JB Mobility Repair

John Benson has been working with the disabled community in Berkeley and the East Bay Area for the past 30 years. Originally from Ohio, John started as a student at UC Berkeley in 1988, and quickly fell in love with a group of very active people fighting for various rights for the disabled, specifically the right to live independent of the medical model.

Many people in this group became his mentors. One aspect of this was helping to form the non-profit Easy Does It, and organization that helps provide back-up attendants for personal care for seniors and people with disabilities. In 1995, John helped campaign to get Measure E passed, which successfully funded the program.

John worked with this organization in almost every capacity; the most notable was creating the transportation program, transportation manager role, as well as the emergency wheelchair and durable medical equipment repair program. In this capacity, he developed and managed a large shop and inventory of donated used wheelchair parts which grew into a library of Loaner chairs, scooters and other equipment.

He also formed inter-agency collaborations with The Center for Independent Living, Through the Looking Glass, and other non profits who specialize in working with Disability Rights. He worked for Easy Does It from its inception before1995 until 2019. He also spent 5 years on the Board of Directors from 2006 to 2011. 

Besides the development for Easy Does It, he also helped start a low-income housing non-profit “Pink Inc.” in 1998. He is on the Board. In addition to starting his own business, JB Mobility Repair, he currently works with The Center for Independent Living (CIL) building ramps and making homes accessible.