Help Juan Adaptively Play Games Again!

Hello everyone!

 

My name is Juan Weathers, I am 34 years old, my diagnosis is Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, and I currently reside in Atlanta where I was born and raised. My favorite hobbies are video games, traveling, enjoying the company of family and friends, creating content on YouTube, learning new things, experiencing different cultures, and most importantly helping others.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to play video games for the past four years as my Duchenne has severely weakened my hands. Not having the ability to play anymore is quite devastating because video games are therapeutic and gives me a chance to interact with my friends. Video games have always been a coping mechanism for me because I get to live through those characters and forget about my hardships for the moment. I really need an outlet especially now while coping with this Covid-19 pandemic because has greatly affected my social life and it's depressing staying confined at home.

I’ve been searching for assistive technology the past few years and been on a waiting list of Able-Gamers for assistance almost 2 years. But I have recently found the answer for accommodating my needs in the Makey Makey Keyboard. Unfortunately, this technology isn’t compatible with my gaming consoles and my laptop doesn’t have the capability to play the games that I love (Call of Duty, NBA2K, Fortnite, Mario, Zelda).

The Gaming PC (Skytech Chronos Gaming PC Desktop ) that I am wanting to obtain will cost $2500 and materials for the custom build will cost approximately $1200. The materials will build the platforms and custom buttons needed to play games utilizing my mouth, fingers, and toes. If you could please help me fund this endeavor then I will forever be thankful. Not only will this endeavor give me the ability to experience the therapeutic benefits of playing games once more, but it’ll also give me the ability to game stream with my other friends who have Muscular Dystrophy.

Our goal is to bring more awareness to the Muscular Dystrophy as well as disabled communities pertaining to our talents that often get overlooked; and educate people on the benefits of gaming for ourselves. Hopefully this game streaming endeavor that my friends and I are planning will pay-off in the form of paying it forward by helping others with disabilities get the assistance they need to game.

I will keep you all updated (photos, videos, thank notes) along the way of this journey to enjoying my favorite hobby again! Thank you for spending some of your precious time to read my story. If you donate, you're incredible; if you shared my story, you're awesome; and if you read my story, you're appreciated. At the end of the day, I love you all equally and appreciate each one of you all. Peace and love!

 

Sincerely yours,

Juan aka Mikey

 

P.S. if you'd like to check out my YouTube channel it's linked below!

 

Pure Gluttony With Mikey