anything without making a decision’
Stating that most disabled people are stuck at home because of their disability, Gül says that most disabled people are inspired by life by looking at themselves. Stating that his workshop is not only a repair shop, but also that if there is an obstacle in the conversation, they come up with a solution by turning around that disabled person, he says: “We can’t do anything without making a decision. We came to this world 1-0 to overcome these obstacles, we will make that zero equal and we will hold on to life. Let’s hold on to life so that people can be proud of us. We try to live our lives in the best possible way despite all the difficulties with our friends.”
‘There are no facilities for the disabled in Van’
Stating that there is no opportunity for the disabled in Van, Gül tells about a recent incident: “Recently, there was a pole at the end of the yellow lines made for visually impaired individuals in one of the busy streets of Van. I was told to myself that the engineer who did this had done such a thing by living his mind. So I came across a funny incident. If the people who made it pass by wearing dark glasses and wearing a walking stick, they would understand the situation of the visually impaired. There weren’t any purple buses before, although now we still face many problems. Our parking spaces on the bus are usurped. They need to review these issues.”
Serhat News
Translator: Akif Coşkun
