Help Chris get a new accessible van
Donation protected
My name is Tara and I am the proud mother of 20 year old Christopher...
My purpose for starting this fundraiser is because Christopher is outgrowing the wheelchair accessible van we purchased for him 7 years ago..These are vehicles you don't expect to have to replace due to an increase in size..At least I didn't..Earlier this year we did attempt to trade in our current van for a larger van that will accommodate any more growth he may have but we were denied financing..After we purchased our house 6 years ago my husband was layed off...We almost lost our home and was forced to file bankruptcy which is what is hindering our efforts...
Christopher will be getting a new wheelchair next year that I anticipate to be larger than what he has now as it will have to stay with him basically for life due to insurance coverage restrictions once he turns 21 and be able to have enough room for any growth..It's not easy at all asking for help..We as parents hope to be able to provide every need & want to our children but there are times when our backs are up against a wall and we have no choice but to swallow our pride and ask...Christopher has many Doctor's and therapists he sees on a regular basis so it's important for us to have safe transportation for him...He also loves to go to the beach, the bowling alley and any place where there are lots of people and girls to flirt with...It's important to us that he gets to enjoy life as we do and live it as normal as possible... As you can see he hits head upon entering the van and that is with his chair reclined..
It has become a struggle for me to get him in and out of the van because of how narrow the opening is, the way the rear bucket seats are made & how much growth has been added to his chair in the past 7 years...When pushing him in & out the wheels run over the metal tie downs making it a real challenge to manuever..
I have a form of Muscular Dystrophy called Charcot-Marie Tooth Disease which causes muscle weakness and atrophy, and some loss of sensation in the feet, the lower legs, the hands and the forearms...I have difficulty walking and as the disease progresses I am slowly losing function of my arms & hands which heightens the struggle to get him in and out....
I'd like to share who Christopher is...He has had quite the incredible journey..On March 1, 1995 when he was 3 1/2 months old he went into septic shock & cardiac respiratory arrest because of Bacterial Meningitis..He was without oxygen for 1 hour..In cardiac arrest for 2 hours...My baby had 4 strokes and was on life support for 7 days...He was having seizures every couple of minutes...I remember being young & naive and asking the nurse why was my son shaking and why wouldn't he wake up..I think I was in shock...Christopher's spleen was damaged from being without oxygen for so long which makes him high risk for infection...He would ultimately suffer profound brain damage with 75% of his brain *dead*...
I was told my son wasn't going to make it through the night..Then it was the week...Then it was 5 years...At one point the Dr's told us he would be a vegetable for the rest of his life and suggested we *let him go*...That wasn't an option for us...I wasn't going to play god with my son's life...We slowly started to ween him off the ventilator and to everyone's surprise Christopher was breathing on his own...My baby had much unfinished work to do and wasn't ready to leave us...
After 35 days, Christopher was released to St. Mary's Home for disabled children where he spent 20 months stabilizing & recovering from his traumatic experience..During this time we had to be taught how to care for our now child with severe special needs..Christopher had lost the ability to suck & swallow so he has been fed via g-tube for 19 years now..That is a hard one for me as I feel tremendous guilt eating food in front of him...He is non verbal but has his own special way of communicating with us...Chris is confined to a wheelchair...And still in diapers...He has had pneumonia 17 times now but being the fighter he is he always bounces right back...I have a true angel beside me...
Christopher had a spinal fusion to correct his scoliosis on April 10, 2012...Unfortunately he had a very brutal recovery and was in the hospital a total of 43 days between 3 admissions with 3 trip to ICU..He had pneumonia twice and his lungs kept collapsing.. He went into respiratory distress at roughly 30 days post op ( his oxygen was at 50% ) and was rushed back to ICU and into surgery to drain 4 cups of blood that was discovered outside of his left lung...They also found an infection deep in his right lung that is resistant to most antibiotics...Even being in tremendous pain my sweet child still had that beautiful smile on his face...
I waited 18 years to see Christopher graduate but as that day drew near he was still in the hospital fighting to recover...My heart was breaking..I kept in close contact with his school during this time...Despite not being able to talk or hang out, Christopher was well known on campus for his Halloween costumes and his demand to sit outside with his nurse so he could smile and clap at the regular ed students..Luckily Christopher was released 10 days before graduation..We had taken out a full page dedication in the yearbook for him..I received a phone call asking if I could possibly bring him to a ceremony the school was having...Turns out the yearbook advisor had worked on Chris' dedication and was deeply moved by it so he dedicated the yearbook to Christopher...There wasn't a dry eye in the auditorium...I couldn't believe how many students I saw crying..This is the yearbook ad...
And here is the dedication ceremony
Christopher went on to graduate..The school was so accomodating to his needs and even allowed his father to push him down the field to his seat...At one point we saw staff running to get him a blanket because they were worried that he was cold..Christopher received a standing ovation by his peers when his name was called..It was a moment I will never forget and still makes me cry to this day...His yearbook is filled with touching messages from students telling what an inspiration he is..
Christopher has been such a blessing to our family...He has taught us unconditional love, patience and to be thankful for the little things for those truly are the big things...He always has a smile on his face and touches hearts that have never met him with his sweet laughter...Not a moment goes by where he isn't laughing or smiling..
As you can see we have been blessed with an amazing gift...He has added an abundance of love and laughter to our lives so we want to keep giving him the best life possible...Thank you so much for taking the time to read Christopher's story..We truly appreciate all the shares, donations and kind messages...We have also decided that if we are able to raise enough funds for a down payment w/o having to use our current van as a trade, we will pay it forward by donating it to a family who is in desperate need of an accessible van for their special angel..I hope to be able to make their dreams come true as well..Thank you again!!
