Help Amy Stay Engaged in Life with a Wheelchair Van

Hi everyone!

We first brought you Amy’s story in 2022, when she was diagnosed with MND.

We cannot thank you enough for the incredible generosity and compassion you have shown in helping Amy. Thanks to all of your generous donations to date, Amy has been able to create many unforgettable memories with her family and those closest to her.

Amy’s needs are continuing to change as her condition progresses, and the time has come where we must reach out to you again to ask your support in helping her to remain connected to her community.

Please bear with us while we explain her story.

Searching for the right equipment

In early 2023, it became apparent that Amy needed to start looking for long term solutions for when she needed to leave the home, as her physical mobility was becoming more and more limited. Not only is this necessary to help her attend medical appointments, but also to stay as involved as possible in her daughters’ lives and participate in her community.

In her research, Amy came across the Braun Turney Evo seat. This is a seat that would be able to be installed in the family car, removed and lowered to allow Amy to transfer into, and then electronically moved back into the car for Amy to be seated in the passenger seat. Amy applied for this seat to be funded by the NDIS, however it was rejected as it wasn’t a long term solution.

While Amy was still able to transfer in and out of her wheelchair with reasonable independence, the Braun Turney seat would allow her to keep living life with her family as normally as possible, as it could be installed in her husband’s ute.

As luck would have it, at the time of reviewing the application a local wheelchair business very generously offered the use of a wheelchair van on an ongoing basis, for as long as she needed it. This would be invaluable for when the time came where she was no longer able to transfer independently. It also meant that because a long term solution was available, the NDIS approved the funding of the Braun Turney seat.

Today’s situation

Fast forward to today and with the decline in Amy’s physical condition, this seat is becoming harder for her to use. As Amy begins to lose strength in her legs and has lost all use of her arms, transfers are becoming increasingly harder, more unsafe and more tiring to complete and she can no longer rely on the Braun Turney seat as an appropriate method of transport.

Amy relies purely on Simon for this mode of travel as only he can transfer her in and out in the way she requires. Because Amy now requires a more heavy-duty wheelchair, it can no longer be stored in the ute when not in use. And because Simon needs the ute to continue working to support the family, Amy’s carers are not able to use it to transport her.

At the same time, she has unfortunately been advised that the gifted wheelchair van is no longer available and she will need to fund this herself. Amy is currently hiring the wheelchair van short term however can’t continue this in the long term due to the financial burden.

All this means that within the next few weeks, Amy will be left without any regular form of transport.

She will be significantly isolated as she will have to limit car trips/places she can go. Living in a rural location increases her isolation and removes any opportunity for Amy to travel when Simon is working, even when her carers are with her. Having access to this van will allow Amy to be transported by the rest of her amazing support network, lessen the burden on Simon and allow her to remain engaged in meaningful activities, safely attend medical appointments, and participate in her daughters’ lives outside of the home.

We are now asking for any generous donations to assist the family with raising funds to purchase their own wheelchair van which would mean the world to them. The use of the wheelchair van allows Amy to remain in her chair and continue to creating those beautiful irreplaceable memories with her family and friends whilst she still can.

Thank you all. If you have any questions or words of support - feel free to reach out.