Wheels for Jay

There is a very important man in my life who needs help. I'm unable to help him alone, so I'm asking for you to join me in getting a mobility scooter for him.

A little background: Many of you know that last year I started down a very difficult journey of the end of my 17 year marriage.  I found myself living alone in a hammock on some property we owned and with more questions than answers about what was next for my life.  I posted on Facebook looking for work mowing lawns, as my part time pizza delivery job just wasn't going to cut it.  Jay answered my post.  He is an elderly and disabled member of our community and needed help with yard work, and as it turned out, a lot of other things too.  Jay doesn't drive anymore so he needs rides to medical appointments, the grocery store, etc.  I worked for him and drove him around and listened to so many amazing stories from his life, and soon he offered me his upstairs to rent, seeing as how he couldn't handle stairs and didn't go up there anyhow.  We made a good team. I was able bodied and had a driver's license and he was a good listener and an empathetic shoulder to cry on as I dealt with a messy divorce and mental health struggles.  He supported me and encouraged me this past year to go back to school and finish my college degree, and to find a permanent spot to live where I could have my children with me again. 

So here it is a year later, and I have the keys to a new townhome and a bachelor's degree and I'm moving forward in really great ways.  Jay is so happy for me, but also sad and worried because he won't have his live in helper anymore.  While I will still be going over there frequently to help him, my thought with this GoFundMe is that we could give Jay back a little bit of his independence and give him a little rosier outlook for the future. 

He has given so much to the community in his life.  He has worked as a historical reenactor at Snake River Fur Post, portraying the mixed-blood voyageur Josef and giving thousands of school children an immersive education in Minnesota and Native American history.  He has also worked extensively with the Native American inmates in area prisons, providing guidance and leading sweat lodge ceremonies so they can pray in their native ways.  He has also worked with children at St. Joseph's Home for Children and in the Braham schools.  He is truly a gem and a feather in Isanti County's hat.  But now he needs our help.

The model of mobility scooter I am looking at has a weight limit that fits his needs, is more all terrain than most to handle his dirt driveway and dirt road, and has a range of 35 miles between charges.  With this scooter he could drive the 7 miles to town and independently get groceries and pick up prescriptions and go to his clinic appointments and visit friends again.  If I had the cash I would just buy this for him in a heartbeat, but since I don't, I'm starting this GoFundMe.  Hopefully we can get Jay wheels again!  Any donations past the $2399 that we need for the scooter will go towards paying for a new roof as his currently leaks pretty bad in multiple places. Thank you for considering and God bless you!

Elizabeth