Please Help Save Hunter's Wheels!
Donation protected
***UPDATE: Donations are NOW being accepted here for ALL of Hunter's signficant medical needs/outstanding expenses, not only his transporation needs. Thank you to Wayback Burgers CT for hosting their current fundraiser with this link to HELP HUNTER have a chance at a brighter/better future! Hunter & family truly appreciate everyone's support & are so very grateful to each of you! Any donation amount is helpfu & will serve to make a lasting difference in Hunter's life! Please SHARE Hunter's story and page with your friends, so that they also can be inspired by this extraordinary boy and support him here! Let's show Hunter that despite his extremely RARE disease, that there are many people who love, support and pray for him in his brave battle to OutSmart SMARD! Love and thanks, everyone!!
Anyone that knows 9 yr. old Hunter knows that despite his extremely rare/debilitating disease, SMARD, he is IN LOVE WITH LIFE and lives every day with great passion, determination, HOPE, faith, positivity, always wanting to help another. Hunter has always focused on his abilities, not his disabilities, giving his very best, with his actions having helped numerous others in a variety of ways. He is a beacon of inspiration with his mantra "HOPE, LOVE & NEVER EVER GIVE UP!" Hunter has never complained about anything in his life, despite being paralyzed/wheelchair dependent, fully reliant 24-7 on life support ventilator to help him breathe, having endured countless surgeries since he was 8 months old, and thousands of therapy appointments to help him live and become his strongest. Hunter is undoubtedly a Warrior and a Champion in life! All he wants to do is continue to get out there in the world, to live his life to the fullest every day, enjoying all the things most of us tend to take for granted and to SHINE brightly in his own unique way. This is not possible without transportation...
Hunter's handicap wheelchair Sprinter van, which is customized for his individualized medical needs, died a few weeks ago, rendering Hunter without transportation and he essentially, unable to leave home. Hunter missed many appointments, a summer camp session, a variety of otherwise planned commitments which meant a great deal to him, not to mention opportunities to pursue routine activities that other kids his age enjoy during the summertime. His family tried alternate transportation for him, which showed to not be viable/functional at all in meeting his needs. If nothing else, this huge hardship confirmed that Hunter and his family are fully reliant on having medically customized transportation, in order to not only transport Hunter, but to also meet all of his identified care needs in all locations.
Hunter's family tried, as they always do, to self-resolve all needs. In fact, they had the Sprinter van assessed by mechanics they knew, in hopes the van repairs would be on the smaller side and swiftly managed. However, the level of engine problems required the van to be towed away to mechanics who specialize in diagnosing/repairing the Sprinters, which as a commercial van, is very costly. They were given an estimate for close to $5,000, which was overwhelming, particularly considering they had recently prior to these profound engine problems, repaired the van's handicap wheelchair lift, which cost roughly $1,400. To face almost $7,000 in necessary medical van repairs in a matter of two months has been devastating to the family. Insurance did not assist in anyway with the ascertainment of this customized medical transportation for Hunter, nor do they offer assistance with repair costs. In case you didn't know, most government and insurance transportation programs only provide public wheelchair drop off/pick up for medical appointments, with a variety of restrictions, which do not allow Hunter's medical needs to be fully met in all settings.
Myself, along with Hunter's family, is humbly asking for your help with SAVING HUNTER'S WHEELS! Thank you for working together as a loving community to get Hunter up and out in the world again, along with doing all we can to give him a head start with this medical van fund for future van breakdowns which costs thousands of dollars, in the hopes that Hunter will not have to endure such isolation and heartbreak again, and he can live the life he deserves. No one ever wants to feel "stuck," but imagine if you lived your life daily with the amount of constraints that Hunter does and then your mobility was unexpectedly taken away, too?!
Thank you so very much for joining us in helping Hunter, as his mobility is key to his quality of life! I know Hunter and his family are forever grateful for any and all help you share with them, and thank you also for sharing his story with your friends, so that he can continue to be the amazing inspiration that he has been and is meant to be in this world! God bless, you, Hunter, and each of you for reaching out to help SAVE HUNTER'S WHEELS!!!
Anyone that knows 9 yr. old Hunter knows that despite his extremely rare/debilitating disease, SMARD, he is IN LOVE WITH LIFE and lives every day with great passion, determination, HOPE, faith, positivity, always wanting to help another. Hunter has always focused on his abilities, not his disabilities, giving his very best, with his actions having helped numerous others in a variety of ways. He is a beacon of inspiration with his mantra "HOPE, LOVE & NEVER EVER GIVE UP!" Hunter has never complained about anything in his life, despite being paralyzed/wheelchair dependent, fully reliant 24-7 on life support ventilator to help him breathe, having endured countless surgeries since he was 8 months old, and thousands of therapy appointments to help him live and become his strongest. Hunter is undoubtedly a Warrior and a Champion in life! All he wants to do is continue to get out there in the world, to live his life to the fullest every day, enjoying all the things most of us tend to take for granted and to SHINE brightly in his own unique way. This is not possible without transportation...
Hunter's handicap wheelchair Sprinter van, which is customized for his individualized medical needs, died a few weeks ago, rendering Hunter without transportation and he essentially, unable to leave home. Hunter missed many appointments, a summer camp session, a variety of otherwise planned commitments which meant a great deal to him, not to mention opportunities to pursue routine activities that other kids his age enjoy during the summertime. His family tried alternate transportation for him, which showed to not be viable/functional at all in meeting his needs. If nothing else, this huge hardship confirmed that Hunter and his family are fully reliant on having medically customized transportation, in order to not only transport Hunter, but to also meet all of his identified care needs in all locations.
Hunter's family tried, as they always do, to self-resolve all needs. In fact, they had the Sprinter van assessed by mechanics they knew, in hopes the van repairs would be on the smaller side and swiftly managed. However, the level of engine problems required the van to be towed away to mechanics who specialize in diagnosing/repairing the Sprinters, which as a commercial van, is very costly. They were given an estimate for close to $5,000, which was overwhelming, particularly considering they had recently prior to these profound engine problems, repaired the van's handicap wheelchair lift, which cost roughly $1,400. To face almost $7,000 in necessary medical van repairs in a matter of two months has been devastating to the family. Insurance did not assist in anyway with the ascertainment of this customized medical transportation for Hunter, nor do they offer assistance with repair costs. In case you didn't know, most government and insurance transportation programs only provide public wheelchair drop off/pick up for medical appointments, with a variety of restrictions, which do not allow Hunter's medical needs to be fully met in all settings.
Myself, along with Hunter's family, is humbly asking for your help with SAVING HUNTER'S WHEELS! Thank you for working together as a loving community to get Hunter up and out in the world again, along with doing all we can to give him a head start with this medical van fund for future van breakdowns which costs thousands of dollars, in the hopes that Hunter will not have to endure such isolation and heartbreak again, and he can live the life he deserves. No one ever wants to feel "stuck," but imagine if you lived your life daily with the amount of constraints that Hunter does and then your mobility was unexpectedly taken away, too?!
Thank you so very much for joining us in helping Hunter, as his mobility is key to his quality of life! I know Hunter and his family are forever grateful for any and all help you share with them, and thank you also for sharing his story with your friends, so that he can continue to be the amazing inspiration that he has been and is meant to be in this world! God bless, you, Hunter, and each of you for reaching out to help SAVE HUNTER'S WHEELS!!!
Organizer and beneficiary
Kat Gahwyler Kessler
Organizer
North Haven, CT
Adam Pageau
Beneficiary
