Wheelchair archer back on target

Clark County archery

Archery World

What: An archery business.

Where: 803 Grand Blvd., Vancouver.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Classes: Five-week classes begin 5:30 p.m. Jan. 22.

Cost: $50 for five-week class plus $7/night bow rental.

Contact: Joe or Megan Mallicoat, owners.

Phone: 360-963-7510.

Email: joe@archeryworld.net

Web: Archery World

Chinook Archers

What: A membership archery range with outdoor practice range and 20-lane indoor range; annual membership costs from $100-$250; join and pay membership at Archery World.

Where: 6101 N.W. Nightshade St., Camas.

Hours: Indoor range open 24 hours/day for members.

Contact: Joe Heuvel.

Phone: 360-521-2488.

Email: archeryguy02@gmail.com

Web: Chinook Archers

His left arm outstretched, Chris Cash lightly closes his fingers around the handle grip of his compound bow.

Placing an arrow onto the arrow rest and bowstring with his right hand, he draws the bowstring toward him until the arrow’s nock end is parallel to his ear. Focused on the target 20 yards in the distance, Cash releases the arrow. It’s nearly a bull’s-eye. He shoots two more arrows with the same result.

Grinning, Cash uses the controls on his power chair to retrieve his arrows from the target at the far end of the indoor range at Archery World.

Diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a baby, Cash uses the power chair for mobility.

Cash, 36, first learned archery as a boy, but as an adult, he’s perfected his skills at Archery World, where he volunteers regularly.

“My major love is archery,” Cash said. “People who are disabled can do it. Someone who isn’t athletic can do archery. It’s just you and the bow.”

But a thief who stole Cash’s power chair in November also stole his mobility.

“The night my chair was stolen, I couldn’t sleep at all,” Cash said.

Charlotte Kegley, 63, of Woodland saw a KATU news story about the power chair theft. She noticed that Cash’s stolen chair looked similar to the one her husband, John, had used for only a few months before his death a year earlier.

In the fall, a driver had crashed into Kegley’s 2012 Impala, totaling it. Months later, she is still waiting for the insurance paperwork to be completed so she can get another car.

“I could understand Chris losing his mobility,” Kegley said. “I lost my mobility, too. For someone to steal his mobility was not a good thing.”

Kegley called KATU and offered to donate her husband’s power chair to Cash.

“The TV station wanted to know why I’d give a $10,000 wheelchair to a total stranger,” Kegley said. “Yes, I could have sold it, but that’s not how I operate.

“It could have sat here and done nothing, but it’s better to help someone. The smile on Chris’ face was worth the gift. It was a good way to honor my husband’s memory.”

Joe and Megan Mallicoat, the husband-and-wife owners of Archery World, said Cash has helped at their shop for about 16 months.

“He was bored at home, so he offered to volunteer,” Joe Mallicoat said. “He started by straightening up, setting up targets and sweeping the floor. But when we get busy, he is good about helping customers. He’s really helpful.”

After Cash’s wheelchair was stolen, he still came into the store, but he walked with difficulty on crutches, Mallicoat said.

“It was very tiring for him to do for long periods of time,” he said.

Cash maneuvered his wheelchair over to Joe Mallicoat. “I love volunteering here. It beats looking at four walls every day,” Cash said. “Megan gets me to laugh. Joe (and others) try to get me to do things out of my comfort zone,” he said. “Joe and everybody here gave me a chance. I haven’t let them down yet.”

Cradling his compound bow in his lap, Cash said, “The lady who donated this chair, I am so grateful to her. She gave me back my freedom. She will always and forever be a part of my family because she gave me this gift.”