REALTOR® Sabrina Cohen remembers enjoying the beaches in Miami—feeling the sand between her toes and wading into the ocean for a swim. That was before she was involved in a terrible car accident as a high school sophomore and suffered a spinal cord injury.
Her mission to help others with mobility issues began years later in 2012 when she visited the beach in her wheelchair with a colleague.
“I basically got stuck in the sand, and I felt helpless because I couldn’t get out on my own. It took about six tourists to help me,” says Cohen, a sales associate with Coldwell Banker Realty in Miami Beach.
The frustration inspired her to launch a nonprofit dedicated to providing beach access, adaptive fitness and recreational activities for people with disabilities. The Sabrina Cohen Foundation created Miami Beach’s first inclusive playground and runs monthly Adaptive Beach Days that allow people with mobility issues to enjoy a swim.
Twice a month, a removable boardwalk provides a surface so wheelchairs can move toward the water. Dozens of volunteers set up activities and food, and they help beachgoers into and out of special wheelchairs that can roll right into the ocean. Volunteers help them swim, float and recline on a chaise lounge. The Adaptive Beach Days typically welcome about 30 participants and have 50 volunteers.
“This event is so meaningful because it brings people from all walks of life together in a totally nonjudgmental inclusive space, empowering people to do things they otherwise wouldn’t think possible,” Cohen says.
But her ultimate goal is a fully adaptive recreation center. In partnership with the city of Miami Beach, Cohen is spearheading a $25 million capital campaign to build a state-of-the-art adaptive recreation center. It will be the first-of-a-kind oceanfront facility on the East Coast serving individuals with mobility challenges—from children to adults to seniors. The center will feature three floors of fitness and therapy spaces and a rooftop pool, plus full-service beachside and water activities.