Help Alex get a wheelchair & more

A message from Tara:

When I started this campaign--reluctantly,  and a bit desperately,  if I am being frank--I started with just what we needed to pay off the balance of my husband's new wheelchair.   I figured that maybe,  if we were lucky,  we MIGHT get somewhere close to it by November.   I never imagine we would blow by that goal in under 10 hours,  through the generosity and love of family and friends.

I debated shutting the campaign down after we met a short stretch goal I set to get Alex a new mattress for the hospital bed he uses.  But friends and family again encouraged me to keep it open.  "Let people help"  they said.   So I stretched the goal just a wee bit more.

This has already gone beyond anything I imagined,  and we are so grateful for those who donated,  and just as much to those who shared the link,  even if they weren't in a position to donate themselves.  

I don't know how far this will go,  but thank you all for your support.

-Tara  xoxox

***Original Campaign Description***

My husband Alex has been in a wheelchair for about 30 years.  Even with the limitations that presents, and the bumps in the road, he has still managed to live a pretty full and mostly independent life.  Until recently.

A series of hospitalizations, starting in January of 2014, has led to him being mostly confined to bed for the majority of the last two-plus years.  In that time, he continued to work full time (from a hospital bed, when necessary) to support his family.

His treating wound care specialist has determined that to help prevent further wounds and infections, the best course of action is for Alex to upgrade from his manual wheelchair to a custom tilting power chair. 

This chair will allow Alex to return to work outside the home, as well as be a part of family and social events that he has had to miss out on, due to his wound issues.  It will also allow him to join family and friends in places that were difficult to traverse in his manual wheelchair, because he will no longer be as limited by uneven terrain, hills, and other obstacles that were previously too difficult to navigate.

As you can imagine, these chairs are quite expensive, and insurance only pays a portion, with a large deductible.  We have made a down payment to have to construction of the chair started, but we must have the balance of the chair paid off by November, or Insurance will cancel the authorization, and we will be back to square one.

Unfortunately, due to oppressive medical bills ($60k and rising) and my inability to work (as I am Alex's full-time caregiver while he is homebound), we may not be able to come up with the funds in the required time frame.

Alex has had to miss out on so many things that people take for granted:  Holiday dinners, family celebrations, school plays, barbecues, and get-togethers.  This new chair would mean so much to not just Alex, but the whole family.

***GOAL UPDATE***

Once we blew past our original goal in about 10 hours, we decided to stretch the goal to include a high quality hospital air mattress to replace the failing mattress Alex has been sleeping on.  Well, we have reached (and blown right by) that goal as well.

We've decided to keep the campaign open and stretched the goal a bit more in the hopes that we can get closer to maybe having a down payment for the converted lift/ramp van Alex will need to be able to be truly independent with his new wheelchair.   I will keep everyone updated,  as often as possible.