By Ken Lay

Throughout his career, Shane Ogle was always been a public servant. He’s worked as a public safety officer for McGhee-Tyson Airport, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department and the Blount County Sheriff’s Department.

But an injury changed his life and ended that career, but Ogle felt the need to continue to serve his neighbors. He does that by providing services for those with mobility challenges.

He and his wife Tiffany now own Mobility City of East Tennessee. The couple also employs their son Nick and daughter Madison.

And Shane said he feels blessed to have the opportunity to continue helping others after more than two decades as an officer.

“After an Achilles injury ended my public safety career of 20-plus years, I wanted to work for myself in a field where I could continue to serve my community,” Shane said. “I witnessed firsthand how debilitating mobility issues can be while caring for my grandparents, who have since passed on.

“Opening Mobility City of East Tennessee has given me the opportunity to serve, give back and meet the needs of others.”

Shane and Tiffany opened the business approximately a year ago, in July of 2018 and the Knoxville Area franchise serves customers in Anderson, Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Hamblen, Hancock, Jefferson, Knox, Sevier, Scott and Union County.

Shane said that he has plans of expanding and opening a store location in the near future. He tends to his customers by driving a van.

“We opened our location serving East Tennessee in July of 2018, and as a franchise, we were thrilled to partner with the experts at Mobility City who had more than 35 years of experience,” he said. “We hope to expand and serve the needs of the Tri-Cities Area, as well as the Chattanooga Area.

“The mobility needs of our outlying areas are extremely underserved and we are currently willing to travel to help them out. Since opening, we have met the needs of customers as far away as Nashville, Lexington, Asheville and Chattanooga. We are considering a retail location to better serve our clients. [But] with so many brick-and-mortar stores struggling to compete with Amazon and other online shops, though, we felt like a mobile-based business was our best first step.”

The company services, rents, repairs and sells mobility equipment, including power wheelchairs, scooters, lift-out recliners, hospital beds, manual wheelchairs rollators/walkers and bathroom aids. Mobility City of East Tennessee is also a retail dealer for major brands. It offers warranty and non-warranty repairs even for items purchased elsewhere.

Shane also noted that he and Tiffany are “so very fortunate to cultivate” the family-owned business.

“We also employ two of our adult children,” he said. “My favorite part of working alongside them is being able to share the rewarding, feel-good, we-just-helped-someone moments.

“Mobility concerns usually show up unexpectedly, so meeting the needs of our customers quickly and at a fair price can help them take control of their life again. Sharing those moments with the people you love most is energizing. And trust me, new business owners need all the energy they can get.”

Shane also said that referrals and repeat customers are vital to his business, noting that he and his family takes great joy in getting to know their customers and serving their clients on a long-term basis.

For more information, visit Mobility City of East Tennessee online at www.mobilitycity.com/easttennessee.