My purpose for starting this fundraiser is because Christopher is outgrowing the wheelchair accessible van we purchased for him 7 years ago..These are vehicles you don't expect to have to replace due to an increase in size..At least I didn't..Earlier this year we did attempt to trade in our current van for a larger van that will accommodate any more growth he may have but we were denied financing..After we purchased our house 6 years ago my husband was layed off...We almost lost our home and was forced to file bankruptcy which is what is hindering our efforts...
Christopher will be getting a new wheelchair next year that I anticipate to be larger than what he has now as it will have to stay with him basically for life due to insurance coverage restrictions once he turns 21 and be able to have enough room for any growth..It's not easy at all asking for help..We as parents hope to be able to provide every need & want to our children but there are times when our backs are up against a wall and we have no choice but to swallow our pride and ask...Christopher has many Doctor's and therapists he sees on a regular basis so it's important for us to have safe transportation for him...He also loves to go to the beach, the bowling alley and any place where there are lots of people and girls to flirt with...It's important to us that he gets to enjoy life as we do and live it as normal as possible... As you can see he hits head upon entering the van and that is with his chair reclined..
It has become a struggle for me to get him in and out of the van because of how narrow the opening is, the way the rear bucket seats are made & how much growth has been added to his chair in the past 7 years...When pushing him in & out the wheels run over the metal tie downs making it a real challenge to manuever..
I have a form of Muscular Dystrophy called Charcot-Marie Tooth Disease which causes muscle weakness and atrophy, and some loss of sensation in the feet, the lower legs, the hands and the forearms...I have difficulty walking and as the disease progresses I am slowly losing function of my arms & hands which heightens the struggle to get him in and out....
I'd like to share who Christopher is...He has had quite the incredible journey..On March 1, 1995 when he was 3 1/2 months old he went into septic shock & cardiac respiratory arrest because of Bacterial Meningitis..He was without oxygen for 1 hour..In cardiac arrest for 2 hours...My baby had 4 strokes and was on life support for 7 days...He was having seizures every couple of minutes...I remember being young & naive and asking the nurse why was my son shaking and why wouldn't he wake up..I think I was in shock...Christopher's spleen was damaged from being without oxygen for so long which makes him high risk for infection...He would ultimately suffer profound brain damage with 75% of his brain *dead*...
I was told my son wasn't going to make it through the night..Then it was the week...Then it was 5 years...At one point the Dr's told us he would be a vegetable for the rest of his life and suggested we *let him go*...That wasn't an option for us...I wasn't going to play god with my son's life...We slowly started to ween him off the ventilator and to everyone's surprise Christopher was breathing on his own...My baby had much unfinished work to do and wasn't ready to leave us...
After 35 days, Christopher was released to St. Mary's Home for disabled children where he spent 20 months stabilizing & recovering from his traumatic experience..During this time we had to be taught how to care for our now child with severe special needs..Christopher had lost the ability to suck & swallow so he has been fed via g-tube for 19 years now..That is a hard one for me as I feel tremendous guilt eating food in front of him...He is non verbal but has his own special way of communicating with us...Chris is confined to a wheelchair...And still in diapers...He has had pneumonia 17 times now but being the fighter he is he always bounces right back...I have a true angel beside me...
Christopher had a spinal fusion to correct his scoliosis on April 10, 2012...Unfortunately he had a very brutal recovery and was in the hospital a total of 43 days between 3 admissions with 3 trip to ICU..He had pneumonia twice and his lungs kept collapsing.. He went into respiratory distress at roughly 30 days post op ( his oxygen was at 50% ) and was rushed back to ICU and into surgery to drain 4 cups of blood that was discovered outside of his left lung...They also found an infection deep in his right lung that is resistant to most antibiotics...Even being in tremendous pain my sweet child still had that beautiful smile on his face...
I waited 18 years to see Christopher graduate but as that day drew near he was still in the hospital fighting to recover...My heart was breaking..I kept in close contact with his school during this time...Despite not being able to talk or hang out, Christopher was well known on campus for his Halloween costumes and his demand to sit outside with his nurse so he could smile and clap at the regular ed students..Luckily Christopher was released 10 days before graduation..We had taken out a full page dedication in the yearbook for him..I received a phone call asking if I could possibly bring him to a ceremony the school was having...Turns out the yearbook advisor had worked on Chris' dedication and was deeply moved by it so he dedicated the yearbook to Christopher...There wasn't a dry eye in the auditorium...I couldn't believe how many students I saw crying..This is the yearbook ad...
And here is the dedication ceremony
Christopher went on to graduate..The school was so accomodating to his needs and even allowed his father to push him down the field to his seat...At one point we saw staff running to get him a blanket because they were worried that he was cold..Christopher received a standing ovation by his peers when his name was called..It was a moment I will never forget and still makes me cry to this day...His yearbook is filled with touching messages from students telling what an inspiration he is..
Christopher has been such a blessing to our family...He has taught us unconditional love, patience and to be thankful for the little things for those truly are the big things...He always has a smile on his face and touches hearts that have never met him with his sweet laughter...Not a moment goes by where he isn't laughing or smiling..
As you can see we have been blessed with an amazing gift...He has added an abundance of love and laughter to our lives so we want to keep giving him the best life possible...Thank you so much for taking the time to read Christopher's story..We truly appreciate all the shares, donations and kind messages...We have also decided that if we are able to raise enough funds for a down payment w/o having to use our current van as a trade, we will pay it forward by donating it to a family who is in desperate need of an accessible van for their special angel..I hope to be able to make their dreams come true as well..Thank you again!!
Organizer
Tara Haynes Metsker
Organizer
Lakewood, CA
