A Wheelchair Van for Tyler

Friends, Family & Supporters of Tyler Longland,

THIS CAMPAIGN IS NOW CLOSED, WITH SINCEREST THANKS TO ALL WHO CONTRIBUTED.  WE MADE GOAL FOR TY, AND THEN SOME ... IN LESS THAN ONE WEEK!

If you still wish to contribute in order to help Tyler with his various needs, you can send a check to Ty's fiancee, Sarah Hughes. For her mailing address and other info, you can email Sarah at [email redacted].
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As many of you know, almost three years ago in January, Tyler had a massive and devastating stroke at the age of 32. We’ve since learned that it was due to a hidden lupus-like syndrome that caused his kidneys to clot and his blood pressure to spike so high that it caused a major brain bleed.  

The stroke has left him with many setbacks but two in particular are his inability to use most of the right side of his body and aphasia, which is a communication disability for speech and language comprehension. As a result, he has been wheelchair dependent and he’ll need to be on a blood thinner for the rest of his life (to prevent any future clots). 

Despite these setbacks, Tyler has made some progress:

1.  He survived two very intensive brain surgeries;

2.  After serious damage to his kidneys and being on dialysis for two years, his kidneys regained enough function to no longer need 3 days per week of dialysis (which is very draining  and makes a person feel as if he has the flu);

3.  Thanks to the committed efforts of professional speech therapists, Ty has regained some ability to say a few words and sing a line or two on rare occasions;

4.  Most recently after testing positive for COVID (November 30) at his long-term rehab facility where he’s been for about 2 years, he has thankfully bounced back after several weeks.

Through all of these very difficult challenges, Ty has persisted. Fortunately, there is a light at the end of his tunnel -- that he’ll finally be going home to live with his fiancé and Carolina, their English Lab in Scituate, MA, hopefully this winter.

In order for this to happen safely, Ty will need a wheelchair accessible vehicle so that he can be transported to his various medical and therapeutic appointments. Accordingly, Sarah recently found a 2019 Dodge Wheelchair Caravan with 40,000 miles at Mobility Works in Woburn MA. The total cost including taxes and first year of insurance is $22,000. 

Since this is a substantial additional cost for Ty's care, we are hoping that his friends and extended family will want to show their care for him with donations that will make this purchase for Ty possible. We understand that 2020 has impacted so many people financially but no amount is too small and if you can’t, we completely understand and simply ask for your continued thoughts and prayers. 

Tyler is our miracle and inspiration. We have no doubt that being home with Sarah and Carolina will motivate and improve his continuous recovery. The state of Massachusetts will provide a home nurse to come on a daily basis while also allowing physical, occupational and speech therapists to come frequently to facilitate Ty's recovery. 

PLEASE NOTE: The default tip amount to GoFundMe might be rather high, so make sure you set it to what you want. You can set it down to zero if you prefer.

Also, Ty's fiance Sarah Hughes, and his Mom Jorie Hunken are also part of Ty's fundraising team, so if you prefer to deal with them directly, you can contact them at their email address:    Sarah -- [email redacted]     or      Jorie -- [email redacted]

Thank you all in advance - it means the world to us and any donation will truly impact Tyler’s future for the better. He and his family will be forever grateful to all of you.