Aleva Stores was founded as American Orthopedic Services in 1957 by Joseph L. Gaskins. Mr. G.", as everyone knew him, was born in 1914 in a small farming community in southern Indiana. At age 3, he lost his leg to infection. After crutching to school and around the farm for 10 years, he received his first prosthetic leg. It was at that point in time he decided to dedicate his life to prosthetic manufacturing and to assisting those with medical needs. In the late 1930s, he moved to Michigan and continued working in the medical field. In 1957, he opened his first store in Pontiac, Michigan, which has remained open to this very day.