Andrea Pianka Vehicle Replacement Fund

My Name is Chris Cignoli and WE NEED YOUR HELP!

On December 8, 2022, at 5:30 pm, Andrea Pianka was involved in a very serious motor vehicle accident at the intersection of Bay Street and Roosevelt Avenue in Springfield, MA. The accident was caused by an uninsured driver who blew through a red light and caused the accident. Andrea’s “special” mini-van is a total loss.

Why is this accident different that many of the other that occur on a daily basis?

Andrea is a quadriplegic from a previous accident that occurred over 20 years ago. The van was her only means and methods for allowing her to interact with the outside world – and due to the accident, that has been taken from her. A replacement van equipped with the necessary modifications to allow her to drive, costs in excess of $80,000.

Our goal, as friends and family, of Andrea and her parents, Bill and Denise, is to assist them financially in replacing their daughter’s vehicle---as in this case insurance only goes so far with the rising costs of vehicles, and the cost for retrofitting a new vehicle with the needed modification to allow her to enter / exit the vehicle and to drive to / from work.

Andrea is a very special woman ---and in need of the community’s help. The following was posted by her on her facebook page following the accident:

I wanted to take a moment to honor this van and the loss of it. Some may say that it is just a vehicle and it can be replaced (this is certainly true and this one, that enables a paralyzed person to drive, will take some time to replace). Other than my powerchair, this van was my first taste of freedom following my first accident. I remember the joy and pride I always felt being able to drive to work, to see and enjoy my horses and anywhere else! I even enjoyed driving my parents around after they transported me for so many years. 70,000 miles of adventures and fun. Being the daughter of parents who love cars, I have always felt that they have souls. I was told that this van learned how I drove and this was so true! (I even talked to my van like my horse ). A case manager at Baystate had made a remark that maybe I should stay off the road (she thought she was funny and even in my condition, I turned around and said that I planned to drive again). She was embarrassed after learning the circumstances of accident 2. We cannot live in bubbles. Bad things happen, sometimes twice or more, but we have to keep going. That is life. Good bye good van. Your replacement will have big tires to fill. I will drive again.

Let’s all help her to get the needed funds to get her back out into the world to allow her to live life again! Please support in any way that you can!